BRIAN FERENTZ TO MARYLAND | Josh Janowski EXCLUSIVE interview | Week 237 - Brada's Branded Thoughts

Intro during week 237 of Brat's branded thoughts here from the Hawkeye of the storm Brian fence takes a new job not as an OC not as a position coach and not as eye was water boy no he is the new analyst the newest analyst for Michael Loxley over at Maryland I'll provide my thoughts on that hire and why I don't think it's as bad as some people are making it out to be for Maryland I actually think it's a pretty darn good hire for Michael Oxley we'll talk about it in just a second and also a sit down with Iowa offensive lineman Josh Janowski one of just two players who enrolled early this past spring we spoke with him prior to his arrival at Iowa regarding his decision to join the black and gold he is a potential solution for Iowa Post Logan Jones at the center position very important position for Iowa and a position in which Iowa has been very successful breeding players into future Pros we'll talk with Josh during week 237 of Brad has branded thoughts this is from the Hawkeye of the storm let me introduce you to one of the Iowa Floor Covering proud supporters of from the hawy of the storm Iowa Floor Covering down in bond Durant now for the last year and a half you've heard me talk about this great company in the heart of central Iowa they've got their tough core clicked together 4.5 mm waterproof vinyl flooring great for you diyers out there but even if you're just a contractor or you need a different type of flooring they've got you covered whether it be tile tile showers carpet give Iowa Floor Covering a chance to serve you better and serve your flooring needs visit them online at Iowa floor covering.com that's Iowa Flor covering.com or you can give them a call at 515 37970 that's 515 379 7000 thank you to Iowa Floor Covering in bond Open Transfer Window Durant week 237 of Brat's branded thoughts we're recording this now on the final day of the open transfer portal window and Iowa is still waiting for some word from some players that certainly I think many expected to hop into the portal just not only because of the numbers they're at 87 scholarships as I record this but also there's a couple of positions that are stockpiled with Talent like running back uh like tight end you could even argue although I would does a pretty good job of retaining their top three to four tight ends and they work guys into different places different roles certainly the younger players have Futures if they stick it out with the Hawkeyes but we'll continue to follow this storyline graduates have until Wednesday May 1 and I made a mistake on a recording yesterday I said that grad transfers Graduate Transfer Window could enter the portal whenever they wanted to that is no longer the case as of last week sounds like the NCAA made an adjustment to that rule and now graduates also have to have entered the portal by the end of this period now for some reason their deadline extends one day I guess you'd have to ask the NCAA as to why they adopted that rule but graduates have until Wednesday undergrads need to be in the portal have their paperwork submitted by Tuesday so we'll continue to follow that storyline as it relates to this podcast I wanted to take a moment to address a news item that I did not get a chance to address late last week and that is news regarding former Iowa offensive coordinator Brian ference yes the oldest son of current Hawkeye head coach Kirk ference who was part of a 10-year tenure at Iowa as a coach he coached running backs coached tight ends even had a stint as Iowa's QB's coach and of course was the headman of the offense the offensive coordinator for what seven years from 2017 through 20123 we know new Iowa ad Beth gets notified Brian ference and informed the public that Brian would not be returning that announcement was made during the season following a really ugly loss against Minnesota at home a game they probably should have won had it not been for a terrible call uh that overturned a Cooper de jeene play on special teams that again would have won Iowa the game but I digress it was a miserable offensive year for Brian ference and really it's been three miserable offensive years in a row for Brian and so it was understandable the move when it happened I've been advocating for it for quite some time Iowa now moves into a new phase with Tim Lester the fruits of that new system are yet to be seen but it' been a question now for several months where would Brian fence go would he take some time off would he head somewhere else as a position coach would he go down a level or two I even thought privately I don't know that I ever mentioned it on the the show but I thought you know maybe this is a guy who could benefit from going to the high school ranks and becoming a head coach somewhere you know he could get a job somewhere as a head coach given the resume that he had built whether that be on the shoulders of his Dad or not and so it was a little surprising that we hadn't heard anything definitive there were rumors that he had been a candidate for an analyst role at Nebraska those rumors never came to fruition there were then rumors that he was a potential candidate as an analyst at Maryland and apparently since then those rumors have come to fruition as Michael Loxley has hired Brian ference as an offensive analyst what should we Iowa fans make of this news I know some people will look at this and say Brian was responsible for the worst offense in college football for two to three straight years and you could argue of the worst offenses in the history of college football over these last two years or I should say two of the worst offenses in the history of the game over these last two or three years and I I mean I'd have to stand by that statement just look at passing numbers last year and yes I was a team that likes to run first but if you look at their inefficiency on the ground it's even more startling that Deacon Hill is the only quarterback who played 13 games or I should say only quarterback who played nine or more games in the Big 10 conference last year who did not who failed to reach even 90 yards passing per game that is an unbelievable stat