West Champion last Year 1-0 this year and

[longtimer]

Yet I have a terrible gut feeling that this is the beginning of the end for Ferentz. I just don't see any way BF is capable of turning this offense around. It is not execution or cleaning up a few things it is a system that doesn't work. And yes Old Ferentz will go down before sacrificing his kid.
I realize I am saying nothing new or revealing as I am sure most of you are having some of the same thoughts, but I am old enough to remember the 20 years before Fry and I sure don't want that to happen again
With reorganization it is going to be even more difficult for the Iowa's of the world to compete. This is not the time for a program meltdown

 

[MelroseHawkins]

Iowa's game was the topic of a national talk show on the radio yesterday I was listening to. They were teasing the story for some time before mentioning a college game Saturday that felt like the team lost even though they won it.......................................guess who they were talking about?

Yes, it felt like Iowa lost that game on Saturday. How deflating is it to see that performance the very first game, against an FCS opponent, with a 5th year senior.

 

[NorthKCHawk]

This is not the same as Fry. The recruiting really dropped off towards the end of the Fry era, and so did the wins. His coaching tree also withered down the stretch as so many great coaches moved up the ranks and were not replaced with the same quality. KF's recruiting has been trending up the last couple cycles and as you noted, we won the division and 10 games last year.

The sky was falling after UNI in 2009 too.

Let's see a few more games before we decide that KF is a cooked turkey.....

 

[Gibsonian]

I still have hope for the team this year, only cause we have seen many opening acts look pretty bad and end up in a nice bowl game and in the top 20 here under Ferentz. Overall though, the offense is reeling, no sign of improvement, signs of regression. Additional film watching and practice will take us from like 130 to 110 to 120 ranked offense and we'll call it good for the year. It is as if Iowa staff, on offense, has no idea on how to improve this other than waiting for new recruits. No changes on the offensive coaching staff side that can help have been made. Barta should be deep into this if BF reports to him. Waist deep.

 

[Gibsonian]

Fry had health issues, was the end of his time and recruiting had slipped, alot. This is not the same. Recruiting is still good, coaches are healthy, not the end of an era imo. This is nepotism, and this can happen. You try to fire your son, not easy......

 

[hawkeyes87]

Yet I have a terrible gut feeling that this is the beginning of the end for Ferentz. I just don't see any way BF is capable of turning this offense around. It is not execution or cleaning up a few things it is a system that doesn't work. And yes Old Ferentz will go down before sacrificing his kid.

I haven't posted in a long time but this thread got me motivated enough to finally chime in!

The "beginning of the end" was making BF the OC in the first place. The O has been declining ever since.

Iowa's game was the topic of a national talk show on the radio yesterday I was listening to.

Yep. Many YouTubers / Twitterers (?) etc talking about it.

We were a great revival story w/ 4 Top-10 finishes '02-'09. Then a lot of years as good, loveable underdogs w/ occasional big upsets (and, recently, The Wave).

Now? Laughingstock. More and more national commenters noting that the responsible OC is the coach's son...

This is not the same as Fry.... His coaching tree also withered down the stretch as so many great coaches moved up the ranks and were not replaced with the same quality..., we won the division and 10 games last year.

The sky was falling after UNI in 2009 too.

How many great coaches does KF have, exactly? I'm thinking 1 - 3. How many on staff?

Won the division and 10 games because of the schedule, not the team. Who was the best win? Minnesota? Indiana, ISU, and PSU looked like big wins but all were shown to be mediocre at best. If they had played OSU or Mich like (2nd place) PU / Minn / WIsc they'd have ended tied for 1st & been the 4th seed.

In 2009 they had Stanzi at qb. DJK wide (and eventually McNutt). Bulaga and Reiff on the line (overall not a great line, but definitely better than the last 2 years).

Most importantly they didn't have BF at OC. They didn't have a KF sacrificing wins to help his kid.

Oh, and they didn't have Top-10's Michigan & OSU on the schedule (beat UM, but Rich Rod went 5-7).

If they end w/ a strong record it will be because the entire B1G faceplanted.

That is all. Long post for my first jump back into the pool!

 

[racerhawk]

This is not the same as Fry. The recruiting really dropped off towards the end of the Fry era, and so did the wins. His coaching tree also withered down the stretch as so many great coaches moved up the ranks and were not replaced with the same quality. KF's recruiting has been trending up the last couple cycles and as you noted, we won the division and 10 games last year.

The sky was falling after UNI in 2009 too.

Let's see a few more games before we decide that KF is a cooked turkey.....

I tend to agree. I'm totally perplexed by the terrible o line play, but our talent level (at least per recruiting services) continues to improve each year.

That game totally felt like a loss, for good reason.... but it wasn't!

I do not expect greatness or anything, but it should be interesting to see if they can make some improvements. I'm not holding my breath, because I like oxygen.

 

[Fryowa]

Let's see a few more games before we decide that KF is a cooked turkey.....

Again, no one’s saying KF is a cooked turkey. Brian/Petras are the problems.

KF not doing anything about it is what he’s guilty of.

 

[NorthKCHawk]

Again, no one’s saying KF is a cooked turkey. Brian/Petras are the problems.

KF not doing anything about it is what he’s guilty of.

Actually the OP started this thread by stating that this was the beginning of the end for KF. I was responding to that. So, at least one person is saying it.

Petras and Brian are not good enough to overcome the primary deficiency on offense: dysfunctional OL play. Indeed, I am much more concerned with how a team that recruits well at OL, is known for putting OL in the league, and literally has THREE OL coaches on staff, can be this shitty on OL!!!! How is that happening?

Fix the line and I promise you BF and Petras won't be as shitty. They will still be shitty, but not as shitty. OL is what this season will boil down to.

