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UNIVERSITY OF IOWA FOOTBALL MEDIA CONFERENCEDecember 16, 2016Chris DoyleIowa City, Iowa CHRIS DOYLE: Thanks for coming over, guys. We're in bowl prep right now. December, right? So what that means to us, first of all, the Outback Bowl, it's our 10th January bowl game, so that's significant for our football program. We're as excited as hell about going to Florida. Great destination, awesome hospitality. We've been to five. The people down there in Tampa are just incredible to us. We're looking forward to that. A great opportunity to play Florida who is an SEC East champion. They're extremely talented. They're well-coached. Certainly we have our full attention on getting ready to beat these guys. The month of December provides us with a great opportunity for growth, developmental practice. First coming off the season, we typically have kind of a recovery block where the guys that have played a lot have an opportunity to get their feet back underneath them and recover from some of their nicks and what have you. Then there's a strength and conditioning where we're into some Devo practice on the weekends, awesome opportunity to work with our young guys, a lot of young guys that have been training all fall long, now it's their opportunity to get back on the field, get meaningful reps with the coaches, get meaningful reps on film, get corrected, watch tape, and get better. So really important for our growth and our health as a football program moving forward to have this opportunity. Then the last phase is game prep. We kind of go back into game prep mode. The last 17 days, two weeks, and our strength and conditioning activities reflect the fact we're getting ready to play a game. We're back into kind of a peak power mode that we're in in November during the season. With that being said, I would like to comment on the Joe Moore Award. That's a special award, especially in this building. Joe Moore had a profound impact on our football program, being that was Coach Ferentz's mentor. He was his high school football coach. He was a mentor of mine later on. From the period of '99 to 2003, I don't think there are any major decisions that were executed in this football program without Coach Moore's influence. He was here during spring ball. He was here during camp. Certainly you see what Kirk had learned about the sport of football and what I learned, it certainly has carried on every day in this football program. So it's a special award in this building. I want to comment on Aaron Taylor's impact. I don't think it would happen without Aaron Taylor. I don't know if anyone else has the opportunity with the platform he has with CBS, all of the hard work that he puts behind the scenes to preserve the legacy of Coach Moore. Just a compliment to Aaron. An unbelievable job on his part to carry that out. It's a special award. It's a special award in that it's a unit award. It's the only unit award in college football. I think that's what makes it special. The story behind the story there a little bit is it's not just the offensive line, but it's the tight ends, it's the fullbacks. It's really how you move the football. If you put on Iowa tape in November, you see a couple of walk-on tight ends playing a significant role in how we move the football. You see a couple of walk-on fullbacks playing a significant role in how we move that football, as well as Boone Myers who is a walk-on, and Cole Croston, who played early in the year, not really in November. But just a really meaningful achievement for a group of guys that really played well as a unit, all right, not a group of individuals, but guys that really worked together. It's nice to see those guys rewarded. Our guys earned it, every bit of it. Tough, hard-nosed, really stayed committed through the whole process. With that being said, I just wanted to comment on those two areas. I'll open it up if anybody has any questions. Q. Sort of a model where you don't have 330-pound offensive linemen, it's worked for you guys. Is Iowa going to get to the same sort of model but with 330-pound guys? CHRIS DOYLE: At Iowa we've always dealt with the challenges of getting the right people on the bus, then kind of figuring out where they're going to fit, what seat they're going to sit in. We've had to develop some guys. When you look at that award I brought up, we're not Alabama and we're not Ohio State, all right? Typically they can recruit kids that maybe are a little bit more further along in their development than we do. You look at Boettger, Myers, as well as Cole, oftentimes we have to develop those guys. The nutrition part of it has been really beneficial to us. I think that we will, more than anybody, I think the University of Iowa can really capitalize on that opportunity. The university has backed that up. They've supported it wholeheartedly. That's something that I think we can use as a bridge to help us continue with those challenges. Q. What is your job compared to what it was when you got here 18 years ago? CHRIS DOYLE: I don't think that it's changed. I think that it's been that way. The way we've been built, the way we were built at the very beginning when we got here in '99, coach was very clear that we couldn't be average in the area of strength and conditioning, and playing 10 January bowl games. There were a lot of resources put into that area from the get-go. That was the challenge from Coach Ferentz, that we needed to bring in the right people and develop them at a better rate than our opponents. We've continued with that. I think when you're in a job for 18 years, the relationship I have with Kirk is maybe a little bit unique when you look at other guys that are in my role. But other than that, I think from the very beginning, Coach Ferentz has put a lot of emphasis, a strong emphasis, on strength and conditioning. Q. You're in a line of work where coaches don't get to stay in a place for 18 years. You've been able to do that. What has that meant to you, to have that continuity with your family? CHRIS DOYLE: That's unbelievable. We are so blessed and grateful as a family. When you look at Iowa City, Iowa City is a unique place. When you look at the academic opportunities, the high schools are outstanding here, absolutely outstanding. The healthcare, outstanding. The athletic opportunities, outstanding. I miss Boston. I miss home. For us it's East Coast, that's where family is. We visit there. But we're so, so grateful that we've raised our children