Former Iowa football quarterback shows off new championship ring
Despite Iowa football being in the lulls of the college football offseason, former Iowa football quarterback Drew Tate showed off his new Canadian Football League (CFL) Grey Cup ring on Sunday as he was a part of the Toronto Argonauts' coaching staff as an offensive assistant coach.
For Tate, this is his third Grey Cup title and first in his coaching career. Tate won two Grey Cups as a player, one in 2007 with the Saskatchewan Roughriders and another in 2014 with the Calgary Stampeders.
Tate joined the Argonaunts' coaching staff in March 2024 after numerous positional coaching duties at schools such as Coastal Carolina, University of Tennessee-Martin, and Northern Iowa, as well as time with the CFL's BC Lions.
When the Argonauts received their championship rings on Sunday night, Tate proudly displayed the intricate design on his finger as the former Hawkeye continued to add to his winning resume.
Tate played quarterback with Iowa from 2003-06, finished his Hawkeyes career with 8,292 passing yards on 665-of-1,090 completions for 61 touchdowns and 34 interceptions in 41 games. He also recorded 135 rushing yards and three touchdowns on the ground. The native of Baytown, TX, also earned All-Big Ten Conference first-team (coaches) and second-team (media) in the 2004 season, which saw the Hawkeyes finish as Big Ten co-champions with a 10-2 overall record and a Capital One Bowl victory.
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The highlight of his Iowa tenure was his 2005 Capital One Bowl MVP performance when he passed for 287 yards, two touchdowns, and two interceptions on 20-for-32 attempts, which was capped by a miraculous game-winning 56-yard touchdown pass to Warren Holloway with time expiring in the fourth quarter to vault to the Hawkeyes to a shocking 30-25 win over then-ranked No. 12 LSU.
While the 2025 CFL season is still in its early stages, and the college football and NFL seasons are just around the corner, more Iowa football alumni could very well earn championship hardware sooner rather than later.
Contact/Follow us @HawkeyesWire on X and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Iowa news, notes, and opinions. Follow Scout on X: @SpringgateNews
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