After dropping their second consecutive Big Ten game, Washington has no time to lick its wounds, as the Huskies shift their focus to a Friday night clash against the No. 20 Iowa Hawkeyes. The game marks the second matchup between the two storied programs as Big Ten opponents, with the first resulting in a dominant 40-16 win for the Hawkeyes in Iowa City.
Led by longtime head coach Kirk Ferentz in his 28th year as the leader in Iowa City, the Hawkeyes present one of the most established and consistent forces in the conference. Since being hired back in 1999, Ferentz boasts a record of 213-128, making him the winningest coach in Big Ten history. During Monday's press conference, Jedd Fisch didn't mince words about the longtime head man.
"I have
the utmost respect for Coach Ferentz," Fisch said. "I think he is a phenomenal person. It's always tough at home this week, because I think Coach Ferentz is my wife's favorite coach in the Big Ten, above me. So, it's always been a little bit of a challenge there; she's always said that about Coach Ferentz. The fact that he's been there for 28 years, the stability he's shown, and the fact that his kids all went to the same schools and graduated from the same high school, and now their kids are there, it's pretty special. What he's done there is outstanding."
"I have the utmost respect for Coach Ferentz, he is a phenomenal person." Jedd Fisch on the Iowa head coach. "What he's done there is outstanding."
— Nick Lemkau (@nicklemkaucfb) October 5, 2026
Ferentz has been at Iowa since the turn of the millennium, making him the longest-tenured head coach in college football. For reference, Air Force's Troy Calhoun is second at twenty years. The head coach isn't the only veteran on the staff, however, as defensive coordinator Phil Parker has been there every step of the way.
After joining Ferentz's staff in 1999, Parker was the defensive backs coach up until 2011, when he was promoted to defensive coordinator. After one year as the DC for the Hawkeyes, he regained the title of defensive backs coach along with his playcalling duties in 2013, and has been there ever since. In his time, he has produced NFL talent like Cooper DeJean, Riley Moss, and Amani Hooker.
While the opposing sideline has seen just about everything throughout their illustrious careers, Fisch is in just his sixth year as a head coach, his third at Washington. With the Huskies in desperate need of getting back in the win column, Washington's staff will look to rewrite its wrongs from two years ago inside Kinnick Stadium.
This article originally appeared on Huskies Wire: Jedd Fisch Shows Respect for Longtime Iowa Coach Kirk Ferentz
