Jay Norvell joins staff
- Thread starter Bro D
- Start date
Always great to see a former Hawkeye return to the program. Likely the replacement for Ruggerio.
Interesting. Jay was a DB/safety at Iowa, yes?
I hope this works out. It appears that "analyst" is reallly just a euphemism for job hopper or short-term rental.
He has been primarily an offensive coach. He was OC/WR coach at Oklahoma, took over play calling at Texas, followed by WR coach at ASU. This was a good get as an analyst. Hopefully he can teach Bud something.
yes, a safety with Devon Mitchell.
Figured something would get done when he was back here as captain late in the season.
Hot damn that is adding a good football mind. Jay was a strong safety at Iowa and All-Big Ten. Obviously knows Kirk, I hope he stays in Iowa City for a long time.
Jay was a beast on the field. He seems to have plenty of fire on the sidelines as well. Nice addition to the staff!
That is common to have an analyst with primary experience on the other side of the ball to give a different perspective. Tim Lester was a Defensive Analyst with Green Bay before coming to Iowa. Jay is probably much more well rounded, having played on D and coached on both sides of the ball. He could be a huge asset.
I read an older article from when he got the Colorado State head job, and he said that even though he played defense it was Barry Alvarez that encouraged him to switch to coaching offense because you would rise through the ranks much faster that way.
Also a fun note that he was a replacement player for the Bears in 1987 and had four sacks in three games, then was signed to the actual roster at season's end and played three more games.
Also a fun note that he was a replacement player for the Bears in 1987 and had four sacks in three games, then was signed to the actual roster at season's end and played three more games.
Seems like a great addition.
Once upon a time, I pondered if he might be a candidate to become head coach at Iowa at some point. He never quite put together the resume for that (and he’s in his 60s now), but it seems like this role will be a great fit for all involved.
Once upon a time, I pondered if he might be a candidate to become head coach at Iowa at some point. He never quite put together the resume for that (and he’s in his 60s now), but it seems like this role will be a great fit for all involved.
The nice thing is that, under the new rules, the analysts no longer have to pretend that they aren't providing on the field coaching anymore (they all did this for years). Now they can coach the players, they just can't do off-campus recruiting. I hope he shares some of his WR coach knowledge with the receivers, that would be a MAJOR boost.
Hopefully he can beat the sh** out of Budmayr and
That's what happens when you've played for the Bears in the late 80's....
Jay was a very good safety for the Hawks. He was a heck of a hitter. Jay was from Wisconsin and getting him was a great get because his Dad played for the Badgers.
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I remember reading a newspaper article about his career ... in the NYT or even the WSJ**, I think. He had just landed the UNR job and had apparently been the runner-up in several head coaching hires over the previous several years. He had kept interviewing and making it onto short lists and not getting the job. Then the Reno job seemed to fit like a glove.
I tracked his career at UNR and he was doing really well in taking a losing program to new levels ... winning progressively more games on an annual basis and going to bowls. I expected him to be snagged by someone, but CSU seemed an odd choice on his part. To me it seemed like a lateral move and obviously it did not work out. However, it is enough of an outlier to cause me to wonder what else was going on there.
In any case, his is a classic example of slowly building his skillset through a progression of jobs at a nice mix of schools and pro-teams. It is time for him to settle into something for the longer term, so in my view, we have just gained a significant coaching asset for the long term.
He seems like a guy with an Iowa Football mindset ... He has ups and he has downs ... and he keeps slogging along, becoming better at his craft as he goes. He has had enough success to know the taste and know it well.
I also like that he has some West Coast experience. We are short on West Coast experience.
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**The theme of the article was "What about those guys who are almost, but not quite rising stars? Guys who look as if they should be on everyone's list, but are not? How do they overcome whatever causes the hesitation?" It had a New York Times style human interest bent to it, which is why I think that is where I may have seen it.
I tracked his career at UNR and he was doing really well in taking a losing program to new levels ... winning progressively more games on an annual basis and going to bowls. I expected him to be snagged by someone, but CSU seemed an odd choice on his part. To me it seemed like a lateral move and obviously it did not work out. However, it is enough of an outlier to cause me to wonder what else was going on there.
In any case, his is a classic example of slowly building his skillset through a progression of jobs at a nice mix of schools and pro-teams. It is time for him to settle into something for the longer term, so in my view, we have just gained a significant coaching asset for the long term.
He seems like a guy with an Iowa Football mindset ... He has ups and he has downs ... and he keeps slogging along, becoming better at his craft as he goes. He has had enough success to know the taste and know it well.
I also like that he has some West Coast experience. We are short on West Coast experience.
.........................................................
**The theme of the article was "What about those guys who are almost, but not quite rising stars? Guys who look as if they should be on everyone's list, but are not? How do they overcome whatever causes the hesitation?" It had a New York Times style human interest bent to it, which is why I think that is where I may have seen it.
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He was a walk-on under Hayden Fry who didn't start until his senior year, yet he made all Big Ten and spent a season or so in the NFL.
Honestly, really good hire. Let him have a year to get his feet back under him before he goes on to another program, or joins our staff as a coordinator. Always good to have someone with HC experience in the building.
I think this just goes to show what Kirk tells the kids. That he is always there for them and to reach out if they need anything at all. He said as much in the locker room to the seniors after the last game iirc. Appears to be true even if Kirk wasnt a head coach at the time Norvell was here. Norvell was a player part of the time KF was line coach and a GA the other part of that time as well.
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Really good Coordinator. Solid HC at some tough schools to build a program.
The Iowa staff have some great teaching minds. Would like to see him stick around a few seasons.
The Iowa staff have some great teaching minds. Would like to see him stick around a few seasons.
Iowa also added-
- Kevin Spencer: Special Teams Quality Control
- Kyle Hazell: Football Analyst (Offense)
- Mac McLeran: Football Analyst (Defense)
Do you have some sort of inside information that tells you Iowa doesn't have one?