Kirk Ferentz playing victim isn’t a good look
By Pat Harty
IOWA CITY, Iowa – Kirk Ferentz has mastered the art of being humble and self-deprecating.
But being a victim?
Not so much.
Iowa’s 67-year old head coach showed that on Tuesday near the end of his weekly press conference when asked about the leadership on the team and whether it has had a galvanizing effect in the wake of last Saturday’s 54-10 loss at Ohio State.
Ferentz answered by referring to a member of the Ohio State media that used last Saturday’s post-game press conference as a chance to grill Ferentz about Iowa’s struggling offense, and about why he hasn’t fired his son, Iowa offensive coordinator Brian Ferentz.
Kirk Ferentz never mentioned the name of the reporter, but it was obvious he was referring to Doug Lesmerises from Cleveland.com, who wrote a scathing column in which he accused Kirk Ferentz of nepotism and of turning the Iowa football program into a family business that is filled with privilege and entitlement.
“I complimented the guys on Sunday because during the questioning, in some cases interrogation, on Saturday that I experienced and the one good thing about that it dawned on me coming home,” Kirk Ferentz said. “I said as bad as today was, it could have been worse because I could have been that guy. I could have been that guy. Had his job and had to act like he did.
“Yeah, it could be a hell of a lot worse. All things aren’t that bad. But one thing I did on Sunday was compliment our players, the way they handled it. It’s not easy to stand up to tough questions after a loss like we did. Our guys handled it with class. Stand up for each other. It’s worth complimenting our guys. I think it’s genuine, it’s who they are.”
Kirk Ferentz had every right to compliment his players because they didn’t make excuses or point fingers after the Ohio State loss.
But he could’ve done it without referring to how he was treated in the post-game press conference because it seemed kind of petty and self-serving.
It also seemed that Kirk Ferentz was saying that he is a better person than the reporter who called him out.
In fairness to Lesmerises, he wrote an opinion piece and he is certainly entitled to his opinion.
Lesmerises was simply doing his job, just like Kirk Ferentz was by answering questions.
However, it’s difficult to look at Kirk Ferentz as a victim, considering the power he wields, the money he makes, and the freedom he has to pretty much do as he pleases from a coaching standpoint.
Ferentz has a contract that pays him $7 million annually and that runs through the 2029 season, and a buyout that’s currently worth more than $40 million.
He also has been allowed to hire and promote his son, Brian Ferentz, without any resistance.
So, if a few tough questions come with the job, then so be it.
Kirk Ferentz has been great for Hawkeye football, on and off the field.
He’s been loyal, now in his 24th season as head coach, and successful as Iowa’s all-time winningst head coach with 181 victories.
But he has also beem well compensated, and some might say treated like a king.
With the Iowa offense ranked at or near the bottom nationally in multiple statistical categories, Kirk Ferentz’s decision to make his son the offensive coordinator has become a costly distraction.
Iowa has lost three games in a row heading into Saturday’s game against Northwestern at Kinnick Stadium, and the offense is largely to blame.
Kirk Ferentz now gets annoyed when asked if he plans to make any coaching changes during the season because he has made it clear that he won’t take that approach.
He wants to wait until after the season to make that kind of decision, and that makes sense.
And while the Iowa media has moved on from asking about in-season coaching changes, the opposing media still might consider it a hot and timely topic.
Lesmerises’s column was a big hit with some Hawkeye fans apparently because they agree with him about the situation on offense.
Brian Ferentz has gone from being a fan favorite when he joined his father’s staff in 2012 to now being a laughingstock and a punchline.
Kirk Ferentz has created this mess on offense, and now the concern is that he won’t be able to clean it up without firing his son.
Kirk Ferentz hooked his saddle, and his legacy to his son, but it has mostly been a disaster on offense.
Iowa is solid on both defense and special teams, but it takes all three phases to win games, and right now Brian Ferentz’s offense isn’t doing its part.
Kirk Ferentz’s decision last March to make Brian Ferentz the quarterback coach, in addition to being the offensive coordinator, is now being widely criticized, and deservedly so because the performance of the Iowa quarterbacks this season has mostly been horrendous.
Kirk Ferentz said Tuesday that he hasn’t made a decision about who will start at quarterback against Northwestern between Spencer Petras and Alex Padilla because he wants to evaluate them in practice.
That approach makes sense because Northwestern now has to prepare for both quarterbacks, although, a cynic would say that it doesn’t matter who plays quarterback for Iowa because the offense is so inept, and Kirk Ferentz only has himself to blame.
It would’ve looked better if Kirk Ferentz had just praised his players for how well they’ve handled adversity without bringing up the reporter who called him out for nepotism and for turning the Iowa program into a family business.
Yes, those are strong accusations, but they aren’t too far-fetched because some Iowa fans now feel the same way.
They’re in no mood to give sympathy to a head coach that has gone out of his way to appease his son.
“Everybody is working hard, and I appreciate everybody being together, and everybody being supportive,” Kirk Ferentz said. “But we all have a job to do. And nobody’s looking for anybody’s sympathy. We just want to get better. That’s what we want to do. That’s how our players are thinking. There’s only one way. You have to work through it and push and work through it. There’s no easy way around it. And if anybody’s waiting for that, it’s like trying to win the lottery.”
The problem with referring to last Saturday’s post-game press conference as an interrogation, and for calling out the reporter, is that it gave the impression that Kirk Ferentz was looking for sympathy and playing the victim card.
And sympathy is in short supply right now.