Former Iowa linebacker Edmond Miles speaks out on behalf of Kirk Ferentz and Hawkeye football
By Pat Harty
IOWA CITY, Iowa – From a public relations standpoint, these past two days have been good for Phil Parker, and for the embattled Iowa football program.
It started on Tuesday when Iowa defensive back Julius Brents praised Parker for helping to make him a better person.
And then it continued on Wednesday when former Iowa linebacker Edmond Miles explained why he signed a letter of intent with Iowa despite having a scholarship offer from the University of Southern California, which was thriving at the time under head coach Pete Carroll.
In fact, USC was the first school to offer Miles a scholarship in the spring of his junior year, and he was excited and felt honored that one of the nation’s elite programs thought so highly of him.
The USC campus in Los Angeles was over 2,000 miles from Miles’ hometown of Tallahassee, Fla., but he didn’t care.
He wanted to be Trojan. He wanted to join one of the true powers at the time, and compete for national titles on a grand stage.
“I guarantee I was so amped on going to Southern Cal,” Miles said Wednesday as a guest on the Hawk Fanatic-KCJJ radio show and podcast. “They were the first school to offer me, and I was like, ‘yeah, I’m going to Southern Cal.’
“And my mom was just like, ‘no, you’re not going to Southern Cal.’ And I said, ‘well, mom, it’s my decision.’”
Iowa was also recruiting Miles at the time, and Miles said he started to favor Iowa over USC after Parker made an in-home visit that sent a strong message and left a lasting impression.
Parker visited Miles shortly after USC assistant coach Lane Kiffin had made a home visit.
Kiffin’s visit didn’t leave the same impression, though, partly because he turned down a chance to eat dinner with Miles and his family.
Miles’ mother had prepared southern fried chicken in preparation for Kiffin’s visit, and to turn down a dinner invitation was considered an insult.
“My mom made this dinner for him and he didn’t eat, so that kind left a sour taste in her mouth,” Miles said of his mother, who passed away a few years ago. “And just a heads up, if you ever go down south and they make dinner for you, the respectful thing is to eat. If you’re not hungry at all, you’ve just got to have something.”
Parker, on the other hand, not only ate dinner with Miles and his family, but he also helped wash the dishes afterwards, and that made a huge impression.
“And here Phil Parker comes down and he not only is eating, but he’s washing dishes in the kitchen and stuff,” said Miles, who played at Iowa from 2003-06.
Miles was asked Wednesday if he might have chosen USC if Kiffin had accepted the dinner invitation.
“It might have been a little different,” Miles said. “Who doesn’t like fried chicken”?
The message behind Miles’ story is that recruiting is all about building relationships through trust and respect.
The Iowa football program has been embroiled in controversy since early June after multiple former black players accused the program of having racial disparities.
Most of the accusations were directed at Chris Doyle, who has since been removed as the strength and conditioning coach.
Eight former black players also are demanding the removal of Kirk Ferentz, offensive coordinator Brian Ferentz and Athletic Director Gary Barta, claiming they were subjected to intentional race discrimination by the coaching staff and administration during their times as Hawkeyes.
The players also are threatening to file a $20 million lawsuit if their demands aren’t met.
Miles, who is black, responded to the demands by expressing his support for Kirk Ferentz, and for the Iowa program as a whole, on Facebook.
“I just got tired, or frustrated I should say, with some of the comments that were being made about coach Ferentz and the program,” Miles said. “My experience was a little different maybe, just from my upbringing.”
Miles grew up with a stepfather who is white, and with a mother who always preached to her kids to respect their elders, to have good character and to make a strong first impression.
“I got a bond with coach Ferentz because I spent five seasons with the guy in the early part of his coaching at Iowa, and that wasn’t the person that I know,” Miles said.
Miles also was upset with the timing of the potential lawsuit with Iowa preparing to face Purdue in the 2020 season opener on Saturday in West Lafayette, Ind.
“I just felt like the timing of this attack, I didn’t appreciate the timing of it,” said Miles, who works for the Cedar Rapids School District and coaches football for Linn-Mar. “And I just had to say something.”
Miles was careful not to speak on behalf of anyone but himself.
He was subjected to tough love at Iowa, and was pushed and challenged, and sometimes called out for not performing at an acceptable level.
But Miles never felt that he was mistreated due to his skin color.
“I just want to speak on my experience that I had, and I’m not in the position to comment on anybody else, so I can only speak for myself,” Miles said. “Those guys who have felt wronged, they’re still part of the Hawkeye family.
“And so like any family, you have your disagreements and stuff. And I just want to speak on why I disagree on what was being said. And just go from there.”
Miles met his future wife while playing at Iowa and he now calls Iowa home, although, he still plans to retire in Florida because the Iowa winters are just too brutal for somebody who grew up in warm weather.
There are two sides to every story and Edmond Miles wanted to share his side because it upsets him to see his former head coach being linked to racism.
Miles isn’t accusing the black players who have spoken out of being dishonest. But he questions the motives of the eight former players who are asking for $20 million.
It’s reasonable to think that some black players were mistreated at Iowa, while others had a positive experience. Miles suggested that what some might perceive as racism, others like him, might consider it tough love and a coach just trying to get the most out of his players.
The key to moving forward and to learning from what has happened is to communicate and to hear voices and opinions from all sides of the issues.
The Iowa program obviously has some problems with race that have to be addressed, but it also has the support of black former players like Edmond Miles.
He is proof that a black person from a different part of the country can not only make it at Iowa, but thrive as a Hawkeye football player, on and off the field.
Miles is a symbol of hope and optimism for a program that needs some hope and optimism right now.