Ex-Husky Fortney Happy To Have Landed At N. Iowa

Shane Fortney was getting desperate. He wasn’t going to see much action as a quarterback at the University of Washington, and as a fifth-year senior, his time was running out.

So he left.

“I told myself I wanted to go to the best school possible that I could play at,” Fortney said. “I didn’t care where it was. It could have been in Siberia for all I care.”

He didn’t have to go quite that far, but he did go halfway across the country to Northern Iowa, a perennial NCAA Division I-AA power known for throwing the ball, and which plays in a domed stadium where there’s no wind or rain to mess up a pass.

For some of Fortney’s friends, though, Cedar Falls might as well be Siberia.

“A lot of people said, ‘Why are you going to Iowa?”’ Fortney said. “Coming from Seattle to Iowa IS a big change, but I like the laid-back life. I like this kind of life out here.

“It doesn’t have mountains, but this makes up for it,” he added, looking around the UNI-Dome. “A lot of people doubted my decision, but it’s me. They’re not going. They don’t have to worry about it.”