Iowa football notebook: Kirk Ferentz ‘really worried’ about state of college football

IOWA CITY — Kirk Ferentz is “really worried” about the current condition of college football, and he’s not alone.

“I ran into — the first week on the road — several coaches that we compete against and I've got a lot respect for, and I think we're all thinking the same thing,” said Ferentz, the Iowa coach and longest-tenured head coach at the FBS level. “My fear is we're going to really ruin and screw up a really good game.”

The concern stems from more than just one issue.

“Everything,” Ferentz said Wednesday.

The changes in rules allowing athletes to profit off their names, images and likenesses is “definitely a part of the equation,” Ferentz said.

“Some people have gotten really aggressive and creative with it, and the door is open for that,” Ferentz said. “That's exactly what I'm getting at.”

He specifically fears a competitive imbalance between the haves and have-nots in NIL.

Ohio State quarterback Quinn Ewers signed a $1.4 million deal last year, according to an ESPN report, with a marketing company to sign autographs over the next three-and-a-half years.

Former Oklahoma quarterback Caleb Williams had a $1 million NIL offer from an alum of Eastern Michigan to transfer there although Williams instead picked USC, per a report from the Detroit Free Press.

“We run the risk of maybe getting some things tiered, and I've got some research to do,” Ferentz said. “One of the coaches I bumped into shared some information with me that was really interesting. He's certainly been paying closer attention than I have.”

Ferentz, who himself makes $7 million per year, said he’s still “all for the players getting anything they can get,” but emphasized the need as a sport to “figure this out.”

No changes to coaching staff

Ferentz has not made any changes to his coaching staff, he said Wednesday, although the NFL hiring cycle may create a vacancy.

“We're in the NFL hiring season right now,” Ferentz said. “That's a possibility, and there's also always a trickle-down effect any time the NFL hires.”

The 23-year head coach again issued support for his son Brian Ferentz. The fifth-year offensive coordinator has been a common source of fans’ criticism after the team finished 121st in the country this season in yards per game.

“We didn't exactly light it up in '04. We were next to last in rushing. I can't remember who was last. But next to last in rushing,” Kirk Ferentz said. “But we didn't torch it up or tear the playbook up after that.”

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