Sept. 19, 2013
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IOWA CITY, Iowa — Former Hawkeye running back Eddie Phillips will serve as Iowa’s honorary captain this weekend when the University of Iowa hosts Western Michigan (11:01 a.m., BTN) in Kinnick Stadium.
Phillips was a four-year letterman for the Hawkeyes (1980-83) who concluded his career as Iowa’s all-time leading rusher. Phillips completed his Iowa career with 2,177 rushing yards on 465 attempts, scoring 19 touchdowns while averaging 4.7 yards per rush. Phillips currently ranks ninth in career rushing yards and 17th in all-purpose yards (2,659).
Despite missing several games in his final two seasons, the Chicago native (Simeon HS) was one of Iowa’s most durable running backs. He rushed for 778 yards as a senior and 806 yards as a junior, despite missing several games each season due to injury.
Phillips had a single-game rushing best of 36 carries for 198 yards and a touchdown in a 21-16 win over Minnesota as a junior. He would come back the following year to rush 17 times for 172 yards while scoring three touchdowns in a 61-10 win over the Gophers, scoring on an 80-yard run on Iowa’s first offensive play of the game. Phillips is one of only four running backs in Iowa history to have more than 35 rushing attempts in a game (Sedrick Shaw twice, Dennis Mosley, Albert Young).
Phillips was honorable mention all-Big Ten as a senior after being named second team All-America by The Sporting News as a junior. He was sixth in the Big Ten in rushing yards and 10th in all-purpose yards as a senior.
Phillips will accompany the Iowa captains to the center of the field for Saturday’s pregame coin toss. He will also be with the Hawkeyes in the locker room before and after the game, and on the sidelines during the contest.