'Work the Hardest the Longest': Iowa Football's Mantra Embodies the Hawkeyes

They may not win every big game, but there is no doubt in anyone's mind that the Iowa Hawkeyes are going to come at you full force for four quarters, making you earn every single yard and every single play.

It's part of what makes Iowa such a tough matchup for anyone. Rarely are they the fastest, strongest, or most talented team, but it's not often that they lose the battle of physicality. It's one of the pillars Iowa's foundation is built upon.

Kirk Ferentz elaborated on the Hawkeyes' mantra and its origin.

Work the Hardest the Longest

The mantra didn't come from Kirk Ferentz, though. It came from one of Iowa's newest hires, who is anything but new to the game of football: Tom Moore.

The Senior Consultant to Kirk Ferentz this year began his coaching career at Iowa in 1961 and is coming full circle by being back with the Hawkeyes. He provided this mantra.

"It's kind of a Tom Mooreism. It's really what the game boils down to typically; it's about -- you expect it to be tough, and then just understand you're going to have to go the full 60, maybe more than that, to get it done.

"The longest part, like the fourth quarter doesn't matter if you don't play well going up to – you have to give yourself a chance. That's kind of the evolution of the whole thing, I believe. Then the players picked it," said Ferentz when explaining Iowa's mantra.

Iowa embodies this mantra

Defensive back Jaylen Watson, who is starting for the Hawkeyes this year at cornerback, elaborated on the quote, detailing how it is everything that makes the Hawkeyes the Hawkeyes.

One of the mottos @HawkeyeFootball lives by is "Play the hardest the longest."

That mantra showed up in Saturday's grind-it-out win over a physical Iowa State team - the type of game a young team needs to learn about its resolve. pic.twitter.com/zqbh2fyvkp
— Mitch Fick (@MCFick) September 15, 2026

"Like I have on the back of this hoodie, 'Who plays the hardest the longest?' and that's the biggest motto that Coach Ferentz says to us.

"Iowa State didn't start good for us. It was 10-0, but nobody blinked, nobody flinched. We all clawed back and were able to do our job to come out with a win," Jaylen Watson said of the Hawkeyes' mantra.

Iowa's mantra will undoubtedly be tested this season at times, and could be as soon as a Week 4 matchup on the road against the Michigan Wolverines to open up Big Ten play.

The Hawkeyes have displayed the ability to outwork better teams in the past. If this team wants to take the next step to being a College Football Playoff contender, it is going to have to do it again this season.

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