even Spencer Pet's ears are tingling as we record this podcast so uh really um we understand the frustration if you're a Maryland fan saying why on Earth do we want this guy keep in mind Michael Oxley was an analyst at Alabama and that really helped to jump start his career as the head coach at Maryland or I should say rejuvenate a career um later as the head coach at Maryland and so Brian is going to be able to bring a couple of different things to Maryland first of all play calling experience even though he failed to have that play calling experience at Iowa he's going to be able to bring what he has to Maryland and I think learn a lot from new OC Josh Gattis keep in mind gtis was a trendy name to replace Brian at Iowa about a year ago now I don't think there was really any solid foundation to those rumors but those rumors were out there Gattis was at the time not really doing too well at Miami Florida and he had been at Michigan had won I believe a boals award up in an arbor but there had been some questions about character there was a scandal that had been reported out of M Michigan that I don't know that was ever really solidified and corroborated but there were just some things that I think were some red flags that it wasn't a surprise that Kirk ference didn't go down that route but now he's at Maryland Brian will be working with Josh Gattis gtis is not a quarter back's Guru he is a wide receivers coach by trade so I think Brian can certainly learn a lot as an analyst at Maryland I think we don't want to Discount what he's going to gain how he's going to benefit from this role it's not just about what he brings to Maryland but look at it from that perspective what does Brian ference receive from Maryland why wouldn't he just go be a position coach maybe a running back's coach or an o line coach or maybe even a tight ends coach hey if his goal is to get back and be an offensive coordinator someday and a successful one go learn from the best and I don't know that you say Josh gtis is the best but Maryland has been one of the best offenses in recent years under Michael Loxley and that's not exaggerating look at last year Maryland had the most passing yards per game now they also threw the ball more than any other team in the conference and they had maybe the best player the best quarterback in the Big 10 in Talia tag of vioa but Maryland was the most prolific offense in this conference as a whole I should say the most prolific passing offense as a whole they were a top five offense in the Big 10 and they didn't run the ball great now again their pass heavy will that change under Josh gtis probably not again he's a wide receivers guy so perhaps this is Michael loxley's way of saying hey let's get a guy who understands line play who understands how to run the football and he can complement what we're getting from what we already have and Josh Gattis who is a pass first guy so I think that's one way of looking at it and then Brian's able to learn a lot more about the passing game under the leadership of people who know a lot more about it than he does so that's fair to say now will it be awkward when Iowa plays Maryland in November I don't think so remember he's not Brian ference is not considered to be a full-time assistant he is not part of the 10 uh assistants that are allowed full-time assistants that are allowed on staff so there are rules governing what an assistant what an analyst can and cannot do John budm had been an analyst at Iowa over the past two seasons prior to being elevated as Iowa's wide receivers coach for this coming season and this past spring now there were workarounds to some of the rules Iowa had John budm working with quarterbacks quite a bit on the field and I don't know how Iowa got away with that but that was reported and there were people saying that he was the deao quarterback's coach over the past two years in spite of the rules that are out there regarding analysts not being able to be handson involved giving instruction to players certainly on game day they can't make calls play calls Etc and instruction but again there must be workarounds with this because Bud Meyer has worked very heavily with Iowa at the quarterback position up until recently and now Brian ference might be able to offer some of that same intuition as it relates to the Run game maybe even tight end play who knows what Maryland's going to be doing as it relates to tight end play but those are things that Brian ference knows well and I just want to make clear like I've been a Critic of Brian ference and of Kirk ference and of the whole dysfunctional situation for years now but I also try to be balanced with my takes whether you agree with them or not I can't sit here with a straight face and act like Brian ference knows nothing about offense or knows nothing about football I've never claimed that I think he was in way over his head coaching quarterbacks and trying to coach a passing game and develop quarterbacks evaluate quarterbacks making just plays on game day decision- making I don't think he was qualified for that but he might be able to give Maryland some real Intel and it will be interesting to see what the story lines are once we hit I think it's late November that Iowa is scheduled to face Maryland and I believe Iowa goes out to College Park so hey congratulations to Brian ference and family hopefully they're getting settled out in College Park and uh Brian's gonna help them as we count down the days to fall Camp as it relates to Iowa the Hawkeye spring practice finished a little over a week ago and one of Iowa's early enroles is Iowa freshman Josh Janowski we spoke with Josh following his signing to Iowa he was one of just two guys that enrolled early this past spring the other being forced AR tight end Gavin Hoffman we spoke with Josh about his decision to join Iowa and what he brings to the interior of that offensive line specifically the center position for years to come you'll hear from Josh right after this you're watching week 237 of Brad's branded thoughts here from the Hawkeye of the storm straight from the man cave kinck under the kitchen authentic original player artwork is being drawn up for Hawkeye fans everywhere locally made prints