Iowa Head Coach Kirk Ferentz holds press conference ahead of CyHawk football game

Ok, thanks Matt and good afternoon to buddy. Um, yeah, just say a couple of words about, uh, last week and then certainly look forward to this game here moving forward. So, uh, last Saturday was certainly, you know, a unique experience in, in the bottom line. I was just really happy the game, obviously, see a great performance by our guys that they really did a good job. Staff, uh, players, everybody involved certainly did well and, uh, always good to get the win. You know, it was a real team effort and I think all three phases certainly contributed and a lot of good things, a lot of things to teach of, uh, teach off of, off that tape. So, um, like every week. But, um, you know, certainly it was very different not being there. And, uh, you know, it's a little bit of a unique experience. As I said, uh, Illinois State came in there and they're, you know, very well coached. We knew that, uh, thought they really competed hard and made it a tough one. It's a lot of areas. So, you know, first half defense did a great job. Special teams did a nice job and the offense worked through some, some things, um, especially early in the, the 1st, 1st quarter. But, you know, bottom line is they worked through that. Certainly the penalties in the 1st, 1st half were a major factor. I think we had six for 45. And, uh, it's not so much the yardage as it is just how that the penalties impact things. And one of those was on special teams really costly as well. So, um, that was like a flashback right to our first practice out there in Kenne whatever and then 99 or 10th practice, something like that. But, uh, really almost like a direct correlation and that certainly is a better, better situation. The second half, we had one for five yards and played a lot cleaner and that, that certainly helps so good, good to see the offensive execution in the second half looked a lot better defense, kept playing special teams, did a good job and, uh, you know, good to be back in the facility Sunday and see everybody in person have a chance to congratulate him just on their effort and just, uh, through playing, playing through the bumps and, you know, go the full 60 doing a good job there. So, ha happy again for the football team. Uh, moving forward to this week, we have the same four captains yet. Jay Higgins and, uh, Quinn Schulte on defense and then, um, Luke Lasa and Cade mcnamara offensively, it's the same four guys there. I think injury wise were pretty clean, looks like, um, you know, came out of a pretty good shape. Hopefully we make it through the week here without any issues. And, um, you know, obviously is a big, big game. It's a great game. Uh, certainly it's, uh, been intense for a long time. It's my 34th experience. I seen a lot of different things during the course of that time. But, uh, bottom line, it's just a really good game for our state, I think. Uh, you know, it's just good for everybody if they're, they're involved in football and then on top of it, probably a little bit underappreciated outside of our state in terms of the, the intensity of the rivalry and team. Um, you know, I've got a lot of admiration for their staff. They've got a really good coaching staff there. They've done a great job since coach Campbell arrived and they've got a veteran football team, at least they're really veteran work counts. And, uh, I've done a really nice job. Not, not a big surprise. They've recruited, well, they coach their guys well and, uh, each and every year, you know, there's a good program, good team. Look at the last six years right now. I think it's a five point whatever differential between the two teams. So, uh, I would expect the same thing, Saturday enough, tough, tough, competitive, hard fought game. And um, that's how we're looking at there. So, Kid Captain this week is eight year old Atlas Coleman from uh West Des Moines. Uh Atlas, they discovered a tumor uh in Alice's lung a year and a half. They had to take that out and, uh then found a really rare form of cancer that, uh, that, that they had a uh work through and glad to say he's doing really well. He's in school and just like every other kid having a good time. Apparently he's got a good sense of humor, tells jokes and, uh, you know, just a great young guy. So it'd be good to have him and his family here with us. Look forward to that. And, uh, yeah, just, you know, it's a really a big game here, big rivalry and, you know, we turned the page yesterday, uh, moved on towards our preparation here and, uh, the big challenge right now is, you know, getting through this week and just doing a great job, uh, with our preparation knowing it's going to be a tough game on Saturday. So I'll throw it out there for questions. Yeah, Chad, nice to go. Des Moines register before we move on. I would like, can you, what can you tell us about your experience on Saturday? Were you like, like