Brian Ferentz Looking for Answers on Offense

Iowa Coordinator Sifting Through Ideas During Bye Week

IOWA CITY, Iowa - Brian Ferentz was asked on Wednesday if he ever regretted play calls after the fact.

“Sometimes the calls I wish I could have back, you guys probably didn’t even notice,” the Iowa offensive coordinator said. “Sometimes they’re just the biggest ones of the game, and they go unseen.”

That prompted Ferentz to remember when he was a kid playing a football video game.

“It’s not like when I was a kid, and I was playing Tecmo Bowl, and I got pissed and I just hit reset,” he said, smiling.

Last Saturday’s 24-7 home loss to Purdue was one of those games that couldn’t be erased.

“I was looking for the reset button the other day and couldn’t find it,” Ferentz said. “And here we are.”

The Hawkeyes are 6-1 overall, 3-1 in the Big Ten, ranked 11th nationally and still control their own fate in the Big Ten West Division race.

“The goal is to always play relevant football in November,” Ferentz said. “Right now, that’s all in front of us. That’s up to us.”

The Hawkeyes, though, need to get more consistent offensively. Iowa is last in the Big Ten in total offense, 13th in rushing offense and 10th in passing offense. And even a gaudy record with just one blemish can’t hide that fact.

“Quite frankly, we are still looking for some answers,” Ferentz said.

Iowa has been a perfect example of complementary football all season, which is a good plan until one segment has to step up more. That happened in the second half against Purdue, when the Hawkeyes had chances to get points in the third quarter to get momentum, and had two possessions that went nowhere. Iowa had two possessions in the quarter — seven plays that combined for six yards.

“I thought our third quarter was really disappointing,” Ferentz said. “If you compete long enough, you’re going to take a couple of those on the chin. The key is what you take from it. Are you going to learn from it? Are you going to grow? I think that’s what we’re going to do as a football team.”

Iowa’s offensive line is young. Center Tyler Linderbaum was described as a “steadying influence” by Ferentz, but the rest of the line, particularly tackles Nick DeJong and Mason Richman, have been tested because of the inexperience.

“They’ve gotten an education from time to time,” Ferentz said. “There’s no education like experience, baptism by fire.”

Iowa’s running game has struggled — the Hawkeyes had just 76 rushing yards on 30 attempts against Purdue. Quarterback Spencer Petras is seventh in the conference in passing yards per game and 10th in completion percentage.

Ferentz defended Petras, who is in his second year as a starter.

“He’s won six games and he’s lost one (this season),” Ferentz said. “I try to remind him of that, because he’s a perfectionist.”

Ferentz pointed out how Petras was the first player into the press conference after Saturday’s game.

“Here’s a 21-year-old guy who has to go in there and face the hard questions about what just happened in the game,” Ferentz said. “He’s the one out there laying it on the line.

“Where would I evaluate him after seven games? We’ve won six of them, and he’s been a big part of the reason we have. And when you’re the quarterback, and we lose one? You’re going to be a big part of the reason, too, just like I am.”