Questions are swirling about longtime Iowa football coach Kirk Ferentz’s future at the school following the news that his son, offensive coordinator Brian Ferentz, will leave the program at season’s end.
Kirk Ferentz, 68, who has served as head coach of the Hawkeyes since 1999, put those rumors to rest Wednesday night.
“While my immediate focus is on finishing the season strong, I love coaching and my intent is to continue coaching here at the University of Iowa. We have build something very special here and I plan to coach until I am no longer passionate about the game, players or coaches,” Ferentz said in a statement released by the Iowa football program.
Ferentz’s Iowa roots run deep. In addition to his 25 seasons as the Hawkeyes’ head coach, he served as an assistant to legendary Iowa coach Hayden Fry from 1981 through ’89. With all that history as prologue, Ferentz further addressed his desire to continue coaching on his weekly radio show Wednesday evening.
“I enjoy coaching. Fortunately, I feel really good,” Ferentz said, per Scott Dochterman of The Athletic. The doctors told me I’m O.K. I hope they’re right. And I hope to keep doing this for quite a while. And I’ve always loved being here. I’ve been here 34 years now. I gotta tell you, when the winds blowing like it was this morning, or yesterday morning, that may or may give you a little second thought. But outside of that, I like what I do. And most of all, like young people we’ve had a chance to work with.”
Entering the 2023 season, Brian Ferentz agreed to an amended contract which stipulated that the team had to score at least 25 points per game for him to keep his job into 2024. Iowa is on pace to fall well short of that goal with four regular-season games remaining, as the Hawkeyes offense has scored just 19.5 points per game, which ranks No. 118 in the FBS. Ferentz has held the offensive coordinator title under his father since 2017.
Despite the concerns on offense, the Hawkeyes sit at 6-2 on the season and 3-2 in Big Ten play, thanks in large part to an elite defense.
Kirk Ferentz is Iowa’s winningest football coach at 192-117, and he’s taken the school to 19 bowl games, winning 10 of them. The Hawkeyes already have qualified to play in their 20th bowl game under Ferentz this winter.