a coach? Were you more like a fan? Like, did you like a little tailgate? I mean, did you have, like, what, what, what was going through your, like, describe as much as you can. Um, I actually had a grandson in the house so, you know, got up, had a couple of scrambled eggs, two scrambled eggs and, uh, nothing too dramatic, you know, just kind of killed time and then, uh, did, did that more so with him. Um, but, you know, when the game started, yeah, it's just, it's just different. Watching on TV is really different. You can see better. That's one thing and it had a nice surface to write on, which is the second thing. So I guess those are two upgrades. But outside of that there wasn't much good about it. It just, um, uh, it's sterile and there's really, you're, you're pretty much helpless. Not that I do a lot during games anyway. I'm not playing but, uh, you just have a total feeling of disconnection. So it was really, really strange, really strange. Kirk Tyler Tashman with the Des Moines register. I think there in the second half there was six offensive possessions. He scored on, scored a touchdown on five of them. Just like what's kind of going through your head as, as you see that unfold. Yeah. Yeah, it felt a lot better watching from where I was watching that the life was a lot better in the second half. Uh, and again, you know, that's, that's really the study in offense, uh, execution is a huge part of the game. Uh, takes a lot of concentration, a lot of detail and I think one thing for sure, the, the penalty situation, uh, did impact us in the first half. Second thing, yeah, we really didn't throw or catch, uh, the throws weren't always accurate and then we made some of those throws in the second half and we caught the ball. Well, so it gives you a chance to get going. Then the run game was, was certainly a little cleaner and crisper. But, um, those are things you go through and, you know, we're gonna go through a series of things over the course of the season. Uh, as much as you try and camp and you try to put the guys in pressure situations and create things and all that, but it's not the same as playing a game and until you get in the game, you really don't know how individuals are going to perform or how they're going to play. And then the other component is just the same thing to be said about your team. You know, you just don't know what they're gonna, how they're gonna respond to those situations. They're gonna rise and we'll, we'll have a bunch of them here in the next 11 games out there. You just don't know what they are, but I think the biggest takeaway for me was just, uh, the way our guys stu stuck together, uh, they kept a good attitude and, um, I'm not so sure how many adjustments got made at halftime, but we just played a little cleaner in that second half. Uh, and then, you know, when you do that, you give yourself a chance for some success. Kirk Elliot, Claw Hawkeye Beacon. Um, Cade, obviously, like the rest of the offense had, uh, a really strong second half and I know a lot of what we've talked about here is the fact that he hasn't been healthy and, and now we got to see him play healthy. Um Just your thoughts, I mean, were you impressed with, with what he did in the second half? Are you feeling more confident going into this second week? Where are you at with, with Cade and his performance on Saturday? I've been saying it pretty consistently, I think, you know, you can't quantify this and it's, you know, just going off experience. But I think to me at least is one of his biggest challenges. Firstly, you know, getting through the injury was the first challenge first and foremost and I will say this after watching TV. And, you know, if I hear one more thing about AC L Repairs, uh this is 2024 there's a lot of guys playing college football and pro football, I've had AC L Repairs. So to me that's so far in the, in the rearview mirror right now. Uh But nonetheless, it was a reality, you know, certainly this past year to deal with it. Um but more importantly, I think it's just getting back into football shape if you will and playing in a, in a team environment, not a seven on seven environment, uh, which he hasn't really done for two years, you know, as a healthy player. So, um, to see him keep his, his attitude positive and keep working through it, uh, I played, he was much cleaner in the second half and that's, you know, that's what you hope, hope a guy's gonna do. Uh, and he's, he's got game experience that's in his pocket. That's a good thing for him. But he's, you know, that two year gap I think is something that, you know, he's had to work through and, uh, it's good to see him. He looked relaxed, look confident and that was in that second half and that's really, those are positive things. You can't hand that to a player. They've got to go out and experience and earn it. John said easy dra its because, um, I don't remember seeing Jazz and Patterson out there on