IMO you can look at the KF era in 1 of 2 ways, and both of them are valid:
1) At least Iowa isn't a dumpster fire like Minnesota, Nebraska, or Illinois
2) Why hasn't Iowa been as consistent or as successful as Wisconsin
None of us here can control what happens with the football team, so I try to remind myself that we could easily be Illinois right now.
Our AD and coaching staff are the two things that keep us from being at Wisconsin's level. Before people unload on me about who I'd suggest for a new coach, there aren't any available and willing coaches out there right now that I think would do a better job, so you can save those comments. We're effectively stuck with what we have, which is boring, above average
but non-contending football. When 5 teams (sometimes 6) are consistently ranked higher than us from the B1G and beat us most of time in head to head match ups, I call that being a non contender. You're opinion may differ.
Wisconsin has a football-minded AD who 1) actually runs the program and 2) knows the game and coaching inside and out. We have a little jellyfish-man of an AD who couldn't lead a bingo night down at the VFW. Ask Rick Heller how much of a spine Barta has after he sent Jane Meyer to deal with issues that should have come across his desk.
Because they have the AD that they do, Wisconsin goes out and gets people to coach who can and will win ball games. What we have is a two decade tenured head coach who runs the program without a supervisor, and is guaranteed tens of millions of dollars. No one can fire him, no one can threaten him, and no one can make him feel the slightest bit uncomfortable. That is a guaranteed recipe for blah, uninspired, middle of the B1G football.
And whatever you do don't whine about recruiting disadvantage. That's a bullshit excuse. If we had a program and staff at the level of WI we'd be able to recruit the same. You want to know why they outdo us year after year with comparable budgets, facilities, and resources? It isn't the players, it's the program from top to bottom. They expect winning football and have accountability to go with it , our program expects .550 winning percentage and has no accountability. Add to that a coach who's been "in Congress" for 20 years with no one to vote him out, and here's what we have. Live with it or don't.
I don't think he's a bad guy or even a bad coach. But his management style from the staff he hires down to the plays being run on the field lead us to where we are and I don't think that him not having a huge guaranteed contract and no accountability helps matters.
