homerHAWKeye777
Well-Known Member
Did you watch the game?
You act as though the coaches weren't trying to get the ball to McNutt.
From what I recall watching ... I saw A LOT of check down passes. I also saw several balls that were floaters ... and several balls that were thrown behind the WRs. That is on Vandenberg ... NOT the coaches. I'm not baggin' on Vandenberg either. I think that he had a decent game ... and I think that he'll develop into a really good QB for Iowa.
As for Iowa's woes on D ... yeah, there were several items to take issue with. However, do you recall how many first-year starters our D features? Do you recall how many of the guys who were seeing significant playing time were underclassmen? If you recall such items ... and then also notice that we were in but our 2nd game of the season AND also notice that the opposing OTs featured multi-year starters ... one of who will possibly be a first round draft pick ... are you really so shocked?
I admit that I was surprised ... but I wasn't shocked.
What's more ... I reported before the season that many guys on the DL were dinged up ... and that would invariably slow the development of our D ... particularly on the DL.
I was right. As a result, I'm not going to throw the players or the coaches under the bus ... particularly when we're still in a developmental stage of the season.
I think that some fans have trouble differentiating between the reality of the college game and the pro-game ... or between the reality of the college game and their own fantasy football exploits.
Instead, we're talking about a group of young men who are still at the early stages of their football careers (if they even end up remaining in the game). We're talking about guys who have a TON to improve upon and a TON to learn about.
A lot of stupid-a$$ fans want to only win in the moment ... and they simply don't realize that there is an intrinsic trade-off between tweaking schemes for short-term gain versus sticking to the fundamentals and having players make the requisite improvements in their game.
An occasional lost game here or there ... particularly in what should be a developmental year for us ... it will sting in the short term ... however the lessons learned will make the players that much better in the future. And it will also help propel them to future success.
If fans want to second-guess or complain about the team ... I'd complain about the kick coverage. Of course, Ferentz was clearly disappointed about the kick coverage game too. You can't force the D to defend a short field that often and not give up plenty of points. One might also complain about NOT going for it on 4th and goal in the 3rd overtime. Ferentz again has acknowledged that that was probably a mistake.
