A Visit from the Big Tuna

Bill Parcells, Executive Vice President of Football Operations with the Miami Dolphins made an appearance at the Iowa Football practice. The one time head coach of the New York Giants, New England Patriots, New York Jets and Dallas Cowboys was on-site to take a closer look at the Iowa program as well as visiting with Iowa head coach, Kirk Ferentz.

(L-R Miami Dolphin General Manager Jeff Ireland, Kirk Ferentz, Bill Parcells)

The Bill Parcells coaching tree has a tie to Coach Ferentz. While with the New York Giants, current New England Patriot head coach Bill Belichick was Parcell's defensive coordinator. Belichick left New York to become the head coach of the Cleveland Browns. It was in Cleveland that Belichick hired the head coach at the University of Maine, Kirk Ferentz.

Parcells took time with Iowa trainer and travel coordinator, John Streif.


The Hawkeyes travel in style through Miami. Their buses leave Miami Beach's Fontainebleau for the north side of the City of Miami and Barry University.

February 3

I tend to remember certain events that happen on this day. For example, it was a year ago that one of the greatest Super Bowls were played. The New York Giants defeated the New England Patriots to end a pefect season for the AFC Champions. At halftime of the game I decided to begin blowing away the 8" of snow that fell throughout the day (as witnessed by the video below).

It was also on this day in 1993 the Iowa Girls High School Athletic Union voted to discontinue 6-Player basketball, the sport I dreamed of coaching.

Also, in 1982, the day after a large snow fell on my hometown of New Sharon, North Mahaska decided not to delay school, although my dad, the principal was snowed in on our country gravel road. So he called ahead to the school to let them know we may have problems...and we did. My dad and I, along with 30 cupcakes ran into a snowdrift less than a mile from school (our house was a mile and a half from the high school). Wilbur, the high school janitor, met us in the school's plow, but there was no way we could ride in with him, nor could he pave our way. We began walking back home, but stopped at our neighbors house only to find they had left on a winter's vacation. Another neighbor found us and drove us a different way to school in his 4-wheel drive. Once at school, and without cupcakes, it was announced school would end early.

And did you ever notice that in the movie Groundhog's Day, it is today that Bill Murray can never seem to get to?

And, of course, this is the anniversary of the XFL.