Why does KF not like to be held accountable?

[HawksFlyHigh]

I think all of the above posters pretty much nail it one way or another.

Here is another factor:

-Iowa has no modern national title to its name. For all intent purposes, Hayden is pretty much the measuring stick (no disrespect to guys like Forest Eversheski)

-Kirk has pretty much met the same type of goals that Hayden accomplished. The only thing he really hasn't done is get an outright Big Ten title (but I think 8-0 Co-champs in 2002 at least equals that) and have his team number 1 in the regular season.

-Kirk averages something like a little over 7 wins a year (7.3). Fry averaged something like 7.5 wins a year.

So, as long as Ferentz is averaging like 7 wins a year (where we currently sit in 2010) he is making the status quo. He is not going to feel any heat.

If he starts having back to back to back to back 5 win seasons or under in a row, his seat will then start to get warm, or he will get the boot.

This is my problem. I don't care what happened in the past. It is the past.

7 wins per season is not good enough. Not even close.

I want to be pushing for a BCS birth every year. I'm not saying win or even get to a BCS game every year. But at least be in the running. 7 wins does not cut it.

I viewed this program as being on a track to becoming elite. Two seasons with 11 wins and BCS appearances in 9 years is not enough for me.

I might have high standards, but I don't care what happened in the past with 7 wins. I would like for Iowa to take the next step and become and elite program. I thought it would happen this year. It didn't.

 

[HawksFlyHigh]

KF hasn't dodged responsibility at all. He has told people again and again to blame him. What he won't do is throw somebody else, whether it is a player or a coach, under the bus. He is very careful to not assign blame, or even acknowledge potential areas of blame. It is a bit frustrating, because you never get a straight answer from him...

And for that, I respect him for it.

That's why I say I don't mind when he doesn't give the media or fans the answers they want to hear.

I care about the performance on the field. And so far this year he hasn't given us any answers.

 

[bws258]

Because he seems to think that college kids should be able to execute like professional players, for some ridiculous reason

 

[HaydenHawk56]

"Georgia barely got to 6-6 this year after a disappointing season last year. Florida is 7-5. Texas is 5-7. Tennessee is 6-6. Notre Dame is 7-5. USC is 7-5"

Only thing is, outside of Texas's shocking results, Iowa was expected to do something big this year. I think that is where the disappointment lies, and Iowa only gets so many shots at doing something really big. Iowa has not been able to get the NT like these other programs have achieved.

Iowa maybe a bad hire away, but there are only so many years where the starts align too. You got to take advantage of when those opportunities come your way.

 

[HaydenHawk56]

"This is my problem. I don't care what happened in the past. It is the past.

7 wins per season is not good enough. Not even close.

I want to be pushing for a BCS birth every year. I'm not saying win or even get to a BCS game every year. But at least be in the running. 7 wins does not cut it.

I viewed this program as being on a track to becoming elite. Two seasons with 11 wins and BCS appearances in 9 years is not enough for me.

I might have high standards, but I don't care what happened in the past with 7 wins. I would like for Iowa to take the next step and become and elite program. I thought it would happen this year. It didn't"

I want more too. Don't get me wrong. But, I'm sure this is what the university looks at along with the fans in the stands and the money being made. Like it or not, that is why he is untouchable. Until we are not making money and he is not making the status quo, Barta will not put any pressure on him.

 

[JonDMiller]

Only thing is, outside of Texas's shocking results, Iowa was expected to do something big this year. I think that is where the disappointment lies, and Iowa only gets so many shots at doing something really big. Iowa has not been able to get the NT like these other programs have achieved.

Iowa maybe a bad hire away, but there are only so many years where the starts align too. You got to take advantage of when those opportunities come your way.

I dont disagree with you. I understand this one hurts, hurts me too.

But what I dont understand and will not cosign, is that because Iowa had a let down in this particular year, that it somehow changes the realities of what Ferentz has done, and can continue to do, at Iowa.

I see a lot of that around here right now, and its rampant emotions getting the better of rational thinking. I just can't go along with that.

