Hawkeyes may be looking at scoreboard within scoreboard

Iowa football coach Kirk Ferentz knows that his offense has been somewhat of a punch line, especially in the last year.

So he was hesitant to mention during his press conference on Tuesday what was one of his favorite victories in his last 24 seasons with the Hawkeyes.

Go back to the 6-4 win at Penn State in 2004, when Iowa got two field goals from Kyle Schlicher — both from 27 yards out — and the Nittany Lions got their points from two safeties.

Ugly? You bet.

But, it was one of 10 Iowa wins that season, and it’s one that Ferentz thoroughly enjoyed.

“You try to figure out what's going on that day, and you play to that end,” Ferentz said.

Winning, of course, is what matters, but there will be a scoreboard within the scoreboard that will hang over the Hawkeyes all of this season.

Offensive coordinator Brian Ferentz, Kirk’s son, had an amendment placed in his contract after last season by then-athletic director Gary Barta after the Hawkeyes ranked almost at the bottom in so many offensive categories — 129th in total offense, 122nd in passing offense and scoring offense, and 123rd in rushing offense.

This season, according to the amendment, the Hawkeyes have to average 25 points per game and post at least seven wins. If those numbers aren’t hit, the result is a little murky, and it could include the termination of Brian Ferentz.

So, 325 points in 12 games is the target, although it’s a focus more for the people outside the program than the ones in the program.

“As we look at those types of things, just like we would in any sport, you're going to evaluate a season at the end and see how you did,” interim athletics director Beth Goetz said a couple of weeks ago. “But the goal is to win along the way, and I've won some ugly games as a coach and I never gave any of them back.”

It’s something Kirk Ferentz echoed on Tuesday, and he quoted his wife, Mary, when talking about how he’s approaching this season.

“She goes, ‘Seems like if you win, everything works out pretty well,’” Ferentz said. “That's kind of been a guiding principle. It's not all about winning, but it is a barometer. Just seems like if you're successful enough over the long haul, good things happen, and if you're not, it's not so good.

“That's kind of where our focus has always been is just trying to win games, and it's as simple as that. I think part of our problem, probably just one person's opinion, is sometimes people don't like how we win, but to me the objective is to win.”

Even the players don’t seem that concerned.

“I didn’t even know that was a thing, so that probably can tell you something,” center Logan Jones said. “What our job is is to go out and win football games. It doesn’t matter by how many points. A win is a win at the end of the day, whether it’s by three points or 20 points. As long as we’re going out there and winning, nothing really matters.”

Had the Hawkeyes scored 25 points in every game last season, they would have won 10 regular-season games and the Big Ten West Division title.

Ferentz went deep into the statistical archives at the Big Ten media days in July, pointing out the 2009 Hawkeyes averaged 23.1 points per game — and won 11 games, including the Orange Bowl.

Such numbers sound defensive to the podcast and social media comedians, but they are factual.

The reality is Iowa’s offense does have to play better, because the ugliness of 8-5 last season won’t go over well again this season.

The Hawkeyes, of course, know that, even if they aren’t paying attention to the scoreboard within the scoreboard.

“People can take it how they take it,” Jones said. “I think Coach Brian is really focused on us. At the end of the day, our job is to go out there and win games. He understands that. Not once has he ever mentioned we need to score a certain amount of points. The defense is going to do what they’re going to do, we’re going to do what we’re going to do.

“As long as we come out with a win, nothing else really matters.”