Simple request for Iowa offense: Just be average
By Pat Harty
IOWA CITY, Iowa – Just be average, or even mediocre.
That’s what any reasonable Hawkeye fan and member of the media is asking the Iowa offense to be at this point.
Not elite, just do enough on offense to be average.
Just be good enough to complement what appears to be another rock-solid defense and one of the nation’s top punters.
Of course, fans would love for Iowa to suddenly become a high-powered offense in which scoring touchdowns from anywhere on the field becomes routine.
But that’s just not realistic because of how Iowa is built under head coach Kirk Ferentz, and because of how Iowa approaches offense under Kirk Ferentz.
He has certain beliefs about how football should be played on offense, and those beliefs have changed very little over more than two decades as head coach.
A coach doesn’t accomplish what Kirk Ferentz has accomplished as the Iowa head coach since 1999 without knowing something about offense.
Remember Iowa’s 2002 Big Ten champion team, which finished undefeated in conference play and 11-2 overall?
Iowa’s offense in 2002 wasn’t basketball on grass, but it was explosive, fun to watch and highly effective.
It was one of the few times when Iowa had a dual-threat quarterback under Kirk Ferentz, and Brad Banks showed in spectacular fashion just how impactful a dual-threat quarterback could be as he ascended from being the backup in 2001 to the Heisman Trophy runner-up in 2002.
Banks was fortunate to have had a top-notch supporting cast on offense that included some of the best players in program history, including tight end Dallas Clark and offensive linemen Robert Gallery an Eric Steinbach.
The 2002 offense was so good that it made Iowa entertaining to watch on offense.
Just think about that.
But 2002 was also 20 years ago, and much has changed since then, except for Kirk Ferentz’s offense.
Iowa is on its third offensive coordinator since Kirk Ferentz became the head coach, with his son, Brian Ferentz, now running the show.
But the offense still is pretty much the same because it’s Kirk Ferentz’s offense.
The problem with the current offense, however, is that it’s not doing its fair share to help Iowa win games.
Iowa defeated FCS opponent South Dakota State 7-3 in the season opener this past Saturday, but for those who didn’t watch or read about it, Iowa’s points didn’t come from a touchdown and a point-after kick, but rather from two safeties and a field goal.
Iowa’s offense was one of the biggest stories in college football over this past weekend, but for all the wrong reasons.
Hawkeye fans, and fans from all over the country, have made Iowa’s offense the brunt of jokes on social media in the wake of Saturday’s game.
Iowa only had 166 total yards, including 57 rushing yards on 36 carries, and converted on just 4-of-17 third-down plays.
Fifth-year senior quarterback Spencer Petras had one of his worst performances as a Hawkeye, which is saying a lot, as he only completed 11-of-25 passes for 109 yards and one interception in his 20th career start.
Iowa State quarterback Hunter Dekkers, on the other hand, threw four touchdown passes in his first career start this past Saturday against Southeast Missouri State, leading his team to a 42-10 victory.
Dekkers threw three more touchdown passes than Iowa has in its last four games combined dating back to last season.
Dekkers will certainly face much stiffer competition this coming Saturday when Iowa and Iowa State square off at Kinnick Stadium.
But so, too, will Iowa, which has won six games in a row against the Cyclones.
Iowa defeated what was then a nationally ranked Iowa State team 27-17 last season in Ames despite being outgained 339 to 173 on offense.
It certainly helped that Iowa State committed four turnovers, including three interceptions.
Iowa punter Tory Taylor also averaged a whopping 51.1 yards on eight attempts, and he was at it again this past Saturday as he averaged 47.9 yards on 10 punts against South Dakota State.
Defense and punting were enough to lift Iowa to victory this past Saturday, and that combination also helped pave the way to a Big Ten West Division title last season, along with a solid kicking game.
But in three of Iowa’s four losses last season, the offense barely fired a shot.
Iowa finished last season ranked 121st nationally in total offense, marking the third time in five seasons with Brian Ferentz as the offensive coordinator that Iowa has finished a season outside of the top 100 in total offense.
That’s a far cry from being average, and Iowa’s performance on offense this past Saturday was also a far cry from being average.
There are 131 teams that compete at the FBS level, so to be average would only take being ranked in the top 65 or 70 on offense.
That’s not asking for a lot.
Kirk Ferentz stuck with Petras the whole way, much to the dismay of some fans that wanted to give backup Alex Padilla a chance to provide a spark.
Kirk Ferentz never considered switching quarterbacks against South Dakota State, and he seems determined to stick with Petras against Iowa State.
“I don’t anticipate any changes at this point, no,” Kirk Ferentz said. “Our job collectively right now is to get better. He’s got some ownership. We all have ownership, every coach, every player, and that’s our job to get better week to week.”
To get better would mean just being average on offense.
That isn’t asking for much just to be average, especially for an offensive coordinator who is in his sixth season, as is the case with Brian Ferentz, and for a fifth-year senior quarterback who’s in his third season as a starter, as is the case with Petras.
Iowa is certainly hurt by a lack of depth at receiver, but injuries are part of the game, and it basically comes down to dealing with injuries as best you can.
The performance of the Iowa offensive line against South Dakota State also left something to be desired, so there is plenty of blame to go around.
Kirk Ferentz was asked after Saturday’s victory how much his fingers are on the offense, and if he ever asks what’s going on with the offense.
His answer made it seem as if he gives his offensive coaches, namely his son as the play caller, plenty of freedom.
“One thing I’ve learned through time, somebody has got to call the plays, and you get too many people giving advice or feedback — we do that between series, but somebody has got to call the plays,” Kirk Ferentz said. “And quite frankly, if we’re not executing well, it’s tough to find things that are going to work.”
Jon Budmayr was recently hired as an offensive analyst, and the hope was that the former Wisconsin quarterback and assistant coach, who was also the offensive coordinator at Colorado State in 2020, would provide a spark on offense, and help bring some noticeable changes in the passing game.
But it was basically just more of the same against South Dakota State, a mix of conservative play calling, horizontal pass plays and predictable running plays.
Whether you blame Iowa’s offensive woes on the play calling, or on a lack of execution, it doesn’t really matter because the results speak for themselves.
Iowa has a lot what it takes to win football games, but unless the offense becomes just average, it’s hard to envision Iowa taking that next step.
It would be a shame to waste such a good defense and the greatest Iowa punter since Reggie Roby.
Fans have to be frustrated when they watch other offenses march up and down the field, while Iowa had trouble just completing passes against South Dakota State.
Brian Ferentz is certainly under pressure to fix the offense, at least on the outside.
But it’s not as if he is being asked to be an A student.
Fans are just tired of watching the offense be a liability.
So again, the challenge for the Iowa offense is just to become average, a C student.
That shouldn’t be as difficult as Iowa is making it be.
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