I am sure that will make me an ***, or whatever people want to say about me on other boards. I really don't care about that. Just quote me accurately and provide a direct link

 

[JonDMiller]

"This is my problem. I don't care what happened in the past. It is the past.

7 wins per season is not good enough. Not even close.

Throw out the first two rebuilding years, and its over 8 wins a year. 8.4 in fact, counting this year, over the last decade. And to say that's not even close to being good enough, there might be 10-12 other programs in the nation during this time that have won more. (Sorry, I dont count TCU, Boise or Utah)

I think you need to figure out what you want, then look into it more to see how realistically attainable it is.

 

[Xerxes]

If KF held KOK as accountable as he holds DJK I wonder what kind of an Offense we'd have?

And we have a winner!

 

[TavernHawk]

Because he is smart enough to know that he has the University of Iowa by the balls.
He understands that it would be very difficult for Iowa to find a better coach and one that would stay even with offers to leave.

He also understands that the Iowa FB program is one bad hire away from being a bottom level B10 program, just like the BB team.

Its a tough situation for fans to deal with. Mainly because donations from season ticket holders go to the athletic budget which is where he gets his salary. Directly or indirectly, fans are paying his salary, yet he doesn't have to answer to them or like the original poster said, he gives a smart *** remark.

His record at Iowa is very average. 26-22 in the Big Ten over the last 6 seasons.

I'm not so sure we couldn't find a better coach.

 

[HawksFlyHigh]

Iowa is one bad hire away from being in the same or worse position that Michigan, Tennessee or Notre Dame is in right now...Traditional power houses with national title history, that are floundering badly.

If things can change that dramatically at places that have deeper pockets than Iowa, bigger recruiting advantages than Iowa, a better platform for success than at Iowa, they sure as hell can happen at Iowa real quickly.

People assume that this is the new 'floor'...that winning 27 games over three years is the baseline of what we should expect every year.

Sorry, but you are creating your own problem and you are emoting it to everyone else, then you need to check yourself.

That doesn't mean that this year wasn't a disappointment. It also doesn't mean that last year is some norm, either.

Georgia barely got to 6-6 this year after a disappointing season last year. Florida is 7-5. Texas is 5-7. Tennessee is 6-6. Notre Dame is 7-5. USC is 7-5.

These programs have so many more advantages than Iowa it would choke a billy goat. Their fans are disappointed too, but these are not apples to apples comparisons. Iowa is the interloper, in a pure college football aristocracy point of view, on this list.

For a number of reasons, this team didn't have it this year. I am writing up as many things as I can think of as to why that might have been, and then we can look at it and talk about what we think the real problems were, etc.

But I remain steadfastly convinced, as do most people I speak with that live in the football world, that Kirk Ferentz is in the cream of the crop, and especially for Iowa.

Some will scoff at this, some will say I am kissing his *** or whatever. I really don't care what you think of me, otherwise I would have been long gone by now doing something else. It's what I believe, given the obstacles Iowa has to overcome in this sport, and how well they have done that under Ferentz.

You can hope for more, but when your basis for expectations is on a foundation of hope with little material evidence beyond speculation, that's on you.

It still doesn't white wash this year; things were set up to do much better than they did, and they didn't get over.

But people are acting like this program has been a chronic disappointment under Ferentz, which is BS, plain and simple.

A few things:

I don't think too many people want Ferentz fired. If they do, they have little knowledge of the game to begin with. Because yes, it could be much worse with a different hire. But he doesn't need to be let off the hook.

When you have the talent we've had over the last three seasons, 7 wins is not okay this year. Ferentz and his staff have done a great job of recruiting and developing talent. However 26 wins is not good enough to be getting out of your players. So yes, given the recruiting and development (that comes from winning) 26 wins is the floor of what we should go by. The name of the game is improvement, and from where he started, Kirk is doing a good job of it. He needs to continue to improve, and not let the program get complacent or regress. 2006, 2007, and now 2010 do not bode well for that. Are my expectations high? Damn right they are. But why settle for mediocrity or anything less? Set the bar high and go get it.

