Kirk Ferentz turning it up a notch midway through Iowa’s fall camp

IOWA CITY, Ia. — With nine practices of fall camp in the books for the Hawkeyes, everything is starting to get intense and their head coach is finding out a lot about his 2025 team.

It’s a time when attention to detail is vital, and the players are battling it out for a spot on the depth chart, which Kirk Ferentz feels sets the tone for the upcoming season. Some positions are on lock, while others remain open, but at the end of the day competition is fierce.

Ferentz refuses to let Iowa be a needle in the haystack in the expanded Big Ten, and wants a higher ceiling than an eight-win campaign. Everyone wants to have a successful season, but has to understand that it’s going to take blood, sweat and tears to accomplish that feat.

“We’ve got several points of emphasis you’re always trying to emphasize in camp, and I think the single biggest thing is really doing anything difficult to win in this conference, because it’s not easy.” Ferentz said. “Doing anything difficult, it really requires good focus on things that are important and when they need to be there.”

Ferentz knows the Big Ten like the back of his hand, considering he’s approaching his 27th season in Iowa City. Recruiting, the transfer portal, NIL and revenue sharing has coaches adjusting on the fly. However, Ferentz is evolving with the times, and Iowa continues to be a developmental program.

The Hawkeyes’ roster will never be full of four and five-star talent under Ferentz’s watch, but he’s coming off 12 consecutive winning seasons. Not to mention his noteworthy track history of molding several Hawkeyes into NFL Draft picks. Trusting him and his staff starts in fall camp. It will also go a long way for the players once they realize that they don’t have to be at blue blood programs to get to the next level.

“I’ll say this: We’re not Ohio State, we never have been, we never will be,” he said. “It might make fans upset, but history shows that, so we’ve got to be comfortable with who we are and how we’re going to be successful.”

The 2025 Hawkeye squad has tremendous upside, and they’re flying under the radar. The offense is operating more smoothly in year two under Tim Lester’s leadership. Iowa is always tenacious on defense as long as Phil Parker is patrolling the sidelines. Special teams continues to be a strength too, which shouldn’t come as a surprise.

The Mark Gronowski era is set to begin, and he’s bringing some stability to the quarterback position. Gronowski is participating in physical drills, and have two gunslingers behind him worthy of being week one starters. He’ll have quality protection from the big boys up front, considering Iowa has two All-Big Ten performers along the offensive line. Lester is focusing on getting everyone involved, as far a running backs, receivers and tight ends.

Parker’s defense should be strong again on the line, and the secondary has some ballhawks. There’s uncertainty at linebacker with Jay Higgins and Nick Jackson no longer around, but Parker is a natural at filling in the voids. Ferentz expects the defense to actually take a step forward this fall. Bottom line, Ferentz envisions the Hawkeyes being able to gel together on both sides of the ball once fall camp concludes, and it all appears to be trending in the right direction.

“I just think defense travels well, and if you want to be a consistent winner, you’d better emphasize it, but we’re trying to score points, too,” the 70-year old coach said. “You do the best with what you can, and as I said a year ago, when our O-line plays good and our quarterback plays good, that’s a good start, so we’ve got a chance.”

Drew Stevens is one of the nation’s best clutch kickers, with long range and accuracy. Rhys Dakin did a great job of replacing Tory Taylor last year, and should be better at pinning opponents deep this time around. Which is why Iowa should continue to thrive with field position. Basically Ferentz has all the ingredients to make a great recipe on the gridiron, and still has two more weeks to cook it to perfection.

“It’s a fluid time right now, fluid competition going on during camp, like you’d expect, and it’s just kind of fun to watch it and see how it’s all going to pull together.”