The Outback Bowl is Kirk Ferentz

AreWeThereYet said:
Losing to MSU would pretty much underline our mediocrity I must admit. The teams that have beat them have been pretty good though. It's a nice matchup, and one that is within reach if Iowa can rise to the occasion. I at least hope MSU's offensive limitations and a decent Iowa defense can keep the game within reach and Iowa's offense can find a way to score.

One thing I'm not going to do is spend a month bitching about Iowa getting a "mediocre" bowl game. I think there's a general consensus on here that the last eight years have come up a bit short of what we might have hoped for at the beginning. Disappointments are often part of life. Have a little bit of dignity dealing with them.
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Spoken like a true Ferentz--casually excusing the last decade's failures as a "disappointing part of life." Maybe you should give Kirk another cool mil.
 
The Outback Bowl isn't the greatest bowl nor is it the worst. It's a middle of the pack bowl (kind of what the Iowa program has been under Kirk for the past 8-9 years now.) When we played in the 09 Outback Bowl vs South Carolina, we should have been in a bigger bowl game at that time. We finished the season on such a strong point and were one of the hottest teams in America. We could have competed in the Rose or Fiesta Bowls back then and maybe won them.

I will say, I am looking forward to playing Mississippi St since it is the first ever meeting, that is exciting. Plus, their over confident and obnoxious fan base is irking me.
 
Northside Hawk said:
If the last decades "failures" rank ANY higher than a "disappointing part of life" to ANYONE it is easy to see where the true problems lie.
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It's not a comparison to other aspects of life. It's an assessment of the $5 millon man within the scope of expectations and results. Other coaches around the league are dumbfounded how KFer exists with impunity while they are expected to tow the line. When KFer says "he's lucky" to be at Iowa, he's telling the truth.
 
HawkleberryFinn said:
It's not a comparison to other aspects of life. It's an assessment of the $5 millon man within the scope of expectations and results. Other coaches around the league are dumbfounded how KFer exists with impunity while they are expected to tow the line. When KFer says "he's lucky" to be at Iowa, he's telling the truth.
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You me wondering there for a minute. From the second sentence on I can't argue with anything you're saying. But in the world we live in there are plenty of business people masquerading as athletes, coaches, entertainers, even politicians. If you're a fan of a certain movie star or music band and sense bullshit, steer clear.

Other coaches around the league work for mostly competent AD's. Kirk works for Gary Barta.
 
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HawkleberryFinn said:
It's not a comparison to other aspects of life. It's an assessment of the $5 millon man within the scope of expectations and results. Other coaches around the league are dumbfounded how KFer exists with impunity while they are expected to tow the line. When KFer says "he's lucky" to be at Iowa, he's telling the truth.
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Would love to see the quotes of other coaches saying kirk doesn't deserve what he has gotten...
 
EstronHawkKing said:
The Outback Bowl isn't the greatest bowl nor is it the worst. It's a middle of the pack bowl (kind of what the Iowa program has been under Kirk for the past 8-9 years now.) When we played in the 09 Outback Bowl vs South Carolina, we should have been in a bigger bowl game at that time. We finished the season on such a strong point and were one of the hottest teams in America. We could have competed in the Rose or Fiesta Bowls back then and maybe won them.

I will say, I am looking forward to playing Mississippi St since it is the first ever meeting, that is exciting. Plus, their over confident and obnoxious fan base is irking me.
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Could you imagine if Mississippi State ever played Nebraska?
 
bhalbur said:
Would love to see the quotes of other coaches saying kirk doesn't deserve what he has gotten...
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During the last two Big Ten Conference preseason events in Chicago, coaches were allowed to comment annonymously about other coaches. More than one coach mentioned Ferentz's comfy deal at Iowa.
 
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HawkleberryFinn said:
During the last two Big Ten Conference preseason events in Chicago, coaches are allowed to comment annonymously about other coaches. More than one coach mentioned Ferentz's comfy deal at Iowa.
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To name one, I'm almost positive that PJ Fleck brought it up. He spun it just enough to make it sound like a respectful complement.
 
HawkleberryFinn said:
During the last two Big Ten Conference preseason events in Chicago, coaches are allowed to comment annonymously about other coaches. More than one coach mentioned Ferentz's comfy deal at Iowa.
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There were a couple of quotes saying he has a pretty nice deal, which i don't fully disagree with, but there are also quotes saying hes doing a hell of a job... Seems like a bit of a wash. What I dont understand though is how people on here just think he is just a garbage coach. Is he the best coach in the U.S.? Lord no. But guess what not everyone can be Nick Saban.

