We can assign much of the blame to Barta for signing an aging HC to a contract that takes him well into his mid 70s.
With a sizeable buyout, to boot.
With a sizeable buyout, to boot.
Gary Barta's legacy...
- Thread starter MitchLL
- Start date
It wasn't just the contract itself, it was the permission if gave Kirk to dig his heels in and resist any change or evolution. He became untouchable. Barta was a f***ing idiot. Kirk wasn't going anywhere.
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Barta gave him a couple ridiculous extensions, and was effectively negotiating against himself because at that point in his life and career KFz was no longer a hot commodity sought after by the NFL and wasn’t going anywhere.
That's key. I was on message boards 20 years ago when fans were freaking out because Kirk was gonna jump to the NFL.
By then it was obvious he wasn't going to any place that had accountability built into the contract. Also his desirability outside Iowa was always overblown.
How his agent hasn't won an Oscar for best male lead in a contract negotiation is beyond me.
Barta will go down as one of the most inept AD'S in Power 5 history.
Truth. But a narrative was concocted that he needed a lucrative contract or he would go somewhere else. I did read many posts making the claim that he was a hot commodity on the HC job market. Bowlsby shoulda called his agent's bluff.
Barta did what the Ferentz family told him to do. Worst Iowa AD in my lifetime.
