 Marc MorehouseHi, I'm Marc Morehouse. I've covered sports for more than 15 years, mostly in Eastern Iowa. I've had Hayden Fry [...] |
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Iowa loses second 4-star recruit
Detroit safety Hill gets offer from Michigan and jumps on it
Delano Hill of Cass Tech runs back this interception in the second quarter as Eisenhower's Yousseff Bujaidar pursues the play. Clarence Tabb Jr. / The Detroit News
Iowa went to unprecedented places in recruiting last summer, sewing up 15 verbal commitments for the first time in Kirk Ferentz’s 14 seasons at Iowa.
Ferentz always cautioned that the trick would be keeping the commitments. Verbal commitments are non-binding. None of this is real until the signed letter of intent whirs into the program’s fax machine on Feb. 6. Iowa has had some breakage.
Since October, Iowa has lost its top two defensive players in the ’13 class. Four-star defensive end David Kenney de-committed in favor of Indiana in October. Saturday, Cass Tech (Detroit, Mich.) safety Delano Hill said yes to an offer from Michigan.
This leaves Iowa and Minnesota as the only two programs in the Big Ten without at least one four-star recruit, according to Rivals.com. Michigan leads the Big Ten with 15 four-star recruits. Ohio State is next with 12. Penn State, Wisconsin, Nebraska and Indiana have four apiece. Michigan State and Illinois have two. Purdue and Northwestern each have one.
The stars are a measure for prep athletes entering a program, a guide based on Rival’s scouting and video study. They’re obviously not an unbeatable indicator for future success, but the more stars, the better.
That said, the two Iowa lost aren’t surprises.
Earlier this fall, Hoosiers coach Kevin Wilson hired Kenney’s father, David Sr., as a “quality control assistant for recruiting.” Kenney, who was Iowa’s first commit for the 2013 class, was on the clock therafter.
“If someone’s dad works at an institution, you might imagine, we suspected this could be a possibility. Not to get specific about anything,” Ferentz said shortly after Kenney’s switch happened.
Hill committed to Iowa last April. He visited Notre Dame and planned a visit to Pitt. Michigan offered this week and it didn’t take long for the switch. Hill, the nation’s No. 23 safety according to Rivals and ESPN, visited Ann Arbor with Cass Tech teammate, OL David Dawson, this weekend.
So, with Friday’s commitment of running back LeShun Daniels, Iowa is at 16 commitments with 19 as a possible finishing number. Iowa has two other safeties on its commitment list in Solomon Warfield and Malik Rucker, who received an offer from Texas Tech on Saturday. Des Moines Lincoln linebacker Trevon Young is the one potential defensive end on Iowa’s committed list.
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Derrick Willies, WR, 6-3, 190 Rock Island (Ill.) High School ***
Colin Goebel, OL 6-4, 275 Naperville (Ill.) North High School ***
Nathan Bazata, DT, 6-2, 270 Howells (Neb.) High School ***
Brant Gressel, DT, 6-2, 283 Centerville (Ohio) High School ***
John Kenny, LB, 6-2, 210 Caramel (Ind.) High School ***
Nic Shimonek, QB, 6-4, 205 Mildred (Corsicana, Texas) High School ***
Malik Rucker, CB, 6-0, 175 Cooper (New Hope, Minn.) High School ***
Derrick Mitchell, Jr., WR, 6-0, 185 Vashon (St. Louis, Mo.) High School ***
Andre Harris, WR, 6-1, 170 Kirkwood (Mo.) High School ***
Sean Welsh, OL, 6-3, 275 Springboro (Ohio) High School ***
Ike Boettger, ATH, 6-5, 220 Cedar Falls High School **
Trevon Young, DE, 6-4, 220 Lincoln (Des Moines) High School ***
Solomon Warfield, DB, 6-0, 170 St. Edwards (Cleveland, Ohio) ***
Jon Wisnieski, TE, 6-5, 215 West Des Moines Dowling ***
Damond Powell, WR, 5-11, 175 Snow College (Ephraim, Utah) (***)
LeShun Daniels, RB, 5-11, 220 Harding (Warren, Ohio) High School (***)
* = Rivals.com’s star rating
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Too bad Iowa can’t lose a $4 million coach….