Assuming barta is gone of course and you fire KF what are the odds of the new coach actually being better than KF? Who is to say you dont hire a mike riley and set the program backwards? Or a Lovie Smith? To me Kirk has proven that he can win big 10 championships. Does it happen often? No. but news flash they are extremely difficult to win. Look at who the champions are over the last 4 years for each conference...

Big 12: Oklahoma
ACC: Clemson
SEC: Bama, Georgia
Pac 12: Stanford, Washington, USC
Big 10: OSU, Penn St, Mich St

So there's what 2 teams in there that aren't blue blood programs? Stanford and Mich St? And we were a play away from beating Mich St. Of course I always want the hawks to win more and get those championships for themselves, but I also see that there are a ton of teams that look up to our 8 wins a year in complete envy. I do not want to go back to one of those programs. There are plenty of teams that average less wins than KF who have better brands and better recruiting bases than Iowa. To me KF has proven he can win against anyone. There isn't a long list of coaches who have beaten Urban Meyer and Nick Saban let alone the coaches that have just beaten one of them is pretty short. So if you still think he is just some garbage coach I guess we just look at football differently.
 
HawkleberryFinn said:
It's not a comparison to other aspects of life. It's an assessment of the $5 millon man within the scope of expectations and results. Other coaches around the league are dumbfounded how KFer exists with impunity while they are expected to tow the line. When KFer says "he's lucky" to be at Iowa, he's telling the truth.
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And we are lucky to have KF here. Mutual deal.
 
Northside Hawk said:
If the last decades "failures" rank ANY higher than a "disappointing part of life" to ANYONE it is easy to see where the true problems lie.
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One of the best responses on here. If this stuff just drags your life down and eats at you then you have some other problems to deal with. People dealing with a lot more serious stuff than this in life and nobody's tax dollars are going toward any of this. Don't like it then don't watch, don't comment, don't buy Iowa stuff. Silence and inactivity in this case is what would bring change if that is really what one thinks is the course of action needed.
 
westender said:
One of the best responses on here. If this stuff just drags your life down and eats at you then you have some other problems to deal with. People dealing with a lot more serious stuff than this in life and nobody's tax dollars are going toward any of this. Don't like it then don't watch, don't comment, don't buy Iowa stuff. Silence and inactivity in this case is what would bring change if that is really what one thinks is the course of action needed.
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You obviously didn't take the time to read the entire thread. And no, we're not "lucky" to have KF. That's my point.
 
HawkleberryFinn said:
Yes the Outback is a mediocre bowl...it's better than others, but not where the Hawks should be with the talent they had this year--my qualms are less about the bowl we ended up in and more about actualizing the talent we have. This year we had the combination of a talented team and a weak schedule. There's no way we should've been 8-4 (almost 7-5). 8-4 would be achieving/over-achieving with average talent. That wasn't the case this year. The most glaring and unforgiveable coaching snafu was the misuse of Noah Fant. I agree with you on the Barta deal.
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If you say we were almost 7-5, you should maybe include that we were almost 9-3 or 10-2 or 11-1, or 12-0. Always lots of "almosts" in an Iowa season.
 
HawkleberryFinn said:
Yes the Outback is a mediocre bowl...it's better than others, but not where the Hawks should be with the talent they had this year--my qualms are less about the bowl we ended up in and more about actualizing the talent we have. This year we had the combination of a talented team and a weak schedule. There's no way we should've been 8-4 (almost 7-5). 8-4 would be achieving/over-achieving with average talent. That wasn't the case this year. The most glaring and unforgiveable coaching snafu was the misuse of Noah Fant. I agree with you on the Barta deal.
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Vegas had the over/under win total set for Iowa at 7.5 going into this season. I guess Iowa surpassed expectations? Sounds like you should have bet a million on the over.
 
Northside Hawk said:
I think at the end of the day it comes back to Gary Barta. And publicly stating that you're going to reward your coach for getting to seven wins presents a bad look. I think a lot of the Kirk complaints on these boards are ultimately complaints about Barta. Many of them well justified, in light of his recent handling of the Dolphin incident. In addition to the bad contracts, lawsuits, etc.
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Are you implying Kirks needs incentive? That would be a sad thought.
 
blubberhawk said:
Vegas had the over/under win total set for Iowa at 7.5 going into this season. I guess Iowa surpassed expectations? Sounds like you should have bet a million on the over.
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Iowa lost every big game it played this season minus Iowa State. They found a way to lose the important games. This is not the trademark of quality. I couldn't care less what Vegas predicts. What were Iowa fans' expectations?--people who actually know the team? I'm guessing the average fan predicted higher than 7.5 given the player talent and weak schedule. Again Fant's misuse, the bad play-calling, and bad coaching should be examined--not Vegas' expectations.
 
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