Iowa Targeting January for New OC

[MelroseHawkins]

My take on KF's presser: Just like each of the past 3 years, where a thorough review of the program was promised, as the offense sank lower and lower until finally reaching literally the bottom rung of total offense yards per game by a wide margin, with the assessment unalterably being: we just need to have better execution and get everyone healthy. No changes in the offensive offense are needed, no changes in coaches are needed either, and none will happen. BF would still be the OC if it was up to KF.

KF to those of you wanting change: pound sand. Maybe you forgot that we won the mild mild B1G West two of the last 3 years and almost won it the 3rd year. (The fact that we were completely uncompetitive against OSU, PSU and MI gets conveniently ignored by KF. In those two title games the scores were 42-3 and 26 -0 ( a combined 68 to 3) with the Hawks never reaching the red zone in the shutout loss. The PSU score was 31 - 0 this year. More punts than first downs. The OSU score last year was 54 - 10, with the IA TD being scored by our defense.

KF harps on the importance of "complimentary football", and yet has an offense that is the polar opposite of Phil Parker's awesome D. KF preaches the ultimate importance of "ball security", and yet played Deacon "Benny" Hill, each and every snap since he was called upon early in the season, even with statistics showing Hill was #1 in the QB nation for being at risk of causing a turnover. Joey Labas, who won the bowl game last year, with zero turnovers and a TD pass, never was given a single snap all season, and he's very understandably gone.

Don't get me wrong: Love, love, love the D and Special Teams. THEY won 10 games this season, in spite of the offense, rather than in anything remotely resembling "complimentary football." Proud of those two amazing units winning 10 games. But for the team to at least be competitive against MI, PSU, OSU and now WA, OR, UCLA and USC being added to the mix, and the mild, mild West being a thing of the past, changes to the offense must be made. Not talking "air raid", but something other than up the gut, and a 3 yard out on 3rd and 9. And on other than obvious passing downs, please don't go 5 wide, leaving no one in the backfield with the statue QB, such that the D knows with 100% certainty that the Hawks are going to pass.

IMHO the bottom line is that to be competitive going forward, the new OC has to have at least some freedom to run his own offense, or the definition of insanity will again be met: doing the same thing over and over again, and hoping for a different outcome.

Nice post.

 

[Teddy]

Below is what KF said about hiring a new OC.

The Hawkeyes play complementary football, he said, and the new coordinator has to understand that.

Below is the definition of complementary.

If something is complementary, then it somehow completes or enhances the qualities of something else.

Please explain to me how Iowa's offense does the latter. The Iowa defense is the something else part obviously.

You've just answered your own question. While watching I opined KF did recognize the offense was not complementary from the question asked and the way he answered. He's not going to criticize BF in public.

I hope the first thing the new guy does is change the culture to more accountability for positional execution. Couldn't begin to say how many 3rd downs have failed because the QB didn't execute, the QB was buried in a bull rush, the QB makes a good throw, and the receiver drops the ball? All of that was poor execution.

Good execution of the existing offense would double the points scored. Throw in some new things. Like throwing a lateral pass to a player who can throw it back to the QB looks intriguing, and hard to defend. Not saying just that play but some of the craftier and trickier contemporary NFL stuff.

 

[CP87]

You've just answered your own question. While watching I opined KF did recognize the offense was not complementary from the question asked and the way he answered. He's not going to criticize BF in public.

I hope the first thing the new guy does is change the culture to more accountability for positional execution. Couldn't begin to say how many 3rd downs have failed because the QB didn't execute, the QB was buried in a bull rush, the QB makes a good throw, and the receiver drops the ball? All of that was poor execution.

Good execution of the existing offense would double the points scored. Throw in some new things. Like throwing a lateral pass to a player who can throw it back to the QB looks intriguing, and hard to defend. Not saying just that play but some of the craftier and trickier contemporary NFL stuff.

I have nothing to back this up other than hunch, but I think guys were doing too much thinking, and that led to the sloppy execution. I want an offense that is simple for players, but elegant enough in design to keep the D guessing. That is why I like Chryst as a candidate, Budmayr pointed out these characteristics last year when speaking about what he learned from Chryst.

 

[trj]

KOK recruited CJB

Ehhh, Did KOK really recruit CJB or was it more about Houston Nutt losing his gig at Ole Miss?

 

[trj]

My take on KF's presser: Just like each of the past 3 years, where a thorough review of the program was promised, as the offense sank lower and lower until finally reaching literally the bottom rung of total offense yards per game by a wide margin, with the assessment unalterably being: we just need to have better execution and get everyone healthy. No changes in the offensive offense are needed, no changes in coaches are needed either, and none will happen. BF would still be the OC if it was up to KF.

