Brian Ferentz picked to guide Hawkeyes offense

IOWA CITY — Greg Davis opened a conversation with Iowa head coach Kirk Ferentz last Wednesday with the announcement of his retirement. Ferentz didn't make any calls for offensive coordinator candidates.

It's still not entirely clear if he emailed Brian Ferentz or walked down the hall at the Hansen Performance Center, but less than a week later, Kirk Ferentz introduced Brian Ferentz, his son and offensive line coach, as the Hawkeyes' offensive coordinator.

'When the reality became apparent, when Greg told me he was going to retire, now it's more than this guy, that guy, this guy,' Kirk Ferentz said Monday, discussing his thought process on hiring the third offensive coordinator in his 19th season as head coach. 'You really start thinking about it. You weigh and measure. I didn't reach out and talk to people. I thought at least the guys I'd be interested in, I knew enough about. I know who they are and what they are. What they believe in.

'After pretty careful consideration, deliberate consideration, it made the most sense to me. I think this is the logical (move). He's more than ready. He's had opportunity at other places, and I'm pretty confident he would've had more opportunity at other places, too. Selfishly, whether he's my kid or not, I don't want to lose good coaches off our staff. ... I thought about it and this made a lot of sense to me.

'He's 50 times smarter than I am. That's a good thing, you'll all be glad to know that.'

And just like that, Davis, 65, is out and Brian Ferentz, 33, is in.

The official announcement on Davis came Friday afternoon. The 43-year coaching veteran told his boss Wednesday that he was retiring from the game. Did Iowa's performance in last Monday's 30-3 loss to Florida in the Outback Bowl factor?

Kirk Ferentz said it didn't come up, just things about spending time with family and living life. Fast-forward to Monday's news conference, Iowa's faulty 2016 passing game came up — a lot. Brian Ferentz, a former Iowa offensive lineman who's been Kirk's O-line coach since 2012, said finding balance on offense is job No. 1, after recruiting, of course, with the national signing period beginning Feb. 1 and Iowa having as many as eight spots left in this class.

Brian Ferentz made no campaign promises. There weren't any hints at wholesale changes. In fact, Kirk Ferentz said, 'It (the offense) isn't going to look dramatically different, but there will be tweaks and adjustments and certainly I'll defer to Brian just like I deferred to Greg or Ken (O'Keefe) previous to that.'

There are two signs in the offensive linemen's meeting room at the Hansen Center. One says, 'We are tough, smart, physical.' The other, 'We will be feared, respected, hated.'

That. Expect more of that.

As he does in his tweets, Brian Ferentz used the word 'attack' more than a few times during his introductory news conference. But here's one thought he had that might lead you to believe it won't be a 'one size fits all' offense.

'Our stated program goal is to win the Big Ten championship,' Brian Ferentz said. 'In order to do that, in order to compete at that level in this conference, we're going to need to have some flexibility and have the ability to change on a weekly basis and do what's best to win football games.'

Kirk Ferentz had a list of possible offensive coordinators, but didn't call them. Brian Ferentz, who spent four years with the New England Patriots — progressing from scouting assistant to tight ends coach — didn't apply in the conventional sense.

'We've worked hand-in-hand now for five years,' Brian said. 'You have to go back and look at the history of the program, I mean the program that's been in existence since 1999 (Kirk Ferentz's first season as Iowa's head coach). We've had ups and we've had downs. I think when you look at us offensively and what we need to do moving forward, we have to do whatever it takes to win.'

As far as an overarching plan ...

'I think he'd (Kirk Ferentz) be the first one tell you that everything here is going to start up front and winning the line of scrimmage and running the football. And then, how do you best complement that?'

Kirk Ferentz said his sole focus since Davis' retirement has been the offensive coordinator position. On Saturday morning, the UI did begin advertising for an open assistant coaching position on the staff, with the position responsibilities to be determined.

With Brian Ferentz moving into the offensive coordinator's office (it's right next to the head coach's), Iowa might need an offensive line coach and likely could use a quarterbacks coach. Davis also handled those responsibilities.

Brian Ferentz could end up as offensive coordinator and offensive line coach. Kirk Ferentz cited Wisconsin as an example of that setup.

'You could find an example of things just about anywhere, and some people might say age,' Kirk Ferentz said. 'I know of two coordinators in the NFL who are younger than him (Brian). So, you make all that stuff work. You want to get the right people and who's the best person you can add at this point.'

• Hlas: Can the son make Iowa's offense rise?

UI deputy director of athletics Gene Taylor said this hire complies with the school's nepotism policy. When Brian Ferentz was hired in 2012, the football organizational chart was constructed with Brian reporting to UI athletics director Gary Barta. That policy remains in place, Taylor said.

A contract is not yet in place. In Kirk Ferentz's new deal with the UI, there's a clause that says assistant coaches who've spent five years at the school will be eligible for two-year contracts for the upcoming season. As offensive line coach, Brian Ferentz made $425,000 this season. Davis' salary was $625,000.

'I think he's the best person to lead our offense moving forward,' Kirk Ferentz said. 'He knows Iowa, he knows our players, he knows our program. And, most importantly, he knows what works here and what doesn't work.'

l Comments: (319) 398-8256; marc.morehouse@thegazette.com