Kirk Ferentz has been guiding Iowa football for nearly three decades.
Including his time as Iowa’s offensive line coach, Ferentz is approaching four decades as a member of the Hawkeyes’ coaching staff.
With his 209 overall wins, Ferentz is now the Big Ten’s winningest coach. Ferentz’s 133 Big Ten victories trail only Michigan’s Bo Schembechler (143) and Ohio State’s Woody Hayes (153).
The 70-year-old has led Iowa to Big Ten championships in 2002 and 2004. The Hawkeyes also captured Big Ten West Division titles in 2015, 2021 and 2023 under Ferentz’s watch.
Ferentz is admired as one of the models of consistency in college football. USA TODAY Sports shared its respect for coach Ferentz, ranking Ferentz as the nation’s No. 16 head coach in its top 25 college football coaches heading into the 2026 season.
The dean of Big Ten coaches, Ferentz has won 209 games, two Big Ten championships and reached another three conference title games. His success might be boring, but it’s built on the fundamentals of defense and special teams play. The offense fairly drew concerns, but has improved in recent seasons. The Hawkeyes haven’t posted a losing season since 2012 and have been ranked in the final US LBM Coaches Poll in five of the past seven seasons. – USA TODAY Sports
Ferentz signed his current contract extension in January of 2022. It pays Ferentz $7 million annually and runs through the 2029 college football season.
Ferentz said last summer that he expects to sign another contract extension. With Ferentz showing no signs of slowing down, the Hawkeyes’ legendary coach can be expected to keep stacking wins and chasing some of college football’s historic milestones.
Ferentz has coached 14 individual national award winners on 17 occasions and 101 NFL Draft selections during his tenure.
Indiana’s Curt Cignetti was ranked as college football’s best coach, followed by Georgia’s Kirby Smart.
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This article originally appeared on Hawkeyes Wire: Iowa’s Kirk Ferentz ranked among USA TODAY’s top 25 college football coaches
Reporting by Josh Helmer, Hawkeyes Wire / Hawkeyes Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Josh Helmer, Hawkeyes Wire | USA TODAY Network
