I hadn't heard Phil was an early favorite for the OSU job. I can't say I'm surprised. Would have thought they would have targeted Levar as well with how bad their kicking game was.
Coaching retention
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They love Kirk and the program. Case closed.
If I was Phil an expecting to retire in the next 5 years it would be hard to turn down that bag of cash. I have no idea if that's his retirement plan just bullshitting.
Someone “pursued” Barnett? Was it Coe or Luther? LOL
Good O-line coach
If so, then whoever did the high school evaluations on the OL group who has started the past 2-3 years should not be retained.
Goes far deeper than that.
They were forced to play way too early and improved immensely under Barnett. Turned into a solid group
The guys who started the last 2-3 years were high schoolers before George was here.
I'm not a huge fan of George by any stretch, but what he walked into was nothing short of criminal.....and that falls on Polacek and Brian, not George.
Polacek and Brian were both great identifiers and producers of line talent. Lindy was on that team in 2021, arguably the greatest C in Iowa football history. George hasn't recruited talent to surpass any of the talent on those lines from 2-3 years ago, and that's a major problem. Brining back Dejong last year shows the ineptitude. Iowa may finally have a RT in Dunker, but LT is a barren wasteland still.
Phil's making almost $2m now. I can't imagine whatever more he would get than that would be worth the upheaval and uncertainty at this point in his life.
Probably right, but imagine if they came in offering 4-5 million per, and with that talent. Phil Parker with 5* talent would be insane. Hell I would probably say the same about Kirk.
$2 million bones in IC goes a long way, AND he does not have to put up with any bull crap. His legacy is set.
Regarding PP, it did say it was "rumored".
The other guys - it would be interesting to know the jobs and how far they got in the process. It says they were "pursued" - is that a phone call?
Anyway, they've got a good gig here.
The other guys - it would be interesting to know the jobs and how far they got in the process. It says they were "pursued" - is that a phone call?
Anyway, they've got a good gig here.
Where did Dunker and Logan Jones grade out last season?
Phil seems very much a creature of habit and probably has made more money than he’d reasonably going spend in his life.
The thing is that Phil is a "pure football" guy ... and Kirk allows him to do that. At many other programs, you have to put up with a lot more bullshit.
At School X, if a booster ponies up big money for you to land some touted recruit ... that booster is going to try to interfere with football operations ... including trying to pressure a defensive coordinator to play the guy. Kirk does a good job of insulating his staff from that sort of stuff. If Phil thinks a highly touted guy isn't executing consistently to the level he expects ... he'll bench him without a moment's hesitation. Phil knows this ... the players know this ... so there is no stupid dance to be done ... they can just focus on football.
Also, to my knowledge, Phil loves his guys ... but he hates the recruiting game. He has to do the recruiting stuff ... but, at Iowa, he can at least do it the "Iowa way" ... which is something he can feel comfortable about.
I was thining about coach retention today on my way to work. I was listening to the Locked on Hawkeye podcast and pondering how things will play out when Kirk decides to retire. Based on how Beth Goetz has appeared to operate, I am guessing there is already a plan in the works. It would not shock me if Phil Parker retires when Kirk does. He has had ample opportunity over the years to pursue a head coaching position or other DC positions but has always stayed loyal to the program. My guess is he will not be the next head coach. My bet is on Tim Lester being the next head coach. Kirk has really stepped back and let Tim have free reign over the offense and the type of recruits and transfer players they target. Tim has plenty of coaching experience as well. I see them promoting Warren Ruggiero to OC when this happens. I think them hiring Warren from Wake Forest where he served as the OC for 11 years goes along with my theory. Wake Forest was very inovative on offense. They finsished 4th in overall offense in 2021 and developed the Slow Mesh RPO that I imagine Iowa will incorperate into Lester's Shanahan style offense this coming year. Why else would Warren come to Iowa unless a plan was already laid out for him and Tim Lester. With that being said, Seth Wallace will be the next DC when Parker retires. The same logic applies to him being named associate head coach. They did that to give him more pay in order to keep him. Other programs were looking to hire him away from Iowa. This seems to be the plan if you can read the tea leaves. Tim Lester is going to turn around Iowa's offense and is the next Iowa HC in my opinion. I am hoping LeVar Woods stays on the staff should this all happen, but that will depend on what he wants.
