How Did Iowa Get Here?

[Scorpio79]

The fact is KF is still in year 14 of his tenure. There is absolutely no reason to be this bad, have this many questions, have a coach that makes $4M look so confused on the sideline, and not adapt to the changing landscape of college football. No excuses. KF needs to change and adapt or leave. Simple as that.

This.

 

[Cory]

The fact still remains, that this team should not be rebuilding in year 14. Yes, I understand having ups and downs, but this team has been underachieving for 3 years now, and this is the worst team in the KF era.

Agreed SMB.

For Jon to say that 8 wins in 2014 is going to be good is an absolute joke. Iowa invests too much money in the program for 8 wins to be seen as a good season.

If that is the case, then it will have been one 10 win season since 2004. (10 years) To someone that pays way too much for tickets, this isn't ok and Ferentz needs to go or use some of his pay to get better recruiters and assistant coaches.

 

[Travisam]

You do understand football IS all about being faster and stronger right? I mean you want to look like NU? Really? I would say Wisky or MSU but never NU. Just because they have the Hawks number does not make them a good team. For heavens sake look at their conf record for the last 6,8 or 10 years.
People run the vere because they dont have the talent. Try and run the vere against some of Iowas top d's of years past. Or try it against Bama's D, oh wait Mich tried it. Braska runs it because their coach can keep his job winning 8 or 9 games, to bad any real talent like what you see in bowl games almost always wins that battle. Is it by chance the B1G has stunk up the bowl games yet has more teams running the vere (or versions of)then ever before???? I think not. What team in the B1G has done the best over the last 10 years in bowl games? Do they run the vere?

Of all of the completely nonsensical things you say, this is one of them.

 

[homes]

That is the frustrating part...KF doesn't adjust year to year to his talent. With even modest adjustments making Iowa slightly less predictable on offense he could take some of those teams to great things. Allow your superior talent (as documented by NFL draft) to beat inferior oppontents. Or even simply recognizing basic things like when a team might fake a punt or attempt an onside kick. Then these really down years would be easier to take. If we beat Wisc, NW and Minn in 2010 and Minn in 2011 then people wouldn't be griping as much about this year.

Agree with that (add to that ISU from last year), but they lost, so we gripe. Ferentz has not taken care of business in these types of games, so his margin for error among the fanbase has dwindled to about nothing.

 

[JonDMiller]

I lean more toward Pat Harty's opinion which he expressed yesterday at Hawk Central. Yes, it's talent but it's more than 1 year's worth.....especially at the skill positions.

There's no doubt...and to use the 'it's the talent' critique is also a critique of the people who bring the talent in.

As much as I hate the Ferentz salary stuff, it does come back around. I tend to think that the mean of what Kirk has done at Iowa is near the apex of what can be done here on a ten year look. I don't think you are going to see much more than that accomplished at Iowa. I just don't, and I know that ticks some people off.

The next question becomes do you have to pay someone 4mil per year to get those results, or could you get the same results by paying someone 50 to 75% less than that.

That's really where the debate is, IMO, for those who want to have it.

 

[INTIMIDATORHawk]

The fact still remains, that this team should not be rebuilding in year 14. Yes, I understand having ups and downs, but this team has been underachieving for 3 years now, and this is the worst team in the KF era.

No, it is not the worst team in the KF era. Not by a long shot. Lets not get stupid here.

Also, whether or not you think that Iowa should be "rebuilding" in year 14 is irrelevant. They are rebuilding. Plain and simple. No sugar-coating. That much is a fact.

Whether or not you agree with the reason for why this is happening also doesn't matter. You can be angry and upset all day and all night, every day of your life, but that won't change the fact that the 2008 & 2009 classes simply didn't pan out as expected, and Iowa is now paying the price for that.

So, do you want to be bitter about the way things are, or embrace the future, and the hope that things will be better sooner than later?

I love the Hawks. I don't agree with everything that goes on inside Fort Kinnick. I think our offense this year is laughable, and Vandenburg is horrible. Depth is a huge issue all around. But I still support them, and I can see the building blocks for future success. They are all in place.

It just takes time.

 

[JonDMiller]

No, it is not the worst team in the KF era. Not by a long shot. Lets not get stupid here.

It's better than 1999. Not sure it's better than the 2000 team was in November of 2000. Also wouldn't say it's better than the 2007 team. The 2007 defense was better than this group and the offenses are pretty similar at this point, from a statistical basis. 1999, 2000, 2007 and 2012 are the four worst teams of the Ferentz era (unless 2012 makes a huge turnaround the rest of the way). You can order them how you'd like.

