Name KF's replacement ...

eyesofhawk

All-Conference
Apr 17, 2011
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Whether you believe it or not, Kirk will eventually retire or be fired...
The only way KF would ever be fired is if he stuck around too long. And I believe he has far too much perspective and respect for the program to do so.

Would you want people calling for your job to a large group of the public?

Whether you believe it or not, it's disgusting
 

Roncuba65

All-Conference
Aug 15, 2022
965
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The only way KF would ever be fired is if he stuck around too long. And I believe he has far too much perspective and respect for the program to do so.

Would you want people calling for your job to a large group of the public?

Whether you believe it or not, it's disgusting
You can't be serious lol

Did you see the debacle with his son? If KF had his way BF would still be the OC!!!

And yes, pay me 6 million a year to be above average and you can say whatever the hell you want about me. I want to put you on ignore but you amaze every time you post.
 

ChicagoHawk2020

All-Conference
Nov 6, 2017
812
2,313
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The only way KF would ever be fired is if he stuck around too long. And I believe he has far too much perspective and respect for the program to do so.

Would you want people calling for your job to a large group of the public?

Whether you believe it or not, it's disgusting
It’s disgusting what BF did to this program for sure
 
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TrojanHawkeye

All-Conference
Feb 11, 2009
680
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Hear me out...If Kirk only lasts 1-2 more years based on results, age, etc., but the offense does continue to improve (especially the passing game), do we consider Lester as a strong candidate to become head coach. He's a past head coach at W. Michigan (wasn't spectacular, but had a winning record), he's pretty well liked by the players and knows Iowa Football culture. As much as some fans want to "burn it to the ground" and start over, a lot of Kirk's philosophy has lead to Iowa being a respected, successful football program over the past two decades. Lester can definetly update some things (offense) as he see's fit, but build on the foundation Kirk has laid. Keep Phil Parker if he wants to stay or turn the defense over to Seth Wallace. Slide Warren Ruggerio into OC. Some things change, but a lot of things that have made this program successful stay the same.
 

eyesofhawk

All-Conference
Apr 17, 2011
1,835
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You can't be serious lol

Did you see the debacle with his son? If KF had his way BF would still be the OC!!!

And yes, pay me 6 million a year to be above average and you can say whatever the hell you want about me. I want to put you on ignore but you amaze every time you post.
It’s disgusting what BF did to this program for sure
You don't know that KF would still have BF at OC, for sure.

KF kept BF around because he knew the broken offenses in '22/'23 had almost nothing to do with him (educate yourselves).

But KF may have at some point decided it wasn't worth all the negativity in the community. Which is why I thought BF at OC was a poor move, in the first place. I knew fans wouldn't be able deal with it
 

CRHAWK

Senior
Sep 7, 2025
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You don't know that KF would still have BF at OC, for sure.

KF kept BF around because he knew the broken offenses in '22/'23 had almost nothing to do with him (educate yourselves).

But KF may have at some point decided it wasn't worth all the negativity in the community. Which is why I thought BF at OC was a poor move, in the first place. I knew fans wouldn't be able deal with it
I liked Brian as an offensive line coach, but in no way was he ever capable of coaching an offense.
 

Grayhair1981

All-Conference
Sep 3, 2006
576
1,080
93
Seemed to me that offenses were plenty capable in his first 5 years as OC
Pretty capable?
First five years excluding the asterisk season:
344 ypg 96th of 130 teams
29.7 PPG 72nd of 130 teams
2018 boosted the other 3 years. 44th in ypg; 43rd in PPG (31.2)
2021 (5th year)
304 ypg 121st of 130
23.4 PPG 99th of 130
So definitely capable. Possibly superb.
Run the ball
3-2
Actually better than this year's 116 ranking after 5 games.
 

