Citrus Bowl Notebook: Kirk Ferentz, Mark Stoops are ready for gameday

Down in Orlando, International Drive is buzzing as Iowa and Kentucky get ready to lock horns at the Citrus Bowl. In the last meeting with media before Saturday’s game, both Kirk Ferentz and Mark Stoops provided some insights into the bowl experience.

After fielding questions with the press for over 30 minutes, KSR has the rundown of what was shared the final day before the big game.

Kirk Ferentz is impressed with Kentucky

Iowa wrapped up a 10-2 regular season on Thanksgiving weekend with eight wins over Power Five teams. The Hawkeyes have spent the entire season in the top 25 and even had some time spent inside the top-five.

Iowa has consistently been one of the better teams in college football this season. Yet, Ferentz seems to be wowed by what Kentucky put on tape.

“We know we have our hands full,” Ferentz said. “They’re an outstanding football team. They’ve played well all season and got a lot of momentum coming into this game. You watch them and they’re really impressive in every area — offensively, defensively, special teams. Very well-coached and they play hard, play tough.

Kentucky has been well-balanced all season with a top-25 offense and a top-40 defense to go along with a solid kicking game. That balance creates a difficult matchup for the Hawks in the Citrus Bowl.

Minimal opt-outs

Shortly after Iowa’s loss to Michigan in the Big Ten Championship, Tyler Goodson announced that he will be opting out and focusing on the NFL Draft. The workhorse tailback produced 1,151 rushing yards on 19.7 attempts per game to go along with 247 receiving yards.

That is a significant loss for Iowa, but Goodson will be the only player selecting to not play on Saturday.

Ferentz confirmed that the tailback was the only opt-out for Iowa on Friday. Meanwhile, Kentucky hasn’t had any. As a matter of fact, some players in the transfer portal are going to play one more game for Kentucky before moving onto their new destination.

“They have worked extremely hard and been valuable members of our
football team since they have been at this campus,” Stoops said about the impending transfers. “If they wouldn’t have been, they wouldn’t be at this bowl game. As long as they are extremely positive, working extremely hard, they deserve the opportunity to come here and enjoy some of this experience.

The Citrus Bowl seems to matter to both Iowa and Kentucky.

Injury update

The biggest news of the day was that Kentucky defensive end Josh Paschal is extremely questionable for the Citrus Bowl. That will be a tough loss for Kentucky.

“He reaggravated an injury and made it worse in the Louisville game and had other health issues that he couldn’t travel with us, and he just got down here a couple days ago,” said Stoops. “And to be honest with you, I think it’s highly questionable for him to play.”

However, both teams are dealing with the injury bug.

Iowa will be without cornerbacks Matt Hankins, Terry Roberts, and Xavier Williams. Kentucky has been dealing with some questions as Dare Rosenthal was missing from a bowl practice, and Jacquez Jones has been spotted in a walking boot.

Overall, things are in good shape, but there are situations to monitor heading into the bowl game. Iowa is extremely thin at cornerback, and Kentucky could be without three expected starters.

Iowa QB update

Spencer Petras entered the year as QB1 in Iowa City. However, the pocket passer from California was injured in a road loss to Wisconsin on Oct. 30. Since then, there’s been a quarterback shuffle at Iowa.

Petras attempted to give it a go the next week against Northwestern but was pulled for Alex Padilla. The backup started three games before being pulled for Petras in the comeback win against Nebraska.

Petras then started the Big Ten Championship Game against Michigan before being pulled for a torso injury. When asked for an update, Kirk Ferentz decided not to show his cards.

“Guess you’ll know at 1 o’clock,” said the Iowa head coach.

To no one’s surprise, Mark “We’ll See” Stoops got quite the kick out of that answer. Regardless, the plan won’t change much for an anemic Iowa offense that wants to pound the rock and utilize the play-action passing game.

“Ultimately, it’s about how our team plays, quite frankly. That’s our goal — to play good team offense and hopefully be able to move the ball and score some points,” said Ferentz.

Both teams prefer the underdog role

Iowa and Kentucky enter the game in Orlando with identical three-game winning streaks in the postseason. Both Ferentz and Stoops seem to have the formula figured out in bowl season.

However, each likes to catch points as a dog.

“I’ll throw a stat back at you,” said Ferentz. “I think this is correct. We have been dogs in all but two, is that correct, in whatever it’s been, 19 Bowls, 18 Bowls. Seems to be the world we live in.

“Don’t take my role,” Stoops quipped back. “That’s usually us. We like to feel the same thing.”

Out in the desert, Kentucky is a three-point betting favorite. For the second year in a row, the Wildcats are laying points against a top 25 team in a Florida bowl game.

Maybe the times are changing.

Will Levis is about his business

The internet is still obsessed with Will Levis and his banana-eating tactics. The redshirt junior quarterback just gave Kentucky its best quarterback play in a decade. However, the Penn State transfer is still more known for his viral TikTok videos.

Despite that reputation, QB1 at Kentucky brings a business-like approach to the football field.

“He’s wired the right way,” Mark Stoops said about Kentucky’s starting quarterback. “One thing about Will is he may have a little fun with social media and doing things of that nature, but he is all business. The minute he walks in our building, he is wired correctly. Probably puts too much pressure on himself. He really is a super competitive guy, works extremely hard in the meeting room, studies, works, plays that way, lays it on the line for his teammates; if he has to lower his shoulder and try to
get tough yards, he’ll do it.

In the last month of the regular season, the switch seemed to flip for Levis. The 6-foot-3 quarterback passed for 372 yards against Tennessee to begin the month. Three weeks later, Levis rushed for four touchdowns and 113 yards in a beatdown of Louisville.

After announcing a return to school in 2022 on Twitter, Levis could be primed for a monster season next fall. The Citrus Bowl could act as a springboard for the talented QB.

“He’s really playing at a high level and we’re appreciative of that,” said Stoops.