homecoming firsts

First Homecoming celebration:  1912

First pep rally:  1912

First Homecoming game win (against Kansas State):  1917

First use of "Fight, Ames, Fight”:  1920

First radio broadcast during homecoming:  1921

First Homecoming parade: 1923

First Push-Ball contest: 1927

First Homecoming BBQ:  October 31, 1930

First Homecoming Queen:  1933

First Homecoming King:  1952

First Yell-Like-Hell: 1963

First Storefront painting:  1975

First Mass Campaniling:  1977

First night game at Jack Trice Stadium:  1984

 

other information

Please visit our website for additional information on the Special Collections Department, Iowa State University Library.

homecoming games: fun facts

1985 Homecoming game - team entering fieldCyclones entering the field for the 1985 Homecoming game against the University of Kansas.

Since its beginnings, all Homecoming events ultimately lead to that Saturday football game on our home turf when students, alumni, community members, and all Iowa State fans come together to root for the Cyclones. While we can't possibly describe each and every play, in addition to the excitement and energy of the Cyclone fans, below are a few fun facts about several Homecoming games.

First Homecoming game win: November 10, 1917 game against Kansas State University (10-7).

First radio broadcast for a Homecoming game: 1921, when we played the University of Nebraska.

First Homecoming tie: November 7, 1925, against Grinnell College with a final score of 9-9. 

The Dirty Thirty's Homecoming game: The Cyclones beat Kansas State with a huge win at the 1959 Homecoming:  26-0.  The 1959 football team would become known as the "Dirty Thirty".  By the start of the 1959 season, the Iowa State Football Team was down to thirty members from its original fifty-five. Although the team was lacking in number, they more than made up for it in perseverance and "hard-nosed" play.  Led by Coach Clay Stapleton, the team had given Iowa State its best season in twenty years, with a record of 7-3.

Jack Trice Stadium groundbreaking: The groundbreaking for the new Jack Trice Stadium took place on October 26th during the 1973 Homecoming celebrations. It opened on September 20, 1975.

First night game: Homecoming 1984 was a bit different for ISU football fans. Iowa State played Oklahoma in the first night game at Iowa State, televised by ESPN at 6:45 pm. While some Cyclone fans were left scrambling to change their plans for the evening, local merchants appreciated the time change because earlier game times usually fell during their business hours. The change also presented some challenges for ISU, including lighting. An Oskaloosa business provided lighting that allowed more light for ESPN cameras, players, and fans. The Cyclones practiced with the extra lighting for two days so that it would not pose any problems for the team during the game, and postgame the lights were turned toward the parking lots to help fans better navigate their way out of the stadium.

homecoming games

Wondering who the Cyclones have played since the first 1912 Homecoming? Included below is a table for all Homecoming games (except for 1918, when Homecoming was cancelled due to the Spanish Influenza epidemic which hit campus that fall and caused all football games to be cancelled for the rest of the season - please visit our History of Iowa State online exhibit for more information on the epidemic).

 

Year

Date

Football Game Opponent

Score

1912

11/16/1912

University of Iowa

L (7-20)

1913

11/1/1913

University of Iowa

L (7-45)

1914

11/14/1914

University of Iowa

L (6-26)

1915

10/30/1915

University of Nebraska

L (0-21)

1916

11/18/1916

University of Iowa

L (16-19)

1917

11/10/1917

Kansas State University

W (10-7)

1918


Flu Epidemic (No Home Games)


1919

11/15/1919

Kansas State University

W (46-0)

1920

11/20/1920

University of Iowa

L (10-14)

1921

11/19/1921

University of Nebraska

L (3-35)

1922

10/14/1922

University of Missouri

L (3-6)

1923

11/17/1923

University of Nebraska

L (14-26)

1924

10/18/1924

University of Missouri

L (0-7)

1925

11/7/1925

Grinnell College

Tie (9-9)

1926

11/13/1926

Drake University

W (13-7)

1927

10/29/1927

Kansas State University

W (12-7)

1928

11/3/1928

University of Oklahoma

W (13-0)

1929

10/26/1929

University of Kansas

L (0-33)

1930

11/1/1930

University of Oklahoma

L (13-19)

1931

10/24/1931

University of Missouri

W (20-0)

1932

10/15/1932

University of Kansas

L (0-26)

1933

10/28/1933

University of Missouri

W (14-7)

1934

11/3/1934

University of Kansas

Tie (0-0)

1935

10/26/1935

University of Missouri

Tie (6-6)

1936

10/31/1936

University of Oklahoma

Tie (7-7)

1937

10/30/1937

University of Missouri

L (0-12)

1938

10/22/1938

University of Kansas

W (21-7)