Well if you’re such a great coach..step up and offer your services, Don. Although I doubt you’ve lead teams to BCS bowl games or won a conference championships or had dozens of players find success in the NFL after playing at Iowa.
Iowa fans are the most spoiled bunch of whelps I’ve ever seen. They have a down season or two and what do you know,, Kirk Ferentz is the worst coach in Iowa history.
Iowa football is no where near where it was during the late 60′s and 70′s under Nagel, Lauterbur, and Commings.
Yet, for the spoiled Hawkeye “fan”–if Iowa isn’t 10-2, 11-1, etc…the season is a “failure”.
Well, Todd, I’m not a coach, so it would be difficult to match the tremendous success of coach kirk. I’m not blind either, so help me out with a few things?! I didn’t know placing players in the NFL is part of kirk’s job description or what he is getting all those hefty raises for???
Secondly, I must have missed a few of those Big 10 titles. By my count, when the lads line up this fall, [2013] it will have been nine [9] YEARS since a team of kirk’s {TIED} for a Big 10 title. Since the good captain will be hard pressed to deliver a single Big 10 win in 2013, we might as well round up to 10 YEARS. That, my friend is a DECADE! A decade seems an awfully long time for a coach with a roster full of NFL talent, no?
4-8 this season followed by 3-9 in 2013 seems terribly FXLish to me! At least Frank didn’t leave us with the indignity of losing to the clowns year in and year out!!!
They’ll be “hard pressed” to deliver a single Big 10 win next year, huh? You’re pretty bold to make a prediction like that 8 months away from the season.
Watch much Hawkeye football, Stud? They were extremely “hard pressed” to win a single Big 10 football game in 2012, or no? Lucky we had that Div III look alike from MN at home this year, or the brutal confines of the new Kinnick North might have been too much for us to handle for a third embarrassing straight year. Who is your dead solid lock win in 2013??
Uh, Iowa never played Iowa St. when Lauterbur was coach.
Well duh, and therefore they didn’t lose to the clowns, did they?
It’s hard to argue with logic like that, Don.
gee todd. i was wondering when you or some other ‘fan’ would circle the wagons around your hero. Rub the stars out of your eyes and come down to Earth and look at this thing we call “reality”.. Why is it when you so-called “true fans” don’t like the mirror held in front of the Iowa program, you IMMEDIATELY kill the messenger? Why is it one of the first things we hear is “Well if you are so good, send your resume to Gary Barta and I’m sure he’d like to talk to you” – or something like that? THAT line is right out of the top 10! Time for some new material! the answer is obvious, and you ‘true fans’ have no explanation other than to attack the message you don’t want to hear.
hate to tell you this, but the REAL hawk fans are not afraid to point out “The Emperor Has No Clothes!” – it’s called reality. In the future, let’s hope the UI president, Board of Regents, or SOMEONE puts an end to these “life time contracts”. as soon as a UI coach gets one, the quality of the product on the field stagnates.
Sorry, i may be just a 19 year-old young woman, but i have EYES and BRAINS. I’ve asked once before, and i will ask again…”Why are you ‘true fans’ so anxious to run a mediocre basketball coach out of town, but so willing to keep your football coach who is doing the same thing?”
please. answer the question. us ‘un-real’ hawk fans would love to hear you address the question. my gut says you’ll come back attacking the messenger, or another one of the ‘top ten EXCUSES’… maybe “we lost a lot of players to injury”? perhaps “we had a number of changes at key positions”? how about this oldie but a goodie, “we just can’t get the 4-star recruits here. no one wants to play where it gets cold” (yet Penn State, Ohio State, Michigan, Notre Dame don’t seem to have any issues).
the bottom line is this ship is sinking. outside of a fluke or extremely lucky break, next year will be no better. take a look at what happens when REAL FANS, and the AD’s office, and the boosters & donors EXPECT (and demand) a winner on the field – look at Notre Dame. 3rd year coach – perfect season (so far), in the NC game.