of stars wearing the black and gold from the past present and future how about current Hawkeye Superstars Cooper deene and Tory Taylor Legends of the past like Jack Campbell Spencer Lee and Tim Dwight plus future phenoms like Aaron Graves there are so many options available they make great gifts and your purchase benefits the Hawkeye athletes wearing the black and gold visit under the kitchen on Facebook or at underthe kitchen's new website that's underthe k.s. site again that's underthe k.s. site check out under the kitchen today and get your authentic original Hawkeye print Iowa s now he's a s Josh How do you feel janowski's with us Josh welcome how are you good good be here doing good man uh how do you feel it's a it's a big day I mean exciting I know that there's been a lot of hype the uh the smoke has been building and uh hopefully uh you feel a little bit of pressure off your shoulders how do you feel to be locked in yeah I mean yeah obviously like being committed it's not like 100% you don't know what's going to happen so I mean uh just signing the the letter of antenna I mean it's it's a blessing so I'm uh definitely happy a pressure off my shoulders and I'm just ready to work so Whats work been like talk about uh that work I mean what's uh what's work been like to get to this point who's been instrumental in your your development process and um just what gives you confidence that Iowa can get you to the next level uh 100% definitely like my coaches um I come from Linka Way East so like a lot of uh um former High East players went on to Iowa like Adam got us Turner pisard um there's just been a lot of people and we have we're one of the top programs in Illinois and Coach Zona our head coach does a great job with like uh prepping our our uh athletes to to the next level um he teaches us discipline and everything and uh I mean yeah I have to give it all to my coaches they just been really uh pushing me and they really been on me to become the best player I could be so where do you project I mean I I Where do you project you're going to be able to tell me better than uh than I could find on some recruiting site are you more I mean I know you're an interior guy but I mean are you a center are you a guard where do you project with this yeah I've um I never really played too much guard but I I've really been centered uh my high school career so I'm uh planning on Center but I'll play guarder center whatever they want me to play so and Logan Jones is interesting story converted to the offensive side of the football was a defensive linan when he got here but his predecessor Tyler Linder bom was such a success story he's a young guy we don't talk about a whole lot you know Center's kind of an unheralded position in football as you know Josh but as uh a good friend of mine coach Donn Patterson we do postgame coverage with him for Iowa football games Don has said on a number of occasions there's only two guys that handle the football every snap on offense and that's the center and the quarterback so like I mean it is an unheralded position but you're going to a place that has had some really remarkable success Austin ble is another success story that came out of Iowa ended up being a really good offensive lineman in the league played center at Iowa how much trust do you have in Kirk ference as an offensive line guy to develop you into a potential NFL guy oh I mean tons of trust I know coach ference was was a offensive line coach um I mean he's been there for 20 plus years so then you got coach Barnett I mean my coaches like can't say enough about how good of a coach he is because they have had a long they had a long relationship with him and yeah I just um it's funny because we do like the same the same like offensive drills like blocking drills that that Iowa does we kind of Base our our scheme off their scheme uh and like run blocking drills wise so I'm just like uh I'm I'm confident and I'm excited just uh just to get it started so I I definitely trust trust in the coaches and Trust in everything they High school experience do ay Howard in the chat apparently looked up some of the stats of your uh your team he says that you helped the Griffins to a 13-1 record uh over 2200 rushing yards nearly nearly 1700 receiving yards 45 total touchdowns that's pretty productive yep yeah talk about your high school experience oh man um well sophomore year I I started on of well freshman year was like the co year so we only got six games but then sophomore year I started on Varsity we went nine and three so it was it was a solid season we lost in the quarterfinals but um and then our my junior year we really bounced back we went 13 and one we lost in the state championship game but I mean it was definitely the most fun game I played in and again last year we went to state but we lost again but I mean pretty pretty good pretty um I think it's the first time in it's the first time in program history at my high school that we went back to back to State they never done that before so it's uh it's definitely cool can you talk a little bit about George Barnett George Barnett um here's a guy who I I can tell you and regardless of criticism and the line has been steadily making progress but you know there's obviously need and and you're going to come in and compete for some playing time but by all accounts everybody I've ever talked to about George Barnett Raves about what a great human being he is and a great coach and U I think I'm okay saying this because I know it's been said as a comparison Tim POC who just recently got the head coaching job at North Dakota State he's a previous o line coach here I can tell you on good authority that he was kind of known to be a yeller and a screamer and I understand there's a place for that at times and that can work in certain settings but by all accounts coach Barnett is just a man's man he's going to talk to you like you're his child and but also like the adult that you are um he's just a well-respected guy can you talk a little bit about how you've gotten to know coach Barnett yeah so I mean first time I met him was actually the first time I met him was summer or I went to a camp he invited me to Camp after it was going in my