Happy Tuesday.
We interrupt you heating up some chili you realized you still had left over from Super Bowl Sunday to bring you a couple links I find totally interesting.
First up, Scott Dochterman had some exclusive quotes in a piece breaking down Iowa’s non-conference football scheduling. It’s pretty clear the appetite isn’t there from Kirk Ferentz to add an 11th Power 5 team on the regular season schedule:
“I think if we talked about playing 11 Power 5 opponents, then you might know I’m retiring,” Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz said. “I don’t know why anybody would do that. Nobody in the world does that to my knowledge. It would be really stupid if we did that.”
Kirk Fire-entz, amirite?
According to Dochterman, six teams played 11 P5 opponents. Purdue among them with non-conference games against Boston College and Missouri. He also detailed the financials Iowa faces with these games – not cheap anymore! – which is part of the reason Barta appears open to a neutral site game of some type.
Deadspin went in on “failsons” aka sons of football guys who are hired by other football guys (or their fathers!) after Jay Gruden’s son, Jack, was arrested. He accumulate three strikes (aka verbal confrontations) at a Loudon County (VA) “bar-and-restaurant district, which to my understanding is a depressing exurban simulacrum of an urban center, or a slightly less exotic, less drunken Epcot.”
This hits home on a couple levels:
- Bill Belichick appears to be a key purveyor of failsons, as he hired the son of noted Friend of the Patriots, Mike Lombardi, Mick Lombardi. He also has two of his own sons on staff and, of course, it’s where Brian Ferentz cut his teeth.
- Do these football guys have no creativity when it comes to names?
- As someone who went to Disney for a portion of my honeymoon, I can confirm that Epcot is incredibly drunken. My wife and I went into restrooms on two separate occasions and we both witnessed people puking into toilets. Do people have no shame?
Ultimately, it begs the question: is Brian Ferentz a failson? Despite my consternation about his time here, being elevated to OC is well above any level these other guys have reached. So I think he has shirked the failson title, even though this year’s scoring average is totally inflated by 63 points scored against a putrid Illinois football team.
Trez brought some noise with the news of last week’s point barrage by Nick Reid of Central City. He scored 76 points, the most since 1955, and the second most all time to Roy Buchanan’s 84 in 1927. It’s frankly insane it happened because not only is it clear he was actually participating in a competitive game – Buchanan’s came against an opponent with 5 points – but the fact he went pretty much 1 on 5 offensively en route to an 86-76 win.
As of December 10th, the 2020 prospect has received primarily lower level offers with Citadel as the only D-1 program who’s reached out. I’m guessing that might pick up.
Is 6th grade too early for a recruiting reel? Even if it’s Fran’s son?
The AAF is a thing which is happening. As someone who watched a quarter and a half to break up our rewatching of Game of Thrones, I must say I’m intrigued by the possibilities. They totally nailed the commercials and the review explanations are funny as hell.
Next week on The Bachelor?!?
We want your *unspoiled* predictions for why @Colton jumps the fence. Heartbreak? Embarrassment? Hunger? Text (773) 234-7794 #TheBachelor pic.twitter.com/H0tnUpmYMF
— Rosecast Pod (@RosecastES) February 8, 2019