Kirk Ferentz, Iowa
Kirk Ferentz is probably one of the best people in college football and he’s certainly a good coach. You don’t stay at one school for as long as he has without having some kind of tangible coaching talent. It helps that he treats his players like family, and for all intents and purposes he runs an NFL Draft pipeline over in Iowa City.
Ferentz has seen highs and lows with the Hawkeyes, but outside of 2015’s Big Ten championship and Rose Bowl appearances, lately things have been mostly average for Iowa.
After going 11-2 in 2009, Ferentz went 8-5, 7-6, 4-8, 8-5 and 7-6 before the 12-2 2015 season. That’s a season that was exciting for Iowa fans, but could it have been an anomaly? The 2016 season may be proof that it was, considering the fact that Iowa brought back a talented and experienced team but only put up a mediocre 8-5 record with a bowl game loss.
And that’s the problem with Ferentz. He’s a legend in his own right, but right now, the best word to describe Iowa football is average.
The Hawkeyes are always tough, and Ferentz always sends players to the NFL. But for a coach who recently signed a contract that will keep him in Iowa City until 2026 at a price tag of $4.5 million per year, average should no longer be good enough.