How I do What I do

[DuffMan]

Jon -

I think the micro as you like to say is one kid doing something really stupid.

I think the macro is a program that may rely a little bit much on personal responsibility considering 18-22 year old kids and the temptations they are under. I am all for this, but this is twice where leadership has failed or that a player was totally isolated from the rest of the team.

Does this fall on KF directly? No but I think he has to do a much better job of creating a family environment on the team.

I really disagree with you here. It comes down to personal accountability personal decision making. There are 84 other players on this team that chose NOT to live with a guy who was selling drugs out of his apartment.

 

[BSpringsteen]

Yes, and there were 84 guys who just let that happen to one of their teammates.

Sorry, but dsiagreeing with the above lacks common sense.

 

[HawkPrdatr40]

I was one of those that didn't like that post lastnight. I feel much better now after reading this today. Your honesty is appreciated.

 

[ICbornNraised]

I really disagree with you here. It comes down to personal accountability personal decision making. There are 84 other players on this team that chose NOT to live with a guy who was selling drugs out of his apartment.

How do you know this to be true? Maybe the other guy living with a dealer just hasn't been caught...yet.

 

[olivecourt]

Jon, I wouldn't beat yourself up about the column. Part of running this site is reacting to things in a timely way, and had you not posted anything a lot of folks would have wondered why you didn't have a response. Not an easy situation to be in, and not every column is going to be a polished gem.

In fact, I do think you make some good points about how difficult it is for those of us not associated with the team to know what's going on. We tell ourselves little stories to make ourselves feel better, especially when the results are as disappointing as they were this season. This year, the story that many people told themselves was that this was among the most talented teams we've ever had and they were held back by their coaches. The DJK incident throws a pretty sizeable monkey wrench into that story. The other temptation, of course, is to blame all of it on the players, and none of it on Ferentz, and that may be why the "In Ferentz We Trust" idea rubs people the wrong way. Again, it's an oversimplification.

Having said that, when I look at Ferentz's body of work and history of dealing with problem players, I have a hard time getting too angry about the way he handled DJK, unless more information comes to light (which I admit is entirely possible). As fans, we delude ourselves by thinking that a group of 85 college guys are going to behave differently than any other group of guys just because they are on the football team. To me, the role of a coach is to lay out policies and enforce them, to punish players that run afoul of that and stick to those punishments regardless of how good the player is. I don't think it's Ferentz's role to babysit these guys, to monitor where they live or who they hang out with, whether they ride mopeds, etc. I'd rather he spend his time gameplanning, recruiting, etc.

But the biggest point is that as fans we always act like we have 20/20 vision. Of course now that DJK got busted for drugs "everybody knows" he always had a problem. Two weeks ago he was the best offensive weapon we've ever had, now he's a degenerate scumbag. You can get whiplash from trying to track fan reactions. Maybe every once in awhile we should just admit that we don't have the foggiest idea what's going on.

 

[EddyP]

I was one that didn't think anything was wrong with the post last night. Re-read it and still don't.

 

[nationalchamps]

We all were wondering if something was going on behind the scenes all season for the team to look this poorly. We questioned why nobody came to DJK's defense when he was ridden out of bounds at Minnesota. I'm guessing the players knew what he was up to. It's all starting to make sense now.

 

[SDK46]

Now, question that come to mind..

-When did DJK get to know his roommate?
-When did they begin to be roommates?
-When did DJK start using drugs?
-DJK's roommate had a prior drug related arrest, in 2009; does Iowa monitor who their players room with and do any background checks?

Those are just for starters.

I'll add:

- WHY did DJK choose to live with a convicted drug dealer?
- WHY did DJK choose to continue to live with a convicted drug dealer who was back in the business
- Does the UI have a random drug testing policy outside of steroids?

 

[SPGroth]

Does the UI have a random drug testing policy outside of steroids?

I am not sure what the football team has in place for random drug testing, but I do know that the Iowa Softball team would regularly be submitted to random, unannounced testing. Although, it was usually checking for the previous consumption of alcohol.

 

[IAJay]

Derrell has always come off as a very intelligent guy with a strong moral background so I find it hard to swallow his involvement in something so apparently stupid and lacking in judgment.

HA, you obviously have not been around IC lately. This is not a surprise to most people who know or know about DJK and a lot of other athletes.

