Howe: Don't Count Out Michael Myers' Turn for Kirk Ferentz

Good attempt. This feels and is IMO a very different situation facing Kirk Ferentz. One that requires change now but at the very least at the end of the season.
 
RobHowe said:
www.si.com

Howe: Don't Count Out Michael Myers' Turn for Kirk Ferentz

Direction of Iowa Football Program Under Coach Has Been Doubted Before
www.si.com www.si.com
Click to expand...

Rob,

Doesn't matter how long you've covered Iowa. College football has changed so much over the past few years and Iowa Football is so far behind, it cannot see the modern game. If I'm any kind of athletic talent in or out of the state of Iowa, no way I would go play for the Hawks. A few years or several years ago, sure. Not anymore.

If Proctor from SE Polk is smart, he decommits ASAP. And that goes for any other top talent. Don't waste your time at Iowa under the current regime.

I'd point you the the article Jacob Keppen from the Hawkeye Wire wrote. He gets it and you'd be wise to jump on board as well.

Iowa's current way of doing things, DO NOT have any chance of working as they used to.

I type this with 100% certainty. It's over for Iowa Football unless monumental changes are made in philosophy. And with their current head coach and his son, the OC, those changes are not going to take place.

Change at the top is needed and will not happen as KF runs the athletic dept. at Iowa, not Barta. Ferentz is not giving up his $40 million plus in salary.

The only hope is if the rich donors pressure Barta. That's the only way change will happen to the football program. Even this scenario has a slim chance of happening.

I write this as someone who's followed Iowa athletics since 1975.
 
This is a different situation, though some things are the same.

What is similar and what is not.

1. Hawks have lost a lot to the NFL on the order of a NC competitor. Only Iowa isn't a NC competitor. Those losses hurt big time and aren't made up easily. This is a huge problem/blessing.

1b. I disagree with the article. Iowa has in most years had OL issues. Occasionally it comes together. The line is "young" this year due to NFL (some), injuries, transfers and just quitting football. The latter raises eyebrows but it does happen. The play is so bad on the line. No way this happens to a stable program with 2 O line coaches under an offensive genius can be this bad if there isn't the possibility the coaching really that bad. Not sure Iowa being O line U is really an accurate spin or ever has been.

1c. The Iowa O will likely not improve a lot next year. The D will likely be somewhat weaker and the punting game somewhat weaker.

2. Hawks could easily be 5-2 this year and could have had a respectable loss at OSU on just a few plays. The D is somewhat better than average for the Hawks which is darned good. The O... well. But we've seen Iowa O's battle through before including 2015.

2.b. Could easily be 2-5.

3. KF has proven in the past he can bring it back.

3b. I'm not sure the Big has seen an offense as bad as Iowa's...maybe in forever?

4. KF has made it through crises before. 2 major scandals and another still of an unknown outcome.

4.b. If there is an internal problem at Iowa creating scandals, the "he's a good guy" credits are pretty much used up.

5. Like it or not, KF has controlled the media. Maybe it's obvious to about everyone but the media. How does he do that? The word is retaliation/abuse. He has some sort of system in place to intimidate the media. Maybe it's his PR firm.

5.b. OSU reporters and reports have bombed the Ferentz stonewall. Cat is out of the bag. KF didn't handle it well. My guess there is an Iowa connection of retaliation in reverse. I

5c. The media will only get worse. As fans we have no more excuses to say, shucks he's Opie Taylor. We now know what media questions should look like (I think we always knew but didn't want to admit. After all 8 wins a year right?)

6. KF has hid behind Barta on Nepotism.

6b. Barta is on the hot seat. Nepotism just doesn't work very often.

7. Iowa has towed the line on player payments.

7b. Charlie Jones anyone?

Over the years I've learned to never underestimate KF. He surprises when you least expect it.

That said, the "unmentionable subject on this section" has caused damage. Not complete damage as we have decent young RBs. Whatever valid or abusive tactics Doyle used to make mammoths is gone. One NFL scout said of a highly regarded O lineman..."He blocks like a sumo wrestler:. The D has done it the right way with good fundamentals. The O line not so much. As we can see this year, a little bit of falloff in the OL stable can cause huge problems.

Eastern IL has had 3 relatively famous NFL QBs. KF doesn't really do that and chance once in a while might work. How many recruits and their parents are going to want to see what has happened to Petras or Padilla?

Maybe this is a stubborn old coach. Or is it something worse? I'm not so sure it isn't something worse. How many coaches succeed in completely intimidating the media? How many get away with Doylizatin as long as he did? How many coaches can get away with not having a Hock and Fant on the field together? The Hawks also seem to be low on developing TE's right now.

