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Hearst Randolph Duncan Jr. (March 15, 1937 – September 27, 2016) was an American professional football player who was a quarterback in the Canadian Football League (CFL) and American Football League (AFL). He played college football for the Iowa Hawkeyes and was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1997.
He played for Iowa in the Big Ten Conference and played in two Rose Bowls (January 1957, 1959). He was the first overall pick in the 1959 NFL draft by the Green Bay Packers, but played professionally for CFL's BC Lions and the AFL's Dallas Texans. After his football career, he became a lawyer.
Duncan graduated from high school after the 1954 fall semester, and he was heavily recruited after choosing to play football. He nearly went to the University of Colorado in Boulder, but decided to attend the University of Iowa in Iowa City largely because of his friendship with Iowa assistant coach Bump Elliott.Tales From The Iowa Sidelines, by Ron Maly, Page 127 ()
But Duncan remained in Iowa City and waited his turn as the backup to Hawkeyes star Ken Ploen in the 1956 season. In a non-conference game against Oregon State, the offense produced a pair of fourth-quarter touchdowns after he replaced the injured Ploen in the 14–13 triumph. Iowa qualified for the Rose Bowl, where they faced Oregon State again. Duncan entered the game in the second quarter after Ploen left the game briefly and led the offense to a touchdown in a 35–19 rout.
Duncan was named the Starting lineup and paced the team in passing in 1957. He battled snow and sleet to throw a touchdown pass for the only score in a win over Northwestern, and he missed the end of Iowa's tie with Michigan because of leg cramps. Duncan scored four touchdowns, two passing and two rushing, against Minnesota, and two touchdowns against Notre Dame, one passing and one on an interception return as a defensive back. Iowa went 7-1-1 on the season, and Duncan was named first team All-Big Ten.
As a senior in 1958, Duncan helped guide Iowa to one of its best seasons ever. After a surprising early season tie against Air Force, Iowa won five straight Big Ten games, clinching the Big Ten title as early as it had ever been clinched before.Evy and the Hawkeyes, by Brian Chapman and Mike Chapman, Page 194 () The Hawkeyes ranked first in passing and total offense in the Big Ten, while Duncan led the nation in completion percentage and passing yardage.
Duncan's greatest game may have come in Iowa's lone loss in 1958, when he set a Big Ten record with 23 completions in 33 attempts for 249 yards in a 38–28 loss to Ohio State. Duncan led Iowa to another Big Ten title and a 38–12 victory in the Rose Bowl. His lone touchdown pass in the Rose Bowl broke the school record for touchdown passes in a season, which had been set by Nile Kinnick in 1939.
Duncan was named first team All-Big Ten. He was also named the 1958 Big Ten MVP, and he was selected as a consensus first team All-American. He won the Walter Camp Award and finished second in the Heisman Trophy balloting. Duncan is one of seven Iowa players to Varsity letter from 1956 through 1958. In that span, Iowa's record was with two Big Ten titles, three top ten rankings in the final Associated Press poll, and two Rose Bowl victories.
Upon being voted Iowa's MVP, Duncan remarked, "There's nobody that knows any better than I do that this was all made possible by you guys here and the coaching staff behind me. I mean it. Just to be a part of this ball club was all that I really ever wanted."University of Iowa Football, by Chuck Bright, Page 197 ()
Whereas Iowa predecessor Ken Ploen left an indelible mark north of the border, where he became an all-time CFL great, Duncan proved to be ill-suited for the more wide-open Canadian style of game. In two seasons, he completed 47.6 percent of his pass attempts and threw nearly twice as many interceptions (42) as touchdowns (25) in the regular season.
After the Lions released him, Duncan signed with the American Football League's Dallas Texans (now the Kansas City Chiefs) in advance of the 1961 campaign. The newcomer practiced with the Texans during the day and attended Southern Methodist University law school at night. He was injured early in his first start in Week 2 and played sparingly the rest of the season. When Texans coach Hank Stram was reunited with former Purdue star Len Dawson before the next season, Duncan quit football to continue his pursuit of a law degree.
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