Iowa Hawkeyes' Kirk Ferentz Explains Costly Decision vs Ohio State

Iowa Hawkeyes coach Kirk Ferentz provided a postgame explanation for a costly decision in his team's loss to the Ohio State Buckeyes.

Oct 5, 2024; Columbus, OH, USA; Iowa Hawkeyes head coach Kirk Ferentz walks off the field after losing to Ohio State Buckeyes 35-7 after the NCAA football game at Ohio Stadium. / Kyle Robertson/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

There was a lot of blame to go around in the Iowa Hawkeyes' loss to the Ohio State Buckeyes on Saturday. After all, they lost 35-7, so you can't really pin the defeat down on one particular issue.

However, one decision made by head coach Kirk Ferentz truly resonated.

With Iowa trailing 7-0 in the first half, the Hawkeyes had a 4th-and-1 (that was really less than a yard) near midfield. Ferentz rolled out the punt team, but called a fake, and Iowa picked up a first down.

The problem was, Ferentz called timeout just before the ball was snapped, wiping away what could have been a momentum-shifting play. The Hawkeyes then punted for real, and Rhys Dakin's boot went just 22 yards.

After the game, Ferentz explained his choice.

“We were obviously thinking about a fake punt, and we felt good about that until I called a timeout," Ferentz said, via Chad Leistikow of The Des Moines Register. "Saw their linebackers nudging up to the line. … We were still going to give it a shot until we saw those guys coming towards the line.”

He then explained the decision to punt afterward.

“Field position was what I was thinking. It was a tight ballgame," Ferentz said. "Maybe that’s too conservative. But at that point, our thought was let's pin them in, which we’ve done a pretty good job of this year. Today wasn’t a great example of punting the way we want to. I thought, pin them in and force a turnover and get the ball back in good field position.”

That's all well and good, but if Ferentz were truly worried about field position, then why did he call a fake to begin with?

The decision to punt after Ohio State saw the fake was obvious. The jig was up at that point, and the Buckeyes would have been prepared for another potential deke.

But Ferentz's concerns about field position don't seem to line up with his original decision.

Iowa almost surely wasn't beating Ohio State regardless of that situation, but it certainly didn't make Ferentz look all that great in the moment.