Ferentz Turned Off of Playoffs by UNI's Hardships

[TexasTerror]

Right. Apparently Iowa's head coach, Kirk Ferentz said he felt bad for UNI's football players after they had to take four days of final in two because they had to play for the I-AA title. He has a good point as academics is what the student-athletes are there for, but Ferentz seemed to prefer controversy over determining a winner on the field.

“Me, I don’t mind a little controversy at the end. If two teams claim to be No. 1 at the end, it gives us all something to talk about for three months instead of it all being over and done after one game.” (Ferentz)

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Outback Bowl: Ferentz says UNI's run proves a point
By STEVE BATTERSON, Courier Lee News Service

TAMPA, Fla. -- Kirk Ferentz didn’t have to look far to find an answer when asked whether he believes a Division I-A college football needs a playoff.

The Iowa coach pointed toward Northern Iowa’s run to the NCAA Division I-AA national championship game earlier this month as an example of why he is more convinced than ever that a I-A playoff would be a bad thing.

“When I read that their players were taking four days of finals in two days, that told me all I needed to know,” Ferentz said Wednesday. “I was like, ‘Are you kidding me?’ That’s asking an awful lot of a player. Combining four days of finals in two days with preparing for a game, I can’t imagine that was a lot of fun for either the players or the coaches.

http://www.wcfcourier.com/articles/2005/12/29/sports/local/doc43b4556ea4455743199129.txt

[Tod]

In a way he has a point. But I'd suggest he ASK THE PLAYERS!

:nod: :nod: :nod:

And I suppose it would be helpful in the argument to know how they did in their finals. Were they significantly worse than the other students? Maybe more importantly, were they lower than their finals during the other semester?

This could get complicated, going by test scores, but that and the player's opinions should both count for something.

[Cap'n Cat]

More I-A excuse flatulence. He's in bed with their president.


:rolleyes:


Shoulda put this in Discussion, Terrorista.

[TexasTerror]

Shoulda put this in Discussion, Terrorista.

It's I-A playoff talk with UNI being the reasons against...could've gone either way. I saw this article or a similar article got quite a bit of run in the midwest as Iowa prepares for bowling...

[*****]

When's the last time Iowa played in a football national championship game? They never have in I-A.
waa waa

Also, what is the GPA of his players compared to UNI's players? Maybe it would be tough for his kids.

[TexasTerror]

Also, what is the GPA of his players compared to UNI's players? Maybe it would be tough for his kids.

He's got seven Texas players on his team including the QB, one of the best Texas HS players ever...can't be too bad! You know how us Texans are about our academics! :)

[Cap'n Cat]

It's I-A playoff talk with UNI being the reasons against...could've gone either way. I saw this article or a similar article got quite a bit of run in the midwest as Iowa prepares for bowling...


????????

[Cap'n Cat]

????????


Oh, nevermind, I gotcha.


:)

[TexasTerror]

????????

I was talking about why I didn't post in I-AA Discussion...saying it could've gone either way. :)

[Cap'n Cat]

I was talking about why I didn't post in I-AA Discussion...saying it could've gone either way. :)


Naw, all my fault. The "bowling" thing threw me. I thought you were insinuating that Iowa is full of nothing but fat, drunk Polish people who do nothing all winter but bowl:

http://www.moronland.com/media/pictures/ibeat.jpg
"Hey, Frank. Wanna get the girls, take the pickup down to Fort Dodge and burn da lanes up a little bit? Nuttin' better ta do in January."

:hyped: :hyped: :hyped:

[putter]

He sites it's too hard on players...


http://desmoinesregister.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20051229/SPORTS020502/512290376/1017/SPORTS06

[Bub]

I think his point is, while the Hawkeye student athletes were practicing for a month, getting ready for their bowl game during break, and were home to take finals in a normal fashion.. Players like those at UNI going for the Nat. Title were on the road every weekend for a month and were not able to take finals in a normal fashion, not only because of the time issues, but certainly because the distraction factor would be huge. A playoff does demand more from the student athlete.

I think that is a valid point to at least be aware of.

GO HAWKS!

[Cocky]

The point he is trying to make is: Iowa could not beat UNI.

[*****]

...I think that is a valid point to at least be aware of...Be a loser and never be challenged?

[OL FU]

I think his point is, while the Hawkeye student athletes were practicing for a month, getting ready for their bowl game during break, and were home to take finals in a normal fashion.. Players like those at UNI going for the Nat. Title were on the road every weekend for a month and were not able to take finals in a normal fashion, not only because of the time issues, but certainly because the distraction factor would be huge. A playoff does demand more from the student athlete.

I think that is a valid point to at least be aware of.

GO HAWKS!

I agree he has a valid point. Maybe somebody here knows the answer to this? Do basketball players who partcipate in March Madness have it any easier than footballers during playoffs? If the answer is no, then, in my opinion, the academic argument from I-A's is a mute point.

[kardplayer]

I agree he has a valid point. Maybe somebody here knows the answer to this? Do basketball players who partcipate in March Madness have it any easier than footballers during playoffs? If the answer is no, then, in my opinion, the academic argument from I-A's is a mute point.

I think the big difference is, the football playoffs are during finals while the Basketball tournament is in the middle of the semester and a lot of schools are in Spring Break around that time.

[Mr. C]

I guess none of the players preparing for bowl games had to take finals.

[FightinBluHen51]

That and the fact that they've been done with finals for well over a month now and theoretically a I-A playoff probably wouldn't begin until most of those schools were finished with finals, what is the point at all????? There is NONE!

[JohnStOnge]

He's got seven Texas players on his team including the QB, one of the best Texas HS players ever...can't be too bad! You know how us Texans are about our academics! :)

As I've posted somewhere before...probably in the lounge...Texas has a high public school performance when the scores are adjusted for demographics. For example, by group, Texas scored like this on the 2005 National Association of Educational Progress eight grade math test:

Whites on school lunch program (poor): 8th
Blacks on School lunch program (poor): 3rd
Whites not on school lunch program: 4th
Blacks not on school lunch program: 5th

Just putting that up because it's an example of how states can get a bad rap due to demographics. If you just take Texas' overall score it's ranked 22nd. Not really bad but it understates how well the state's public education system is doing.

[JohnStOnge]

Yeah. UNI players' body language sure suggested they hated being in that national championship game. And I'm sure if you gave App's players the chance they'd have much prefered not to go through the playoff. They'd have much rather just played an exhibition game.

And last year I'm sure JMU's players would have much preferred to just let the teams that finished 1 and 2 ranked in the GPI play for the national championship so they wouldn't have had to play those four games.