Saturday. Can you kind of comment on his status? And do you have a sense of how quickly Seth Anderson could get back on the field? Yeah. So Jazz, that was the coach's decision to keep him, keep him out. He'll be back, was back with us yesterday and we expect him to be ready to roll this week. And great young guy, you know, just, uh, something we decided to do. Uh, Seth is, it's not as bad, maybe as we thought initially, but nonetheless, uh, I guess it was last Wednesday. I think we met Tuesday. So the next day, of course, and, um, you know, it doesn't look as bad right now. We'll probably know a little bit more here by the end of the week, but it won't be this week. It's, you know, hopefully we're talking about a week or two, not, not multiple weeks. Coach Jeff Grkcc, I in Des Moines. Uh I thought a great step that came out of the game. Last Saturday was re vanders. He was the first true freshman white out for Iowa to score a touchdown in the season open since 2006. He obviously had two in the game, the first freshman to do that since I think 2017. When was it, if there was a moment that you saw in practice that this was the type of guy who could make an impact at such a young age and if it wasn't a moment, what did you see that? I guess, gave you confidence and then in him. Excuse me? Yeah, I'll go back to recruiting them. We were, you know, really excited about him. Uh, and I saw him two years ago, I guess I saw Zach playing basketball, Lumper and he was, he was out there playing and, uh, I got to go up and see him during our bi week last week, uh, saw a couple of games that night and, uh, just like he was playing quarterback, just like the way he can handles himself, carries himself. Um, and then it was frustrating this summer because he had a multitude of things that kind of held him back from the summer program. Uh just, you know, just general training and, um, so, you know, he missed a lot of time that way. Fortunately, he was able to get back and get going and, uh, since we've been in practice, he just carries himself well, uh I don't know how well, you know, him, he's, I, I don't wanna say he's expressionless but he doesn't, he doesn't get real, uh, you know, the monster if he just really study very focused and, and mature for his age, I think in his experience level. So, uh he just continues to grow, continues to do a good job with whatever we throw at him. And, uh, as we went on, you know, it just became apparent to us that, you know, he's probably the guy to have in there. And, um, you know, I thought he, you know, again, just watching it on TV, it looked like he really performed well the other day and I'm out on the sidelines, seeing him and all those things, but he just seemed to handle things in stride. So it's not too big for him. And, um, you know, he certainly likes to compete and it was good to see him go up with his hands and catch balls and, you know, make some plays for us. Mitch Fkgan. I know you guys have had camp and scrimmage with helmet coms and tablets. But what have you heard about how that worked out on Saturday and the advantage it can bring to just get instant feedback. Yes, it seems like all the feedback is really good. I was curious about that, uh, Sunday morning and yeah, it seemed like everything went pretty smoothly. Uh, no major delays, I guess, you know, they run a little bit behind with the tablets. But, uh, no, it sounded like it was really good. I think that everybody thought there was a benefit to it for sure. Uh, Owen Se bring with the KG A and last year when you guys played Iowa State probably didn't know a lot about Rocco back. That was the only time, only his second start of his career. Now you've had a chance to see a lot more of him, a lot more game film as you look at him this week. What are some challenges that he particularly presents to your defense? Yeah, when I talked about them being a veteran team, veteran in the key parts and that's one of those positions I was referencing. Well, he's not an old guy but he's, he's really played, uh, enough now where I think he's a very confident guy. Very, very poised and just does a good job running their offense. So they've got a really talented group of receivers. Uh, tight end Broer is a really good football player. So they've got guys that they can get the ball to and I'm sure they will. So he's, he's done a really nice job leading their football team and, uh, I'm guessing his best footballs are still ahead of him. J nice to go again, wanted to ask about Caleb and Caleb. Um Johnson, obviously, he was out in the first half. Is it, is there anything he needs to be doing better to be in like, you know, good standing with you guys, et cetera, et cetera. And then also Kayla Brown, how's he looked in coming back this week? Will he be a part of your plans on Saturday? Yeah, he's looked good, both, both those guys and you know, anything that that happens along the way, you know, we just, our, our deal