IOWA CITY, IOWA- SEPTEMBER 03: Quarterback Spencer Petras #7 of the Iowa Hawkeyes walks off the field following the match-up against the South Dakota State Jackrabbits at Kinnick Stadium on September 03, 2022 in Iowa City, Iowa. (Photo by Matthew Holst/Getty Images)
Tim Lester, the new Iowa offensive coordinator, met with the local media for the first time on Tuesday.
Iowa head coach Kirk Ferentz addressed the hire on Tuesday and then let Lester to speak for perhaps 15 minutes or so afterwards.HawkeyeInsider.com was on the scene and will share a few significant statements from the press conference, along with some context.”I’m open to anything right now; any ideas,” Ferentz remarked. “The main objective is to move the ball and aid oneself. Hopefully, if you help yourself in the running game, you will also benefit yourself in the passing game.””As much as things change in football, and I understand that entertainment value is important in this day and age. However, the goal remains to win. And that was my main emphasis 25 years ago. And it will stay there.”
“Obviously, wide receivers play a significant role in what you’re running schematically. The most important factor is getting them into place. From my coaching experience, I believe we’ve had some fairly good wide receivers and can find ways to get the ball into their hands. There are numerous ways to accomplish this, including screens, straight drop backs, and putting them in the backfield. An offense’s adaptability is critical. I haven’t gotten a chance to meet all of the wide receivers yet, but I want to make sure the quarterback understands we’re going to distribute the ball about and that he’s going to read his keys as he should, and it’s my duty to make sure
Context: Iowa has had some of the lowest wide receiver production in the power five ranks over the last few seasons. Lester will coach quarterbacks at Iowa, but he has also recruited and produced effective wide receivers in his previous coaching positions, particularly at Western Michigan.
“I believe we were in the top ten in the country for time of possession. I’ve never huddled, which is uncommon. That team, I thought, did an excellent job of running the ball and locating our rushing lanes. The pass comes after that. We never discussed throwing the ball until we figured out how to move it on the ground, and that was an explosive team. The one thing that people don’t understand, perhaps because I was a quarterback, is that we’ll do what that individual does best. Kaleb was good at it. Before that, we had Jon Wassink, who was exceptional at dropback throughout progression. I just noticed the Campbell Trophy there, which is the Wooden
You have, and he does well. That guy behind the center is important. Figuring out what he does well, because if you have a versatile offensive, we can label it whatever he wants. That year, Kaleb Eleby was an excellent RPO player, and we had some very dynamic wide receivers, including two second-round draft prospects. We had an excellent combo with me upstairs and Jake Moreland on the field. We need to figure out what we have, how to run the ball efficiently and aggressively, and how to help the team win, and we’ll do that wherever we go.”
