Making the Hawkeye family a family
Brendan Stiles - The Daily Iowan
Issue date: 9/21/07 Section: PreGame
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It was always Wally Hilgenberg's dream to play for the Iowa Hawkeyes.
His older brother, Jerry, was a center at Iowa and the first player ever recruited by former coach Forest Evashevski. Growing up in the small Iowa town of Wilton Junction, Hilgenberg always wanted to be like his sibling.
"He had a great deal of success at Iowa, and I kind of wanted to follow in his footsteps," Hilgenberg said. "Growing up in Wilton Junction, with Iowa City being 30 miles away, I couldn't think of anything that would be more exciting to me than to be a Hawkeye."
Although college-football players back then played on both sides, Hilgenberg became best known for what he did as a linebacker. Jerry Burns, who was Hilgenberg's head coach at Iowa, called him "a complete team player."
"He was very athletic, well-built, and a very competitive type of player," Burns said. "He was a linebacker for us and did an outstanding job. He was a very, very intelligent football player."
By his senior season, Hilgenberg was the team's co-captain, a title he shared with teammate Paul Krause. Hilgenberg was drafted by the Detroit Lions in 1964, and he played his first four seasons in the Motor City.
In what ended up being his final season with the Lions, Hilgenberg suffered a leg injury in the preseason that kept him out during all of 1967. He was then traded to Pittsburgh, but Hilgenberg never played for the Steelers because he and the team were at opposite ends of the spectrum with his contract.
Hilgenberg next received a call from Jim Finks, who was then the general manager for the Minnesota Vikings. After a 45-minute conversation with Finks, Hilgenberg signed with Minnesota, where he spent the remaining 12 years of his career.
Not only did Hilgenberg have a fresh start with the Vikings, but he was around familiar faces. That same off-season, the Vikings acquired Krause in a trade with the Washington Redskins, and Bud Grant added Burns to his coaching staff.
His older brother, Jerry, was a center at Iowa and the first player ever recruited by former coach Forest Evashevski. Growing up in the small Iowa town of Wilton Junction, Hilgenberg always wanted to be like his sibling.
"He had a great deal of success at Iowa, and I kind of wanted to follow in his footsteps," Hilgenberg said. "Growing up in Wilton Junction, with Iowa City being 30 miles away, I couldn't think of anything that would be more exciting to me than to be a Hawkeye."
Although college-football players back then played on both sides, Hilgenberg became best known for what he did as a linebacker. Jerry Burns, who was Hilgenberg's head coach at Iowa, called him "a complete team player."
"He was very athletic, well-built, and a very competitive type of player," Burns said. "He was a linebacker for us and did an outstanding job. He was a very, very intelligent football player."
By his senior season, Hilgenberg was the team's co-captain, a title he shared with teammate Paul Krause. Hilgenberg was drafted by the Detroit Lions in 1964, and he played his first four seasons in the Motor City.
In what ended up being his final season with the Lions, Hilgenberg suffered a leg injury in the preseason that kept him out during all of 1967. He was then traded to Pittsburgh, but Hilgenberg never played for the Steelers because he and the team were at opposite ends of the spectrum with his contract.
Hilgenberg next received a call from Jim Finks, who was then the general manager for the Minnesota Vikings. After a 45-minute conversation with Finks, Hilgenberg signed with Minnesota, where he spent the remaining 12 years of his career.
Not only did Hilgenberg have a fresh start with the Vikings, but he was around familiar faces. That same off-season, the Vikings acquired Krause in a trade with the Washington Redskins, and Bud Grant added Burns to his coaching staff.
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