Larry Station Larry W . Station , Jr . ( born December 5 , 1963 ) was a college football player for the University of Iowa . Station , who played linebacker , is Iowa ' s leader in career tackles and was twice named as a consensus first team All - American . He was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2009 . Early years . Larry Station was born and raised in Omaha , Nebraska , just across the river from Iowa . Station was a terrific high school athlete , where he attended Omaha Central High School . He received three varsity letters in football , track , and tennis . He was a two - time first team all - state football selection in high school and was named captain of his football team . Station was twice named the captain of his high school track team , for which he competed in shot put and discus throw . He won the Nebraska state title in the shot put his junior and senior years and won the state title in discus his senior year . In Station ' s senior year in 1982 , he led his high school to the state championship at the Nebraska state high school track meet . In that meet , he won the state title in the shot put by setting a state meet record which stood for 17 years . In addition to being all - city and all - conference in both football and track , Station was a top tennis player in high school . At age 14 , he was ranked third in singles and first in doubles in the state of Nebraska . Station was the Nebraska state juniors tennis champion while in high school . He was so adept at tennis that Iowa coach Hayden Fry offered to let him play on the Hawkeye tennis team , an offer Station declined . College career . Larry Station only started five football games at Iowa in 1982 as a true freshman , yet he led the team with 88 tackles . He was Iowa ' s defensive player of the game against Michigan and he had 15 tackles against Indiana on Homecoming . He helped Iowa lead the Big Ten in both rushing defense and total defense in 1982 , and Station was a second team All - Big Ten selection . As a sophomore in 1983 , Larry Station led Iowa in tackles in seven games . He was Iowa ' s defensive player of the game against Purdue and Illinois and led Iowa with 138 tackles on the year . Station helped lead Iowa to a 9 - 3 record and a berth in the Gator Bowl . Station was selected as a consensus first team All - Big Ten linebacker and was a second team All - American . In 1984 , Station again led Iowa in tackles with 137 and recovered fumbles in three Big Ten games . He had 21 tackles against Minnesota and three sacks against Northwestern . He was selected as first team All - Big Ten for the second time and was a consensus first team All - American in 1984 . Station was also Iowa ' s fourth academic All - American . In Larry Station ' s senior season in 1985 , he helped lead Iowa to its first outright Big Ten title in 27 years . He led Iowa in tackles for the fourth straight season with 129 . He was selected as a co - captain and the co - MVP of the 1985 Hawkeyes . Station was a finalist for the Lombardi Award and the Butkus Award , and he was twice selected as Iowa ' s defensive player of the game in 1985 . He was selected as a first team All - Big Ten player for the third consecutive year , and for the second consecutive year , Larry Station was a consensus first team All - American . He was also chosen as an academic All - American for the second straight year and won Iowa ' s Scholastic Achievement Award . Station had 492 career tackles , the most in Hawkeye history , but he is best remembered for one : his game - saving tackle of running back Jamie Morris in Iowa ' s 1985 game against Michigan . The game was one of the most anticipated in school history , as Iowa was ranked # 1 in the Associated Press poll , while Michigan was ranked # 2 . Michigan held a 10 - 9 lead with just minutes left on the clock at Kinnick Stadium , when the Wolverines faced third down and two yards for a first down . Station anticipated the handoff to Morris and reacted with lightning speed , dropping Morris for a two - yard loss . The Wolverines were forced to punt , and Iowa kicker Rob Houghtlin kicked a game - winning field goal as time expired to give Iowa a cherished 12 - 10 victory . Retirement . In his final game at Iowa , Station injured his back and was forced to leave early in the 1986 Rose Bowl against UCLA . Station never fully recovered from that injury , and he played just one year of professional football with the Pittsburgh Steelers before being forced into retirement from football . Larry Station then obtained a master ' s degree in business administration from Washington University in St . Louis . He returned to Omaha , where he bought his family ' s grocery store , Bedford Market , and a number of rental properties he oversees . Station lives in Omaha with his three children . Honors . Not only does Larry Station hold the record for career tackles at Iowa , he is the only player to lead the Hawkeyes in tackles all four seasons . Iowa went 35 - 13 - 1 during his four years there , and he helped lead the Hawkeyes to four bowl games . Station is only the second Iowa player to twice be named a consensus first team All - American ( Cal Jones is the other ) . Station was inducted into the Iowa Sports Hall of Fame in 2000 . He was elected to the College Football Hall of Fame in 2009 . In 1989 , Iowa fans selected an all - time University of Iowa football team during the 100th anniversary celebration of Iowa football , and Larry Station was selected to the team as a linebacker . In 1999 , " Sports Illustrated " selected Larry Station as the 38th greatest sports figure in history from the state of Nebraska .