Retirement, Not Recognition: Garza and Marble Belong in the Carver Rafters

At this point, can Gary just stick to fundraising?

If you haven’t heard (or aren’t the twitterin’ type), here is the latest kerfuffle. Following the Iowa-Wisconsin basketball bloodbath, Barta declared that Iowa would retire our favorite Peacock’s jersey. Garza deserves all the bouquets; he was just named Big Ten Player of the Year for the second straight year.

Luka Garza is running Award Season back.

Congrats to @LukaG_55 on winning his second consecutive Big Ten Player of the Year award!

Add it to his long list of accolades for @IowaHoops. pic.twitter.com/OOPvhKyQKI

— Iowa On BTN (@IowaOnBTN) March 9, 2021

Further evidence of Garza greatness (as if we need any more): He is Sporting News’ first repeat Player of the Year since a certain shooting guard out of Wilmington, North Carolina. But as much as this article is about Garza's well-earned place among Hawkeye, or even tongue-wagging, legends, the athletic department’s self-inflicted PR blunder overshadowed what should have been a program defining moment: Garza's jersey retirement announcement.

Here’s the sideshow: In 2015, Gary Barta stated, “I don’t ever envision retiring any more jerseys or numbers in any sports.” Sounds pretty definitive, right? Iowa is officially out of the jersey retirement business. And instead of a jersey retirement (which, as we know, is standard fare for honoring a program’s greatest players), Iowa’s AD offered a “recognition” ceremony for Roy Marble, Iowa’s former all-time leading scorer, in 2015. Judging by Devyn Marble’s latest tweet (incidentally, Roy’s son and Iowa’s seventh leading scorer all-time), that “recognition” ceremony looks pretty ill-conceived.

Ill never watch another iowa game in my life with the amount of disrespect that school has shown me and my family. Love the fans but Im in no way affiliated or connected to the university. https://t.co/8ylZg0iK4U

— Devyn Marble (@DevMarble) March 9, 2021

For the record, Devyn’s disgust is entirely justified. Roy should be right there next to Luka and the other Hawkeye greats in the Carver rafters. In his heyday, the elder Marble was a bucket-getter extraordinaire, averaging over 20 points per game his senior year while leading Dr. Tom’s memorable late 80s teams (with BJ and Ed Horton riding shotgun). Before Luka surpassed him this year, Roy was Iowa’s all-time leading scorer for three decades. But despite the accolades (and, quite frankly, his imprimatur on Iowa basketball), the best Iowa could do was an awkward feting during an Iowa-jNW basketball game. As Pat tweeted, there's a pretty glaring inconsistency when it comes to honoring Hawkeye hoops legends. 

Lester: Set the scoring record, had his number retired that year

Stokes: Set the scoring record, had his number retired that night

Marble: Set the scoring record, got a deathbed plaque 30 years later

Garza: Set the scoring record, had his number retired that year

— WWF Hall of Famer Ivan Bologna (@PV_GIA) March 9, 2021

I understand Roy’s legal trials and tribulations cloud his legacy. Acknowledging that his off-court life was, in a word, complicated, Roy’s jersey in the Carver rafters would honor his immense contributions to the Iowa basketball program—and that alone. An analogous comparison: UNC’s Phil Ford. Like Marble, Ford was the Heels’ all-time leading scorer. And like Marble, Ford’s post playing career featured a number of police run-ins. But UNC, rightly so, honored Ford’s contributions, retiring his jersey for his basketball achievements. In 2015, Barta and company could have done the same but, in a well-intentioned move that now looks weak-kneed and/or disingenuous, opted for a “recognition” ceremony.

Barta and company need to make this situation right (the right thing to do was to retire Roy’s jersey in 2015, or years before, but I digress). And while my preference would be for both Garza and Marble's jerseys to overlook Carver, here’s hoping Barta, at the very least, finds a more meaningful, lasting way to honor one of Iowa’s all-time greats. The Marble family, as well as Iowa basketball fans, deserve it.