KF to those of you wanting change: pound sand. Maybe you forgot that we won the mild mild B1G West two of the last 3 years and almost won it the 3rd year. (The fact that we were completely uncompetitive against OSU, PSU and MI gets conveniently ignored by KF. In those two title games the scores were 42-3 and 26 -0 ( a combined 68 to 3) with the Hawks never reaching the red zone in the shutout loss. The PSU score was 31 - 0 this year. More punts than first downs. The OSU score last year was 54 - 10, with the IA TD being scored by our defense.

KF harps on the importance of "complimentary football", and yet has an offense that is the polar opposite of Phil Parker's awesome D. KF preaches the ultimate importance of "ball security", and yet played Deacon "Benny" Hill, each and every snap since he was called upon early in the season, even with statistics showing Hill was #1 in the QB nation for being at risk of causing a turnover. Joey Labas, who won the bowl game last year, with zero turnovers and a TD pass, never was given a single snap all season, and he's very understandably gone.

Don't get me wrong: Love, love, love the D and Special Teams. THEY won 10 games this season, in spite of the offense, rather than in anything remotely resembling "complimentary football." Proud of those two amazing units winning 10 games. But for the team to at least be competitive against MI, PSU, OSU and now WA, OR, UCLA and USC being added to the mix, and the mild, mild West being a thing of the past, changes to the offense must be made. Not talking "air raid", but something other than up the gut, and a 3 yard out on 3rd and 9. And on other than obvious passing downs, please don't go 5 wide, leaving no one in the backfield with the statue QB, such that the D knows with 100% certainty that the Hawks are going to pass.

IMHO the bottom line is that to be competitive going forward, the new OC has to have at least some freedom to run his own offense, or the definition of insanity will again be met: doing the same thing over and over again, and hoping for a different outcome.

He didn’t give that freedom to his own son…why would he give that to anyone else?

 

[RobHowe]

Ehhh, Did KOK really recruit CJB or was it more about Houston Nutt losing his gig at Ole Miss?

Both

New staff at Ole Miss told CJB they didn’t want him.

CJB was pretty disappointed when KOK left before he got here. I remember interviewing him about it and writing a story.

 

[BigD]

Not sure if this is an updated article or not but just sitting here on an American Airlines flight heading to phoenix and ran across this. Nothing new as we all know the Chryst rumors.

Paul Chryst Emerging as Top Target for Big Ten Coaching Vacancy

Paul Chryst has plenty of coaching options on the table this offseason.

badgernotes.com

 

[RobHowe]

Thanks, D. I'm not familiar with this website or writer so don't have a read on his sources. I'm sure PC has plenty of friends back in Wisky talking about his future, though.

The plus with PC is that he coaches quarterbacks. You'd need some type of QB tutor with Philbin.

With each passing day, it appears those guys are the leaders in the clubhouse.

 

[#1DieHardHawk]

I didn't give it much thought initially but a statement on the job posting that struck me was the requirement of prior OC experience, and, IIRC, it stated P5 level.

That excludes a large number of potential candidates, including several up-and-coming QB coaches and smaller school OCs. With that, Chryst and Philbin immediately rise to the top of a short list.

 

[HuckFinn]

I didn't give it much thought initially but a statement on the job posting that struck me was the requirement of prior OC experience, and, IIRC, it stated P5 level.

That excludes a large number of potential candidates, including several up-and-coming QB coaches and smaller school OCs. With that, Chryst and Philbin immediately rise to the top of a short list.

Good call.

 

[briney11]

Thanks, D. I'm not familiar with this website or writer so don't have a read on his sources. I'm sure PC has plenty of friends back in Wisky talking about his future, though.

The plus with PC is that he coaches quarterbacks. You'd need some type of QB tutor with Philbin.

With each passing day, it appears those guys are the leaders in the clubhouse.

Drew Tate???

 

[RobHowe]

Drew Tate???

He's coached a lot of positions on the offense, including QB. Iowa could do a lot worse if they hired Philbin and needed a QB coach. I think Drew would jump at the opportunity.

 

[hawkinstl]

You've just answered your own question. While watching I opined KF did recognize the offense was not complementary from the question asked and the way he answered. He's not going to criticize BF in public.

I hope the first thing the new guy does is change the culture to more accountability for positional execution. Couldn't begin to say how many 3rd downs have failed because the QB didn't execute, the QB was buried in a bull rush, the QB makes a good throw, and the receiver drops the ball? All of that was poor execution.

Good execution of the existing offense would double the points scored. Throw in some new things. Like throwing a lateral pass to a player who can throw it back to the QB looks intriguing, and hard to defend. Not saying just that play but some of the craftier and trickier contemporary NFL stuff.

KF's been using the word complementary for years. My only point is that he has some people fooled as Iowa has rarely exhibited a complementary offense during his tenure.

Also tired of hearing the word execute or failed to execute. Who recruits the players and who coaches the players that don't execute. The coaches of course. Why do they execute so often on defense while failing so miserably on offense. It's the offensive coaching and philosophy is the answer. Who has their hands all over the offense? KF of course.

