On June 5th, former Hawkeye football player James Daniels tweeted that “There are too many racial disparities in the Iowa football program. Black players have been treated unfairly for far too long.”

After his tweet, other former Hawkeyes spoke out in droves, sharing stories about racism and tension that they experienced in their time in the Iowa football program, especially with conditioning coach Chris Doyle.

Amani Hooker, a former Hawkeye in 2019 now playing for the Tennessee Titans, tweeted “I remember whenever walking into the facility it would be difficult for black players to walk around the facility and be themselves. As if the way you grew up was the wrong way or wasn’t acceptable & that you would be judge by that and it would impact playing time”.

In response to the racial disparities, the coaches and the program have gone above and beyond to make sure that they correct their mistakes within the program.

Soon after the allegations came out, Iowa placed strength coach Chris Doyle on administrative leave to conduct an independent review. With 21 years in the program, Doyle is a staple in Iowa Football and was even the highest-paid strength and conditioning coach in the college football program.

On June 15th, Iowa football announced that they were parting ways with Chris Doyle. Being willing to separate from someone that has been in the program so long illustrates that they are committed to making the program better for their players and the community.

Kirk Ferentz himself put together an advisory committee of 11 former Hawkeye players, headed by Mike Daniels, a Black NFL veteran and former Hawkeye. The committee was made for former players to be able to voice their opinions on what has happened within the program and what can be done to change.

In forming this committee, Ferentz showed that he is not going to brush the allegations under the rug as soon as it stops getting reported on. Ferentz, as head coach, takes responsibility for what has happened under his watch and genuinely wants to change.

Also, the football program fully lifted the social media ban that they had over their players’ Twitter accounts. Kirk Ferentz himself told the media that “it was a stupid policy. . . We’ve got a team that deserves to be trusted.”

Iowa was one of only two college football programs that held a full ban over Twitter. The players felt stifled by the Twitter ban, especially amidst the Black Lives Matter movement. Lifting the ban will not only relieve players of unnecessary censorship, but it will also hold the program accountable for their actions behind closed doors.

Now, a week of change, no matter how drastic or powerful, isn’t going to fix years of maltreatment. But it’s a good start to making sure that all of their players feel accepted and safe within their program.

The way that the Iowa football program has handled this situation so far proves that they are committed to fixing their issues and making the program as a whole for all of their players. Hopefully, other collegiate football programs around the country will follow their lead.

Columns reflect the opinions of the authors and are not necessarily those of the Editorial Board, The Daily Iowan, or other organizations in which the author may be involved.