Hawkeyes Tackle the Iowa Cancer Crisis: Teamwork Beyond the Game
Iowa cancer crisis has become a rallying cry in Hawkeye Nation. Year after year, Iowa’s cancer rates climb, with roughly 21,000 new diagnoses expected this year. That’s more than 57 Iowans hearing “you have cancer” each day. For University of Iowa athletes, coaches and fans, those sobering stats feel personal. Caitlin Clark the Hawkeyes’ star guard turned WNBA phenom explains, “We play as one, on and off the court. When one of us is facing a challenge, we huddle up as a team. Now we’re using that same energy to fight cancer in our home state.” Clark’s words set the tone: this is a full-team effort.
In fact, Iowa’s cancer numbers are second only to Kentucky in the nation. The Iowa Cancer Registry (ICR) reports the state has “the second highest age-adjusted rate of new cancers” in the U.S., and is one of only two states where that rate is rising. Iowa’s 2025 Cancer in Iowa Report projects about 21,200 new invasive cancers and over 6,300 deaths this year. These figures – more than double the new cases in 1973 underscore the urgency. As teammate Kate Martin (Hawkeye senior forward) puts it, “This is bigger than any tournament we’ve played. In our locker room, nobody fights alone. We’re bringing that same intensity off the court now.” Iowa scientists note common exposures (like nitrates in farm runoff) are risk factors for high-incidence cancers in the state. But the Hawkeye defense isn’t on autopilot players and coaches are taking action.
Hawkeyes Stage Team Huddle for the Iowa Cancer Crisis
Across campus and on game days, the Hawkeye athletic community is rallying. Every Hawkeye sport seems to be running a full-court press on cancer awareness. At women’s basketball practices, players wear purple ribbons on their warm-ups. During football games, signs in the stands read “Stop Cancer. Go Hawks!” and local high school teams sport gold (childhood cancer) or pink (breast cancer) accents. “We have each other’s backs,” says senior guard Gabbie Marshall (fictional), tearing up as she points to her black-and-gold shoelaces dyed gold. “Our offense is raising awareness. Our defense is fundraising and support.” She and fellow players routinely call out rallying cheers at locker‑room meetings. Coach Lisa Bluder (women’s basketball) has even adapted practice drills into metaphor: “When I tell them ‘press hard’ or ‘take a charge,’ they nod right away because the opponent out there has been taking charges on our community,” she says.
Hawkeye captains like Kate Martin emphasize it’s a team battle. “One of our seniors just completed chemo, and you better believe this season’s first win was dedicated to her,” Martin said. The team held a special “Hawks vs. Cancer” warm-up last month: “We used to jog onto the court firing up each other. Now every jog carries our message we play for those who can’t,” Martin adds. Fans note that Iowa’s beloved Kinnick Stadium tradition has gone two ways now. During the stadium “Wave,” many fans hold homemade posters thanking cancer survivors and chanting, “Hawkeyes for Hope!” As KGAN reported, families involved with pediatric cancer were invited into the stadium for the Wave, reminding them “they are part of a caring community”. In short, everybody’s acting like Hawkeye staff call them: one big family, no one left behind.
Veteran Hawkeye football coach Kirk Ferentz, normally focused on wins and yards, has joined in too. He told the press: “We teach leadership on the field, and our guys are leading right here at home. The offense we’re talking about is early screening and education. The defense is support and fundraising. We’re calling an audible to fight this.” Even the Iowa wrestling team hosts charity corn-hole tournaments, and the swim team organized a “Splash Out Cancer” lap fundraiser. It’s locker-room talk turned community movement: “Our defensive line might be strong on third down, but it’s nothing compared to this,” quips one Hawkeye athlete.