 

[Billso]

Iowa does it's own drug testing and every player is tested at least once a year - http://www.hawkeyenation.com/forum/football/21925-info-iowas-drug-testing-program.html

DJK will still get his NFL shot but the margin for error just went to zero.

Finally, I don't blame you Jon for feeling shell-shocked. We all are.

I feel terrible for his parents; for all the kids in Iowa who looked up to DJK; and for their parents who now have to explain how their hero screwed up.

 

[clevelandhawk]

Many people like to parse words. I think the basic point was that there are things going on that we, as fans, do not know about. There were underlying character flaws that likely led to the strained relationship. I, for one, know I railed against KF for benching DJK against Minnesota. The benching was likely (hopefully) not directly related to this.

Keep up the good work Jon. Don't worry about the camp that parses words.

 

[dagdaj]

Yah, I wouldn't beat yerself up over that.
For one, it's sports 'journalism'.
For two, it didn't bother me in any way. And everything usually bothers me.

Just as a few other posters stated....I hope this was a suprise to Kirk...even if it's reasonable to assume he wasn't necessarily shocked by it.

 

[hawkeyebob62]

Sure he has a chance. He'll probably have to go the FA route, and show from day one that he has the talent to make an impact in the NFL for the team that he is working out for, with no mess ups, drops, or any reason to give anyone doubt.

Jon, I guess what I meant was, "Does this put everything on hold for him?" I would imagine teams will be VERY reticent to draft him, and he certainly would be under intense scrutiny for 2011 season. So, does/should he wait for 2012 so that he can get "past" this?

And stupid as it may sound, is it "bad" enough that he DEFINITELY is "gone"? Or are there "possible" circumstances that he "could" get to play in the bowl game?

Living in Florida, we really don't get enough info like "locals" do. And plenty of other schools have allowed guys to play after arrests, be it for "possession", DUI, domestic "altercations" and the like. I am pretty sure I know the answer, but...thought I may as well ask someone "closer" to the situation.

 

[hawkeyebob62]

First, the coaches are legally allowed to drug test any player at any time. Just like a regular employer. The NCAA doesn't have to have anything to do with it. That's what LSU did with Ryan Perrilloux when they dismissed him a couple years back. They had suspicions, tested him and dismissed him when his test was positive.

Second, it doesn't sound like DJK's alleged actions outside of the law were news to a lot of posters on here. The staff has mentors and staff in place to monitor players, and the coach's damn son is on the team. There's no way this should be a complete shock to him.

Third, it's Ferentz's job to be "intrusive". If I send my son to play for him, and there are drug issues going on, I want him to make the tough decisions and help mold them as young men. That's part of the deal. If the players don't like it, there's the door.

Fourth, I'm not turning DJK into a victim of any kind. He (allegedly) screwed up, and if Ferentz turned a blind eye to it, then he screwed up, too.

And sixth, I don't remember DJK ever being suspended. Why would he go to Auburn or USC? He hasn't missed any playing time yet at Iowa. Like I initially posted, IF Ferentz had suspicions and turned a blind eye to them, keeping DJK on the team and playing him all season, then yes, I think his job should be on the line.

Here's a seventh for you: If this exact same scenario played out at Iowa State or Minnesota or Wisconsin, would you be so quick to defend their coach?

Funny that nobody seems to "care" about being intrusive in situations like this, but gets all civil-rights-y in other instances (not speaking specifically to you). It is NOT KFs job to be "intrusive". It is his job to run the University of Iowa football program. That does not include interfering in players' lives without cause/invitation/reuqest. If a player wants to change his major to home ec, it is not the coach's concern. If the player can not maintain reuqired grade/attendance/academic standards, then it DOES become the coach's concern.

You, however, implied that KF should have been "baby-sitting" DJK, and/or that he "may" have known something and turned a blind eye when there is ZERO indication of this.

DJK IS going to miss playing time now. At Auburn or USC, he probably wouldn't. KF/university suspended DJK "indefinitely". SOME folks would say that's presuming guilt without benefit of due process.

Maybe the staff/university CAN do "random" drug tests. And if they were, I seriously doubt KF or staff could bury any "positive" tests. And if DJK was merely "beating the system", I would question the validity/effectiveness of the tests. I would NOT "assume" KF "knew something" and buried it in order to keep the player active. Especially a player he has, as this board repeatedly pointed prior to Tuesday, "under-utilized" or "poorly utilized". We've seen that KF is willing to cut guys loose no matter their talent level.