Iowa’s Kirk Ferentz Apologizes for Rant About ‘Interrogation’ by Media

The Hawkeyes coach has received heavy criticism because of the team’s offensive struggles this season.

Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz issued an apology on Wednesday to a columnist he ranted about during a Tuesday press conference.

The columnist, Doug Lesmerises of Cleveland.com, wrote a critical article about Ferentz and the Hawkeyes’ offensive struggles after the team’s 54–10 loss to Ohio State on Saturday.

Ferentz referred to questioning by Lesmerises and other media members as an “interrogation.”

“I wanted to take a moment to apologize for my comments during the news conference yesterday,” Ferentz said in a statement, via Scott Dochterman of The Athletic. “I should not have been dismissive of one of your colleagues — his questions were fair. I have a high respect for the work that you do, and I am appreciative of how you cover our team. You ask tough and pointed questions but do so with a high degree of professionalism. I tell our players to take the high road and yesterday, I did not do the same.”

From Kirk Ferentz regarding his comments about @DougLesmerises at Tuesday’s news conference. pic.twitter.com/mLv4dvHt41

— Scott Dochterman (@ScottDochterman) October 26, 2022

Ferentz reiterated his apology while speaking on his radio show Wednesday night.

Here’s what Kirk Ferentz said tonight on his radio show (which is also televised in Iowa City/Cedar Rapids via @KCRG 9.2) pic.twitter.com/qYwb3hJPc2

— Scott Dochterman (@ScottDochterman) October 27, 2022

His apology comes after the Tuesday press conference, when he  ripped Lesmerises with a personal slight.

“I complimented the guys on Sunday just because during the questioning — and in some cases, interrogation on Saturday that I experienced — the one good thing about that, it dawned on me coming home,” Ferentz said on Tuesday, via 247 Sports. “‘As bad as today was, it could have been worse, because I could have been that guy.’ I could have been that guy, had his job and had to act like he did. So yeah, it could be a helluva lot worse. Things aren’t all bad. But one thing I did on Sunday was just compliment our players, the way they’ve handled it.”

The criticism comes from Iowa ranking 128th nationally (among 131 FBS teams) in points per game, 130th in yards per play and last in the nation in yards per game. The Hawkeyes (3–4) play host to Northwestern (1-6) this Saturday at 3:30 p.m. ET.

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