That the players fail to execute on offense, A LOT, speaks volumes of KF's philosophy and the players they've been recruiting and how the coaches have not been developing them very well.

 

[Teddy]

KF's been using the word complementary for years. My only point is that he has some people fooled as Iowa has rarely exhibited a complementary offense during his tenure.

Also tired of hearing the word execute or failed to execute. Who recruits the players and who coaches the players that don't execute. The coaches of course. Why do they execute so often on defense while failing so miserably on offense. It's the offensive coaching and philosophy is the answer. Who has their hands all over the offense? KF of course.

That the players fail to execute on offense, A LOT, speaks volumes of KF's philosophy and the players they've been recruiting and how the coaches have not been developing them very well.

I think we need to see significant improvement in execution from the OL, QB and WRs.

None of the current weaknesses have been endemic at Iowa. Had dominating lines, very good receivers and a laundry list of very good QBs. This has been a last three seasons thing. I'd be skittish if I coached the receivers or line. Or, it's possible that BF's calls did not create many good throwing options.

 

[Teddy]

I have nothing to back this up other than hunch, but I think guys were doing too much thinking, and that led to the sloppy execution. I want an offense that is simple for players, but elegant enough in design to keep the D guessing. That is why I like Chryst as a candidate, Budmayr pointed out these characteristics last year when speaking about what he learned from Chryst.

The line rarely looked natural or in charge.

 

[SCHawkeye2]

KF's been using the word complementary for years. My only point is that he has some people fooled as Iowa has rarely exhibited a complementary offense during his tenure.

Also tired of hearing the word execute or failed to execute. Who recruits the players and who coaches the players that don't execute. The coaches of course. Why do they execute so often on defense while failing so miserably on offense. It's the offensive coaching and philosophy is the answer. Who has their hands all over the offense? KF of course.

That the players fail to execute on offense, A LOT, speaks volumes of KF's philosophy and the players they've been recruiting and how the coaches have not been developing them very well.

I too am tired of the 'execution' excuse.
It is essentially throwing the players under the bus, rather than accept blame for an outdated offensive scheme and predictable, unimaginative play calling.
Stubbornly run 25+ times per game into a 9 man defensive front with 5 offensive blockers?
"We need to execute better."
Run 5 yard out routes on 3rd and 9?
"We need to clean up some things."

If KF and BF are right - if it is poor execution - then why keep playing the same people who demonstrate they cant block or pass or catch or get open?
If KF and BF are right - this is the best talent we can put out there - then why not use the portal to get better talent who can execute?
" need to execute better" has been a 'not my/our fault' excuse from Kirk for several years now to deflect responsibility for his myopic offensive approach and Brian's incompetence.

As far as 'complementary football', does anyone think the worst offense in CFB is actually a complementary component of some brilliant overarching strategy that somehow maximizes Iowa's competitiveness better than we would fare with a merely average offense?

 

[HuckFinn]

About every coach I have heard in interviews mentions execution as a key to victory. Seems to me that is a completely true reference. As to the “throwing players under the bus” claim, most every coach will say that the coaching staff must do a better job of preparing the players.

 

[HuckFinn]

I too am tired of the 'execution' excuse.
It is essentially throwing the players under the bus, rather than accept blame for an outdated offensive scheme and predictable, unimaginative play calling.
Stubbornly run 25+ times per game into a 9 man defensive front with 5 offensive blockers?
"We need to execute better."
Run 5 yard out routes on 3rd and 9?
"We need to clean up some things."

If KF and BF are right - if it is poor execution - then why keep playing the same people who demonstrate they cant block or pass or catch or get open?
If KF and BF are right - this is the best talent we can put out there - then why not use the portal to get better talent who can execute?
" need to execute better" has been a 'not my/our fault' excuse from Kirk for several years now to deflect responsibility for his myopic offensive approach and Brian's incompetence.

As far as 'complementary football', does anyone think the worst offense in CFB is actually a complementary component of some brilliant overarching strategy that somehow maximizes Iowa's competitiveness better than we would fare with a merely average offense?

“Complementary” football is a theory favored by numerous coaches. None of them, including KF, would claim an offense that is flat awful is an effective component of that theory.

 

[SCHawkeye2]

“Complementary” football is a theory favored by numerous coaches. None of them, including KF, would claim an offense that is flat awful is an effective component of that theory.

Proclaiming to play complementary football and playing complementary football are two different things.
I'm asking if it's really complementary football if one component is a miserable failure.

 

[Will C]

Below is what KF said about hiring a new OC.

The Hawkeyes play complementary football, he said, and the new coordinator has to understand that.

Below is the definition of complementary.

If something is complementary, then it somehow completes or enhances the qualities of something else.

Please explain to me how Iowa's offense does the latter. The Iowa defense is the something else part obviously.

Yes, complementary football means that you have an offense to go with your defense and special teams. We do not. So get that offense up to mid pack performance and we win some more games, begin to look respectable again. Kirk can do this.