It sounds like Ferentz is open to changing his ways on offense

Iowa Hawkeyes head coach Kirk Ferentz. Jeffrey Becker-USA TODAY Sports

It sure sounds like Kirk Ferentz is open to changing his ways on offense

By Andrew Kulha | Last updated 2/6/24

Iowa head coach Kirk Ferentz is an "old school" football coach, and like with most teams, the Hawkeyes have taken on his personality over the years.

Iowa is always tough, hard-nosed, physical and conservative. That's "old school football", after all.

That's great for defense and special teams, and those are two facets of the game that Iowa is always good if not straight-up elite at.

The problem for the Hawkeyes has been that Ferentz's philosophies need to be updated in regard to offensive football.

Need proof?

Iowa scored just 17.7 points per game in 2022, which was the 123rd worst in college football. In 2023, the Hawkeyes somehow got worse. They checked in at just 15.4 points per game, which was second-to-last only to Kent State.

That's abysmal, and that's why Ferentz had to eventually let his son, Brian Ferentz go. The younger Ferentz had been Iowa's offensive coordinator since 2017.

It's also why it sounds like Ferentz is completely open to new offensive coordinator Tim Lester's ideas heading into the 2024 season.

"New perspectives. That's part of moving forward."

Kirk Ferentz says new O.C. Tim Lester fits well in Iowa's current program, while still bringing in some new concepts, like RPO's. I'm open to anything right now."

(That's the insightful voice of @ScottDochterman, by the way). pic.twitter.com/ehf6AxG5Lq
— Jack Lido (@JackLido) February 6, 2024

So extensive was Ferentz's offseason hunt for new perspectives that he actually had a list of 12 coordinators he was interested in. He interviewed six and had deep conversations with four.

In the end, the man who spent last season as an offensive analyst for the Green Bay Packers and the last five as head coach of Western Michigan, Tim Lester, won Ferentz over.

Good news for Iowa fans, it also sounds like the long-time head coach is willing to let his new offensive coordinator run the show.

Well, at the very least, he's open to the idea.