That is exatly what I said. Where is your confusion? Kirk was typically credited with trying to pound square pegs in round holes for years. People would argue that he was so risk avert that he would hamper his OC's and play the safe odds to a fault. I would agree with that through BF. However, Kirk seems to given Lester freedom to breathe new lif into the offense. Last year was a huge step in the right direction despite padestrian QB play. Iowa led the Big 10 in rushing with little ball movement through the air. Lester found creative ways to move the ball even when they knew we were going to run it. With better QBs and chemistgry formed with the WRs, there will be another big step forward. Having a OC that actually teaches his players how to read defenders and adjust plays to capitalize on it is a huge step forward. What exactly are you confused by?
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I'm not confused by anything. I think you need to read a little more closely.
I don't agree with the narrative at all. Kirk has let all of his OC's do their thing. Just like he lets Parker and Woods do their thing. Sure, he has some principles that he wants his coordinators operating by. And sometimes has to make an executive decision. But KF by no means has been meddling.
You say "people have argued" that KF has forced his OC's to be too "conservative." That doesn't make it true. I happen to "argue", from my limited perspective, that KF has allowed all of his OC's to be far too cute in key moments. I've seen it happen with all of them, before Kirk finally spanks them into shape, and they run the ball in November. Frustrating pattern, from my limited opinion. Different than your opinion. Now what? Neither opinion proves how hands on Kirk has or hasn't been with the offense.
And nor does the fact that Lester is a better OC than BF have anything to do with "free reign." It's just another one of the garbage narratives that fans regurgitate
I see what you are saying. I don't think kirk meddles but is just risk avert to a fault. I think he is a great coach though and am no way in the Kirk needs to go camp. As far as free reign you just need to look at the QB room now. for many years Iowa under previos OC's would get one QB that they would ride or die with. They would not target transfers that could actually improve QB depth in a serious manor because they were concerned QB1 would leave. Lester has completely overhauled that thinking. He is a little more Hayden Fry in that regard. Iron sharpens iron and whatnot. Kirk was more inclined to dance with the girl that brung ya (also a Hayden expression). Competition breeds success, plain and simple. Lester is removing complacency from the QB room. These are all good things.
And to say Lester is better than BF at calling plays is and understatement. But i can tell you that KOK ran a high powered offense when at Allegheny. It is not an opinion. When he had Brad Banks and company, he was able to call the plays he wanted because he had talant to execute them. looking back on KOK, we can say in hindsight that he was better than we thought at the time. It all comes down to philosphy, talent, execution, and ability to adapt. Iowa's biggest albatosses and also their greatest strength has been their defense.
Kirk has been inclined to put his defense on the field and force the other teams offense to make mistakes. This has proven to be a succesful formula given how well our defense has played but it puts the Hawkeyes in a lot of close games. It also has not translated into Iowa being able to recruit or retain playmakers on offense. So to say that Tim Lester is not changing the culture at Iowa is hyperbole. Things are trending in the right direction and Tim Lester is the catalyst for this paradigm shift.
Again, you are mentioning ways in which Lester goes about his job differently than other OC's. None of it means he has been given more reign.
I don't agree with your characterization of the QB room. I don't think the staff was previously avoiding competition. I don't think there are plans for anyone other than Mark to be the QB this season. And I don't think multiple QB's will see significant time. Simply, I think Lester prioritizes depth at QB.
So KOK ran a more high-powered offense when he had the talent of Banks and Co. Reasonable enough. Still not related to autonomy
Ok. Let me know when you've come across anything that suggests KF has given more autonomy to Lester than he did his other OC's
"the best C in Iowa football history" was recruited as a DL, and it was KF who talked him into moving to the OL. Just saying. Kirk could give a master class in where a kid can make the most of his talents..
