Iowa Football – The Joe Moore Award, and its Significance to Kirk Ferentz and the Hawkeyes

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Teamwork. With a roster of 105 players coming from diverse backgrounds, it’s what defines football as a sport.

The prestigious Joe Moore Award, given annually to the most outstanding offensive line unit in college football, is unique in multiple ways. It is the only major award in the sport that recognizes an entire group rather than an individual player. The physical trophy itself is also unique, standing at seven feet tall and weighing over 800 pounds, making it the largest trophy in college sports. The award is named after legendary offensive line coach Joe Moore, who coached at Notre Dame and Pittsburgh.

The Iowa Hawkeyes football team have won the Joe Moore Award two times, capturing the trophy in 2016 and 2025. By winning it twice, Iowa joined Alabama and Michigan as the only programs in college football history to win the award multiple times.

From 2025’s award winning group, three players went on to be drafted into the NFL: Logan Jones (Center – Chicago Bears), Gennings Dunker (Tackle – Pittsburg Steelers), and Beau Stevens (Guard – Seattle Seahawks). With so much talent graduating, it would seem foolish to predict that this year’s offensive line group could repeat, yet Jake Butt (Big Ten Network / ESPN Analyst) stated his belief that Iowa’s offensive line will be in strong contention for the Joe Moore Award once again during his offseason training camp tours. Indeed, The Joe Moore Award Committee placed the Hawkeyes on the 2026 Preseason Watch List when it was released this week.

Having won the award twice sets a high standard, and the potential to win it a record third time is significant motivation for the group. So, there’s a clear connection to this unit, but what about its significance to Kirk Fertentz?

Before Joe Moore joined the staff at Pitt, he was head coach at Upper St. Clair High School in suburban Pittsburgh. From 1972-1975 Moore’s Upper St. Clair teams were a combined 32-6-2. The defensive captain of Moore’s first Upper St. Clair team in 1972? Kirk Ferentz.

Moore later hired Ferentz as a graduate assistant on Jackie Sherrill’s Pittsburgh staff in 1980, for his first break into the college coaching ranks. Ferentz thoroughly enjoyed working with Moore, and his original plan was to stay at Pitt. However, after just one season, Iowa head coach Hayden Fry was looking for an offensive line coach. Joe Moore called and gave Fry a glowing recommendation for Ferentz. Hayden Fry trusted Joe Moore’s professional opinion so deeply that he hired the 25-year-old Ferentz in 1981—launching Ferentz’s historic career in Iowa City.

Ferentz frequently cites Moore as one of the most influential people in his life, and the primary reason he decided to pursue a life in coaching.

And now you know … the rest of the story.

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