Pharcyded

All-American
Sep 7, 2021
2,352
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Dude Iowa needs a re set not a hire from the same regime. Think bigger. Iowa is a big time job. A big time name needs to be the next coach.....with zero KF residue
@paednoch23 You asked me a question, I answered. You may be right. I just have a feeling, based on the positive attributes I listed above, that he'd make a great head coach. Which coach do you have in mind?
 
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Pharcyded

All-American
Sep 7, 2021
2,352
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The only way KF would ever be fired is if he stuck around too long. And I believe he has far too much perspective and respect for the program to do so.

Would you want people calling for your job to a large group of the public?

Whether you believe it or not, it's disgusting
It comes with the $7M he's paid each year. Don't like it? Quit.
 

3-D_chess

Senior
Jul 18, 2025
862
947
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Seemed to me that offenses were plenty capable in his first 5 years as OC
So you're saying once the offense was entirely his players the offense tanked?
1981 brought the receipts. You're wrong. The offense under BF was the same fail as it was under the previous 2 guys.
Remember 2018 and losing to Northwestern? Fant was targeted once for zero yards. Future 1st round pick and possibly the best athlete on the field and BF decided he needed to watch the game from the sidelines. And all because his brother was a fool on social media. That confirmed something to me that I had long suspected. Ferentz (father and son) would be willing to take an L if it helped heal the cuts on their thin skin.
 

Hawkice

All-Conference
Iowa Swarm member
Dec 25, 2022
964
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Whichever coach is responsible for the decline of Iowa’s Oline is truly the one to blame for the offensive numbers the last 5 years. Polasek took over for Brian and Barnett took over Polasek. Not sure who to blame but next head coach cannot be as faithfully blind as Kirk when it comes to making changes. I’ll go on record as saying Dan Jackson could be a decent hire.
 
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eyesofhawk

All-Conference
Apr 17, 2011
1,835
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Whichever coach is responsible for the decline of Iowa’s Oline is truly the one to blame for the offensive numbers the last 5 years. Polasek took over for Brian and Barnett took over Polasek. Not sure who to blame but next head coach cannot be as faithfully blind as Kirk when it comes to making changes. I’ll go on record as saying Dan Jackson could be a decent hire.
This is much closer to a perspective that includes some reality. Well done.

Only none of the coaches' fault, actually. A confluence of bad luck factors hit the o-line leading up to the broken o-line in '22.

It should be said that the o-line has been rebuilt though, and has played very well this season and last
 

Strength1

Junior
Mar 23, 2023
118
215
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Dude Iowa needs a re set not a hire from the same regime. Think bigger. Iowa is a big time job. A big time name needs to be the next coach.....with zero KF residue
Give us the why Iowa is a "big time job"?
Iowa is a 7-5 , 8-4 program. Do you think the money is there to be a consistent 10-2 program? Who are the big donors that have the kind of money to sustain this program better than it is now?

Smarter to promote Lester to head coach with shorter contracts and the explicit understanding that he needs to have a much better offense with set achievable goals, while maintaining the level of defense in place now. Seth Wallace will need to be retained so he can step into the d coordinator position. Lester could then hire a recruiter as O.C. who is younger and he can work with.

If the A.D. is smart it is about avoiding a long term high dollar contract that is to hard to get out of. Don't blow the program up, just promote affordable, positive change with real goals for the new coach. The position has to be performance based or move on to a new coach in three years. The few donors we have and the 3000 that give to NIL won't achieve what you message boards crazies want.
 

herkhatescy2

All-Conference
Dec 2, 2024
1,723
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You can't be serious lol

Did you see the debacle with his son? If KF had his way BF would still be the OC!!!

And yes, pay me 6 million a year to be above average and you can say whatever the hell you want about me. I want to put you on ignore but you amaze every time you post.
It's a lot nicer having him on ignore believe me.
 
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LetsGoHawks83

All-American
Mar 20, 2015
2,708
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Clark Lea from Vanderbilt....