junior season that's when I really met him and then he started he was like recruiting me from there on out um and then he came in January after my football season and um what I really like about Coach Barett he's like super straightforward he's super honest um he's not going to BS you and like you know you have some college coaches that will kind of like BS you like you come here you're going to start right away or whatever like he's never said that to me like obviously gotta work for what I what I want and um I remember like the week before I got my my scholarship offer he told me he's like um we got to look if there's another um scholarship ball prefer into your offensive lineman if there is you're our next guy up and week later he got me an offer you know sometimes you just don't know with coaches like what they're going to do and he was just being like he he's just being straight up honest and like that's what I I love about him because like you could always trust him he's got your back and you just gota yeah I just trust him I'd say but he's a great guy for sure I use the term balance when I talk Balance about the rest of this class Josh um between what you have up front with guys like uh yourself will Nolan um I mean just across the board and then you look at skill position spots um we just had a conversation with Michael bird I'm really high in the tight end room you're led by a guy in James RAR who was wanted by a lot of major Schools power five schools just a lot of balance across the the the offense in this class have you grown close to anybody in particular any of your future teammates uh yeah for sure all all the lineman bod uh um Cody and will I mean we have a group chat we text a couple times a week um and then I've really been talking to Gavin Hoffman because uh me and him are planning on enrolling early so um I've been really I've been really close with him and yeah the quarterback to James RAR um and yeah mainly just the lineman you know we just talk probably three times a week just text group chat to see how we're doing so really phenomenal Future at Iowa young group of offensive linemen and I the one thing that I I have questions about moving forward um Josh is this group that's currently playing up front for Iowa you got an announcement recently from Nick D young that he's returning for another year but in general like there's going to be opportunity not saying that there won't be opportunity next year but in a couple years there's going to be so much turnover with a lot of these guys that have been a part of the rotation for quite some time um are you a guy that I mean you obviously want to play right away but how do you kind of view the process ahead that maybe involves a year of learning and developing and getting bigger getting stronger yep so I mean obviously you know if I'm planning on playing Center guard I mean Logan Jones I think he has two more years of Eligibility uh he might even go one more year but you know we'll just see how it works out I'm just planning I'm just really trying to focus on myself right now just uh when I get there just focus on development and uh just being the best that I could be personally and like whatever happens just falls into place I'm just going to trust the coaches and uh just do what they say and uh whatever happens happens and everything should fall into place I'd be remiss if I New Offensive Coordinator didn't bring up Cody Fox another really good young Prospect who's been committed to this class forever uh he's officially signed as well um and bod mccassen I think you mentioned him a minute ago so really a great group of young guys that are going to be able to compete and help this team up front was there any like as far as the uh the new offensive coordinator I know you know you're you got a lot of confidence I'm sure in George and Kirk because coach ference is an offensive line guy himself but was there any question when the the change came down U that you were locked in as a hawk no there was no question I mean I was in my dream school it's the only school I wanted I mean I I could have waited right after my offer to get you know other big 10 offers but I I I committed right on spot I mean it was my dream college and I I know there's no doubt in my mind that you know I I trust this program I know they've been through a lot of adversity and they even the season you could tell like see they've been through a lot of adversity and they just felt back and they outstanding season and that they're playing a Bull game so um yeah no there's never been a doubt in my mind and uh I just trust this program with with everything I got Outro so Josh Janowski out of Frankfurt Illinois Josh congratulations big day for you you'll never forget this day and I know you'll have you'll be creating great memories over the next three to five years um regardless of how long you're at Iowa this is going to be a day that goes down in history in your book of life so congratulations on on the signing and uh we'll look forward to talking with you congratulations on enrolling early that's good news we'll see you here the next couple of months all right thank you really appreciate Josh joining the show Josh chanowski future Center at Iowa and where will he end up mixing in this year will he get some time probably not unless injury strike and Michael mislinski who's one of Iowa's backup centers has been wried with injury Logan Jones has been out much of Spring ball then there's Leighton Jones Jeremy chaplain is he considered maybe a center if need be and then of course Tyler Ellsbury who's been getting most of the reps with the ones but the point is injuries do happen and Josh getting a spring under his belt you'd have to think he's a step ahead of a lot of guys who are not yet to campus so we'll see uh it seems like he's got a good head on his shoulders and certainly happy for him and his family appreciate you tuning in for another edition of the podcast be sure to leave a like that always helps tell your friends about the content here recruiting videos reaction videos postgame shows throughout men's and women's basketball and football season it's all right here from the Hawkeye of the storm we'll talk to you next time