Failure makes us enjoy and appreciate success. I am not sure who originally uttered those words, but members of the Iowa Football team who were taking the field back in 1999 sure can identify with them.

It was the first season with Kirk Ferentz at the helm and it was long. Iowa had but one lonely win all season, coming against Northern Illinois on Hayden Fry Night. There were no Big Ten wins in 1999.

There were guys like Bruce Nelson, then a red shirt freshman from Emmetsburg, Iowa started all 11 games as a 250-pound offensive lineman. Guys like Colin Cole, who as a true freshman worked his way into the lineup and played in nine of the eleven games that year. Guys who early on had their share of sand kicked in their face.

Those same young men are now veterans and the only sand getting airborne is coming courtesy off the feet of several Hawkeyes.

Saturday will be the final home game for Nelson, Cole and all of the other seniors. These men have paid their dues, made the sacrifices and most importantly, believed in the coaches and themselves. They are living examples that prove if you work hard as a team, success will be the reward, no matter how steep the hill might look.

Nelson, who has started every game since 1999, knows very well the road he and his teammates have traveled.

“You know when you are a freshman and you think, ‘how are we ever going to get though this?’ We could not get it over soon enough. Now when we are having a fun and having an enjoyable season, we don’t want it to end.” Nelson said.

Nelson knows the success this group of Hawkeyes is experiencing has not come easy.

“It (success) has not come without a lot of bumps in the road and bruises along the way. I think it’s a real complement to the guys who have stuck it out and who have helped to build the character that this team has.”

For Nelson, Saturday will be the culmination of years of hard work and sharing a moment with the two most important people in his life, his parents.

“It is going to be really tough when I see my parents out there… it’s going to be an emotional day. It will be a lot of fun, but real tough as well.” Nelson said.

One thing Nelson knows he will be able to count on in life is the bond he has with his teammates, especially the guys who have worked the trenches with him the past four years.

“We will certainly have a bond in the future and many memories to share. If you were to ask me this question before this year I probably would have said ‘I am not sure, they are my good friends but I am not sure it would go down the road.’

“With this year and the success that this team has had, there is no doubt that we are going to be friends down the road and for a lifetime.”

He is speaking about David Porter, Eric Steinbach, Andy Lightfoot, Ben Sobieski and the young pup of the bunch, Robert Gallery. They have been the ‘building blockers’ for this Hawkeye dream season.

Colin Cole was thrown to the wolves early and often, too. He and fellow Floridian Fred Barr were playing a lot as true freshman. At a time when most freshman footballers spend their initial year of college adjusting during a red shirt year, Cole and Barr were simply too good to sit out in 1999. Basically, they were the best options Iowa had available.

Cole knew coming to Iowa meant helping to rebuild a damaged tradition from day one.

“That is one of the main reasons that I came to Iowa. They were a struggling program and we could be the key to turning this team around and now I think we have done that.” Cole said.

Cole is not shy about embracing the tradition that he and his fellow seniors re-established at Iowa.

“We have started another tradition here that is going to continue after we are gone. We can honestly say that we were the guys who started this new tradition.”

For Cole, Saturday will be the culmination of a job well done. Just when it starts to get real fun, Cole and the other seniors are going to be asked to leave.

Somehow that seems unfair.

But, for Cole, Nelson and all of the seniors, they will be able to smile at a job well done and remind the junior class that the Hawkeye Tradition is back and they will be handed the torch, something head coach Kirk Ferentz begrudgingly acknowledged after the Wisconsin win.

“It (the seniors final games) has always been emotional every time for me. That goes back to the 1980’s and ever since I came back. Any time you see guys who have done so much and sacrificed so much from the program and the university. It is always hard to lose them, but in the same breath you want to wish them success in the future,” Ferentz said.

He was quick to point out that they are not going anywhere until “sometime after the first of the year”. You get the sense that Ferentz would like to keep this special team together as long as possible and savor every last second of this historic season.

And that has made all the difference." Robert Frost

The best ‘send off’ for this group of seniors would be for the fans to all rise as one and cheer as loudly as possible. Then cheer even louder when Herky, Coach Ferentz and his staff push a cart that carries a giant rock.

Then have each senior grab a hammer and take one good shot. There is no doubt that they can get the job done. In 2002, you have been witness to their leadership and they set the groundwork for attempting to ‘break the rock’ several years ago. The seniors of 2000, 2001 and the current juniors and sophomores have all earned a spot near and dear in the hearts of the Hawkeye faithful.

But these seniors, these 'unforgettables' have nearly seen that mission through to the end, but not quite the end. There are still three more games left; three precious commodities for each of them to cherish the rest of the lives.

Thanks to all of the seniors for being the leaders in one of the greatest seasons in Iowa Football History.

If you have a chance to go to this game, try your best to make it there. These seniors showed up each and ever day over the course of the last several years, including those players who never garnered the headlines, taking the road less traveled. That road is never an easy journey, but it has proven to be rewarding possibly beyond even the players wildest expectations.

Thanks:

Fred Barr

Colin Cole

Scott Boleyn

DJ Johnson

Bruce Nelson

Andy Lightfoot

Derek Pagel

David Porter

Ben Sobieski

Eric Steinbach

Pete Traynor

Brad Banks

CJ Jones

Marqueas McLaurin

Will Lack

Scott Webb

Erik Chinander

Jason Hoveland

John Morcheiser, II

Tony Burrier

Adam Densmore

Ryan Molinaro

OJ Payne

David Raih

John Mickelson

(note: the names listed were provided by the Iowa Sports Information Department as players who will be playing in their final home game this Saturday)