Although I just figured out he's from Tennessee and is a Vanderbilt grad... Probably at his dream job already
 

hawkeyemark18

Senior
Aug 16, 2019
256
448
63
This is the correct answer, he will be candidate #1 when that time comes.
We have no clue what Beth has in mind for a successor to Kirk when the time comes. Keep in mind Kirk elevated Wallace to Assistant Head Coach to keep him here as Wallace had an offer to go to Minnesota. That doesn't necessarily make him the heir apparent.

Seth has a good reputation in the coaching community and I like him. Whether Beth and people on the inside want him as the face of the program hard to tell.
 
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Obviously Oblivious

All-Conference
May 27, 2010
1,105
2,563
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Hayden played 19 non-power conference teams in out-of-conference games in 20 years. Ferentz has played 52 in 27 years.
Adding non-conference Power conference teams to conference teams, the numbers look like this:
Hayden
120-80-5 .600. conference+power conf OOC
24/19 .558 Power non conference

Ferentz
149-103 .591 Total
21-18 .538 OOC power teams

Hayden played 91.5% of his games vs power conference opponents
Ferentz has played 82.9% of his games against power conference opponents

So not only does Hayden have a better record against real opponents, he played more of them.
So pretty much a push. And I hate to break it to you, but since you brought it up (again) Doyle was not the secret sauce you think he was.
 

hahkize

Senior
Feb 7, 2007
315
482
63
So pretty much a push. And I hate to break it to you, but since you brought it up (again) Doyle was not the secret sauce you think he was.
Your post above was in response to this post from grayhair:

Grayhair1981 said:

Hayden played 19 non-power conference teams in out-of-conference games in 20 years. Ferentz has played 52 in 27 years.
Adding non-conference Power conference teams to conference teams, the numbers look like this:
Hayden
120-80-5 .600. conference+power conf OOC
24/19 .558 Power non conference

Ferentz
149-103 .591 Total
21-18 .538 OOC power teams

Hayden played 91.5% of his games vs power conference opponents
Ferentz has played 82.9% of his games against power conference opponents

So not only does Hayden have a better record against real opponents, he played more of them.


I'm not sure what grayhair was trying to state above, but here's a clearer (to me anyway) look at Fry / Ferentz OOC games.

the non-con games under both coaches:

Since both played ISU each year possible: Fry vs ISU: 16-4. Ferentz vs ISU: 13-10, I did NOT count ISU or Bowl games in the following data:



(**Note- Non-P5 teams in Red)

Fry's Non-con opponents:

Oklahoma-1
Nebraska-4
Arizona-5
UCLA-1
Penn St-2
North Carolina St-1
Colorado-2
K-State-2
Tennessee-1
Oregon-2
Miami (FL)-2 Total of 23 P4 games

Northern Illinois-4
UTEP-1
Central Mich-2
Tulsa-4
Cincy-1
New Mexico St-1
Hawaii-3
UNI-2
Drake-1 Total of 19 Non-P4 games in 20 years



Ferentz' Non-con opponents: (Prior to this year)

Nebraska-2
K-State-1
Arizona St-2
Syracue-2
Pitt-4
Arizona-2 Total of 13 P4 games

Northern Illinois-6 games
Miami (OH)-5
Western Mich-3
Kent St-3
Ball St-3
North Texas-2
Akron-1
Utah St-1
Buffalo-1
Colorado St-1
Montana-1
Maine-1
U Florida International-1
Arkansas St-1
Eastern Illinois-1
Nevada-1
Wyoming-1
Tenn Tech-1
Louisiana Monroe-1
Central Mich-1
Missouri St-1
Illinois St-1
UNI-5
No Dakota St-1
Middle Tenn St-1
So Dakota St-1 Total of 46 Non-P4 games
 

SeenItAllBefore

Sophomore
Aug 30, 2025
117
175
43
The only way KF would ever be fired is if he stuck around too long. And I believe he has far too much perspective and respect for the program to do so.
I'll stick to just the above comment, since I am unpersuaded about how to think of KF, but I do believe that you have drunk too deeply of his Kool-Aid. Nevertheless, i am unconvinced that he places "the Program" (let alone the university) above his own, and his family's, interests.
 