 

[MelroseHawkins]

Actually the OP started this thread by stating that this was the beginning of the end for KF. I was responding to that. So, at least one person is saying it.

Petras and Brian are not good enough to overcome the primary deficiency on offense: dysfunctional OL play. Indeed, I am much more concerned with how a team that recruits well at OL, is known for putting OL in the league, and literally has THREE OL coaches on staff, can be this shitty on OL!!!! How is that happening?

Fix the line and I promise you BF and Petras won't be as shitty. They will still be shitty, but not as shitty. OL is what this season will boil down to.

I wonder, what the hell happened to all the upper classman on the O-line? If there are some who have been in the system for some years, they obviously aren't good enough for PT. Iowa's line is indeed young, but how did it get to that point and how did we get into such a cycle on that regard. Hmm.

 

[okeefe4prez]

I wonder, what the hell happened to all the upper classman on the O-line? If there are some who have been in the system for some years, they obviously aren't good enough for PT. Iowa's line is indeed young, but how did it get to that point and how did we get into such a cycle on that regard. Hmm.

Brian moved from line coach to OC after 2016. The recruiting hit a bit of a lull after that with the exception of the guys who got drafted on the first day. It is coming back, but unfortunately there aren't guys who are up to snuff of what we as fans think of when we think of upperclassmen on the o-line for Iowa.

 

[BigD]

Iowa's game was the topic of a national talk show on the radio yesterday I was listening to. They were teasing the story for some time before mentioning a college game Saturday that felt like the team lost even though they won it.......................................guess who they were talking about?

Yes, it felt like Iowa lost that game on Saturday. How deflating is it to see that performance the very first game, against an FCS opponent, with a 5th year senior.

Opening game Fry would have had trouble keeping this game under fifty points for his offense. I miss those days of destroying teams on opening day.

Fry actually had a multitude of offensive plays at his disposal. Not fifteen……….. or ten???

 

[InGoodCo]

This could be the end, yet I'm not there yet. This staff just has a knack for winning and it wouldn't surprise me at all if this is still a 9 or 10 win team. If they beat ISU this week, I'm not betting against them in the next 2 either.

 

[NorthKCHawk]

Iowa clearly missed badly on OL for several classes around 2017-19. Still, we should not be this bad. Unlike last year, we finally have these youngsters the size that is needed to run this offense. But, their technique sucks.
KF is the master at developing talent during the season. He's going to need to work some magic this season. The talent is there. In the words of Norman Dale, he needs to break em down and build em back up again.

 

[racerhawk]

Iowa clearly missed badly on OL for several classes around 2017-19. Still, we should not be this bad. Unlike last year, we finally have these youngsters the size that is needed to run this offense. But, their technique sucks.
KF is the master at developing talent during the season. He's going to need to work some magic this season. The talent is there. In the words of Norman Dale, he needs to break em down and build em back up again.

Good points. I'm shocked with how bad the O line was in this first game. I was looking forward to a big improvement. I was also quite wrong.

 

[racerhawk]

Actually the OP started this thread by stating that this was the beginning of the end for KF. I was responding to that. So, at least one person is saying it.

Petras and Brian are not good enough to overcome the primary deficiency on offense: dysfunctional OL play. Indeed, I am much more concerned with how a team that recruits well at OL, is known for putting OL in the league, and literally has THREE OL coaches on staff, can be this shitty on OL!!!! How is that happening?

Fix the line and I promise you BF and Petras won't be as shitty. They will still be shitty, but not as shitty. OL is what this season will boil down to.

I know people just want to talk about Petras and BF, but running for a yard per carry against an FCS school is just shocking. That's certainly on the o coordinator, but what about the o line coach, and the o line personnel? They performed at the "F" grade level.

 

[kicker22]

This could be the end, yet I'm there yet. This staff just has a knack for winning and it wouldn't surprise me at all if this is still a 9 or 10 win team. If they beat ISU this week, I'm not betting against them in the next 2 either.

There's so much truth to this post, but also underlines what I see as the biggest problem. We know week in and week out that the defense and special teams are carrying the team. However, I also think its those 9-10 wins that have prevented major staffing changes on the offensive side of the ball. Whether that be shuffling some coaches to other positions to avoid letting them go or letting some go, I think the success of the team as a whole has also been what's lead to minimal changes amongst staff. Replace a 9-10 win season with a 5-7 win season I think we see a great deal of change. I don't agree with this line of thought, but I definitely think it's what we've been seeing first hand the last few years.

 

[thedukeofearl]

Who knows what is going to happen

Perhaps The Captain will and the team will have 8 Wins when all is said and done

The possibility exists, and all things considered, that would be a fair to middling season

498 × 210

The D is solid and if they can get a chance to rest on the bench every now and then this
season could be salvageable

We need Gregor Clegane, The Mountain on the offensive line

View attachment 9244

 

[HawkGold]

Who knows what is going to happen

Perhaps The Captain will and the team will have 8 Wins when all is said and done

The possibility exists, and all things considered, that would be a fair to middling season

498 × 210

The D is solid and if they can get a chance to rest on the bench every now and then this
season could be salvageable

We need Gregor Clegane, The Mountain on the offensive line

View attachment 9244

You can step back from the ledge, but the problem that got you to the ledge still exists.

 

[racerhawk]

Who knows what is going to happen

Perhaps The Captain will and the team will have 8 Wins when all is said and done

The possibility exists, and all things considered, that would be a fair to middling season

498 × 210

The D is solid and if they can get a chance to rest on the bench every now and then this
season could be salvageable

We need Gregor Clegane, The Mountain on the offensive line

View attachment 9244

I will understand... I will understand.