is like we deal with it and then, uh, my encouragement for everybody is we're looking forward, you know, we're not looking back unless there's a reason to and uh Caleb is really practiced well. Um, well, I got two Calebs here. All right. Yeah. Uh Caleb Johnson, let's start there. The first guy you asked, but he's really been practicing well and did a good job and when he went in there, I, I wasn't surprised like, you know, he just, uh, that's how he's been practicing really focused and, and, uh, hit the holes hard and all those types of things. So good to see that. That's probably good as well as I've seen him run the football since he's been here. And, uh, great young guy got a great attitude and good and then Caleb, uh, it's gonna be good to get him back too. And, um, you know, so last, the week, uh, the deal was, last week he worked on the scout team against our defense and, uh, Phil, and those guys said he did a great job and that, that's what you're hoping to hear. So he had a great attitude about it. Uh, he's back in, in the, uh, rotation now and, you know, he'll be out there Saturday. I don't know how much, but he'll be out there. Uh, Blake Hornstein Hawker headquarters, uh, coach, I think maybe some people wondered if the passing game would come along and, you know, the first new system, obviously, Kate coming off of an injury, but to see the success that it had, uh, in the first game of the season, is that a pretty encouraging sign moving forward? Uh, yeah, I mean, it's encouraging, certainly. Um, I think it's a combination of a lot of things, you know, I think the line, we were a little bit more veteran up there. I thought the guys overall protected pretty well. You know, that didn't seem like that was an issue at all. For us. So that was helpful. Uh Cade working through, you know, his, his uh you know, leave of absence for a while, you know, going through that. Now he's been a little bit of a sabbatical, medical sabbatical. So working through that and then the receivers did a good job for the most part going and getting the ball running good routes, things like that. So, uh you know, a good combination and, and some of those plays the cade made were under duress, you know, not, not necessarily because of a breakdown, but uh those guys blitzed a lot, had free rushers coming. So I thought he handled that situation well too. We got plenty of blitz practice on Saturday. No question. Uh Adam Jacoby Hawkeye, Bein Kirk, how would you evaluate, uh Kamari Moulton, you know, getting that start in, in that, you know, sort of odd situation. How do you think he did with that opportunity that he got? Yeah, we talked about Reese and same thing. I mean, Kamari has been here for a year but he's, he's a young player really hasn't, doesn't have much gaming experience. So I thought he did a lot of good things, he really did and he handled it well. Uh He's a, just a really steady guy every day is pretty much the same with him. It's a good day and works hard. So that, that's again, you know, you can't simulate things game experience and, and for players like that. The younger guys that haven't played voice is a really a good experience for them to be out there in competition, tough competition and having to perform. And, uh, those are two guys right there that haven't done much for us, but certainly have a chance to help our football team a lot when you talk about him or Rhys Mandery Atala attachment with the Des Moines Register. We were just talking to TJ Hall and, um, it sounded like he took the, the Nebraska game pretty hard, the 122 seasons ago when he kind of got thrown into it. Um What, how have you seen kind of him grow from that moment to where he is now? I'm not laughing about that. I'm laughing in that, you know, I mean, name a player or coach who hasn't had that. Uh, that's just part of the part of the, the journey if you will. And, um, that, that's kind of what I was referencing with teams, you know, you're gonna go through hard times and we went through it Saturday, you know, offensively, we're up against it a little bit and the guys just kept pushing forward and, um, you know, player like TJ, he's, he's probably been a little too hard on himself, you know, if I'm talking about that one specific incident. But, um, you know, it's part of part of playing football, whether you're a first year guy like that or it could be a senior, you know, what, what's your response gonna be? That's the major thing in sports. And, um, you know, he's done nothing but, uh, good, good things missed a lot of time due to injury, which was unfortunate and that's Lowe's development. But, uh, this spring, you know, really looked good and he had a really nice camp and, uh, you know, it's good to see him in, in the fray like he is, he's doing a really good job and, you know, he's got a lot of football in front of him. Kirk L A Clough, Hawkeye Beacon to revert back to Kate a little bit, I guess. Can you, can you