And the Forida's, Texas's and others of the world can have a down year and still fall back on reputation. We are not of their status yet. To get there, we need to continue to win. We have had chances to really build off of solid seasons, and we have failed to do that when given opportunities. *Edit* I'd also like to add Texas and Florida both lost senior quarterbacks and a lot of their roster. We were the opposite, and returned nearly everyone except for 2 linebackers, a corner, a tight end, and 3 linemen (which hurts, I'll admit)

So yes while Kirk has overall done a good job and he gives us a better chance to win than most other coaches we could hire, he needs to improve and in turn improve our program in my opinion, plain and simple. He has done a good job overall so far. Don't let up now.

 

[Hawkize1]

Like I've said, they get asked and he dodges them. You can't force someone to say something they don't want to say. Kirk is a smart man. He knows how the media works.

Give me a REALISTIC question to ask him tomorrow and I'll do my best.

You don't insult a coach of slam him and expect any respect or cordial answer by the way. So let's all remember that.

My question I have prepared is "While the execution has obviously been a factor in the losses, do you think the coaches could change anything or be doing anything different to help the players execute better?"

Ask this or rephrase it however you wish. When Iowa has the lead on teams in the 4th quarter and the oppositions offense is in a certain passing situation, why hasn't the dime package with multiple defensive backs been implemented to help guard against the pass.

Too many times this year we sat back and watched crossing routes and outs be completed at will. James Morris will be an outstanding LB here at Iowa. To ask a true freshman LB to cover slot receivers in passing downs seems like alot to ask of him. Maybe when James has a couple more yrs in the system will he be able to do that.

 

[Xerxes]

Throw out the first two rebuilding years, and its over 8 wins a year. And to say that's not even close to being good enough, there might be 10-12 other programs in the nation during this time that have won more.

I think you need to figure out what you want, then look into it more to see how realistically attainable it is.

Does that mean we should throw out TD's first 3 years as Iowa's BB coach?

In both Kirk & Tom's situations, they were dealing with what was left for them. One was left in a good shape, one in bad shape.

 

[HaydenHawk56]

"I dont disagree with you. I understand this one hurts, hurts me too.

But what I dont understand and will not cosign, is that because Iowa had a let down in this particular year, that it somehow changes the realities of what Ferentz has done, and can continue to do, at Iowa.

I see a lot of that around here right now, and its rampant emotions getting the better of rational thinking. I just can't go along with that.

I am sure that will make me an ***, or whatever people want to say about me on other boards. I really don't care about that. Just quote me accurately and provide a direct link "

That is part of the reason why, I do agree with you, I don't think he should be replaced. As I posted above, we know what we get out of Ferentz, and he keeps Iowa competitive. The other reason, I don't want a Tom Davis situation made out of Ferentz (but I would love the "Tom Davis on grass schemes used"........more wide open offensive play).

I would like to see Ferentz continue to grow on the job. Like I also said in another post, a good teacher, coach, or field general in the military will continue to self reflect on the job. They will never stop growing and learning from their mistakes and their successes.

I think we can keep Ferentz and makes changes elsewhere. Ferentz just has to have.....I hate to say it......the courage to do it. An all around great situation would be to make changes without cutting anyone. More wrinkles and more reflection in gut check time in close games for one.

 

[TheNebraskaHawk]

Jon's front article is why.

I have read more complaints about Kirk's system (Sounds eriely familiar to what I heard about a recent B-Ball coach). The issue is not the system!

The issue is execution. I had the privelige of playing high school ball under one of the best Iowa high school coaches of all time at Emmetsburg. Coach Twait had a system in place that really was not all that different than Kirks (Nothing fancy, just straight forward hard nosed football). Starting in seventh grade kids started learning the system. Starting with a few basic plays and technique was emphasized right along with the execution of the plays. Each year more plays were added on top of those that you learned in seventh grade, but everything evolved around executing. If we executed, we won.

We did not always have better players, as a matter of fact a certain Mr. Nelson is one of the few that went on to play D1 college ball in 25 + years that I remember. Again, if everyone executed their part of each play, we were going to win most of the time.

