When Michigan went hunting for a new coach in 2007, Kirk Ferentz was at least on the board early. But the interest never really went anywhere, and the whole idea died fast in the middle of a chaotic search that eventually landed on Rich Rodriguez.
That search began after Lloyd Carr said he would retire following Michigan’s New Year’s Day bowl game after the 2007 season. From there, the Wolverines worked through a messy process that included a serious flirtation with Les Miles, a meeting with Greg Schiano and discussions about Brian Kelly. Before any of that played out, though, athletic director Bill Martin’s first choice was Ferentz.
According to MGoBlog, Martin privately floated Ferentz early in the process, only for university president Mary Sue Coleman to shut it down. The odd part is that Coleman was one of the reasons Ferentz’s name kept surfacing around Ann Arbor in the first place. She had been president at Iowa when Ferentz was hired, but that connection never turned into real momentum from either side.
Michigan also never got far enough to ask Iowa for permission. When asked whether the Wolverines had contacted Iowa about speaking with Ferentz, then-Hawkeyes athletic director Gary Barta said no such request had been made. MLive.com reported that Ferentz’s contract required him to notify Barta before discussing opportunities outside Iowa.
Nearly 20 years later, Ferentz is still at Iowa, and Saturday’s matchup with No. 18 Michigan will come with him in his 28th season leading the Hawkeyes. He has gone 7-9 against the Wolverines in his career, a tidy reminder that the two sides have spent plenty of time seeing each other across the sideline without ever coming close to a real union.
In the end, that probably fits Ferentz as well as anything. He has spent his entire Iowa tenure with a reputation for staying put, even when other jobs were in play.
The nearest he may have come to leaving was in 2008, when he was tied to the Cleveland Browns opening. Ferentz had worked for Cleveland as offensive line coach from 1993-95, and he addressed the speculation in a 2020 interview with Dan Patrick.
"My response has been, I always felt like I needed a compelling reason to look elsewhere," Ferentz said. "We've loved living here, we've loved it as a family, and the professional opportunities have been great.
So, I never felt like I had a compelling reason to leave. The other spot - which you never count on this - we've had three of our sons go through the program.
So it's really hard to put a price tag on that."
That kind of loyalty has made Ferentz a fixture in Iowa City. He owns 215 career wins, the most in program history by a wide margin, along with two Big Ten titles. He was AP Coach of the Year in 2002 and has been named Big Ten Coach of the Year four times.
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Kinnick Stadium Still Strikes Fear Across The Big Ten
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That recognition matters because the Hawkeyes are about to lean on it again with a run of notable home dates ahead. Ohio State, Wisconsin, Purdue and Nebraska are all slated to come through Kinnick, giving Iowa another chance to show why its stadium still carries so much weight in league conversations and why visiting teams tend to circle this trip on the calendar. [Read more 🡒]
Iowa Brings A Big Strength Into A Test Hawkeye Fans Dread
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The wrinkle for Iowa is that Michigan arrives with its own clear strength, even if the Wolverines have struggled to move the ball through the air and sit last in the conference in passing yards per game. Both teams have leaned on the kind of team stats that can decide tight Big Ten games, from turnover margin to hidden yards, which is exactly why this one feels so familiar to Hawkeye followers. The difference this time may be whether Iowa can turn its defensive edge into the kind of result that has eluded it in this matchup for a long while. [Read more 🡒]
Iowa's First Real Test Comes With Extra Juice At Michigan
Iowas trip to Ann Arbor on Sept. 26 is already shaping up as the first real measuring stick of the season, but it comes with a little extra personal edge, too. Safety Deshaun Lee and Michigan quarterback Bryce Underwood once played together in high school, and now theyll be on opposite sideline scripts when the Hawkeyes meet the Wolverines. Iowa also has seven defensive players from Michigan, adding another layer of familiarity to a game that will matter plenty for both programs.
For Iowa, the bigger picture is straightforward: end the four-game losing streak against Michigan and see how Phil Parkers defense handles a test that should say a lot about where the Hawkeyes stand. Michigans offense has been uneven this season, but Underwood brings dual-threat ability that can change the feel of a game in a hurry, which means Iowas defense will need to stay disciplined from the start. The matchup already has the look of one of those early-season games that can travel well beyond the final score. [Read more 🡒]