All starting to come into focus - Ferentz's hands were tied

[nationalchamps]

And this is the point where I realized I wasn't going to read anything valuable. Thank you for prefacing your four paragraph rant with this to save me 90 seconds of reading.

And I've yet to ready anything valuable in any of your posts as well.

 

[TrustKF]

there is a drug problem within this team, that much has been known throughout the past few seasons.

 

[HawkeyeNTexas]

So all of KF's decisions regarding the team in all aspects revolved around DJK? That's what I am getting from your post. I'm also getting the feeling that you think that KF knew about the drug problem and chose to ignore it for the sake of the team? I can't believe people are buying into this crap....

This board is really getting out of control.

 

[ThunderHawk]

Absolutely ridiculous.

If Ferentz thought Deej was truly a cancer to the team he would have surgically removed him.

 

[TrustKF]

If that's all you get out of it, you must really jump to conclusions quickly.

 

[ThunderHawk]

If that's all you get out of it, you must really jump to conclusions quickly.

 

[Warhawks77]

This is all starting to come into focus for me. Granted this is just my theory. For a while now I've been asking myself why Ferentz didn't just bench the guy or throw him off the team a couple of years ago after it became apparent Koulianos (I'm done calling him DJK - it's like saying Voldamort - name shouldn't be said) simply was an insubordinate punk. Ferentz's hands have been tied b/c my guess is there is enough of a segment of the team with whom Koulianos is very popular (and maybe for the wrong reasons), and another segment that can't stand him. Kicking him off would have resulted in Ferentz losing a segment of the team, keeping him on may tick the other group off, but until this year he had the leadership (i.e. Angerer) to keep it together. Ferentz concluded at some point the lesser of the 2 evils was keeping him on and doing his best to reign him in. This year there wasn't that type of leadership and it's clear to me no one particular player commanded the complete respect of everyone else on the team.

Ferentz was damned if he did and damned if he didn't with respect to booting him. And this trickled into the fanbase. Ultimately, Ferentz couldn't come out and tell us that Koulianos was not starting b/c he continues to break team rules or whatever b/c to tell us the truth would mean ticking off the segment of the team that loves them some Koulianos and really cause the fanbase to demand the guy get the boot (something Ferentz decided he could not do). But in the process of not really telling us why Koulianos was in the doghouse, he turned Koulianos into a sympathetic figure among the fans: the misunderstood, young man who walks to a different beat.

Frankly, given everything I've heard and read, I am concerned there may be a drug problem within the team, and that can be a huge dividing force between those that do and those that don't. The ones that don't have to hold their nose and work with the doers, and the first sign of adversity, boom, battle lines are drawn within the ranks.

Just my theory, but for the first time I am really starting to feel sorry for Ferentz and truly hope he comes out of this okay emotionally and professionally. While at Iowa I lived in a housing situation (not the same as a March-situation) where a group of guys did some drugs like coke and ex, and a group of us didn't. I didn't really care what the drug guys did behind closed doors on their time, but when they started doing and taking incredibly irresponsible risks that affected everyone, it became a problem that did not end well. I can only imagine what that might do to a football team, a segment of which is committed to making the sacrifice to win, and another that simply does not want to do the same.

I see where you are going and understand you are just posting a "theory". To my disbelief you had some responses to this as if this was factual and then beraided because I don't know....you forgot to tell everyone this was "food for thought" or just your "theroy" We all need to remember post boards are for discussion, food for thought, hawk talk, statistics and factual findings. Not everything is going to be obejective but rather subjective. (whichever of those two is more opinion then not) LOL

 

[Warhawks77]

there is a drug problem within this team, that much has been known throughout the past few seasons.

If that is "true" and "fact" and known by the "staff" (which I'm not saying any of this is true or known) then the NCAA would take great interest and we would have a huge problem within our program. I find it hard to believe that we could have a problem that is potentially as big as the "rumor mill has it" and not have KF do something about it. Perhaps he just now is noticing and doing something about it. Again I would pose the statement that if we have a problem, every program in America does.

 

[homerHAWKeye777]

Absolutely ridiculous.

If Ferentz thought Deej was truly a cancer to the team he would have surgically removed him.

I think that Maroon's point was that not all cancers are operable. In this case, when you're talking team-chemistry ... I'm inclined to think that Maroon's hypothesis was "on target."

And, FYI, I've been stating this about DJK for YEARS now ... and I've gotten laughed off the board. It's amazing what charisma can do for somebody, eh?

 

[Ronco]

Wow, we've resulted to calling names of one we used to cheer. Seems people have a lot of misplaced hostility towards a person they don't know personally and hasn't done anything to them or family. Why? DJK broke the law and he'll pay dearly.

