ORLANDO, Fla. — Friday's press conference ahead of the Citrus Bowl felt like a reunion between Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz and Kentucky's Mark Stoops.
"I'll say the next three days are pretty damn good," Ferentz said. "Because you don't have to work, you're done, and you can actually for one time in season really enjoy things."
The Hawkeyes still haven't named a starting quarterback, and the team will be without Tyler Goodson, so other running backs will have to take on the work.
"When Tyler made his decision, I really wasn't counting on Ivory to be available, so the plan was just to go with Gavin and Leshon," Ferentz said. "We've got faith in both of those guys, Leshon really hasn't played much, but he's practiced really well."
Both Ferentz and Stoops share common ground in their time with hall of fame coach Hayden Fry.
"A memory that sticks out to me is the fact that Coach Fry, along with a few of his assistants, traveled to my father's funeral during the week when we're preparing to play Michigan... He flew in in that just to pay respects to my mother and our family. It says an awful lot about him," Stoops said. "You see a lot of the characteristics that Hayden Fry started so many years ago still running with Coach Ferentz."
Stoops is excited to face the Hawks, and he knows it won't be an easy fight.
"We started watching film and it immediately put a smile on my face—well it was a frown and a smile," Stoops said. "The frown was 'Oh damn they are pretty darn good, the smile was I love the fundamentals of the game.'"
The Hawkeyes and Wildcats kick off at noon CST Saturday on Local 5. You can watch the game on channel 5.1/5.5 or OTT via Roku, Fire TV, YouTube TV or Hulu+ Live TV.
WATCH | Hawkeyes hard at work ahead of Citrus Bowl