Kirk Ferentz identifies Iowa football's biggest area of concern

Iowa saw a ton of top-tier talent depart the program this offseason across numerous positions.

All three phases of the ball are undergoing significant changes this offseason as the Hawkeyes prepare for a new era. There's going to be a new quarterback under center, replacing the dependable Mark Gronowski. There will be three new offensive linemen to replace a trio that all got drafted into the NFL. And the special teams unit lost two All-Americans and its coordinator.

Those position groups have a lot of work to do to maintain the high standard that was set a year ago. Even with all those changes, none of those groups are the most concerning area on the roster, according to head coach Kirk Ferentz.

Ferentz spoke at Big Ten media days in Chicago on Tuesday. He broke down a myriad of topics, including which area of the roster concerns him most heading into the new season. His answer to that question was simple: the defensive line.

"Our biggest concern, area of focus, will be the defensive line," Ferentz said. "Seven of our top eight guys from a year ago are gone. Anxious to see how that goes. Saw a lot of growth in the spring and expect to see more in August. The one thing I will say, I can just forsee us probably rotating players on a more frequent basis than maybe we have the last couple of years. Don't envision anybody playing 500 snaps this season. We'll let all that shake out."

The only guy with a ton of experience returning on the defensive line is Bryce Hawthorne. Outside of him, it's a lot of inexperienced players with high upside. Ferentz knows that he'll have to ease those young guys into the rotation, which is why he's planning to rotate up front more than usual.

The talent is certainly there for Iowa's defensive line to be strong once again next season. But for now, there are a lot of question marks that need to be answered first.

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This article originally appeared on Hawkeyes Wire: Kirk Ferentz identifies Iowa football's biggest area of concern