Great teamwork in Kinnick Stadium

Gazette Editorial Board

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It will be a hard act to top. Another reason fans consider Kinnick Stadium a special place to be on game days.

No, not the University of Iowa football team's performance, although the Hawkeyes did post a gratifying victory over recent nemesis Northwestern on a near-perfect fall evening last Saturday.

This is about the pregame card stunts. Actually, the word “stunt” doesn't do justice to what virtually all of 70,000-plus fans collectively produced.

First came a red-white-and-blue display using the big, two-sided cards (with viewing slots so the user can witness the scene without compromising the overall image). Then it was a black-and-gold effect as a salute to American farmers.

Fans kept talking about how well it all came off. Other schools are inquiring about how it was done, The Gazette has reported.

Like any great football victory, it took a lot of teamwork, support and some expertise.

JacobDavis Productions of Orlando, Fla., provided the latter and was an obvious choice after producing card stunts at three Super Bowls, a NASCAR race event where 130,000 fans took part and many other sporting events. The Florida company and the UI enlisted about 300 volunteers from Iowa City West High School and the UI Dance Marathon student organization. They spent hours taping the cards to Kinnick's seats.

Credit the fans for their synchronized performance, too.

Of course, there was a cost to doing this - about $80,000, UI officials told The Gazette. Support from the Iowa Farm Bureau and some other donations helped cover that.

Was the investment worth it?

Well, try to find a fan who didn't have fun participating and watching. Or many who won't remember the experience when considering whether to order game tickets for next season.

And then there's the marketing value for the UI - hard to put an exact price tag on it, but it's fair to say it easily tops $80,000.

Good show!

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