Tight End University: A Spotlight on the Iowa Hawkeyes

Iowa Hawkeyes coach Kirk Ferentz took the stand for Big Ten Conference Media Days to discuss various topics.

They included last year's offense, Cade McNamara being his starting quarterback and tight end Luke Lachey.

On the Iowa Hawkeyes Offense:

The Iowa Hawkeyes' offense wasn't very good last season, but Ferentz provided a different viewpoint.

"We haven't been where we've wanted to be offensively for a couple years," he said. "As a coach, you have to evaluate things and be realistic. Certainly, last year is an easy thing to point out. Our top 3—if you asked anybody this time last year who were our top 3 offensive players, they weren't there when we started conference play.,

"We paid for that, but I thought the guys did a great job of playing with what we had and maneuvering their way through and finding a way to win ten football games," Ferentz said.

On Quarterback Cade McNamara:

Ferentz was asked since McNamara is fully recovered from his ACL injury, does the coach see him as the starter going into the year?

"Well, I do," Ferentz said. "We played against him right here on this field a couple years ago in December and got to see him that entire season on film, so we had great respect and admiration for him as a player, a competitor.

"Unfortunately for our fanbase and the media, nobody's really—none of you guys have seen him play full speed thus far in an Iowa uniform, So I'm eager to see him perform for us this year. Nobody's more eager than he is, and hopefully he's not too eager."

On Tight End Luke Lachey:

Ferentz was asked how Lachey compares to some other tight ends he has developed into NFL talent, such as George Kittle and TJ Hockenson.

"One thing, we've had a lot of great tight ends come through our place," Ferentz said. "You look at a guy like George Kittle, who really has continued to improve, and he's playing at a much higher level—was starting to play at a much higher level at age 25 than he was at age 21.

"That's what good players do; they just keep getting better," he said. "One common takeaway, if you look at all the tight ends we've had, they come in different sizes, speeds, makeups but they've all found ways to really impact the game. Luke certainly fits that. He's more of a conventional tight end, can block in line, but also be a real threat in the passing game."

Stay tuned to College Football Dawgs throughout the season for more coverage on the Iowa Hawkeyes.