If the Hawkeyes manage to beat Tennessee in the Cheez-It Citrus Bowl, Iowa would capture its fourth 11-win season in program history.
Each of those instances have come under Iowa head football coach Kirk Ferentz. He discussed what that feat would mean for the program.
“You know, our attitude’s always been, we’re always trying to be a championship-level outfit. All you can do is your attitude, your effort. Those are two things that everybody can control. Talent, experience, all those things vary year to year, but that’s always been our goal. Each and every season, that’s what we aspire to be. At some point most seasons, more than not, you get knocked out of that at some point because there’s only one champion.
“So, whenever that day does come, then it’s all about building for the next one. And, to do that, it goes back to the attitude and effort people put in. So, that’s always kind of been our mindset for 20-some years. Obviously, it’s a little more realistic for us to maybe operate at a higher level now than it was in ’99, but, nonetheless, it’s always a challenge. What we do is very competitive, this conference is competitive.
“As it pertains to right now where we’re at, the best we can do is be an 11-win team, which would really be significant. Citrus Bowl champions, that would be significant. There’s a million reasons to play. But, even when we were 1-9 in ’99, I mean, it still was a big game playing Minnesota and it was a chance to win a game. Any time you go out and compete, that’s what you try to do,” Kirk Ferentz said.
Iowa center Logan Jones touched on the potential rarity of an 11th win, but also how the Hawkeyes have gotten to this point minus multiple key offensive players.
“We have an opportunity to get our 11th win, which is the fourth time in program history. So, just to be a part of a team like that, I think is something special, too, especially with all the adversity and the guys that haven’t been able to go out there and compete. You got guys like Luke Lachey, Erick All, Cade McNamara, who worked so hard in the offseason, gave their all just to play this season and they won’t have that opportunity now.
“But, you know, we do have that opportunity for the guys that are healthy to go out there and play and get an 11th win. To get that 11th win for coach Ferentz, too, I think would be really cool because it’s only happened four times. So, I think this game, it’s a great opportunity for us to go out there and try to play our best football and get that 11th win,” Jones said.
Iowa kicks off against Tennessee at noon CT on New Year’s Day.
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