Harty column: Bringing Ken O’Keefe back makes sense
Pat Harty
IOWA CITY, Iowa – Kirk Ferentz and Brian Ferentz both have stressed the importance of hiring new assistant coaches who understand the culture within the Iowa football program.
They want to hire coaches who are the right fits from a professional and from a personal standpoint in order to make the transition as smooth as possible.
Ken O’Keefe certainly fits that description.
Kirk Ferentz and his son know exactly who and what they’re getting by bringing the 63-year old O’Keefe back to the staff exactly five years to the day that he resigned as the Iowa offensive coordinator to coach receivers for the Miami Dolphins.
I learned Thursday night that O’Keefe was on the verge of being reunited with his long-time friend and coaching colleague, Kirk Ferentz.
Iowa is expected to announce O’Keefe’s hiring Friday afternoon. O’Keefe is being hired to coach the quarterbacks because that’s what Brian Ferentz needs more than anything as Iowa’s new offensive coordinator.
Brian Ferentz has no experience coaching quarterbacks, so he needs somebody who he trusts and respects and can work with on a daily basis.
Brian Ferentz and Ken O’Keefe know each other well enough to where it shouldn’t be a problem with 33-year old Brian now in charge.
O’Keefe spent 13 seasons as the Iowa offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach from 1999 to 2011. He was a member of Kirk Ferentz’s original staff at Iowa and played a key role in rebuilding the program.
Former Iowa quarterbacks Brad Banks and Drew Tate both made first-team all-Big Ten under O’Keefe, while Ricky Stanzi made second-team.
O’Keefe turned Nathan Chandler into a respectable quarterback during his one season as a starter in 2003.
James Vandenberg also threw for over 3,000 yards during O’Keefe’s last season as offensive coordinator in 2011.
So there is a lot to like about this hire from a football and from a personal standpoint. I wouldn't call it a home run hire, but it's at least a solid double from a perception standpoint.
O'Keefe is familiar with Iowa City after having lived here for 13 years. Both of his children grew up here and graduated from West High School.
There won't be much of an adjustment because O'Keefe has been here and done it before. He knows the lifestyle in Iowa City and he knows how to work closely with Kirk and Brian Ferentz.
O'Keefe can mentor Brian and make his job easier because Brian value's O'Keefe's opinion.
The hiring of Greg Davis as Iowa’s offensive coordinator might have been the best thing to happen to O’Keefe’s reputation. Davis replaced O’Keefe in 2012 and then spent five embattled seasons running the Iowa offense.
Iowa had some nice moments under Davis, including winning 12 games in 2015. But the passing attack sputtered for most of his reign and was practically nonexistent in Iowa’s 30-3 loss to Florida in the 2017 Outback Bowl.
Many Iowa fans were thrilled when Davis announced his retirement just a few days after the Outback Bowl. And it was just a few days later when Kirk Ferentz introduced Brian Ferentz as the new offensive coordinator.
Critics will say that Kirk Ferentz is settling on somebody he knows and on somebody who won’t be a threat to Brian’s authority.
That could be the case, but it makes sense that Ferentz would go in that direction. Why hire somebody who might clash with Brian?
Most of the fans I spoke to on Friday were ecstatic about the move. The reception also has been mostly positive on social media.
Now that’ll change should the Iowa quarterbacks struggle next season.
The hiring of a new coach is almost always greeted with optimism. It’s similar to when a recruit makes a verbal commitment, because in both cases, there hasn’t been time to fail yet.
Iowa still has two more coaching positions to fill and we can assume that those hirings also will be embraced by most of the fans.
Let’s not forget, however, that some Iowa fans also were ecstatic when O’Keefe resigned after the 2011 season, because frankly, they were tired of his act.
But then Davis joined the staff and his horizontal passing attack made O’Keefe seem like Bill Walsh. Davis never was a good fit at Iowa, although, you’d never get Kirk Ferentz to admit that.
But the numbers say it.
The numbers and the results ultimately will determine if O’Keefe was the right hire.
But for now, it makes sense.
O'Keefe should be able to handle the delicate situation that exists at Iowa with a father and son both in positions of authority. O'Keefe is pretty laid-back and would prefer to avoid the spotlight, while Brian Ferentz is a showman who loves the spotlight.
In other words, they complement each other.