This Iowa team has quite a bit of team mojo going on right now and we have seen the emergence of several players take on a leadership role. I think even Ruddock has displayed this to a certain degree. When I look at Minnesota, I just don't feel threatened by their passing attack at all. I think Iowa will be able to slow their run game enough (maybe 150-200 yds) and not allow much through the air, along with a couple of keys picks off leidner in the 2nd half. Also, they have a freshman quarterback starting in his 1st big ten game, they need to pay for that decision. I see Iowa running it well enough early to score a couple of touchdowns in the 2nd quarter. After halftime, I think it will be a grinder of a game and I think Iowa will have that one big passing play that will be the difference in the score. 24-20 hawks.
Does anyone out there think the Hawks will win easily on Saturday?
- Thread starter SayHawkKid
- Start date
bigjim
Well-Known Member
I don't know why some some people think this is going to be a easy win. First of all its never easy in a road game and second from what I have seen of Minnesota they haveca pretty good defense. Lets just hope everybody is on there game saturday because if we take this game lightly it may be a long ride home. GO HAWKS!
Section136
Well-Known Member
I actually think the score could be similar to last year. 31-13 Hawks or something close to that.
If we keep the Goofers from getting fired up early from a mistake on our part and keep their energy down and get a score or two of our own early we should be ok. I was at the San Jose St game and the Goof's secondary was abused with regularity and this was by a team that ran the ball 17 total times, so they knew that Fales from San Jose St was going to air it out and he still found receivers open. I remember also, in the second quarter (I think) that San Jose St had completed a long pass play and the receiver was heading to the end zone and had the ball stripped and recovered by the Goofs on like the 10 yd line. That was a big turn around because the game was still very close. I also remember Leidner running read options time after time after time and never letting the RB have the ball- he kept the ball 90% of the time. What the Goofs have for a gameplan now will surprise no one.
HawkeyeWalker
Well-Known Member
Cautious...Optimism. play clean game, limit turnovers, tackle well. Exercize the TCF demons !!!
MNHawkeyeFreak
Well-Known Member
Hey....are you one of those kool aid drinkers, OLwhatever?
Chickenlounge
Well-Known Member
HawkeyeDenis
Well-Known Member
On paper it seems to me to be an easy win. But we know how it goes with the Iowa program.
Iowa has the edge in passing. Minnesota literally can't pass. They have averaged 9 passes a game against lesser competition than Iowa. They have a good running attack. They are not Wisconsin. It's a decent attack but don't get carried away about it. Their QB's are run first, pass second QBs. Iowa contained Lynch fairly well and neither of these guys is as good as Lynch. Their defense is about the same as Iowa's. Good but with some weak spots. Particularly secondary.
The trouble with run teams is that if they get behind they have trouble catching up. I don't know if these guys are better than NIU but they are better than ISU, WM and Misery State.
Iowa has the edge in passing. Minnesota literally can't pass. They have averaged 9 passes a game against lesser competition than Iowa. They have a good running attack. They are not Wisconsin. It's a decent attack but don't get carried away about it. Their QB's are run first, pass second QBs. Iowa contained Lynch fairly well and neither of these guys is as good as Lynch. Their defense is about the same as Iowa's. Good but with some weak spots. Particularly secondary.
The trouble with run teams is that if they get behind they have trouble catching up. I don't know if these guys are better than NIU but they are better than ISU, WM and Misery State.
NEIChawk
Well-Known Member
Well then....how do we exorcise our demons? What's the game plan? Short passes? Power running game? A little trickery perhaps? Whatever it is we need to start out hot...i.e defensive turnover, or some sort of big offensive play....these kids have been playing better lately and they know the importance of being on the road, especially @ Minnesota....Just take care of business and get out w/a win...
DesMoinesHawki
Well-Known Member
I have yet to hear an Iowa fan say that an easy win is around the corner Saturday. It's a winnable game but I think most leave it at that. If we win ... great ... If we lose ... well ... we will all go back to thinking we "just aren't that good."
I like our chances Saturday. And I like how we performed on the road in Ames. Previous Iowa teams have struggled a lot on the road. Something about Jake though ... It's like he doesn't get rattled ... He just manages the game.
One game at a time with this Iowa team. All you hope for is improvement week by week. Take the wins as they come and eliminate the "bad losses."
I like our chances Saturday. And I like how we performed on the road in Ames. Previous Iowa teams have struggled a lot on the road. Something about Jake though ... It's like he doesn't get rattled ... He just manages the game.
One game at a time with this Iowa team. All you hope for is improvement week by week. Take the wins as they come and eliminate the "bad losses."
OLWPAORWWM
Banned
I can't understand why anyone thinks Minnesota has a chance.
HawkeyeWalker
Well-Known Member
Well played sir. I knew I messed that one up.
hawkeyebob62
Well-Known Member
I've held off weighing in on this because I really don't know which side of me is stronger right now, the side that says the WMU game is where this team finally "clicked", or the side that says WMU finally collapsed of "B1G Fatigue".
Minnesota is darn near impossible to read, as they are pretty much every year in recent memory given their lack of quality non-conference foes, save the occasional U$C/etc. For a run-dominant team, they sure don't rack up yardage like the GaTech/Air Force/Oklahoma-under-Switzer team of the past. Nor are they anywhere in Wisconsin's league. But, they ARE 4-0. We're not.
This game will be a laugher if we have the kind of success we had just about everywhere last week. But, we STILL started slow last week, at least to some degree. If, OTOH, we have turnovers and stalled drives and our O can't keep our D off the field, prepare to feel VERY "2010-2011"-ish. And it will probably be compounded by a career day for one of our RBs or Powell catching 3 TDs in a losing effort.
The biggest key right now is to make sure we don't shoot ourselves in the foot.
Minnesota is darn near impossible to read, as they are pretty much every year in recent memory given their lack of quality non-conference foes, save the occasional U$C/etc. For a run-dominant team, they sure don't rack up yardage like the GaTech/Air Force/Oklahoma-under-Switzer team of the past. Nor are they anywhere in Wisconsin's league. But, they ARE 4-0. We're not.
This game will be a laugher if we have the kind of success we had just about everywhere last week. But, we STILL started slow last week, at least to some degree. If, OTOH, we have turnovers and stalled drives and our O can't keep our D off the field, prepare to feel VERY "2010-2011"-ish. And it will probably be compounded by a career day for one of our RBs or Powell catching 3 TDs in a losing effort.
The biggest key right now is to make sure we don't shoot ourselves in the foot.
wundergrape
Well-Known Member
Good post. I belive if we give them life we could get in trouble. If we can jump on them early it would be huge
WinOneThisCentury
Well-Known Member
The way I see it, we are still shooting, but the foot appears to be moving faster. We still have the drops and fumbles to contend with, but it really appears to me, we are cleaning that up and Canzeri and Daniels needed that wake up last week and they picked the right week to do it. Rudock appears to have grown in regard to his pocket presence and throwing late to the flat and over the middle. I haven't seen him do it since game two. Turnovers are the key to this Iowa team...keep them in check, we should win this game in decent fashion. The reality is that the team isn't good enough to score in bunches and overcome several shots that may actually hit the foot. We need to play clean, catch the ball, and move the chains...then the game plays into our hands.
Chickenlounge
Well-Known Member
I don't normally play the grammar nazi, but I thought a picture of a demon exercising would be pretty damn funny.
