Cy Kouandjio - Iowa back on the radar

[ColoradoHAWKEYE]

I watched the ESPN signing day/ ignore the big ten special yesterday and this kid seems very smart and also very overwhelmed. I think he is getting a lot of pressure on where to go and he isn't so sure he will let people down around him by picking somewhere he wants to go. That is my opinion.

BTW, ESPN is a joke... the only Big Ten team that got any press was Michigan? Really? A team that is probably ranked in the bottom half of the conference in the last 10 years?

No doubt, I tried to watch, but it was so slanted it wasn't fun. CBS's own show was even more balanced. It got me really thinking about the D1 playoff issue how it may play in with recruiting to be more balanced. omg - the whole Michigan talk was unbelievable; it was like Iowa, Wisc, Nebby, PennSt(an JoePa), and even tOSU were not even involved. Is this really done on purpose?

Also, I understand that these kids want to be a part of a winning program, but I think they (many) may jump without thinking it through. I liked the rationale that the highly rated Florida 18 year old with a baby thought it would be just as good to stay near home at FSU rather than play 1000 miles away at LSU. You think?

 

[OB1]

I hope Jordan, Marcus, Darian, and Iowa fans don't push him too hard, otherwise we end up in the same boat as AU and Bama.

 

[hawkfarmer]

I hope Jordan, Marcus, Darian, and Iowa fans don't push him too hard, otherwise we end up in the same boat as AU and Bama.

If he doesn't go to Iowa, I would love to see him go to New Mexico. Kind of a suck it to the SEC. But I'd really like him to go to Iowa

 

[ColoradoHAWKEYE]

I think Iowa has a very good shot at getting Cyrus, and I think this would be a perfect spot for him.

ESPN.com had a very telling video of Cyrus with his family right after he announced for Auburn. He let on he was having second thoughts about it, and you could tell in his face he was really conflicted. I don't think he was sold on Auburn; it seemed that Mom and Dad also weren't thrilled with it.

Here's why I think we get him, FWIW:

- He's a very smart, sensitive kid. Perhaps too sensitive. The SEC fans at both schools will eat him alive, whichever way he goes, as he's now seeing on his FB page.
- I don't see any way he signs with Auburn, not after announcing on national TV but then being so conflicted about it he left school early yesterday afternoon to think everything through. He couldn't hit the SEND button on his LOI and everything that has transpired the past 24 hours isn't going to make it any easier.
- I doubt he goes to Alabama. That door has been wide open all along and the easiest one for him to walk through to go play with his brother, but he didn't. And I don't think he will.

Which leaves ... Iowa. He liked Iowa, said it felt like home. Three teammates from his prestigious Maryland high school are now Hawkeyes. He can be here with them and live and play football in Iowa City without dealing with the craziness and pressure of the SEC. He can grow and mature under a respected, established coach and staff, get a better education, and have every bit of a chance of being drafted by the NFL as he would playing for the other two schools.

Good points, but, and I'm just saying, didn't he allude to New Mexico again bringing them back into the mix on TV? Or was that just posturing and exposure for the people he has been allegiant to down there?

Also, on the presser he indicated the rationale for Auburn was the guys he met at the all-star game; If friends are a swaying factor, then go where you know they're at.

 

[racerhawk]

I also read on the Alabama board that Brent Calloway (4* LB), who committed to Alabama, switched to Auburn, then signed with Alabama, said that he was going to sign with whoever gave him the "best scholarship".

Hmm...whatever could that mean?

HOLY crap!!

 

[PeoriaHWKI]

One thing I think needs to be brought into this picture and they should be given some kudos is his parents. Obvioulsy they have raised a very smart young man and they have helped guide him in making the right choices in llife but yet not being too involved and looking out for THEIR best interest. It seems they only step in when their child is struggling or offer adivce when they think their child is making a mistake. I commend them for that.

 

[hawkinaclownhouse]

I also read on the Alabama board that Brent Calloway (4* LB), who committed to Alabama, switched to Auburn, then signed with Alabama, said that he was going to sign with whoever gave him the "best scholarship".

Hmm...whatever could that mean?

The more I see stuff like this the more I think the SEC has sunk to the levels of the old Southwest Conference in the 70s and 80s with SMU and all the other Texas schools. I wonder if the NCAA will ever have the backbone to actually investigate and try to clean up their "Golden Goose" conference or they will prove once and for all what a sham of an organization they truly are.

I think the only way anything changes is if the PAC10, Big Ten, Big 12 and even ACC all put pressure on the NCAA when it comes time to renew the BCS contract.

 

[Hawke]

The more I see stuff like this the more I think the SEC has sunk to the levels of the old Southwest Conference in the 70s and 80s with SMU and all the other Texas schools. I wonder if the NCAA will ever have the backbone to actually investigate and try to clean up their "Golden Goose" conference or they will prove once and for all what a sham of an organization they truly are.