This time might be different. It will be interesting to see how this unfolds. Will he want to save himself from intense scrutiny and leave quietly? Or will he try for a comeback with maybe the most difficult challenges ever? Only KF knows that. Can he disband critics again?

My guess is in today's society, the criticism won't go away.
 
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Oddly enough, the end of the year possibly sets up for a finish that leaves this year in a typical, average Ferentz fashion.....6-8 wins. Rob's article is exactly what the Ferentz and Fort Kinnick is hoping to happen.
 
I could read Urban Meyers thoughts. Dude is going to go back to coaching and his first call is going to be Phil Parker.
 
HawkGold said:
This is a different situation, though some things are the same.

What is similar and what is not.

1. Hawks have lost a lot to the NFL on the order of a NC competitor. Only Iowa isn't a NC competitor. Those losses hurt big time and aren't made up easily. This is a huge problem/blessing.

1b. I disagree with the article. Iowa has in most years had OL issues. Occasionally it comes together. The line is "young" this year due to NFL (some), injuries, transfers and just quitting football. The latter raises eyebrows but it does happen. The play is so bad on the line. No way this happens to a stable program with 2 O line coaches under an offensive genius can be this bad if there isn't the possibility the coaching really that bad. Not sure Iowa being O line U is really an accurate spin or ever has been.

1c. The Iowa O will likely not improve a lot next year. The D will likely be somewhat weaker and the punting game somewhat weaker.

2. Hawks could easily be 5-2 this year and could have had a respectable loss at OSU on just a few plays. The D is somewhat better than average for the Hawks which is darned good. The O... well. But we've seen Iowa O's battle through before including 2015.

2.b. Could easily be 2-5.

3. KF has proven in the past he can bring it back.

3b. I'm not sure the Big has seen an offense as bad as Iowa's...maybe in forever?

4. KF has made it through crises before. 2 major scandals and another still of an unknown outcome.

4.b. If there is an internal problem at Iowa creating scandals, the "he's a good guy" credits are pretty much used up.

5. Like it or not, KF has controlled the media. Maybe it's obvious to about everyone but the media. How does he do that? The word is retaliation/abuse. He has some sort of system in place to intimidate the media. Maybe it's his PR firm.

5.b. OSU reporters and reports have bombed the Ferentz stonewall. Cat is out of the bag. KF didn't handle it well. My guess there is an Iowa connection of retaliation in reverse. I

5c. The media will only get worse. As fans we have no more excuses to say, shucks he's Opie Taylor. We now know what media questions should look like (I think we always knew but didn't want to admit. After all 8 wins a year right?)

6. KF has hid behind Barta on Nepotism.

6b. Barta is on the hot seat. Nepotism just doesn't work very often.

7. Iowa has towed the line on player payments.

7b. Charlie Jones anyone?

Over the years I've learned to never underestimate KF. He surprises when you least expect it.

That said, the "unmentionable subject on this section" has caused damage. Not complete damage as we have decent young RBs. Whatever valid or abusive tactics Doyle used to make mammoths is gone. One NFL scout said of a highly regarded O lineman..."He blocks like a sumo wrestler:. The D has done it the right way with good fundamentals. The O line not so much. As we can see this year, a little bit of falloff in the OL stable can cause huge problems.

Eastern IL has had 3 relatively famous NFL QBs. KF doesn't really do that and chance once in a while might work. How many recruits and their parents are going to want to see what has happened to Petras or Padilla?

Maybe this is a stubborn old coach. Or is it something worse? I'm not so sure it isn't something worse. How many coaches succeed in completely intimidating the media? How many get away with Doylizatin as long as he did? How many coaches can get away with not having a Hock and Fant on the field together? The Hawks also seem to be low on developing TE's right now.

This time might be different. It will be interesting to see how this unfolds. Will he want to save himself from intense scrutiny and leave quietly? Or will he try for a comeback with maybe the most difficult challenges ever? Only KF knows that. Can he disband critics again?

My guess is in today's society, the criticism won't go away.
Click to expand...
While I agree with most of your points, I believe #1 is part of a lingering myth about the Iowa as O Line U.
- Iowa currently has 45 active players in the NFL LINK
-19 were offensive players at Iowa
- 9 were OL
- 1 of those OL (Linderbaum) had eligibility for this year

That is not a NC level of talent graduated to the NFL. It is probably very average for a B10 program.
We may have been O Line U in the 2000's, but those horses have been out of the barn for quite some time.

Unfortunately, Kirk's 25 year-old offensive scheme is based on having those horses.
 
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