Kirk James Ferentz (born August 1, 1955) is an American football coach. He is the current head football coach at the University of Iowa, a position he has held since the 1999 season. From 1990 to 1992, Ferentz was the head football coach at the University of Maine. He has also served as an assistant coach with the Cleveland Browns and Baltimore Ravens of the National Football League (NFL). Ferentz played college football as a linebacker at the University of Connecticut from 1974 to 1976. Since 2017, he has been the longest tenured FBS coach with one program. Ferentz is the all-time wins leader at Iowa. Playing career Ferentz played high school football at Upper St. Clair High School near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He was a standout linebacker and fullback, playing under Joe Moore, eventual offensive line coach at Pitt and Notre Dame. Ferentz also played baseball as a standout left-handed pitcher. In 1973, Ferentz committed to play football at the University of Connecticut. He was a football captain and an academic all-Yankee Conference linebacker at Connecticut. Ferentz was a team football captain and was named the ECAC Division II Defensive Player of the Week after 12 tackles and two fumble recoveries in a win against UMass. Ferentz' pregame speech against Boston University helped inspire the Huskies to their only home win of his senior season. Ferentz was named academic all-conference and earned defensive MVP honors. He served as a student assistant at Connecticut in 1977 under head coach Walt Nadzak. Early coaching career Worcester Academy Ferentz spent the 1978 and 1979 seasons as defensive coordinator and offensive line coach at Worcester Academy. Ferentz coached under Worcester head coach Ken O'Keefe and alongside offensive coordinator Mike Sherman, while coaching Joe Philbin, among others. At Worcester, Ferentz also taught English literature and coached the girls' basketball team. Pittsburgh After Worcester, Ferentz spent the 1980 season as a graduate assistant at the University of Pittsburgh, assisting his high school coach Joe Moore with the offensive line. The 1980 Pittsburgh Panthers football team, coached by Jackie Sherrill, finished with an 11–1 record and a number two national ranking. That Panthers team included several future NFL Hall of Famers and All-Americans, including quarterback Dan Marino and offensive linemen Jim Covert, Mark May, and Russ Grimm. Iowa The next season, Ferentz joined Hayden Fry's staff at the University of Iowa, coaching the Hawkeyes' offensive line from