Kirk Ferentz was the major college football story of the day on Thursday with reports breaking that Iowa’s head coach will serve a one-game suspension in the season opener.

According to those reports, the suspension stems from improper contact with a player and his family before he had officially entered the transfer portal. The player mentioned in the report is former Michigan quarterback Cade McNamara, the starting QB for the Hawkeyes in 2023 before a season-ending injury and the leading candidate to be QB1 this fall.

While Iowa is unable to address specifics of the investigation, the program did confirm a one-game self-imposed for Ferentz and wide receivers coach Jon Budmayr. Iowa also released a written statement from Ferentz while he also addressed the media and acknowledged his wrongdoing.

“I frequently tell our players to abide by the rules, and in this instance, I did not,” said Ferentz. “In 26 years as a head coach at Iowa — and more than four decades as a coach — this is my first potential Level II NCAA infraction. I made a mistake and would like to apologize to our players, University leadership, and our Hawkeye football fans. I know Coach Budmayr echoes those sentiments.”

Coach Ferentz and Budmayr will be able to help with the normal team activities during the week before serving the suspension against Illinois State in Week 1. Seth Wallace, assistant head coach and linebackers coach for Iowa, will serve as the acting head coach.