tell a difference in maybe his confidence or, or the way he's carried himself? Maybe not even from Saturday, but from camp because again, what we saw Saturday was something we haven't seen from, from K in black and gold. Yeah, I mean, just hoped it was coming and, uh, but there's no guarantees on that one. And yeah, I mean, he's, he's always been confident and I think he knows what to do and all those types of things, but at some point you just got to, you got to do it and then you've got to, you know, sample some success or, you know, taste it a little bit and, and experience it. And, um, you know, again, you can't hand that to a player. They've got to go out and do it and, and, and work through it and it hasn't, hasn't always been easy, you know, on a couple of levels. So, um, credit to him for sticking with it and, you know, fighting through that first half, it didn't go perfect for us. Obviously, we came back and just, uh, did some really good things in the second half and hopefully with each, uh, each day practice or game experience, you know, he's gonna keep getting more confidence in himself and he's moving around, he's throwing the ball and just, you know, it looks a lot more relaxed out there. And that's, that's a, that's a really, you know, it's easy for me to say, hey, you know, relax, enjoy the game, all that stuff, you know, good luck. Now here's the ball, go do it a whole different story. But, uh credit goes to him on that one. Hey, Coach Matt Bell at the Daily Iowan. Um Jeremiah Pitman, he got some extra on Saturday doesn't have a whole lot of starts in his career. But how valuable is the patience that he has to have, you know, to sit behind the depth chart. And also what is his potential? Yeah. Well, his potential remains to be seen, but he's improved with every step of the way. And, um, you know, we have some guys talking about a couple of young guys who played Saturday, but, you know, most of our guys, you know, our majority of our newcomers this year are gonna be redshirting. It looks like, uh, you know, you never know what's going to happen, but it looks like that and that's kind of been, been the way in our program for quite some times and, you know, when you get behind good players, you got two pretty good defensive tackles right now. So, um, you know, for him to start may not be realistic at this given point. Uh, but, you know, it's all in front of him right now and he's working hard every day and he's a much better player than he was a year ago at this time. And that's, it's great to see. It's not a surprise because he's got a great attitude and works hard, but that there's more of a process for most players, not all, but most players have to just kind of kind of work at it and, uh, when they get their turn, you know, go in there and play play well, and it was good to see Jeremiah. I'm not surprised but it was good to see him do a good job out there. Uh, Adam Jacoby Hawkeye be and Kirk last time I'm gonna ask about watching from home, but from your perspective as a football coach and, and having to, you know, watch a game on TV, not to disparage your TV, partners or anything like that. But what it, from your perspective, do you feel like you are missing the most versus, you know, being able to watch the game on the sideline. It's just a totally different experience. You, you, um, you feel totally disconnected and I, I thought about that a little bit like, you know, if I were retired, you know, the difference is like, you're not invested the way you are. Uh, if, if you work every day and are with the guys every day. So, um, the closest thing would be like one of our kids games, you know, you're kind of invested, you're a parent, but it's still not the same as, as when you coach and work with people on a daily basis in a really intimate, uh, environment. You know, and that's what we get to enjoy and that's the best part of coaching. It's just that, um, you know, there are times when we get to shut the door and just do what we do or practice and all those kinds of things. Um, so when you have that, then it's really strange to be disconnected and, uh, it's, you know, it was a code of silence on Saturday. So, you know, left the hotel Friday night, uh, which was strange and then, you know, sleep in your own bed that night. That's strange. And then, um, basically wasn't sure what to do all morning and then the game came and then I really wasn't sure to do it half time. So, uh, it was kind of interesting but it all worked out, you know, it all worked out and then it's even stranger after the game because that's, you know, it's a, either it's a really good time emotionally or a bad time and those, those highs and lows make it really special. So you miss out on all those things and, you know, and it, it wasn't the same scene or everybody on Sunday. It's just that, you know, time gap in there. Uh, it's a little bit different but, you know, it's over and hopefully something I'll