Love or hate Kirk Ferentz, you have to give him this- he’s great at deadpan. When it’s time to say a lot by actually saying very little, Ferentz is phenomenal at it. His usually dry delivery and soft-spoken tone accentuates this principle even more. When it comes to former President Donald Trump, the best way to deal with him (as you would any seeking attention just for attention sake grifter) is by paying less attention to him, or even outright ignoring him, if possible.
Yes, I’m aware of the irony of publishing an entire internet post in order to say don’t pay attention to Trump, so don’t bother pointing that out (Sideshow Bob voice).
Trying to imagine explaining to 1999 Kirk Ferentz that he’d still be coaching at Iowa in 2023 and that “former president Donald Trump” would be in attendance for what could be his 200th win. pic.twitter.com/zxDx2l7g0w
— Todd Brommelkamp (@ToddBrommelkamp) September 5, 2023
Trump’s campaign team blasted out a press release saying the troll of all trolls will be in attendance for the Iowa at Iowa St. game on Saturday. The reality of TFG at Cy-Hawk was brought up during Ferentz’s weekly media availability.
Q. Donald Trump is going to be at the game on Saturday. I just got the e-mail for it.
Kirk Ferentz: There will be about 60,000 other people too, so that’s great.
Q. Is that random?
Kirk Ferentz: I think he was there during the longest game, the longest yard, the longest day, whatever the movie was. Those are both movies, I think. I think he was there then, too. A lot of people came and went after that one. It’s election year in Iowa.
Q. Outside of that, have you ever played in front of any current or former presidents?
Kirk Ferentz: I have no idea.
Well played, dean of Big Ten coaches. If only Trump’s politics were as conservative as the play-calling for both offenses will be on Saturday. Good for him, taking a punt fest in between indictments. It is about time he took up a hobby that wasn’t grifting or trolling.
Paul M. Banks is the owner/manager of The Sports Bank. He’s also the author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America,” and “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry.”
He’s written for numerous publications, including the New York Daily News, Sports Illustrated and the Chicago Tribune. He regularly appears on NTD News and WGN News Now. Follow the website on Twitter and Instagram.