March 30, 2009
IOWA CITY, IA — Kirk Ferentz, Head Football Coach of the University of Iowa Hawkeyes, has been selected to receive the prestigious Distinguished Alumnus Award from the Neag School of Education at the University of Connecticut. Ferentz received a B.A. in English Education from the Neag School in 1978. He is being recognized for his outstanding contributions to the University of Iowa. He took the Hawkeyes to six straight bowl games, the second longest streak in school history. He is a two-time Big Ten Coach of the Year and led his team to two Big Ten titles in four years.
Ferentz began his career as a student assistant at the University of Connecticut in 1977 where he was a football captain and an Academic All-Yankee Conference linebacker. He continued his career at Worcester Academy, the University of Pittsburgh and Iowa (1981-89). In 1990 he was named Head Coach of the Maine Bears. He was named Iowa’s 25th Head Football Coach in 1998. His 2002 team was the most decorated in Iowa history, leading to Ferentz being named the AP and Walter Camp Football Foundation’s Coach of the Year in college football. His home games have sold out for the last five years (36 of 37 games) with an average attendance of 70,585 fans.
In addition to Ferentz’s success on the field, he has received several other honors. In 1999 he was named Honorary Chair of the University of Iowa’s United Way campaign. He has served on the National Advisory Board at the Bethesda Family Services Foundation. In 2002 he was inducted into the Upper St. Clair High School Hall of Fame. In 2003 he was inducted into the Western Chapter of Pennsylvania Sports Hall of Fame.
Ferentz’s distinguished career will be recognized at the Annual Awards Dinner of the Neag School of Education Alumni Society on Saturday, May 16, 2009. Anyone wishing more information about this event can call Lynne Allen at the University Alumni Center at (888) UC-ALUM-1, (860) 486-2240 or lynne.allen@uconn.edu.