I do not care what defensive scheme a team put out there against us...

 

[theiowahawkeye]

KF hasn't dodged responsibility at all. He has told people again and again to blame him. What he won't do is throw somebody else, whether it is a player or a coach, under the bus. He is very careful to not assign blame, or even acknowledge potential areas of blame. It is a bit frustrating, because you never get a straight answer from him...

Yes, while he collects a bigger pay check. I wish I could have accountability like that. Meanwhile his Offense becomes less productive and remains in the toilet.

Accountability to me means KOK is fired and KF goes back to the same contract he had before this most recent extension. That would be accountability.

 

[HaydenHawk56]

"Jon's front article is why.

I have read more complaints about Kirk's system (Sounds eriely familiar to what I heard about a recent B-Ball coach). The issue is not the system!

The issue is execution. I had the privelige of playing high school ball under one of the best Iowa high school coaches of all time at Emmetsburg. Coach Twait had a system in place that really was not all that different than Kirks (Nothing fancy, just straight forward hard nosed football). Starting in seventh grade kids started learning the system. Starting with a few basic plays and technique was emphasized right along with the execution of the plays. Each year more plays were added on top of those that you learned in seventh grade, but everything evolved around executing. If we executed, we won.

We did not always have better players, as a matter of fact a certain Mr. Nelson is one of the few that went on to play D1 college ball in 25 + years that I remember. Again, if everyone executed their part of each play, we were going to win most of the time.

I do not care what defensive scheme a team put out there against us..."

Very good points. However, sometimes it is schemes too. You can execute things really well......but it may not be the right scheme being executed very well to use.

I will use basketball as an example. Team A is playing solid 2-3 zone defense and is making it very tough for Team B to get the ball inside. So, Team B starts jacking up 3s and gets hot from the perimeter. The coach of Team A has to either stay with the 2-3 zone that his team is executing very well and hope for Team B to go cold, or he needs to adapt his defense.

This could be applied to "bend, but don't break" as well. That is the problem I have with Ferentz coached teams. You have to adapt. So far, that is what I like about Fran. We have seen mixtures of things on the basketball court in terms of pressing, mixing up defenses, running in transition, and half court sets.

 

[HawksFlyHigh]

[/B]


Ask this or rephrase it however you wish. When Iowa has the lead on teams in the 4th quarter and the oppositions offense is in a certain passing situation, why hasn't the dime package with multiple defensive backs been implemented to help guard against the pass.

Too many times this year we sat back and watched crossing routes and outs be completed at will. James Morris will be an outstanding LB here at Iowa. To ask a true freshman LB to cover slot receivers in passing downs seems like alot to ask of him. Maybe when James has a couple more yrs in the system will he be able to do that.

I apologize. I just checked the schedule and there is no press conference this Tuesday.

 

[homes]

I disagree. I think he will say that they need to do a better job of coaching. At least, I've heard him say it in the past. I also think that Iowa could do much worse than KF as the head coach. Much worse.

I have heard and read many times over that KF has an NFL mentality, which I think means, in part, that he treats his players likes adults and expects them to do the same, i.e., show up, practice hard, play hard and do things the right way. When it works, it's great, and we all love it.

However, these guys aren't adults, they're college kids. Some, as Norm likes to say, we're riding to games in a school bus a year or two before. Maybe it's too much to expect of college kids to always be ready to go, to have their game face on, etc., etc., etc., on their own. Maybe they need a Knute Rockne speech and a little Bo Schembechler kick in the pants (or to keep it local, a little Dan Gable "encouragement') every so often to get them going. Maybe they're getting that in practice, we just don't see it, but it was very apparent they had no fire in their belly on Saturday. It's up to the coaching staff to instill that week in and week out, to put some carrot out there for these kids to respond to. They failed in that regard.

But, Iowa isn't the only program that has had this problem. Think back to Wisconsin a couple of years ago when Cal-Poly nearly, should have, beat them at the end of the year, and people were calling for Bielema's head. It doesn't make it okay for Iowa to be like that, but they're not alone in this problem. It can be corrected.

