Kirk Ferentz disbands diversity group, says decision unrelated to leader’s suggestion to move on from Iowa coach

Iowa football coach Kirk Ferentz has disbanded an alumni advisory committee that was created after a 2020 investigation found evidence of racial bias against Black players in his program and bullying behavior by some of his assistants.

The Gazette in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, reported that Ferentz’s decision to end the committee came shortly after its leader, former offensive lineman David Porter, suggested it was time for Iowa to part ways with the coach. But Ferentz said he had decided to overhaul the committee last fall before Porter made his comment to other committee members in a text message.

“I have come to a decision that this is an appropriate time to dissolve our committee as it stands currently,” Ferentz wrote in an email to the 10-member committee Tuesday. “As we start a new calendar year and prepare to move forward with our preparation for the 2022 season, I am giving thought to how we restructure the committee/board in a way that best serves our program moving forward.”

Ferentz said in a statement to The Gazette that Porter’s suggestion was not related to his decision to disband the committee.

“Dave Porter did not share his sentiments with me directly,” Ferentz said. “I was surprised and disappointed by his comment and wish him the best moving forward. His comment had no influence on the decision regarding the advisory committee.”

In 2020, the university hired the Husch Blackwell law firm to review the program after dozens of former players, most of them Black, spoke out on social media to allege racial disparities and mistreatment. Their activism came as protests against racial injustice swept the nation following the murder of George Floyd and after attempts to raise concerns inside the program resulted in only minor changes.

The report said that some of the football program’s rules “perpetuated racial or cultural biases and diminished the value of cultural diversity.”

The program cut ties with longtime strength and conditioning coach Chris Doyle…