 

[Travisam]

Jon, to me this is all very simple. It has been for a long time. KF and staff have done an absolutely fantastic job of coaching up players to 100% of their ability over his time at Iowa. In many cases they have been coached up to the level of an NFL caliber player, sometimes even an NFL starting caliber player. Most of the past few years these players have made up teams that were superior to their competition on Saturdays. That gap in talent has led to some 6-6, 7-5, and even a couple of 10 and 11 win seasons. I think that the gap in talent has been far greater than has even been admitted to. The NFL rosters would stand as evidence of this.

This gap in talent between Iowa and opponents over the past few years has served to cover up for a TON of coaching deficiencies. When you are in year 14 and still having delay of game penalties because of getting a play called, let alone in a hurry up offense, you have a problem. I believe that through the years KF has taken his extremely conservative approach and only become more and more conservative. I believe that at least some portion of this is due to a "I'll show you" kind of attitude. How much of it is from that is up for debate.

The bottom line is that with Kirk you have to pick your poison. I think he is one of, if not the best teachers of football in all of CFB. This ability has kept him relatively successful. The problem is that when he can't get that over the top development which leads to a large gap in talent he will fail because it can not compensate for his poor gameday strategies. I for one see all of these issues getting worse over time as opposed to better. This is all my opinion, but I believe that a lot of the data and a look around NFL rosters in relation to records at Iowa make a lot of it tough to argue.

 

[FreedComanche]

The Iowa football team is fighting just to be average right now and it's losing the battle. How did things get here? Will it get better?

More...

You know it's bad when even Jim Zabel starts to be a realist concerning Iowa football.

Stick a fork in ferentz. He's done. He'll never get good talent again.

FreedComanche

 

[homes]

So, do you want to be bitter about the way things are, or embrace the future, and the hope that things will be better sooner than later? . . . It just takes time.

There's that word again. It gets tougher in the 14th year to hinge marketing of the program on that concept.

 

[smbhawk1]

No, it is not the worst team in the KF era. Not by a long shot. Lets not get stupid here.

Also, whether or not you think that Iowa should be "rebuilding" in year 14 is irrelevant. They are rebuilding. Plain and simple. No sugar-coating. That much is a fact.

Whether or not you agree with the reason for why this is happening also doesn't matter. You can be angry and upset all day and all night, every day of your life, but that won't change the fact that the 2008 & 2009 classes simply didn't pan out as expected, and Iowa is now paying the price for that.

So, do you want to be bitter about the way things are, or embrace the future, and the hope that things will be better sooner than later?

I love the Hawks. I don't agree with everything that goes on inside Fort Kinnick. I think our offense this year is laughable, and Vandenburg is horrible. Depth is a huge issue all around. But I still support them, and I can see the building blocks for future success. They are all in place.

It just takes time.

The only team that is worse is the 1999 team, and the cupboard was bare in 1999. That was not 14 years in to a tenure.

And don't preach about being a fan and supporting the team. I have had season tickets for years and have donated to the university for years. So don't go questioning how loyal you are compared to someone who is not happy with the direction of the team. I am happy to sit down and compare who is a "better" fan if that is the way you want to go. I don't think you want to go there.

And this is not what it is about. The fact is I am sure we are both dedicated fans of the team. However, KF does not get a pass for the direction of this program. He needs to be held accountable and make changes where they need to be made. He can no longer live on his past laurels.

 

[olddude]

Of all of the completely nonsensical things you say, this is one of them.

Really how? Tell me some teams that were loaded at talent that run it? You might be able to come up with a few, but then again the stars line up every so often also. Why do they run it in HS so much? Why do they not run it more in the NFL? Why do confs who run it so much stink in the post season when they run into stout D's. You remember when Iowa had a DL that nobody could run on? You know the one that got pressure with just 4? Look at Braska last year. It did not matter what they had for TE's or WR's because their qb could not throw. SOOOOOOO if you cant throw because of LACK OF TALENT with your qb, te and wr's all you need is a few that can run and a few twists on the vere ( different versions of it) and you can win some games.
I think you may need to study the game a bit before you call what I say stupid.
The stars do line up every once and awhile and those teams have just enough to win at a higher level (barring NO injuries) but for the most part that crud is HS ball because it is easy to run and you can win against D's that are not top 20.