 

[HawksFlyHigh]

Jon's front article is why.

I have read more complaints about Kirk's system (Sounds eriely familiar to what I heard about a recent B-Ball coach). The issue is not the system!

The issue is execution. I had the privelige of playing high school ball under one of the best Iowa high school coaches of all time at Emmetsburg. Coach Twait had a system in place that really was not all that different than Kirks (Nothing fancy, just straight forward hard nosed football). Starting in seventh grade kids started learning the system. Starting with a few basic plays and technique was emphasized right along with the execution of the plays. Each year more plays were added on top of those that you learned in seventh grade, but everything evolved around executing. If we executed, we won.

We did not always have better players, as a matter of fact a certain Mr. Nelson is one of the few that went on to play D1 college ball in 25 + years that I remember. Again, if everyone executed their part of each play, we were going to win most of the time.

I do not care what defensive scheme a team put out there against us...

The level of film study and depth that goes on in 2A Iowa high school football is nowhere near the same as what goes on in the Big Ten.

While I agree that execution is the name of the game, I do not like being as predictable as we are. I think that is ultimately what has led to us sitting at 7-5 right now.

 

[Bigtenchamp]

Iowa is one bad hire away from being in the same or worse position that Michigan, Tennessee or Notre Dame is in right now...Traditional power houses with national title history, that are floundering badly.

If things can change that dramatically at places that have deeper pockets than Iowa, bigger recruiting advantages than Iowa, a better platform for success than at Iowa, they sure as hell can happen at Iowa real quickly.

People assume that this is the new 'floor'...that winning 27 games over three years is the baseline of what we should expect every year.

Sorry, but you are creating your own problem and you are emoting it to everyone else, then you need to check yourself.

That doesn't mean that this year wasn't a disappointment. It also doesn't mean that last year is some norm, either.

Georgia barely got to 6-6 this year after a disappointing season last year. Florida is 7-5. Texas is 5-7. Tennessee is 6-6. Notre Dame is 7-5. USC is 7-5.

These programs have so many more advantages than Iowa it would choke a billy goat. Their fans are disappointed too, but these are not apples to apples comparisons. Iowa is the interloper, in a pure college football aristocracy point of view, on this list.

For a number of reasons, this team didn't have it this year. I am writing up as many things as I can think of as to why that might have been, and then we can look at it and talk about what we think the real problems were, etc.

But I remain steadfastly convinced, as do most people I speak with that live in the football world, that Kirk Ferentz is in the cream of the crop, and especially for Iowa.

Some will scoff at this, some will say I am kissing his *** or whatever. I really don't care what you think of me, otherwise I would have been long gone by now doing something else. It's what I believe, given the obstacles Iowa has to overcome in this sport, and how well they have done that under Ferentz.

You can hope for more, but when your basis for expectations is on a foundation of hope with little material evidence beyond speculation, that's on you.

It still doesn't white wash this year; things were set up to do much better than they did, and they didn't get over.

But people are acting like this program has been a chronic disappointment under Ferentz, which is BS, plain and simple.

I don't particularly like KF's football philosophy's. I don't have a problem with a ball control offense - but it doesnt particulary match up with the defensive philosophy.

The Indianapolis Colts have a similar def strategy but they have an offense that can put up points and allow the cover two shell defense to waste time and effectively win games.

A low scoring offense doesn't match up well with a cover 2 type defense. Also (like this year especially) if our defensive line is getting 0 pass rush we are in big trouble - and we have no plan of attack to supplement the lack of pass rush - hence why during certain years we can have very poor pass defense.

From day 1 I never was gung ho on Kirk and his old school strats, but I don't care if we win.

I dont need an Oregon duck offense to be happy, but I just wish we would stop playing football in 1987 sometimes.

I'm not saying Kirk being gone would be better, because he has done a great job here, but for 3 million dollars a year we could get talented coaches (if we are willing to spend that kind of cheddar)

We just have to see what the next couple years bring. Hopefully Kirk kicks some people in the *** over the next few months.