Gene Chizik and Iowa State

This is the first of a three part series on Gene Chizik being hired as Iowa State’s new football coach. Part 1 will focus on Chizik himself and the success he’s had in coaching. Part 2 will address negative comments about his hiring made by the Sporting News’ Tom Dienhart as well as a discussion of how long Chizik may stay at Iowa State. Part 3 will focus more on Iowa State, including an intro to their athletic director Jamie Pollard and the school’s decision to have Dan McCarney resign. The three parts will appear in consecutive days.
One of the biggest head scratchers this off-season has been how little praise Iowa State’s hiring of Gene Chizik has gotten. The star of the 44-year-old Gene Chizik is well known, but the deeper you look into his hiring, the more optimistic you become for Iowa State football. When Athletic Director Jamie Pollard (right) introduced Gene Chizik at a raucous press conference, it should have sent shock waves through the college football world, but it didn't.

Many remember Chizik’s 28 game winning streak over two plus seasons as the defensive coordinator for Auburn and Texas and with good reason. His resume includes many high points. Five of his last six defenses have been in the top 15 nationally in scoring. He’s been in the top thirty in total defense every season this century, which includes two years as defensive coordinator at Texas, three at Auburn, and two at Central Florida. He spent a total of five season’s at UCF and inherited a defense ranked 81st in total defense. When he left for Auburn his UCF defense was the nation’s 16th best.

Prior to the start of the 2006 season Kirk Herbsteirt rated Chizik as the number one “Future Coach” and the number one “Defensive Mind.” His 2004 season at Auburn earned him the Frank Broyles Award as the nation’s top assistant coach. Heading into the 2006 season, fresh off of a national championship season, he was clearly generating a lot of buzz for an assistant coach. Then he was hired away to Ames, Iowa and all the buzz went silent.