Desmond King’s long and winding road to success
IOWA CITY, Iowa – Kirk Ferentz has thrived as the Iowa football coach largely by turning under-recruited high school players into college stars.
Senior cornerback Desmond King is the latest example of that.
King is coming off a 2015 season in which he was a consensus first-team All-America selection and the winner of the Jim Thorpe Award, which goes to the nation’s top collegiate defensive back.
The Detroit native is also the first Jim Thorpe Award winner to return to college. King considered skipping his senior season to enter the NFL Draft before deciding to finish what he started at Iowa in 2013.
He arrived at Iowa following a 4-8 season, but filled with hope, optimism and appreciation.
Iowa was the only Big Ten team to offer King a scholarship, so he wasn’t about to question one poor season. King summed up his decision to be a Hawkeye in one word:
“Opportunity,” King said. "The stability of the coaching staff as well. I would also say just getting away from home to a place where I could just focus on myself and get things together with school.”
Iowa offered King a scholarship late in the recruiting process after defensive coordinator Phil Parker, who also coaches the defensive backs, had promoted him to Ferentz.
For King, the wait for an offer was a blessing in disguise. He previously had been committed to two Mid-American Conference schools, but changed his mind in both cases in order to explore other options.
“(Iowa) offered me late in the process because I believe they thought that if Michigan State had offered me or anything that I would have made the decision to go there," King said. “That’s what happens when you wait, a blessing is still going to come.
"I’m glad they did that and I don’t second-guess any decision I made at all, and I think coming to Iowa was the best decision.”
Ferentz admits that King was mostly an afterthought in Iowa’s recruiting plans that year. Ferentz joked with reporters about his ability to judge talent at Big Ten Media Days this past week.
“I know he was on our list, but he wasn’t a big discussion draw for us," Ferentz said. "In December. Phil (Parker) always kind of secretly drops a guy in your lap. And when I saw Desmond’s film, I’m an astute judge of talent, right. I thought he’d be a really good safety. He hasn’t played safety yet for us other than in practice.
“But the good news, he’s just having a really good career. He was a really good high school player who maybe didn’t meet a couple of people’s specifications. But he’s really played well for us and had to play well at an early age and just hasn’t looked back since."
Opportunity came almost immediately for King as a Hawkeye.
He became a starter at cornerback as a true freshman after Jordan Lomax sustained an injury. King started 12 of 13 games as a true freshman in 2013, and has started every game since his sophomore year.
Ferentz wants King to appreciate everything he accomplished last season, but also to stay hungry and focused on the task ahead this fall.
“I think those (first) two years really enabled him to take a big step," Ferentz said. "To think it would be that dramatic this year, I doubt it,” Ferentz said. “But he needs to play better, just like C.J. (Beathard), just like Josey (Jewell), or else, why have experience?
"Throw last year out and start over again, that’s not a smart way. Players that do that usually don’t do real well. If you have to start over every Monday, that’s not a good thing."
King had several reasons for wanting to stay in college, not the least of which was earning a college degree. He also enjoys the college experience and being a Hawkeye.
Ferentz appreciates the help that King received from two of his biggest mentors and fans – his mother and his former high school football coach Ron Oden.
“To me, they conveyed the right messages to Desmond and Desmond ultimately made up his mind,” Ferentz said. “You appreciate that because not everybody is willing to do that anymore."
Unlike in high school when most of King’s attention came from schools in the Mid-American Conference, he is no longer under the radar in college. His success has made King an inspiration for other players, but also a marked man as offenses will be aware of him at all times.
“Seeing what Desmond did is motivation all the way,” Wisconsin cornerback Sojourn Shelton said at Big Ten Media Day “Just seeing a player that’s been solid ever since he came into college football, and then going to a whole other level his junior year, which you can’t shy away from. I mean, that guy played out of his mind last year.
"I use that as motivation every day. I use all the talks from all the corners as motivation. I watch those guys to see what they’re doing differently from me Of course, every corner is different. Their game is going to (vary based on) their body size. I watch those guys all the time because at the end of the day they’re doing something right and you can always learn from that.”
Doing things the right way is what Ferentz attributes largely to King’s success.
The hype is unavoidable with Iowa coming off a 12-2 season in which it played in the Rose Bowl for the first time since 1991.
Ferentz wants all of his players, not just King, to take the 2016 season one game at a time and ignore the big picture.
There will be constant reminders of King’s success as Iowa displays his individual awards in the new football facility.
All that matters now, though, is getting ready for the next challenge.
"I think the big thing is there and there is time and place for all that," said Ferentz, who is entering his 18th season as the Iowa head coach. "And right now, the time and place is to do your best. The reason he came back is to have a great senior year.
"So that’s really all he needs to focus on. It’s kind of like our team. Instead of worrying about the big picture, just worry about doing good job in camp and in that first game. Just like I would encourage our team to do that, I would encourage Desmond to do the same thing."
King’s emergence as a star last season came as a surprise to many. He had shown flashes of brilliance in his first two seasons. But nothing to suggest that he was destined for stardom.
“He won that award last year because he played really well week in and week out," Ferentz said. "I don’t think he set out to be the Thorpe Award winner or set out to be an all-American, that type of deal. It happened because he was thinking right and doing right. That’s really the secret to success.”