1939

10/28/1939

University of Missouri

L (6-21)

1940

10/26/1940

University of Oklahoma

L (7-20)

1941

10/18/1941

University of Missouri

L (13-39)

1942

10/31/1942

University of Oklahoma

L (7-14)

1943

11/6/1943

University of Missouri

L (7-25)

1944

11/4/1944

University of Oklahoma

L (7-12)

1945

10/20/1945

University of Nebraska

W (27-7)

1946

10/26/1946

University of Oklahoma

L (0-63)

1947

10/25/1947

University of Missouri

L (7-26)

1948

10/16/1948

University of Colorado

W (18-7)

1949

10/15/1949

Kansas State University

W (25-21)

1950

10/14/1950

University of Kansas

L (21-33)

1951

10/13/1951

Kansas State University

W (32-6)

1952

10/18/1952

University of Colorado

L (12-21)

1953

10/17/1953

University of Missouri

W (13-6)

1954

10/16/1954

University of Colorado

L (0-20)

1955

10/22/1955

Kansas State University

L (7-9)

1956

10/20/1956

University of Colorado

L (0-52)

1957

10/26/1957

Kansas State University

L (10-14)

1958

10/11/1958

University of Kansas

L (0-7)

1959

10/24/1959

Kansas State University

W (26-0)

1960

10/15/1960

University of Colorado

L (6-21)

1961

10/28/1961

Kansas State University

W (31-7)

1962

10/13/1962

University of Kansas

L (8-29)

1963

11/2/1963

Oklahoma State University

W (33-28)

1964

10/17/1964

University of Colorado

L (7-14)

1965

10/30/1965

Oklahoma State University

W (14-10)

1966

10/15/1966

University of Colorado

L (21-41)

1967

10/21/1967

University of Missouri

L (7-23)

1968

10/26/1968

University of Kansas

L (25-46)

1969

10/25/1969

University of Kansas

W (44-20)

1970

10/31/1970

University of Oklahoma

L (28-29)

1971

10/23/1971

University of Kansas

W (40-24)

1972

11/4/1972

University of Oklahoma

L (6-20)

1973

10/27/1973

University of Kansas

L (20-22)

1974

10/19/1974

Kansas State University

W (23-18)

1975

11/1/1975

University of Colorado

L (27-28)

1976

10/30/1976

Kansas State University

W (45-14)

1977

10/29/1977

University of Kansas

W (41-3)

1978

11/4/1978

Kansas State University

W (24-0)

1979

10/20/1979

University of Kansas

L (7-24)

1980

10/11/1980

Kansas State University

W (31-7)

1981

10/17/1981

University of Missouri

W (34-13)

1982

10/30/1982

Kansas State University

L (3-9)

1983

10/15/1983

University of Colorado

W (22-10)

1984

10/20/1984

University of Oklahoma

L (10-12)

1985

10/12/1985

University of Kansas

W (22-21)

1986

10/4/1986

University of Wyoming

W (21-10)

1987

10/31/1987

University of Colorado

L (10-43)

1988

10/22/1988

University of Kansas

W (42-14)

1989

10/14/1989

University of Colorado

L (17-52)

1990

10/6/1990

University of Kansas

T (34-34)

1991

10/26/1991

Oklahoma State University

T (6-6)

1992

10/17/1992

University of Kansas

L (47-50)

1993

10/23/1993

Oklahoma State University

W (20-17)

1994

10/15/1994

University of Kansas

L (23-41)

1995

10/21/1995

University of Colorado

L (28-50)

1996

9/28/1996

University of Missouri

W (45-31)

1997

10/25/1997

Baylor University

W (24-17)

1998

10/10/1998

University of Missouri

L (19-35)

1999

10/30/1999

University of Texas

L (41-44)

2000

10/21/2000

Texas A&M University

L (7-30)

2001

10/20/2001

Oklahoma State University

W (28-24)

2002

10/12/2002

Texas Tech University

W (31-17)

2003

10/18/2003

University of Texas

L (19-40)

2004

10/9/2004

Texas A&M University

L (3-34)

2005

10/22/2005

Oklahoma State University

W (37-10)

2006

10/21/2006

Texas Tech University

L (26-42)

2007

10/20/2007

University of Oklahoma

L (7-17)

2008

10/25/2008

Texas A&M University

L (35-49)

2009

10/17/2009

Baylor University

W (24-10)

2010

10/30/2010

University of Kansas

W (29-16)

2011

10/22/2011

Texas A&M University

L (17-33)

 

1985 football game balloon celebrationBalloon celebration at the 1985 Homecoming game against the University of Kansas. The game was a win for the Cyclones: 22-21.