Iowa Coach Opens Up About Huge Milestone

Iowa Hawkeyes head coach Kirk Ferentz opened up about reaching his 200-win milestone.

Iowa head football coach Kirk Ferentz celebrates with players after the Hawkeyes scored against Maryland on Saturday, Oct. 20, 2018, at Kinnick Stadium in Iowa City / Bryon Houlgrave, Bryon Houlgrave

Kirk Ferentz has been one of the most underrated head coaches in college football for years. He has continually coached the Iowa Hawkeyes to success, but is not nationally recognized as an elite head coach.

Despite not receiving the national attention that he deserves, Ferentz reached a massive career milestone last week after Iowa beat the Washington Huskies. He has now officially won 200 career games.

That kind of accolade is not something that Ferentz has been gunning for. He's not the kind of person who strives for personal recognition or success. Ferentz simply wants to win football games, coach the right way, and help his players find success both on and off the field.

Keeping that in mind, Ferentz was asked about the milestone he has achieved. He took some time to speak out about it.

“Then as far as the 200 part, you have to be lucky. You have to be in the right place, first of all. You have to be with a lot of good people, and that’s coaching staff and support staff. A lot of people are involved in this. I’ve worked with nothing but great coaches my entire career. I’ve been lucky wherever I’ve been," Ferentz said.

That quote immediately following the Hawkeyes' win over Washington. He talked more when asked about the milestone during his press conference on Tuesday.

"A couple thoughts. First of all, I never got into it for that. I got into it because I like being around young people. I still want to retire as a line coach. That’s my real secret dream. That’s what I enjoy as much as anything, coaching guys in a small room," Ferentz said.

"I’ve learned to love this job, too. It’s a different job. There’s some things about it that are really neat and cool. You’ve got to be at the right place and with the right people, as I said the other day. That’s one constant. If Coach Hayes were still alive, I’m sure he’d say the same thing. You have to be around good people. I feel very fortunate in that regard."

The next milestone that Ferentz could hit is catching Woody Hayes, who currently holds the record for most wins by a Big Ten head coach. Hayes won 205 games with the Ohio State Buckeyes.

While he may not be all about the record, Ferentz deserves the recognition he is receiving. Hopefully, he'll be able to reach the all-time record by the end of the season. That would also mean that Iowa closed the season strong and won at least five of their last six regular season games.

Next up on the journey to 205 will be a matchup on the road against the Michigan State Spartans this week. Ferentz would love nothing more than to win his 201st overall game.