Hawkfromnorwalk
Well-Known Member
I'm not a big NFL guy and they only college football show on right now is a replay of the post game from last nights Wiscy/MSU game. So I have been scouring all the message boards and one thing I saw stuck out like a sore thumb. Over on CyFan they are already discussing next years team and their expected record. Seems a good majority of them think they are going to come into Kinnick next year and walk out with the trophy. Next year will be the 10 year anniversary of the Seneca Wallace game, and since then it's been all Hawkeyes when playing at Kinnick.
It's funny how a 6-6 season and needing 3OTs to beat Iowa in their house all of the sudden makes them world beaters. They like to focus on what Iowa is losing next year and not looking enough at what they lose as well. They have a decent defense this year, and probably one of the best linebacker tandems they have ever had over their with Knott and Klein. Those two return next season. However they don't recognize they lose chunks of their secondary and the main thug, I mean, player on DLine in Latimore. McNutt and Reiff are the main two losses on offense next year for Iowa. However we have some good depth at OLine so Reiff's departure should be at a minimum and with CJ stepping up this year he gives JVB another good target. I don't see much of a step back on the offensive side of the ball next year if at all. Add to that our O seems to hit on all cylinders at home. I think this matchup leans in favor of Iowa.
On the opposite side of things ISU loses some pieces of their OLine, including their main blocker Osemele. They also lose some senior production at the wideout position which may or may not be a bad thing since their receivers were about as good as dropping balls as ours were this year. It looks like they may have decent production at RB, especially with Shontrell coming back from injury. Barnett looks good, and is a QB that typically gives us fits. The defense ISU faced this year in the game will be different than the one they see next year, which may or may not be a good thing. Our DLine will almost totally be retooled. Alvis may not be back from his ACL tear so Bigach will probably be the only guy on the line who played in the 2011 ISU game. Our line that day wasn't very effective so I find it hard to believe we could really do worse, even with new players up front. Our LBs should be fantastic. Kirksey showed a lot this year and Morris will continue to develop. I think Alston and Derby are really going to add to the unit as well. We do lose Prater and Bernstine which are big losses however Bernstine didn't even play against ISU last year and we also had Castillo in doing CB work. I think the combo of Hyde and Lowery will end up being better than what Prater and Castillo were in this years game. Safety looks a little more shored up now that Hyde was moved back to CB. Miller came on as of late and hopefully whoever steps in opposite of him (I'm expecting Law) will hit the ground running. Overall though with the inexperience at DLine and the fact that Barnett is a good runner and thrower much like a poor mans Persa, I think ISU has the edge.
So next years game may end up more of a shoot out type game. The biggest x factor in this is having the game at home. This game for the most part the last decade has gone to the home team. I think the fans are going to make this a hard game for ISU coming in, and that should give Iowa the edge. I think ISU is definitely showing improvement under Rhoads but I don't see them coming into Kinnick and winning.
It's funny how a 6-6 season and needing 3OTs to beat Iowa in their house all of the sudden makes them world beaters. They like to focus on what Iowa is losing next year and not looking enough at what they lose as well. They have a decent defense this year, and probably one of the best linebacker tandems they have ever had over their with Knott and Klein. Those two return next season. However they don't recognize they lose chunks of their secondary and the main thug, I mean, player on DLine in Latimore. McNutt and Reiff are the main two losses on offense next year for Iowa. However we have some good depth at OLine so Reiff's departure should be at a minimum and with CJ stepping up this year he gives JVB another good target. I don't see much of a step back on the offensive side of the ball next year if at all. Add to that our O seems to hit on all cylinders at home. I think this matchup leans in favor of Iowa.
On the opposite side of things ISU loses some pieces of their OLine, including their main blocker Osemele. They also lose some senior production at the wideout position which may or may not be a bad thing since their receivers were about as good as dropping balls as ours were this year. It looks like they may have decent production at RB, especially with Shontrell coming back from injury. Barnett looks good, and is a QB that typically gives us fits. The defense ISU faced this year in the game will be different than the one they see next year, which may or may not be a good thing. Our DLine will almost totally be retooled. Alvis may not be back from his ACL tear so Bigach will probably be the only guy on the line who played in the 2011 ISU game. Our line that day wasn't very effective so I find it hard to believe we could really do worse, even with new players up front. Our LBs should be fantastic. Kirksey showed a lot this year and Morris will continue to develop. I think Alston and Derby are really going to add to the unit as well. We do lose Prater and Bernstine which are big losses however Bernstine didn't even play against ISU last year and we also had Castillo in doing CB work. I think the combo of Hyde and Lowery will end up being better than what Prater and Castillo were in this years game. Safety looks a little more shored up now that Hyde was moved back to CB. Miller came on as of late and hopefully whoever steps in opposite of him (I'm expecting Law) will hit the ground running. Overall though with the inexperience at DLine and the fact that Barnett is a good runner and thrower much like a poor mans Persa, I think ISU has the edge.
So next years game may end up more of a shoot out type game. The biggest x factor in this is having the game at home. This game for the most part the last decade has gone to the home team. I think the fans are going to make this a hard game for ISU coming in, and that should give Iowa the edge. I think ISU is definitely showing improvement under Rhoads but I don't see them coming into Kinnick and winning.
