Aug. 4, 2004
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CHICAGO — The media at the Big Ten Conference Kickoff Luncheon has predicted that 12th-rated Iowa will finish third in the league this year, following defending champion Michigan and Fiesta Bowl champion Ohio State in the preseason poll.
The Outback Bowl champion Hawkeyes will return 11 starters, including seven defensive players, while the Wolverines will bring back 17 starters. The Buckeyes will return 11 as well.
The pick comes on the heels of the ESPN/USA Today coaches’ poll which puts the Hawkeyes at 12th in the nation, which means Iowa is in the top 25 of almost every major preseason poll in the country save only for Phil Steele’s College Football Preview poll.
Michigan is ranked seventh on the coaches’ poll, while Ohio State is ninth.
Head Coach Kirk Ferentz says that whether his team is deserving of all the honors “remains to be seen.”
“We have a lot of work to do and our focus is on doing the best we can in conference play, because if you do that, everything else falls into place the way you want it to,” he said. “We are proud of being recognized as a good football team the last few years, but there are people on our football team right now that recognize that we haven’t accomplished anything yet this year.”
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“We are in a situation much like last year in which we have a great group of seniors and anytime you’re going to have a great football team, you are going to have to have a great group of seniors.”
Head Coach Kirk Ferentz
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But while many teams, like Michigan, stressed the seniority of their returning teams, Ferentz says that the Hawkeyes will be a little different this year because of the small class — 15 in sum — of seniors.
“We don’t have as big a senior class as we’ve had in the past,” Ferentz said. “We are going to count on those guys to do a great job, but we are going to need some underclassmen to step up and provide some leadership.
“We are in a situation much like last year in which we have a great group of seniors and anytime you’re going to have a great football team, you are going to have to have a great group of seniors.”
Many teams outside the top three were stressing the experience they return at key positions, like quarterback. Only a handful of Big Ten teams will have a returning quarterback in 2004.
In no other coach was that more evident than in Ron Turner of Illinois, who will return Jon Beutjer, who was granted a sixth year of eligibility by the NCAA.
“Having Jon back for a sixth year is a huge plus for us,” Turner said. “Jon had a tremendous spring and has a lot of unfinished business he’s anxious to take care of this year.”
Joe Tiller of Purdue, though, has been pleased with his senior quarterback, Kyle Orton, who garnered the media’s Preseason Offensive Player of Year award. Of the returning quarterbacks, Orton is the conference’s statistical leader in passing yards, passing efficiency and total offense.
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“We’re going to need our defense to play well from the get-go. We’re going to hang on our defense to keep us in ball games. On our offense, we’re going to work on them methodically and bring those guys along as best we can. Hopefully when it’s all said and done, we’re not going to have a real rapid depature from what we’ve done over the past few years.”
Head Coach Kirk Ferentz
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“What impresses me most about him is his ability to deliver the ball,” Tiller said. “He throws a tight ball and he’s just got that special physical skill in regards to his ability to throw the ball.
“We think that Kyle will stay healthy and everything will go well. We think he could be the most productive guy in a single season.”
The Hawkeyes will be one of seven teams in the league that will have a new quarterback calling the shots on offense, and Coach Ferentz confirmed Wednesday that the leading contender to replace Nathan Chandler is still sophomore Drew Tate.
“Drew, I think it’s fair to say, is a little better passer (than Nathan Chandler),” Ferentz said. “He threw a lot of balls while in high school. That’s about all he did in high school.”
Ferentz said that he will have to count on his defense as Tate gets his feet on the ground. The Hawkeyes return seven players on defense, including much-heralded defensive end Matt Roth.
“We’re going to need our defense to play well from the get-go,” the coach said. “We’re going to hang on our defense to keep us in ball games. On our offense, we’re going to work on them methodically and bring those guys along as best we can. Hopefully when it’s all said and done, we’re not going to have a real rapid departure from what we’ve done over the past few years.”
The Preseason Defensive Player of the Year was Ohio State’s A.J. Hawk, a linebacker with 106 tackles and 13 tackles for loss.
Barry Pump, hawkeyesports.com