By Kyle Golik
When comparing offensive and defensive coordinators, you often find yourself in an “apples and oranges” comparison that you may not get a clear answer.
In the case of how atrocious Iowa’s offense and Southern California’s defense are, I look at them as both rotten fruit, but one has to be worse.
Both Brian Ferentz for Iowa and Alex Grinch for Southern California are wrongfully, gainfully employed.
So while Ferentz has already been fired, effective at the end of the season, Grinch remains gainfully employed.
Both are sabotaging their teams’ championship aspirations. wit Iowa vying for a Big Ten Championship game appearance, Southern California has watched their College Football Playoff aspirations dissipate and almost saw their Pac-12 Championship aspirations extinguish at Berkeley in a 50-49 game that went down to the wire.
All of this begs the question: who is the worst?
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The Case For Ferentz
When Ferentz returned home to Iowa in 2012, he had spent the previous six seasons in the NFL (two as a player and four as a coach), and the hope was Ferentz would be able to bring a pro-style philosophy that the New England Patriots had after coaching tight ends Rob Gronkowski and Aaron Hernandez in their two tight-end attack.
Ferentz spent his first five seasons at Iowa as the offensive line coach prior to becoming offensive coordinator in 2017. Since that promotion, the Iowa Hawkeyes offense has regressed and has been in the bottom half in scoring offense in five of seven seasons.
This season, Ferentz entered with designated performance objectives of winning seven or more games and averaging 25 or more points per game. Barring any serious regression, the Hawkeyes should earn their seventh win of the season, but the 25 points will be tougher to attain.
Currently, the Hawkeyes are averaging 19.5 points per game (120th in the nation), and to meet his objective, Iowa will have to score 33.8 points per game over their final four regular season games and bowl game. With the designated performance objective now at a point where it is nearly insurmountable, Ferentz, according to 247Sports, will not be returning for the 2024 season.
To find the last time Iowa scored 30 or more points in consecutive games, one would have to go back to the 2020 season, when they put up 30 or more in three consecutive games against Michigan State, Minnesota, and Penn State. The last time Iowa scored 30 or more points in five consecutive games, what Ferentz would have needed to retain his job, was during their undefeated regular season in 2015.
Considering Iowa has 31 total completions to wide receivers this season and the Iowa ground game averaging 115 yards per game, it’s hard to figure where the scoring would come from. Beginning the transition for the Iowa offense is key now rather than waiting.
The Case For Grinch
If you watched the Southern California defensive effort against Cal in Berkeley, that summed up how bad the Trojans’ defense has been under Alex Grinch.
The Trojan defense has given up 30 or more points in five consecutive games. During Grinch’s short tenure in Troy, the defense has 27 or more points in 15 of 22 games, including 40 or more in eight of those games.
His unit surrenders 422 yards per game on total defense. Last season, the Trojans’ defense thrived on opposing offenses, making mistakes and leading the nation in turnover margin at +21. This season, teams are making fewer mistakes and tied for 44th in the nation at +2.
Much like how Iowa head coach Kirk Ferentz deflects questions about his much-maligned offensive coordinator, Southern California head coach Lincoln Riley deflected as well after the 49-point, 527 yards of total offense surrendered said, “The reality is, are there areas where we have to be better defensively? Of course, there are. But, the flip side of that is offensively you can’t put them in bad positions, we can’t give up another couple of kickoffs where we put them in terrible field position, or some three-and-outs.
“The turnover there at the end is the perfect example. The defense did their job, get the offense the turnover, and then one freaking play and they’re right back out there with terrible field position. That’s not bad defense, that’s bad offense. That’s bad team football.”
Verdict
Despite Ferentz’s upcoming departure, and in a way, Iowa “winning” the “duel of ineptitude,” the gut punch for Iowa is their defenses have played at a national championship caliber under defensive coordinator Phil Parker. The Iowa defense has been in the Top 10 of scoring defense, including this season in four of the past five seasons.
The bigger sin, worse coach, and “winner” is how badly Alex Grinch has wasted the time with Caleb Williams, who might be the best quarterback Lincoln Riley ever had.
It isn’t a guarantee Malachi Nelson will be as good as Williams, and the fact, Riley has had three Heisman Trophy-winning quarterbacks, and in those seasons, none of those teams won their bowls.
The thing fans will miss with Ferentz’s departure and Southern California joining the Big Ten is what happens when an irresistible force (Southern California defense being easily attacked and penetrated) meets an immovable object (Iowa offense that simply doesn’t move). Something would have had to give, and now will be one that will debated amongst college football zealots.