sorry Todd, for 4 million a year, 9 win seasons should be a MINIMUM, if not 10 win seasons (which i would argue should be the bench mark). Top 5 pay should have expectations of Top 5 results – period.
but every coach that comes after KF will milk your cow the same way. there will be rumors of the “NFL calling” (so you better offer a lifetime contract), or there will be many of you chicken littles (if not offering top 5 bucks) of “what do you want? to return to the Nagel years?”
we’ve heard it all before. but go ahead Todd. Answer the question, and no, i’m not about to send Barta my resume. He obviously can’t make a common sense decision now – so why waste my paper?
Michaela, some of us – presumably Todd as well as myself – are tired of the constant call for the firing of any coach who doesn’t perform well for a short stretch.
I know you can cherry-pick your “lack of achievement” complaints by commenting on the lack of a national championship, or how long it has been since a B1G championship, while at the same time leaving out the real accomplishments of this team under KF.such as a BCS bowl win in the Orange Bowl only 3 years ago, or appearing in bowl games the past 10 out of 12 years, or that we have won 6 of those 10 bowl games. Okay, so you’re not impressed, I get it. You want to be Alabama. You want to be Texas. But even Texas isn’t Texas every year. In fact, Texas hasn’t won a conference championship since 2009, and may miss finishing in the top 25 in the nation for the third year in a row, despite recruiting 15, 7, and 12 ESPN top 150 recruits at the beginning of each of those seasons. Wisconsin has had some up years – Bielema used the opportunity to move to a different job, Wisconsin will be down, not because Bielema left, but because things cycle in college football. KF decided to stay at Iowa after his upward cycle, he decided to stay through the down cycle and he will be here when we’re up again.
So, for you who think the Iowa Football world is falling in on itself, let’s not lose our heads – let’s not have a repeat of the basketball debacle that has been Iowa basketball for the last 10 years. Instead let’s deal with “reality” – as Michaela calls it:
She asks: ”Why are you ‘true fans’ so anxious to run a mediocre basketball coach out of town, but so willing to keep your football coach who is doing the same thing?”
So this is the question that Michaela asked Todd, and here is a simple answer, based on statistics and facts, Michaela’s “reality” so to speak:
Comparison between Lickliter and Ferentz (I’m assuming Lick is the mediocre basketball coach she refers to):
Lickliter’s winning percentage: 40%
Ferentz: 57.5%
Lickliter had three straight losing seasons, Ferentz has had two seasons under .500 in the last twelve years.
A better comparison here might be to Tom Davis’ basketball teams:
Tom Davis’ winning percentage in Big Ten play 54%
Kirk Ferentz winning percentage in Big Ten Play 53%
Of course all of the feelings about Hawkeye Football are bad right now just like they were for the men’s basketball program in 1997-1998. What followed was a (forced) early retirement for Tom Davis, who took his 1998-1999 team to the Sweet 16, and the worst years for Hawkeye Basketball in decades. So much so that Fran’s 18-17 (52%) team last year seems like (and is) an accomplishment, even though it is far less than Davis’ winning percentage of 66% overall and even far less than KF’s winning percentage (57%).
But what did we hear before Davis’ forced retirement? “We want to win national championships!” Now, 13 years later we are excited about a basketball team that is barely over .500 and some recruits with some stars who haven’t proven anything yet (though I hope they do).
You see, us “true Iowa fans” aren’t saying that it isn’t bad right now, we have just been around long enough to know how much worse it could get under the direction of another coach We are happy to wait a couple of years for another up-cycle under KF (after all, he didn’t leave us on the top of his last up-cycle) rather than get our football program entangled in a parade of coaches and ten years of the kind of mediocrity our basketball team has been through.
Zach:
** Not that many fans actually are calling for Ferentz’s head. Most realize it would be worthless considering his contract status for at least another 3-4 seasons.
** Most fans are simply desiring/demanding more from a program that’s been stuck/declining for 6 1/2 seasons of the past 8 seasons – and there’s nothing on the horizon that shows clear direction upwards in the coming seasons.