never experience again. We'll see how it all goes. Yeah, Coach Matt Randazzo WQ ad not to take you back home again, but you mentioned watching on TV. It's a nice place to hang on. Mary's built a nice house. Did you, you mentioned TV? Did you listen to the radio at all? And if you did your thoughts on the new color commentator in the booth and how he did it, you know, I saw a pad at the Hall of Fame luncheon on Friday and that was enough right there. No, no, I'm joking. But, um, first of all, it was great, great to, to see, uh, both Adrian and Sean go in and great to have them back and their families back. That was outstanding. And Adrian's high school coach was, uh, back also, which was really neat. He came up from Saint Louis. So that was great. Uh, Pat did a great job at the luncheon and as you know, I mean, Pat. Pat gives you that crazy demeanor and all that stuff, but he's, he's a pretty deep thinker. He knows what's going on and I'm guessing I haven't heard any reviews and I'm guessing he did pretty well. My prediction is he will do really well in the future and he followed a great guy, Ned Podolak. Certainly finish the chair. Chad lace to code Dwayne. Registered for my office. There's always one fly. I notice there's always one in my office too. You know, I think it's the coffee. Only good thing about winner. Um, last three years you're averaging 100 and 86 yards a game against Iowa State. I know there's a lot of factors in that, but what makes the Iowa State defense so difficult to move the ball against for you guys? And what can you do this week? Uh, you know, one person's opinion, uh, they've done a lot of things well, there since Coach Campbell got there, um, that league was not exactly like known for defense and ours is probably a little bit more so, uh that way, at least, you know, that's, that's kind of been the trend and, you know, I think, uh, coach Aycock, he's an outstanding coach, you know, a great person. Uh, he, he's really, he came in with a vision, I'm not sure where it all got an incubator or how gut hatch. But, um, you know, they've been good on defense basically after that first year, that first year was a year of adjustment. But from my vantage point, they've been good on defense all the way through and they've been good on offense too and they, they've, uh, you know, changed subtly but they, they've got an identity in a system that works really well for them and I think that's why they've been so successful, you know, they, they, uh, run the ball control the ball, uh, they pass it well too. But I mean, they, they're balanced on offense and then defensively they've been really good and they, to me that, that put them in the mix with the other teams in that, that, uh, in that conference, including be in Oklahoma, I think twice. Was it twice? They've been it twice, I think, you know, so, you know, that's not supposed to happen according to the experts, but they, they've done a really good job and that's a big component of it. And, you know, I think, you know, I feel, I just, uh, growing up it just seems like if you play defense in any sport, you got a chance, you know, you got a chance and, you know, you can't win if you don't have a chance. So, you know, a real credit to them. But they're, they've been tough on a lot of people, you know, it's interesting, you look back, I mean, there's, it's hard to find many games where, you know, they give up a lot of yards or points really hard. John Sepi, Cedar Rapids Hatch. Um, first of all was Mary able to ask any questions during the game and we talked civilly, we were very civil with each other and um she gave me a little distance, uh, at halftime, I walk around at halftime, came back and uh that I actually like, you know, was, gave a year or whatever, we made a play and I didn't realize she was sitting about 20 yards away from me. But anyway, yeah, so we all got along fine, no problems. Totally different note in terms of a guy that you beat Iowa State and pretty much everyone else in the free world for on the recruiting trail with Xavier 15 starts. Now. I think it's been for him. What's kind of stood out to you about his progression? Xavier talking about? Yeah. Yeah, I mean, he's just, he's a quality young guy and just like we talked about a lot of these guys, it's, it's been a step at a time. Um, you know, he, he's at the other end, like, you know, he was her old recruiting wise and some guys weren't, but it's still an adjustment when you come to college, you know, for most players, it's an adjustment, it takes time and we've had some pretty good players back there too. But, um, he's done a really good job, takes coaching really well. He's had a great attitude from day one. like, like most players, it starts at home. He's just a great young guy to work with and he's got, you know, really good size and, um, you know, he's got a good, good feel for the game back there, so we're glad he's on our team. Ok. Thank you guys.