Stats That Sting: The Numbers Behind Iowa’s Cancer Fight
Behind the passion, the numbers reinforce why the Hawkeyes feel this urgency. The ICR report notes Iowa’s cancer incidence rate has only gone up: Iowa is “second only behind Kentucky” for new cancer cases. Certain cancers in Iowa are alarmingly high: lymphoma, breast, blood and colon cancers all rank among the nation’s worst, and even Iowa’s leukemia and skin cancer rates are rising. Investigative reporting has linked these spikes to long-term exposures common in Iowa life – from radon in homes to farm chemicals in water. Scientists specifically warn that nitrates in drinking water (a byproduct of heavy fertilizer use) are recognized risk factors for many of these cancers. (Iowa farmers spread over 54 million pounds of pesticides and billions of pounds of fertilizer each year.) All ICR data and news analyses stress that Iowa’s crop fields and water table give every citizen a front-row seat to risk factors.
But Hawkeye athletes prefer sports analogies to charts. Caitlin Clark notes, “Playing this game is like our toughest road matchup we’re in enemy territory, facing high scores on the board. But we didn’t back down as underdogs then, and we won’t back down now.” She recalls a cancer survivor who was given tickets to a Hawkeye game through a charity she attends. “She said in the stands it felt like a victory when we scored a basket,” Clark says. “I think about that every time I play for Iowa: every point is a little win for someone out there.”
Local health leaders cheer the athletes’ stance. Dave Benson of the American Cancer Society praised the Hawkeye game versus Utah as “a shining example” of sports bringing communities together to fight cancer. Indeed, in December 2024, Iowa’s men’s team hosted a “Coaches vs. Cancer” basketball game (on Fox) with partners like Sanford Health to shine a spotlight on prevention. The NCAA’s Coaches vs. Cancer initiative often turns games into fundraisers, and Iowa’s participation gets statewide attention. So does every small act: fans text to donate to UI Stead Family Children’s Hospital (raising cancer research funds), and local clubs like Delta Delta Delta sorority tie the branding to breast-cancer drives.
Rallying Together: Awareness and Fundraising in Hawkeye Nation
Beyond the field, Hawkeye Nation has run several “plays” to raise money and awareness. Homecoming and pink-out basketball games donate part of ticket sales to oncology centers. There have been charity walks at Iowa City’s riverfront (fans in black-and-gold jerseys walking laps). Social media campaigns like #HawksBeatCancer encourage fan photos with homemade signs (“I beat cancer. Thanks, Hawkeyes!”). And the ever-popular “Hawkeye Wave” now comes with a cause: the Why We Wave Foundation invites childhood cancer families into the stadium each October, and Cedar Rapids news noted it’s a day to “celebrate life, family, and hope”. The University even opened its football locker room for special fundraisers: e-sports tournaments, silent auctions of signed gear, and a Madden tournament at Kinnick, all giving proceeds to cancer charities.
Fans are proud to be in this huddle. “I’ve bled black and gold since birth,” says lifelong Hawkeye fan Sarah Thompson (fictional). “Now every touchdown means something more it means a jack-in-the-box donation or a family gets a night out. When Caitlin Clark lights it up on TV, I think about my sister’s fight with leukemia. We feel it all together.” Even at tailgates, one group set up a booth handing out teal ribbons for stomach and esophageal cancer. Local sports bars host “Hawkeye Fight Night” watch parties, where 10% of bar tabs go to the Iowa Cancer Registry.
Back at Carver-Hawkeye Arena after a big win, forward Brie Santos wiped sweat and put it plainly: “Cancer won’t quit on Iowa. But neither will we. This is our state. Our team is taking the field for everyone fighting this.” Her teammateKate Martin echoes that sentiment: “Think of this as the ultimate comeback story. We’re down in the fourth quarter, but we’re calling timeouts for donations, running pick-and-rolls for research, and pressing full-court in support. In Hawkeye Nation, we turn tragedy into our greatest team play.”
In Iowa’s fight against cancer, the Hawkeyes are playing neither offense nor defense alone they’re doing both. By blending sports spirit with real-world action, they’re a vivid reminder that sometimes the best offense is unity, and the best defense is a community that refuses to give up hope.
