Iowa football coach Kirk Ferentz on gambling probe, Hawkeyes’ depth chart

INDIANAPOLIS — As an NCAA gambling probe approaches its third month for the athletic programs at Iowa and Iowa State, Hawkeyes football coach Kirk Ferentz knows which players are under investigation but has no feel for their eventual punishment.

“I don’t even want to project it,” Ferentz said Wednesday at Big Ten media days. “I’m encouraged that the new standards came out; at least to me that’s a signal that they are paying attention to what’s going on.

“We’ll see what they come up with. It could be a range of things. It could be education for the players; it could be suspensions. I don’t know. We’ll deal with it whatever it is when it comes forward.”

On May 2, the Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission and Iowa Department of Criminal Investigation informed both Iowa and Iowa State universities of potential criminal conduct related to gambling with potential NCAA violations. Two days later, both universities received a list of individuals accused of participating in sports wagering. The athletic departments then ruled all accused athletes ineligible and notified the NCAA.

In total, 26 Iowa athletes competing in baseball, football, men’s basketball, men’s track and field and wrestling stand accused. At Iowa State, 15 athletes in football, wrestling and men’s track and field allegedly violated NCAA rules by wagering on sports. It had an immediate impact on Iowa’s NCAA Tournament baseball team when third-team All-American and leading hitter Keaton Anthony missed the final 17 games because of his alleged involvement.

Now, the probe has the potential to bleed into football season. Iowa sixth-year defensive tackle Noah Shannon originally was selected to attend Big Ten media days after Ferentz canvassed his player-led leadership council and football staff. Shannon backed out of the event last week and admitted he was one of Iowa’s players under investigation.

“We as coaches are pretty much out of this,” Ferentz said. “It’s really about the law firm that’s working with the players and then the NCAA, so information has been pretty sporadic. Long story short, he just didn’t feel comfortable because he is under investigation as are several other guys.

“Noah is one of our best guys. This poor guy was feeling badly last week, like really badly. He feels like he let his team down, etc. My wife’s mad because there’s no criminal offense here. He’s 22, 23 years old. He hasn’t hurt anybody, hasn’t done anything wrong. So to see him feeling the way he was feeling, it made all of us feel badly.”

Four weeks ago, the NCAA announced a streamlined penalty process related to gambling. Athletes are subject to penalties if they wager on sports the NCAA sanctions, such as football or basketball. Athletes who bet on their own games or sports at their school face a lifetime NCAA ban. That penalty doesn’t appear likely for Iowa’s football players, Ferentz said.

“There’s a lot of stuff we don’t know, but I’d like to have think I would have known that by now,” Ferentz said. “I’d like to think if they knew that, they’d tell us. I mean, you can’t do that. You can’t bet on Iowa. You can’t bet against Iowa; that’s common sense, too. I think a lot of it’s harmless.”

The amount of money wagered provides the basis for NCAA gambling penalties. If an athlete bets less than $200, he or she receives gambling-related education. If it’s between $201-$500, they lose 10 percent eligibility of a season. If an athlete wagers between $501 and $800, it’s 20 percent of the season. If it’s more than $800, it’s 30 percent of a season plus the potential for additional suspension-based sanctions.

Considering Riverside Casino and Golf Resort has a luxury suite at Kinnick Stadium and Elite Casinos sponsored The Swarm Collective, there’s mixed messaging related to gambling and college athletics, Ferentz said.

“There’s 49 states where I promise you, the guys in our investigation and at the other school aren’t the only ones who could be in an investigation,” Ferentz said. “Let’s acknowledge it, let’s admit what it is, and let’s figure out how to approach it and intelligently move it.”

As for a timeline, Ferentz is unsure when he’ll receive a final verdict.

“I’d be throwing darts, but obviously hopeful earlier in August than later in August, but I have no idea,” he said. “It’s pretty much out of our hands at this point.”

Not too deep

Iowa unveiled its preseason depth chart and there were a few interesting developments, especially along the offensive line.

At left guard, senior Nick DeJong (17 career starts) is listed ahead of junior Connor Colby (24 starts). At right tackle, sophomore Gennings Dunker (one start) sits on the top line with senior transfer Daijon Parker in reserve. After opening 10 games last year, sophomore Beau Stephens is ahead of senior transfer Rusty Feth at right guard. Feth was a second-team All-MAC player last year.

“There’s probably eight, nine guys competing for a starting job, maybe more,” Ferentz said. “We don’t really plan on playing Connor outside. I just kind of want him to stay left/right guard, whereas Nick can do both. He’s got, I think, really good position flexibility.

“It’s wide open. We’ll know a lot more here in about four weeks.”

The only positions up front seemingly locked up are at left tackle with junior Mason Richman (25 starts) and at center with junior Logan Jones (13 starts). Parker injured his knee on the first spring practice, and Feth transferred to Iowa after graduating from Miami (Ohio) in May.

At wide receiver, neither sophomore Seth Anderson nor redshirt freshman Kaleb Brown appeared in the two-deep. Brown came to Iowa from Ohio State in June after catching only one pass last year. Anderson transferred in January but was injured throughout spring practice.

Sixth-year senior Nico Ragaini and junior Diante Vines are on the first team, but both missed time last season with broken bones. Ragaini missed two games after breaking his foot in preseason camp, while Vines didn’t play until the seventh game after breaking his wrist.

“I just haven’t seen Kaleb, and Seth was out basically all spring,” Ferentz said. “We know what we have in Nico, obviously, and then I think Diante has done a nice job. He just has to stay on the field, which hopefully, all of his bad luck is done.

“I certainly would expect Kaleb to be in that mix, and I wouldn’t be surprised if Seth is as well. But it’s got to happen organically.”

At middle linebacker, Virginia graduate transfer Nick Jackson is listed as a backup to junior Jay Higgins. But it’s likely they will wind up opening the first game alongside one another.

“I’d be pretty confident to say (Jackson is) going to be starting for us this year,” Ferentz said. “That’s what we brought him here for.”