NorfolkNeb
Active Member
The Iowa Hawkeyes finished the 2010 season in a 3-way tie (with Illinois and Penn State) for 4th place in the Big-10 conference with a 4-4 record. Michigan and Northwestern finished tied for 7th place with losing 3-5 records. (OSU, MSU & Wisky shared the title)
Yet the conference coaches voted 11 Hawkeyes to either the first or second all-Big-10 teams. Ohio State only placed 10 players on the coach's all-conference teams & Wisconsin and Michigan State had 8 players each on these two teams.
The media writers, meanwhile, picked 10 Buckeyes, 8 from both Mich. State & Wisconsin, and only six Hawkeyes.
Those of us who see through gold-colored glasses will opine that coaches have a better view for player talent; and that writers choose to see things 'after the fact' once the teams final records are recorded, and use player stastistics to justify their selections, only 'after the fact'. I'll admit I fall in that category.
But, if the coaches feel Iowa had the best players from among all 11 teams, then don't we need to question our team's coaches abilities to coach (game day)? I don't want to change the style or philosophy of Hawkeye football. I'm proud of our integrity and the fact that we get more out of less talented players (developing personnel) than any team in the conference.
Seven of the eleven Hawkeye players selected by the coaches were seniors. If Sash and McNutt go pro, that means only Reiff and Prater are back. Hell, we play Penn State and Nebraska next year, as well as Michigan and Michigan State from our own division. Plus, how many games have we lost to Northwestern in the last seven years? Missing Wisky and OSU is a godsend.
If we give credence to the media writer's all-conference teams; Indiana and Wisconsin only had one all-conference player between them. The two teams we missed (Purdue and Illinois) had seven all-conference picks! Gosh, what if we'd played them instead, what would our record have been.
But those bozos pick their all-conference selctions based on final poll rankings. I think Sash will return because he's a born Iowan and McNutt returns to improve his draft stock. If those writers knew real talent, how could they omit T. Pryor from all-conference? The dude's a winner. 11 Hawkeye defensive players will attest to that on his fourth and ten run. Would you really pick Tolzein, Robinson or Persa ahead of him if you had to draft a starting lineup from among the current Big-10 talent crop to field a team? Pryor was one Wisky opening kickoff return away from playing for the national championship this year.
I look forward to our bowl game (against South Carolina or Nebraska?). I also look forward to being the underdog with a bite, instead of the team with outsized expectations next year. Clayborn, Greenwood, Hunter, Klug, Reisner, Stanzi, Vandervelde and Donahue did not let us down this year. They merely attempted to execute their coaches conservative game plans. Wisconsin, Northwestern, Minnesota and Arizona let it rip this year. Ohio State played the same way we did and won with a superior athlete making a superior play. Let's unleash the dogs next year! We had the best second team QB in the conference, with two years of eligibility left. We have three starting o-linemen returning. We have three running backs with 100-yard conference games in their resumes. We have a returning senior all Big-10 wide reciever. We have Prater, Sash & Hyde roaming the secondary. We have a middle linebacker with a year under his belt and 3 years remaining. Go Hawks! I love surpasing idiots low expectations. Let's get back to it! (Six seniors on NFL rosters next year as well)
Yet the conference coaches voted 11 Hawkeyes to either the first or second all-Big-10 teams. Ohio State only placed 10 players on the coach's all-conference teams & Wisconsin and Michigan State had 8 players each on these two teams.
The media writers, meanwhile, picked 10 Buckeyes, 8 from both Mich. State & Wisconsin, and only six Hawkeyes.
Those of us who see through gold-colored glasses will opine that coaches have a better view for player talent; and that writers choose to see things 'after the fact' once the teams final records are recorded, and use player stastistics to justify their selections, only 'after the fact'. I'll admit I fall in that category.
But, if the coaches feel Iowa had the best players from among all 11 teams, then don't we need to question our team's coaches abilities to coach (game day)? I don't want to change the style or philosophy of Hawkeye football. I'm proud of our integrity and the fact that we get more out of less talented players (developing personnel) than any team in the conference.
Seven of the eleven Hawkeye players selected by the coaches were seniors. If Sash and McNutt go pro, that means only Reiff and Prater are back. Hell, we play Penn State and Nebraska next year, as well as Michigan and Michigan State from our own division. Plus, how many games have we lost to Northwestern in the last seven years? Missing Wisky and OSU is a godsend.
If we give credence to the media writer's all-conference teams; Indiana and Wisconsin only had one all-conference player between them. The two teams we missed (Purdue and Illinois) had seven all-conference picks! Gosh, what if we'd played them instead, what would our record have been.
But those bozos pick their all-conference selctions based on final poll rankings. I think Sash will return because he's a born Iowan and McNutt returns to improve his draft stock. If those writers knew real talent, how could they omit T. Pryor from all-conference? The dude's a winner. 11 Hawkeye defensive players will attest to that on his fourth and ten run. Would you really pick Tolzein, Robinson or Persa ahead of him if you had to draft a starting lineup from among the current Big-10 talent crop to field a team? Pryor was one Wisky opening kickoff return away from playing for the national championship this year.
I look forward to our bowl game (against South Carolina or Nebraska?). I also look forward to being the underdog with a bite, instead of the team with outsized expectations next year. Clayborn, Greenwood, Hunter, Klug, Reisner, Stanzi, Vandervelde and Donahue did not let us down this year. They merely attempted to execute their coaches conservative game plans. Wisconsin, Northwestern, Minnesota and Arizona let it rip this year. Ohio State played the same way we did and won with a superior athlete making a superior play. Let's unleash the dogs next year! We had the best second team QB in the conference, with two years of eligibility left. We have three starting o-linemen returning. We have three running backs with 100-yard conference games in their resumes. We have a returning senior all Big-10 wide reciever. We have Prater, Sash & Hyde roaming the secondary. We have a middle linebacker with a year under his belt and 3 years remaining. Go Hawks! I love surpasing idiots low expectations. Let's get back to it! (Six seniors on NFL rosters next year as well)
