Iowa football: Ferentz advising Wegher to focus on academics
Kirk Ferentz isn’t waiting by the phone for Brandon Wegher to call.
In fact, the Iowa coach said it’s been more than a week since he’s been in touch with the sophomore running back who left the team three weeks ago for personal reasons.
Wegher is enrolled in school and remains on scholarship. But Ferentz said he has advised Wegher to keep moving forward, which also seems to be the way the Hawkeyes are handling matters without their second-leading rusher from 2009.
“We’re communicating right now, but we’ve got other things, too,” Ferentz said. “We’ve got 100-plus guys who are on the team working forward right now. That’s where the majority of our time and attention is, but we are encouraging him to move forward and keep his options open — whether or not he comes back to football or not.”
Wegher ran for 641 yards last season and set an Iowa freshman record with eight touchdowns. He entered training camp as the No. 2 running back on the depth chart behind sophomore Adam Robinson.
Wegher has not used a redshirt. He could sit out this season without losing a year of eligibility.
“I hope he goes to class and has a great year academically,” Ferentz said. “He can decide during that time if he wants to play football or not. I’m not sitting by the phone waiting for a decision. Right now, it’s all in his hands.
“The only critical factor here is just don’t do something here that’s going to deter your future. I think that’s a big thing, like don’t take F’s in a class, just as an example. Don’t shut the door on possibilities is my only advice.”
SCOOTER SAFETY: Tyler Sash estimated Tuesday that 75 percent of the players on the Iowa football roster get around on mopeds or motorcycles. For the most part, they’re a convenient means of transportation around a campus where parking is sometimes scarce.
But there are hazards, too, and center Josh Koeppel’s traffic accident Monday morning was an illustrated one of Ferentz’s fears.
Koeppel was riding his motorcycle when he got hit by a truck at an intersection. Ferentz said the senior walked away with some soreness and scrapes and likely won’t play Saturday against Eastern Illinois, but it could’ve been worse.
“I’ve been worried for 11 years on a couple fronts,” Ferentz said. “First of all, very few of them wear helmets, and that’s the number one concern. Secondly, they’re just not protected when they’re on a motorcycle or moped.”
Ferentz said he’s not sure if it’s possible to enforce a team-wide ban on mopeds and motorcycles “and I probably wouldn’t consider it just because we’ve got some severe parking issues here.”
“That’s why they’re so popular with the players – they can park those around campus, they can park them here,” Ferentz said. “We have a place for them to park here. They can’t park their cars here, so it’s a very popular form of transportation. You try to encourage them to be careful and also encourage them to wear helmets, but we haven’t been very successful on that front.”
Offensive lineman Markus Zusevics called Koeppel’s incident “a freak accident.”
“You could be walking along the street and somebody could hit you and make you second-guess walking,” Zusevics said. “I think that was kind of a freak accident, but it reminds you to always be careful, always be on the lookout.”
FRESHMEN FOUR AND MAYBE MORE: Ferentz said the Hawkeyes will use at least four true freshmen Saturday and possibly four to six others.
The Hawkeyes plan to use linebackers James Morris and Christian Kirksey, tight end C.J. Fiedorowicz and walk-on kicker Mike Meyer, who Ferentz said will handle the kickoff duties.
“We’ll just see how the week develops and take it a week at a time,” Ferentz said. “But I think those guys have caught on pretty quickly and have done some good things.”
EXTRA POINTS: Ferentz said junior offensive lineman Cody Hundertmark’s status with the team is “in a gray area right now” and the Iowa coach said he thinks the junior is “trying to figure out what his future is right now.” Hundertmark was not listed on the depth chart Tuesday. He started camp as the No. 2 right guard. … Quarterback Ricky Stanzi, offensive lineman Julian Vandervelde, defensive end Adrian Clayborn and defensive tackle Karl Klug will serve as Iowa’s captains this week.
Reach Andy Hamilton at 339-7368 or ahamilton@press-citizen.com.
Category: Iowa Hawkeyes Football