** Some loyalists constantly criticize those “complainers” that we shouldn’t ever be compared to the elite programs like USC, Michigan, Texas, etc. That’s fine – it’s a valid position that I agree with. However, isn’t hypocritical when some of those same folks who disallow using elite programs as measuring sticks of success then use those same programs’ down years to “favorably” compare to Iowa’s down years?
** You still need to stop comparing basketball to football. It’s apples and oranges. (It was the right call to non-renew Davis at the time, and though history has been unkind to the program until recently, I still believe it was the right call. Davis’s best years leading the program were behind him.) So please, stop comparing football and basketball programs’ coaching changes. The scale and number of working parts are so skewed it’s completely invalid – though convenient – to use.
** Please give five, no, just THREE rock-solid observations that indicate that KF and the program will be on an uptick in the the next year or two or three. Just three. I don’t see but MAYBE one.
** KF’s last “up-cycle” lasted one and one-half seasons. That’s it. He coached them down in 2010 to 7-5 and it’s been worse since with no real sunlight being seen in the distance (and that light that IS seen looks much more like a sunSET than a sunRISE).
** Why do so many assume that any coaching change at all right now (which I’m not advocating) will lead to a decade or more of instant mediocrity? Why is everyone so afraid of any change – has everyone completely absorbed KF’s riskaversiveness? Do some of you believe that it’s not just as dangerous to play out the string with KF for the next 8 seasons with the mediocre to average product? That would make almost 15 consecutive mediocre seasons? THAT wouldn’t be disastrous to the program?
** At what point will Todd and some others actually read what the “whiners” are saying: It is the HEAD COACH that is making high school-ish coaching and judgments errors – REPEATEDLY – for 14 years? That his game mismanagement has caught up to him – and has been making ground since 2005? That his absolute aversion to ANY risk makes it almost impossible to win games when his program has the least amount of talent it’s had in years?
** Finally, why are so many Iowa fans willing to defend mediocrity and defend against ALL criticism of the program even when a number of the critiques are valid and easily recognizable?
Wow, I’m just a fan who did play through high school and 1 year of college but that certainly doesn’t qualify me as an expert like todd. I’m a life long Iowa Hawkeye sports fan and I certainly can’t predict the future but the past several years ( and I don’t expect perfection or even 11-1, 10-2 although that would be great) have been very unproductive and that starts with the head coach weather you like that fact or not.
I don’t know why they even announce verbal commitments because all it does is disappoint us Hawk fans and makes Ferrentz look weaker and weaker as far as a good recruiter. I can see more verbals committing elsewhere before signing day
There are no more recruits that we “have” that anyone else wants. Go to scout and see the recruits we have and who else offered them scholorships, the list is not impresive……even if we were in the MAC……which we would have not gone bowling even if we were. Does anyone else out there notice that this was easily the worst B1G in 30-40 years and we were the worst team at the end when it mattered. But hey all you guys who want to make excuses for a man who wouldn’t even talk to you, go ahead, get in line and drink the Kool-Aid. Matter of fact cut to the front line and have 2.
Also unless we stop going to games and forking over big $$$…..which Iowa fans never stop doing, there will be no change. We here about how much $$$ the team makes and the defenders want to pat KF on the back for it, even though all B1G schools make a profit wtih BTN pumping in 20 mill a season for each team and Bowl fund sharing are the reason why.
The number of stars isn’t a guarantee for success. The stars aren’t established by anyone who has coached or won a single game as far as I know. Having said that, in general more is better than less. Sure we can always find examples of 2 and 3 star players that have went on to have success. But the odds of a 4 or 5 star recruit having success are much more of a sure thing (not that there is such a thing). Iowa’s most significant player in the NFL right now is Chad Greenway who I am guessing was a 2-star athlete. But then there is Clayborn, Ballard, Moeaki, and Bulaga who were 4-star athletes as far as I can remember. My point is given the overall number of 4-stars that Iowa has had, they have a much greater success rate. So this recruiting is of concern unless there are one or two Chad Greenway’s in the group.
