Iowa HC Wants to Move On After Oregon Loss

In what has become terribly usual fashion for the Iowa Hawkeyes on the gridiron, fans and supporters are once again grappling with the reality of another loss to a ranked team. The most recent example, an 18-16 defeat in front of a packed out home crowd to the Oregon Ducks.

Additional Doom

After already falling to the Indiana Hoosiers earlier in the season — also at home and in equally "down to the wire" action — the Hawkeyes' inability to climb the largest hills has outlined a team that has been basically good, and not much more. And if head coach Kirk Ferentz and his bunch can't find a way to best ranked opponents soon, their next matchup may spell additional doom.

Against the #17 USC Trojans, this time on the road, the Hawkeyes are forced to embrace yet another decisive game in the grand scheme of their season. Given their almost identical position in the College Football Playoff standings in spite of the Oregon loss, too, the stakes haven't much shifted. Ahead of the brawl, HC Ferentz is imploring his team to move on from their most recent defeat.

“You never know if it does resonate or not. You never know if you’re saying the right thing or not. Time will tell," said Ferentz. "And believe me, you spend a lot of the week wondering about that and worrying about that quite frankly. But if coaching and being involved in the game has taught me anything, you’ve got to move on.”

You Can't Win Every Game

"If you’re going to go out there and compete, which we do 12 times a year, you have to be able to deal with setbacks. That’s just a big part of coaching,” Ferentz said.

“At least in college football, there never has been. You’re not going to win every day. That’s just the way it is.. Not that you want to hear it, but you’re not going to win every game."

Whether or not that mindset is one that a team should take to heart, regardless of its truth value, is a different question entirely. For the time being, Iowa (6-3, 4-2) has to find a way as a football team to continue winning, even if their ultimate goal of a playoff appearance has become much cloudier.

One way or another, the result of the Hawkeyes' next contest will say a lot about the team, the program and the people in charge of it, all at once.

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