in Iowa City. To have a continuity of our three kids go from kindergarten through high school is really unique in this current climate and landscape of college football. We just consider ourselves extremely grateful for every opportunity that our kids have had. We're lucky. Q. Your title is strength and conditioning coach. In a minute, what would you say is your job description? CHRIS DOYLE: I'm the head strength and conditioning coach at the University of Iowa (smiling). Q. It's so much more than that, isn't it? CHRIS DOYLE: Again, that's the way we've been built. That's the structure, organizational structure, that Coach Ferentz has chosen. There is some benefit to having somebody in strength and conditioning maybe that has a little bit larger role through the off-season. The off-season is a time, especially at Iowa, where the development of our players is so absolutely critical. To have a strong role, a person with a strong personality in that area, that has been empowered by the head football coach, I think that benefits the program, it benefits our players. Certainly if you look at the track record over the years, I think it's a structural organization that coach has chosen by design, it's not by accident. I think he knows we have to be structured that way if we're going to develop players and play at a very high level and compete for a Big Ten title. Q. The way you guys are structured throughout your career here, you just mentioned the Joe Moore Award, I think there's six different walk-ons that played a pivotal role, former tight end moving inside to tackle, playing a little bit of guard, in some ways you might say the mutts, walk-ons, but here you are winning national awards. The development is remarkable. Does that make it that much more satisfying when you're taking a 6'3", 325-pound kid, turning him into Cole Croston at 305? CHRIS DOYLE: I think it's fun to be in that car, the car that's driving with a bunch of guys that are extremely passionate, that are tough-minded, hard-working individuals. What you guys need to know is that we really, really benefit from some of the best kids that have ever played college football. You know what it's about, when Dallas Clark brings his kids back, comes walking in the door with his kids, Gallery walks in the door with his kids, we've been really, really fortunate over the time that we've been here. Abdul Hodge was a game captain here recently in November. He comes walking in with his kids. That's what it's all about. We've had unbelievable people. I think that everybody has talent. I think talent is overrated. I think that when you bring kids in, there's certain kids that are four star, they're five star, they come from a certain school, have a certain pedigree, their résumé looks better. But the intangibles, the stuff that's hard to measure when you're assigning stars to an athlete is their grit, the determination, the family makeup. What is going to happen when this kid faces some adversity. They say enthusiasm is common, but endurance is rare. Dallas Clark's process over his five years, Robert Gallagher, you look at Reiff who came in as a 240-pound guy, we could go on and on. There's been so many guys in our program that have had uncommon endurance, uncommon grit and commitment over time. They were rewarded for it. I don't know. Maybe because of Kirk Ferentz, the way he is, the way he carries himself, the connection that he makes with the people in the state of Iowa, the people in the Midwest, we've benefited by getting some of the most high-character people to walk our hallways and put jerseys on and wear the Tigerhawk. That's what has made this place a special place. Q. You talked about (indiscernible) before the season. CHRIS DOYLE: Certainly. Q. Sustaining success, legacy. I know it's not always measured in wins and losses. Do you feel that came to fruition for you guys this year? CHRIS DOYLE: It's hard. Every year is different. Every year is different. Teams develop differently. In the book, legacy is a good example of the All Blacks, the most dominant rugby team in rugby. It's kind of a metaphor for, Hey, there's ups and downs. They've had their ups and downs as well. I think it's important that you go back and you reevaluate and you have a good understanding of how you were successful to begin with, and make sure that you are honoring the values that built this program. For us, legacy was about culture. Culture is your values plus your behavior, minus what you tolerate. I used to think it was just values plus behavior. If you tolerate enough junk going on in your hallways or in your locker room or on the practice field, weight room, on the field, then you're going to pay for it eventually. For us, we have to be true to our culture. I think the legacy book is about remembering how you got there, remember how you went at Iowa, being true to your culture. If we're true to our culture, we usually play hard and compete well. Do we win them all? No. But we usually represent this campus, represent the state of Iowa, represent the people that are associated with our program well if we're true to our culture. If our values and our behavior is in alignment, we typically are respectful as a program. We're trying to do that every day. Q. When you talk about process, can you touch on how Desmond King has improved or developed this year when he returned? CHRIS DOYLE: We're really fortunate that Desmond returned. Desmond is a dynamic player. He's an outstanding football player. Really worked on his role as a leader. I think he took some pride in that. He's going to walk on Saturday and graduate in three and a half years, which is remarkable in itself. When he came back, he made the decision unselfishly to commit to another year of college football for the better of this football program, I think it made a big statement about his maturity and what he felt was important. He felt like he needed to demonstrate the kind of leadership that was best represented at the University of Iowa football program. He kind of committed to coming back and doing that. That resonates with his teammates. Q. It was mentioned earlier about Bacher. He was a quarterback in high school. What did you see in him that made you think we can turn this guy into an offensive lineman? He played tackle and guard as well. CHRIS DOYLE: So many of the kids that have been successful here started out away from the football, even as high school quarterbacks. When he came to our camp, he was a quarterback at the time. He came in