 

[DesMoinesHawki]

Unfounded posts like this make me cringe. I highly doubt any player had Kirk's hands tied. Kirk is the head coach and has been in the business a long time. No 18-22 year old is going to call the shots. Let's let this play out and not add fuel to the fire. Better yet, let's not create the fire.

 

[edr247]

People here couldn't understand why Kirk wasn't letting DJK be DJK, why he wouldn't let him use Twitter, why he wouldn't let 'kids be kids', etc. Now so many of you guys (not pointing at anybody in particular) are on the flip side, calling out DJK and 'seeing the light'.

Look, I won't say I predicted DJK would get kicked off the team, let alone kicked off the team for doing hard drugs, but it should have been apparent to everybody that DJK and Kirk would never really get along. DJK is a wide receiver, and we all know that many of those guys are pretty egotistical (Randy Moss, 85, TO, etc etc). Maybe the position attracts those types of guys, seeking big stats and highlight reels, I don't know, but it happens.

And we all know that Kirk, and this Iowa program, isn't the type to hold any player above the rest of the team. Most of the guys on the Iowa team are pretty humble, always giving credit to their teammates first, and often shying away from media spotlight. To be honest, DJK was a bit like that as well, usually giving credit out to the team as a whole, but we all knew he loved and quite possibly needed the attention and the spotlight. That's just who he was.

The way I see it, Kirk's biggest problem with DJK was simply his attitude. It was a clash of personalities that just wasn't going to change that much. DJK tended to follow the rules to an extent, because he wanted to play football, and Kirk put up with DJK because 1) the issues seemed to be relatively minor, 2) didn't seem to affect the team and 3) he was a great receiver.

 

[Billso]

The word "punk" has generated some emotional reaction but on balance the OP is very plausible, and shows some nuance missing from much of the discussion. The harsh responses, especially people saying "Kirk would've excised the cancer!" miss the point. Until this arrest DJK obviously never did anything warranting a major suspension, let alone dismissal. The infractions were minor, but ongoing.

Kirk's style is to work with a guy to improve and mature. He's an optimist by nature and wants people to succeed. Sometimes that approach will burn you, sadly, but its an admirable approach and one reason I'm glad he's our coach.

 

[ShadasRevenge]

Well, at least you can't say I didn't try to come up with an explanation. If people think this is some isolated incident that has nothing to do with the team chemistry, team performance, or the reasons Ferentz kept this punk on the team for 4 years, all the power to you.

You had me mildly interested until you implied that the team had (or has) a drug problem.

 

[hawkdrummer1]

Billso, I respect your opinions and usually find myself chuckling or nodding positively at your posts. I see eye-to-eye with you almost always. But I disagree on this one.

If the scenario you paint is more or less accurate, what it says to me is Ferentz has no balls. Quite simply. The quiet solid exterior is a fasod...it's not the quiet strength that it has so often thought to be.

This guy has looked lost on many occasions...never more so than this season. And after 12 years it should be just the opposite. He's been unmasked.

 

[Billso]

You're absolutely right if the "popularity within the team" aspect factored into KF's approach. I think I'm guilty of reading the OP selectively, because I don't buy that part at all.

I saw KF's "hands tied" in the sense of a talented player constantly pushing the coach's buttons, always stopping just short of actions warranting a harsher response. The coach would like to explain to the public what's going on, but his own policy and integrity keep him from criticizing the kid publicly, and as a result the public is left to form their own crazy theories.

 

[homerHAWKeye777]

You're absolutely right if the "popularity within the team" aspect factored into KF's approach. I think I'm guilty of reading the OP selectively, because I don't buy that part at all.

I saw KF's "hands tied" in the sense of a talented player constantly pushing the coach's buttons, always stopping just short of actions warranting a harsher response. The coach would like to explain to the public what's going on, but his own policy and integrity keep him from criticizing the kid publicly, and as a result the public is left to form their own crazy theories.

That's kinda how I selectively read it too.

My impression is that Ferentz's hands were tied by a talented and charismatic player who was very popular on the team. The issue there was to be as fair as possible to all parties involved without alienating either side. It can be an awfully tough thing for a head coach to do ... that is why a team really needs strong leadership from among the PLAYERS who helps to police those types of guys.

Unfortunately, some team leaders worry a bit too much about being liked. However, it's the ones who crack the whip and ensure that the entire team WINS ... those guys may not get the love from everybody ... however, EVERYBODY on the team ends up LOVING the end result. After all ... winners get adored ... losers don't ...