 

[pistons]

When your recruiting classes get wiped out you use the JUCOS to fix the problem.

KF failed to do that

KSU has it pretty well figured out

 

[FreedComanche]

Jon, to me this is all very simple. It has been for a long time. KF and staff have done an absolutely fantastic job of coaching up players to 100% of their ability over his time at Iowa. In many cases they have been coached up to the level of an NFL caliber player, sometimes even an NFL starting caliber player. Most of the past few years these players have made up teams that were superior to their competition on Saturdays. That gap in talent has led to some 6-6, 7-5, and even a couple of 10 and 11 win seasons. I think that the gap in talent has been far greater than has even been admitted to. The NFL rosters would stand as evidence of this.

This gap in talent between Iowa and opponents over the past few years has served to cover up for a TON of coaching deficiencies. When you are in year 14 and still having delay of game penalties because of getting a play called, let alone in a hurry up offense, you have a problem. I believe that through the years KF has taken his extremely conservative approach and only become more and more conservative. I believe that at least some portion of this is due to a "I'll show you" kind of attitude. How much of it is from that is up for debate.

The bottom line is that with Kirk you have to pick your poison. I think he is one of, if not the best teachers of football in all of CFB. This ability has kept him relatively successful. The problem is that when he can't get that over the top development which leads to a large gap in talent he will fail because it can not compensate for his poor gameday strategies. I for one see all of these issues getting worse over time as opposed to better. This is all my opinion, but I believe that a lot of the data and a look around NFL rosters in relation to records at Iowa make a lot of it tough to argue.

"This gap in talent between Iowa and opponents over the past few years has served to cover up for a TON of coaching deficiencies."


Yep! Read that again. How sickening that truth is. Good grief...........

FreedComanche

 

[FreedComanche]

When your recruiting classes get wiped out you use the JUCOS to fix the problem.

KF failed to do that

KSU has it pretty well figured out

Come on now. You are getting very close to the truth concerning ferentz. You may not want to do that. Some might consider you attacking ferentz' character.

FreedComanche

 

[gohawks71]

Haven't we gone thru this exercise before? Like a few years ago. This is starting to be a pattern of which should never happen. This is a bigger issue than just a year or two.

 

[ssckelley]

Before Scherf and Donnal got hurt this offensive line was considered one of the best. They were opening huge holes for the running game and had good protection for Vandy. Normally that means you have a good offense but this year the passing game has been horrible. Before the season I thought we had a NFL wide out and tight end.

 

[Hawkeye11en1]

Before Scherf and Donnal got hurt this offensive line was considered one of the best. They were opening huge holes for the running game and had good protection for Vandy. Normally that means you have a good offense but this year the passing game has been horrible. Before the season I thought we had a NFL wide out and tight end.

We would be a completely different team with a decent QB.

 

[urohawk]

Haven't we gone thru this exercise before? Like a few years ago. This is starting to be a pattern of which should never happen. This is a bigger issue than just a year or two.

It is not as tough to be successful at Iowa as made out to be. Regularly beat the poor teams you should with only rare losses. ISU, NW, Minn, Ill, Indiana apply most years. Schedule at least 2 cream puffs and win these 95% of the time. Compete with the midlevel Big Ten teams and win about 50% of these games. Beat one of the upper level Big Ten teams about 25% of the time. Have all these come together and happen every 4 years or so and you will be beloved. If you factor in the level of play in the Big Ten this objectives are even more reasonable. KF has done the last two for the most part but has been terrible at the first two.

 

[alexzelada]

No, it is not the worst team in the KF era. Not by a long shot. Lets not get stupid here.

Also, whether or not you think that Iowa should be "rebuilding" in year 14 is irrelevant. They are rebuilding. Plain and simple. No sugar-coating. That much is a fact.

Whether or not you agree with the reason for why this is happening also doesn't matter. You can be angry and upset all day and all night, every day of your life, but that won't change the fact that the 2008 & 2009 classes simply didn't pan out as expected, and Iowa is now paying the price for that.

So, do you want to be bitter about the way things are, or embrace the future, and the hope that things will be better sooner than later?

I love the Hawks. I don't agree with everything that goes on inside Fort Kinnick. I think our offense this year is laughable, and Vandenburg is horrible. Depth is a huge issue all around. But I still support them, and I can see the building blocks for future success. They are all in place.

It just takes time.

Either you're Obama's speechwriter or he is yours.