Former Hawkeye WR Derrell Johnson-Koulianos rips Kirk Ferentz

DJK set a school record for career receptions at Iowa fro '07-10, but was dismissed from the team when he was arrested on drug charges in December 2010. He supposedly got himself together and is trying to catch on with an NFL team, but he apparently thinks Ferentz is bad mouthing him to league officials, so he's doing what any disgruntled ex would do and is unleashing his fury in a Twitter rant and threatening to expose the evil doings at Iowa in a book. He claims he's supported by 1 Hawkeye currently in the league and 1 on this year's team.

http://www.lostlettermen.com/article/ex-iowa-wr-rips-kirk-ferentz

Sounds a lot like misplaced blame and sour grapes, but if he owned up to his mistake and is clean now, he should at least get a tryout. What's your take @Hawker45 ? I know you're going to have your coach's back, but could there be some small truths to anything he's saying?

 

Judging solely by the tweets, this guy seems to be a bitter, entitled moron. I'm pretty sure most coaches are not in the habit of bad mouthing former players who were not completed a-holes. Because to run down former players undeservedly would be a much bigger reflection on the coach than the players. Let's examine.

-He knew after his first conversation with the coach it was going to be a bad relationship. Yet he still signed a LOI, accepted the scholarship, and played there for years until his own conduct got him kicked off the team. OK.
-Allegedly 2 former players encourage him to write this tell all book. Only 2 players who agree with you? Not very good odds considering the thousands who Ferentz has coached in his tenure there. I can find more than 2 people that will sign affidavits that Mother Teresa was an insufferable bitch.
-"Not blaming anybody. I take ownership for how it went down 100%" Then a few tweets down Iowa is a "Hellava party school. Screwed up my morals." Because the coaches held you down and force those drugs on you! Multiple times. Those dirty bastards! Hey genius, if someone else "screwed them up", they weren't really your morals.
-"Let me be clear. This in not about the U of Iowa or the NFL. This is about KF demonizing my character. whose son got arrested TWICE." Pot, meet kettle. I bet he skipped the class where they learned about irony.

TM7 got booted from LSU for drugs. Numerous screw ups. I never heard of any LSU coaches bad mouthing him to the NFL. With a little personal responsibility and a lot of hard work, he seems to have gotten past it pretty well. Seems there is some difference in character between the two of these guys. But as long as it's always someone else's fault that "DKJ" did stupid things and paid consequences, I'm pretty certain that he'll always be right where he is now - nowhere.

 

DJK came to Iowa...in a mini-version of The Blind Side, adopted and raise by a white family, etc.... he was a star qb for Cardinal Mooney high school in Youngstown... and won the MVP in the Big 33 all-star game, where he ran and passed for some 300 yards and three TD's. What he never recieved was an offer from tOSU or Penn State. He picked Iowa over Michigan..... had maybe six offers in all.

He was one of my favorite players, as both a receiver and punt returner. That said, he found himself in KF's doghouse early and often. KF didn't talk about the reasons why, but word got around that DJK was constantly questioning the play calling and was somewhat disruptive in the huddle. He was a guy who showed up at game time more than he showed up at practice..... and a bit of a prima dona. He had a number of games where he didn't get to play until the second series.... or where something happened at halftime and he would be kept out to start the second half.

I seriously doubt that KF somehow "blackballed" him with the NFL, but I could easily see KF being honest with the coaches in the NFL regarding a player's positives and negatives. KF has put his share of players in the NFL..... and I would guess he has put more former two star and three star recruits into the pros than any school in the country. KF takes great pride that the players who do move on to the "money" have been well-trained at their position and have the work ethic needed to make it aat the next level.

My guess is this is what is at the heart of the matter.... KF wanted DJK to be the best he could be.... and DJK thought he already was.

 

Good explanation. Some guys with immense HS talent make the mistake of thinking they're a little better or more important than they are when they get to a D-1 program. Kudos to Ferentz for not letting an inmate run the asylum.

 

Exactly. Another player looking to place blame anywhere then wheere it should be and that place is squarley on his shoulders.

 

If he's on such a tirade based based on an assumption that tells me a lot.

 

I happened to be eating lunch with a college coach a few years back, after we sat down, he told me that an NFL team rep. would be calling. I told him to problem on taking the call during the lunch. As fate would have it as soon as our food arrived his phone rang. He took the call and was asked about a former player. He answered something along these lines. He'll fit in your offense well, you'll have to keep a thumb on him, put a bunch of incentives in the contract, make him work for it. After he hung up, he said, many of what he told the Rep. was generic, applies to most players, but the Rep. knew where he was coming from. He told me you have to be honest, if not, they'll never talk with you again. Most times, teams do their homework to the max, its their job.

Many times people will ask for an honest opinion, don't ask unless you want to hear the truth. Ask Duck Man, he'll tell you the truth. When people ask me for my honest opinion, I give it most times. An no, don't ask who the Pro player was, that's one I can't give out.

 

To hell with the NFL guy, I want to know who YOU are.

 

Just an old guy with a drinking problem. An I'm a problem on these boards.