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Football / September 2, 2021
WEST DES MOINES, Iowa — Iowa Farm Bureau and the University of
Iowa Athletics Department recognize former Hawkeye great and 13-year NFL star
Marshal Yanda as the 2021 America Needs Farmers (ANF) addition to the
Wall of Honor. Yanda is the ninth recipient of the ANF Wall of Honor, which
salutes former University of Iowa football players who exemplify the tenacity,
work ethic and character of the Iowa farmer.
Iowa Farm
Bureau and the Hawkeyes will celebrate America’s farmers and the important role
agriculture plays in our daily lives during the annual ANF Game Day, Saturday,
Oct. 9 at Kinnick Stadium. Yanda,
a native Iowan and decorated former NFL All-Pro guard, represents the fifth
generation raised on his family’s dairy farm five miles north of Anamosa, and
he credits his on-field success to his farm upbringing and watching his parents
work diligently milking cows twice a day, 365 days a year.
“The
things I learned growing up on the farm, like pride and work ethic, took me to
the highest level of professional sports and winning a Super Bowl, but that all
started right here on the farm,” said Yanda. “Those values were instilled
in me by my parents and it’s how I live my life today, and I still carry those
lessons with me every day.”
Long before reaching the pinnacle of
professional football and hoisting the Lombardi Trophy following the Baltimore
Ravens’ 2012 Super Bowl win, Yanda was an Iowa farm kid with tenacity and a
dream. Yanda was a star player for North Iowa Area Community College (NIACC)
during his freshman and sophomore collegiate seasons, but nobody envisioned
that a decade later Yanda would be widely considered one of the best offensive
linemen in the NFL. Following two years at NIACC, Yanda transferred to
the University of Iowa to play his final two seasons for Moon Family head coach
Kirk Ferentz and collected numerous awards and accolades before being selected
in the third round of the NFL draft. Yanda credits that success to the work
ethic he learned from his parents on the farm. The commitment to
continuous improvement that embodied Yanda’s football career is something he
also sees in agriculture.
“Farmers
are always trying to do better and improve the care for the animals; treating
animals with care and respect is how we make our living,” Yanda said. “There
are a lot of farmers doing great things and working to make things better every
day, and it’s great to be a part of.”
Previous
ANF Wall of Honor recipients include Casey Wiegmann (2012), Jared DeVries
(2013), Bruce Nelson (2014), Robert Gallery (2015), Dallas Clark (2016), Chad
Greenway (2017), Aaron Kampman (2018) and Matt Kroul (2019).
“Agriculture
is a huge part of our daily lives. From buying vegetables and meat in the
grocery store to just needing food and fuel to live, it’s clear that everything
comes from farming,” said Yanda. “I’m happy to be a part of ANF to help
shed some light on the importance of farming.”
A gold
ANF decal was placed on players’ helmets during the Hawkeyes’ 1985 Rose Bowl season
by head coach Hayden Fry to show support for farmers during the 1980’s Farm
Crisis. The Hawkeye helmets still have the special decal on them today. This
year marks the 36th anniversary of ANF, a longstanding tribute to America’s
farmers, and the 10th year IFBF and the University of Iowa have partnered to
help connect Iowa’s farm families to consumers to learn more about the
production of food, fuel and fiber.
“The
annual ANF game is a great opportunity for fans to meet Iowa farmers and learn
about the diversity of Iowa agriculture while celebrating its impact in Iowa
and around the country,” says IFBF President Craig Hill. “Marshal Yanda
embodies everything ANF is all about– his farm strong work ethic, pride in Iowa
agriculture and doing things the right way. We are grateful to add
another exemplary former Hawkeye to the ANF Wall of Honor.”
During
the ANF Game Day on Oct. 9, fans can stop by the ANF Legends Tent at Krause
Family Plaza to meet farmers who grow and raise their food, play games to win
great prizes and get autographs from former Hawkeye and NFL greats, including
Yanda. Fans can show their ANF and Hawkeye pride by purchasing ANF
merchandise during game day in shops around the stadium with a portion of the
proceeds benefitting the Iowa Food Bank Association. Since the ANF partnership
began, more than $180,000 has been raised to feed hungry Iowans.
Additionally,
IFBF and the Hawkeyes have teamed up for the “ANF Game Day Experience” contest where
one lucky fan will win the experience of a lifetime including four tickets to
the ANF game, on-field sideline access, a football autographed by Ferentz and
ANF gear. For a chance to win, go to IowaFarmBureau.com/ANFExperience and
take a short, multiple-choice quiz to see how Iowa farmers are providing our
daily diets with high quality proteins while also responsibly caring for the
environment and their animals. The contest will run Aug. 30 through Sept. 30
with the winner announced shortly after. Fans can enter every day of the
contest period, with one daily entry per valid email address.
For more
information about ANF and Game Day activities, visit www.americaneedsfarmers.org.
