Kirk Ferentz 'proud' of Iowa Hawkeyes after shutting out Kentucky Wildcats in Music City Bowl

The demons of last season’s Citrus Bowl have been avenged, as Kirk Ferentz and the Iowa Hawkeyes have defeated the Kentucky Wildcats in the Music City Bowl.

The Hawkeyes defense pitched a shutout, as Iowa defeated the Wildcats 21-0. Speaking with ESPN afterwards, Ferentz was proud of the way his team handled preparation, and handled their business on the field.

“Great. Our guys handled this month really well,” Ferentz responded, asked how it felt to be victorious. “Obviously played hard today. Really proud of them.”

Offensively, Iowa relied on Joey Labas at quarterback, and Ferentz was admittedly “a little bit nervous” watching the young signal caller during the game. However, he was elated with his performance afterwards.

“I don’t mind telling you I was a little bit nervous, I think all of us were. Can’t say enough about Joe. Thought he did a great job. Great future,” Ferentz said of Labas, who passed for 139 yards and a touchdown. “Tough month for him, a lot to learn. Thought he did a great job for us today. Didn’t make any critical errors for us. Defense did a great job, special teams were huge.”

Finally, Iowa was built on their defense and their leadership, and a player who embodied that and more was linebacker Jack Campbell. The Hawkeyes head coach couldn’t say enough good things about Campbell, as well as some other Iowa elder-statesmen.

“He’s an unbelievable person. Unbelievable player,” stated Ferentz, regarding Campbell. “Sam LaPorta, Riley Moss, we’ve got some great guys. Those guys are senior leaders. They mean so much to our program.

“So happy for all those guys. Always good to go out with a win.”

If Iowa’s offense can pick up some steam next season, it could be a very fun season for the Hawkeyes. However, they’ll enjoy Saturday’s victory, ending an up and down season on a high note.