The perplexing question to me is why can’t Iowa get more top talent? I know all of the excuses about the Iowa population and no big city. And for those excuses we can find a dozen examples of schools who overcome those same conditions. And really what is an 18-22 year old who’s time is consumed by school and football going to do elsewhere that they cannot do in Iowa City? Is a college football player really going to be able to afford to go to NFL, NBA games or concerts or whatever the argument may be? Iowa has Kinnick Stadium, to notch practice and weight room facilities. Iowa City is a great college town with supportive fans. We have a stable coaching staff with a tradition of putting players in the NFL.
So why can’t we get more top notch players? My opinion is that we have a head coach who is a good coach but a poor salesman. Unfortunately in college football at least 50% of coaching is recruiting. Look at Nick Saban. When he went to the NFL and had to coach on a level playing field, he couldn’t cut it. Saban is great at going into the living room of 18-year olds and smooth talking them into going to a football factory.
Which brings me to my next opinion. To level the playing field and to add more academic integrity back into college football there is a simple solution for the NCCA. My proposal is; when you sign an athlete to a 4-year scholarship that scholarship is consumed for 4-years regardless whether they quit school or enter the draft early. This would also curb this heavy oversigning and driving away players that don’t work out that occurs in the SEC. A football factory like Alabama would be low on scholarships rather quickly and coaching would take on more importance and smooth talking recruiters a little less.
Iowa badly needs a good season next year so they can turn these new young assistant coaches loose and do there sales pitch.
Todd, one of the first guidelines in this site is to “be civil” Give it a try. And your comparison of Nagel, Lauterbur, etc., is just so much nonsense. Were any of them the sixth-highest paid coach in the country? No. As to “a couple of down seasons”, the Hawks have lost more 4th quarter leads than I can count in 2010 and 2011, but did not even get close to 4th quarter relevance in most of our losses this year. That speaks to poor coaching. I can see the pattern. So could Kenney and Hill.
As to Delano Hill, who can blame him for defecting to UM? If he came in as a safety, he’d be stuck in a boring, predictable defense. If he was shifted to the other side of the ball as a receiver, he’d be stuck in a boring, predictable offense. And with little chance of any real change in the future. I’d go, too.
No, Kenney probably could see playing where his dad is working
The ship just continues to take on water. For every chad greenway, bob sanders, etc… There are a two dozen tanner millers, Steve bigachs, or Greg castillos. Those guys aren’t even on the two deeps at most b10 teams. The recruiting rankings love to take a beating from those who believe great coaching outweighs the talent. Look at the teams always ranked high in the recruiting rankings. It pretty much mirrors the bcs top 10
IN THE SPIRIT OF THE CHRISTMAS SEASON;
I propose a dream matchup football game (to be played in the middle of February, in Kinnick of course) The game will between the “Real Hawkeye Fans” vs. the “Real Hawkeye Fans.”
One “Real Hawkeye Fans” team will be coached by the Davis twins-one in charge of offense and the other in charge of defense. Sanji will be in charge of special teams and the AD will be Michaela.
The second “Real Hawkeye Fans” team will be coached by a coach that “makes $4 milliion a year, has a lifetime contract, can’t recruit (for many different reasons), has no imagination, hires coaches that want to just hang on and not win……on and on.
As for myself, I will be sitting in the stands watching the game with others than really don’t know a damn thing about coaching or running a college FB program. We aren’t always happy about each game, nor do we have our heads stuck up in the clouds when things do go well.
Now comes the tough part; finding a network TV to cover the cost of this classic matchup.
*Disclaimer-my reference to names was meant in good fun and by no way is a direct reflection of my personal opinions on each.
Merry Christmas to all and to all a winning/successful Hawkeye season in 2013!
Oh Todd, I don’t know if you are including me as one of the Davis twins or not but thank you if you are. You are such an expert on football that I just have to say I just love your comments. Happy Holidays to you and yours and of course Go HAWKS!!!!!!!!!!!
good for Delano Hill. He gets what he wants, and Iowa gets Malik Rucker as a Safety recruit. No predictions here, but wavering and recruits changing commitments do not tend to have much luck at the next level…..the Hawks are fine.