and transitioned. We asked him to work as a tight end. He came back and worked as a tight end. The very next day, he didn't balk at it. He said, Absolutely, I'd be happy to. He came back the next day with shoulder pads. The quarterback didn't need the shoulder pads. He comes from an outstanding family. He comes from an outstanding high school football program at Cedar Falls, run by Pat Mitchell. You cannot overlook the high school football program. When you look and you know the way that high school football program has operated, the way they operate, the organization, the structure, the winning that's done at a certain high school, I think that carries weight in our staff room when we're looking at what kind of background does this kid come from, what is he accustomed to. He comes from Cedar Falls, great family, athletic, hard working, humble, smart kid. Will we bet on him, absolutely. We'll put our chips right there and see what happens. But if he's hungry, humble, smart, comes from a good background, I think the record shows that the Iowa kids typically do pretty good that have those characteristics. Q. How big of a game changer is nutrition? CHRIS DOYLE: It's a big benefit to us. We're very structured. We hold the kids accountable. Body weight is important. It gives you insight as to how committed a kid is, what's going on in his life-style if you track that closely. For us, obviously it gives us a chance to maximize what we're doing. At Iowa we have to. We have to maximize what we're doing. We don't have guys walking through the door readymade. For us it's a big benefit. Q. (Question regarding players gaining weight.) CHRIS DOYLE: Our process has been really good. We've probably gained a little bit more lean body mass out the season than we used to, so... Q. Chris, can you talk about how Joe Moore kind of linked you and Kirk together. He's a big reason why you're here. Also the influence that he had on you personally. CHRIS DOYLE: Sure. So Kirk played high school football for Joe Moore. Kirk could speak more eloquently with more detail on that. He GA'd for Joe in '81 at Pitt. Then 10 years later I GA'd for Joe on the field as an offensive line coach at Notre Dame. I was there one season, then I had an opportunity to go and be an offensive line coach out east at Holy Cross. Joe said, All right, these are the two people you're going to visit. One of them was Kirk. Literally the first week I was there, I got in a car and I drove to Orono, Maine. Kirk is the head football coach at that time. But he had been the offensive line coach at Iowa, obviously, and he's been a pupil of Joe's, probably the star pupil of Joe's camp. So I went up. Kirk dropped everything. He's the head football coach, he has a lot on his plate. He dropped everything and got in the staff room and spent the better part of a day with me as a young line coach. That was the first time I ever met Kirk. But then we remained friends since because we had a common history with Joe. So we had a relationship there. Then Kirk would probably talk a little bit more in detail on this, too. But I think when Kirk came here, Joe was a big supporter of him hiring me. I have downstairs, it's been hanging up for 18 years, I have a sheet of paper. Kirk gave this to me the first year I was here. On the sheet of paper, it's Kirk's notes, okay? It's kind of animated. There's some drawings, his scratch notes. They're from the conversation that he had with Joe about who he was going to hire for the strength and conditioning job. Kirk kind of handed it to me. It's been hanging up because for 18 years I feel obligated to make sure I'm that guy that Joe said that I would be. I've hung that up. I carried it from that building over to this building. It's on the wall. It's a reminder of your background, where you come from, who you're obligated to. I feel obligated to Joe. Personally, professionally, he certainly had a major impact. Other than my father, he was probably the second most impactful person in my life as far as launching and making me do good things. So I'm grateful. You run into certain people over the course of your life. He was one of those guys for me. I'm sure all of you guys, same thing. There's probably significant people in your lives along the way that maybe pointed you in the right direction or opened some doors for you. He was that guy for me. Q. Chris, given all your ties to the East Coast, are you surprised you've stayed out here this long? When you first moved out here, did you envision being out here this long? CHRIS DOYLE: I'll tell you this story. So I go to the Department of Motor Vehicles, the DMV, in Iowa City, first year I got here, spring of '99. This is the seventh school I'd worked at in 10 years. You get a job, you get a job, you're climbing. You go to the next best job. So they ask you, they say, Would you like to get a five-year renewable license or 10-year? I kind of laughed. I said, Five years. I'm not going to be here in five years. If this history repeats itself, I won't be here in five years. Sure enough, I got my five-year renewable. The next time I thought a little better, said, I better get a 10. I have that renewed now, too. I've been back to the DMV a few times since then. But to think at the very beginning, no, I mean, I had no idea we were going to be successful here. I go back to the original staff that Kirk put together the first couple years, I was young. I was pretty young at that time. I was, what, 29, 30 years old when I got here. I sat down at a table. Around that table was Norm Parker, Kenny O'Keefe, Carl Jackson, Joe Philbin, Ron Aiken, then Reese got added. Like if I needed to know, if I ever wondered how I should act, there were about six or seven role models sitting around the table. All I needed to do was shut my mouth and follow their lead and I'd be okay. Initially I had no idea. We were 3-19 the first 22 games, something like that. Was there some unknown? Absolutely early. Were we scared? Yeah. I didn't know if I was going to pay off my house. You have a house... You're just trying to win a game. You're just trying to break the rock, just trying to get better. But there were a bunch of people around that table that were incredible role models for me. Again, I feel extremely grateful for the opportunity that Kirk allowed me to sit at that table with five or six of the most respected men that I've ever met. Thank you. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports   |
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