3-D_chess

Senior
Jul 18, 2025
862
947
93
So pretty much a push. And I hate to break it to you, but since you brought it up (again) Doyle was not the secret sauce you think he was.
What you're not mentioning is that Fry improved what he took over. By your own admission Kirk has treaded water. We all know Stoops would've taken what had been built and made it better.
And even though Kirk plays (on avg) 2 more games per season than Fry, he still averages less than 8 wins per season.
Here's the math: 13.5 games per season/7.7 wins.
If you round up that's 14/8. In school if you get 8 out of 14 correct on a test that equals 57%.
Literally, that earns you an F. What it doesn't earn you is a compensation package that is among the A-listers, unless you coach at gullible U.
 

Jonesy5960

Heisman
Feb 1, 2023
5,420
10,955
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You don't know that KF would still have BF at OC, for sure.

KF kept BF around because he knew the broken offenses in '22/'23 had almost nothing to do with him (educate yourselves).

But KF may have at some point decided it wasn't worth all the negativity in the community. Which is why I thought BF at OC was a poor move, in the first place. I knew fans wouldn't be able deal with it
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Obviously Oblivious

All-Conference
May 27, 2010
1,105
2,563
113
What you're not mentioning is that Fry improved what he took over. By your own admission Kirk has treaded water. We all know Stoops would've taken what had been built and made it better.
And even though Kirk plays (on avg) 2 more games per season than Fry, he still averages less than 8 wins per season.
Here's the math: 13.5 games per season/7.7 wins.
If you round up that's 14/8. In school if you get 8 out of 14 correct on a test that equals 57%.
Literally, that earns you an F. What it doesn't earn you is a compensation package that is among the A-listers, unless you coach at gullible U.
No, we don’t all know that Stoops would have substantially improved the program, that’s pure speculation. Winning at Oklahoma is a much easier task than at Iowa. That’s acting like it’s a transitive trait, it’s not.

You’re also ignoring that there’s a ceiling at Iowa as far as elevating that measure of success or incremental improvement. That ceiling now is highly dependent on NIL funding and Iowa isn’t close to competing in that area. The fact that KF has kept the program from completely sliding into irrelevance is a credit to his philosophy and ability to recognize and develop talent internally.
 
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Max Rebo

All-Conference
Dec 31, 2022
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I think it's pretty clear that Seth Wallace is the heir apparent.
When the time comes, I think there is a very good chance we end up with an internal hire. Part of it will depend on the most recent success we have been having when KFz makes his decision. If we are coming off a 10-2 season and a possible playoff birth, the likelihood that we hire internally is much higher than if we had, say, limped to a 6-6 finish.

TBH, I think the success of the WBB program could also have an impact. As long as the Jan Jenson hire continues to look like a winner, I think there will remain an appetite within the Athletic Department and much of the fanbase to replicate that success with a similar internal hire.

While a case could be made for Seth Wallace, I think you could also see folks arguing for Lavar Woods, Tim Lester, and even Phil Parker, as each has a decent resume. Perhaps the bigger question would be which coach would retain the bulk of the coaching staff -- which coach would be able to "keep the band together," assuming that is the plan.

Kirk is currently under contract through the 2029 season. But I would be shocked if he's here that long. Nobody coaches to the end of their contract these days, as it becomes difficult to recruit when the world knows your expiration date. Unless, that is, he gets an extension, which at age 70, I think is unlikely. But you never know.
 
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HawksRule73

All-Conference
Jun 26, 2025
580
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Couple of guys I like for different reasons....

1. Alex Golesh - HC at South Florida. Played HS ball in Ohio, former OC at Tennessee, and killing it at South Florida. Offensive minded guy.
2. Brian Newberry - HC at Navy. Defensive minded guy who's paid his dues coming up thru the ranks.