I think the only way anything changes is if the PAC10, Big Ten, Big 12 and even ACC all put pressure on the NCAA when it comes time to renew the BCS contract.

I don't know about the Big XII but I think the other three conference's are growing tired of the SEC's habit of treading on low moral ground

 

[tweeterhawk]

Good points, but, and I'm just saying, didn't he allude to New Mexico again bringing them back into the mix on TV? Or was that just posturing and exposure for the people he has been allegiant to down there?

In the latest story out of Alabama his mother is quoted as saying that Iowa's back in the mix. The way her quote read, it really sounded like Iowa is a strong possibility.

 

[hawkdrummer1]

Originally Posted by 99topdawg
I also read on the Alabama board that Brent Calloway (4* LB), who committed to Alabama, switched to Auburn, then signed with Alabama, said that he was going to sign with whoever gave him the "best scholarship".

Hmm...whatever could that mean?


Whoa...how does this NOT raise a red flag to the NCAA?!

 

[ColoradoHAWKEYE]

In the latest story out of Alabama his mother is quoted as saying that Iowa's back in the mix. The way her quote read, it really sounded like Iowa is a strong possibility.

yeah, I actually have since clicked on to the article in question at the top and realize that now. It does sound very promising, again.

 

[tweeterhawk]

Also, on the ESPN.com clip from his announcement, he said he was going back and forth between Auburn and Alabama right up to the announcement and he didn't know what he was going to say and sort of fumbled the name of the school at the time he was supposed to say it.

That suggests to me he's really not sold on either one -- we've already seen that by his backing off and giving it more time before turning in his LOI -- and that his heart lies elsewhere.

Here's another thought: he seems to be a really sensitive young man. Is it possible he was responding to the "Powers That Be" -- the recruiting analysts, the ESPN, Sports Illustrated and CBS Sports talkbots, the coaches, the fans -- that were so certain that he would go to one of the two SEC powerhouses and not lowly ol' Iowa stuck out there in the cornfields and the frozen tundra? But when it really comes down to it, in his heart he'd like to play for a genuine, stable coach like Kirk Ferentz and with several of his teammates?

 

[Hawke]

Also, on the ESPN.com clip from his announcement, he said he was going back and forth between Auburn and Alabama right up to the announcement and he didn't know what he was going to say and sort of fumbled the name of the school at the time he was supposed to say it.

That suggests to me he's really not sold on either one -- we've already seen that by his backing off and giving it more time before turning in his LOI -- and that his heart lies elsewhere.

Here's another thought: he seems to be a really sensitive young man. Is it possible he was responding to the "Powers That Be" -- the recruiting analysts, the ESPN, Sports Illustrated and CBS Sports talkbots, the coaches, the fans -- that were so certain that he would go to one of the two SEC powerhouses and not lowly ol' Iowa stuck out there in the cornfields and the frozen tundra? But when it really comes down to it, in his heart he'd like to play for a genuine, stable coach like Kirk Ferentz and with several of his teammates?

I think you are onto something here. I hope you are.

 

[PeoriaHWKI]

Hopefully he watches Mr. Bulaga this Sunday and realizes Iowa is not the lowly sub par school that won't get him to the NFL like ESecPN says it is.

 

[big10fan]

also something to think about -
what happens if Auburn comes down with huge "USC" type of probation/penalties and loses bowl games and all that from the cam newton fiasco? wonder if that's in the back of his mind?
don't have to worry about that at iowa. that, and we actually have a stable coaching staff. they definitely can't promise that.

 

[ohhawk]

Following your heart is most often a winning combination......trying to please everyone is not.

Sounds like this fella had "advice" coming to him from a lot of directions. He's doing the right thing by calling a timeout and reconsidering. Think I read where we are now in a quiet period again for recruiting and coaches not being able to have direct contact with him though I would guess his HS coach is getting bombarded.

Our relationship with his coach, his teammates who are now Hawks, and some quiet time to himself would all seem to bode well for some serious Hawkeye consideration.

 

[bws258]

Hopefully he watches Mr. Bulaga this Sunday and realizes Iowa is not the lowly sub par school that won't get him to the NFL like ESecPN says it is.

I hope he notes that Bulaga is in the Super Bowl 4 years out of high school, but also that he doesn't pay too close attention to Bulaga getting whipped by the Steelers front 7.

 

[FCAS]

I happen to live in SEC country and the Auburn/Alabama rivalry is just insane. The Iowa-ISU football game is a friendly game of backyard touch football in comparison to what I've seen down here. I can't imagine having two sons on opposite sides of that rivalry.

 

[DexterMorgan]

I have been very adamant that Cyko wasn't coming to Iowa. However with the current circumstances i think a lot of what is being said make sense are really feel like our shot is better now that it ever has been.

 

[Hawke]

I hope he notes that Bulaga is in the Super Bowl 4 years out of high school, but also that he doesn't pay too close attention to Bulaga getting whipped by the Steelers front 7.

He an't pay attention to what doesn't happen.