Howe: Potential Shown By Iowa Offense

NCHawker said:
I noticed, not sure if others did, Iowa threw deep more than normal. Two deep balls were over thrown but loved the aggressiveness. It would be a different vibe had Cade hit those. Later in the year he will.
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Heck, Cade showed more deep ball accuracy in one game than the last two guys did in six seasons. If we continue to get nothing from the run game, we just have to lean into the passing game, and unlike Petras, this QB can make defenses pay.
 
Cade showed an ability to create big plays and convert 3rd downs when nothing was there. We have been missing that threat for a long time. His over the shoulder pass in the end zone that Ragaini dropped was a beautiful pass and should’ve been caught. There are definite signs of life in the offense.
 
vork22 said:
Cade showed an ability to create big plays and convert 3rd downs when nothing was there. We have been missing that threat for a long time. His over the shoulder pass in the end zone that Ragaini dropped was a beautiful pass and should’ve been caught. There are definite signs of life in the offense.
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That was a beautiful pass to Regaine and Inagree he should have caught it as it was perfectly placed. Maybe it surprised him as he likely is used to those passes being well over throw.

I was satisfied with the pass protection this first game. THE BIG question however is did we just beat a glorified high school team that is a very very poor team? Next week that will not be true. Next week’s game will be a better barometer of where we are.

Right now I feel like I am watching a NFL game with LSU and Florida State playing each other.. Definitely pass first type of teams. Fun to watch and both top ten rated teams. Florida State on offense reminds me of Ohio State. Would be a great addition to the B1G.
 
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I await Brian sending out Cade on a torn quad to throw a Hail Mary down 35 in the 4th so he can get meet his contract requirements.
 
Iowa ran 66 plays vs Utah State. 30 passes and 17 completions. Tight ends caught 10, 4 by wide outs, 4 by backs. Iowa ran 36 times for 88 yards, 2.7 yes per carry.

By contrast USt, passed 48 times, completing 32. They ran 24 times for 116 yard. A lot of their yards came late in the 4th quarter. USt ran 72 plays to Iowa's 66.

I know Iowa wants an even balance between Run and Pass plays, but the box score of this game is indicative of the lack of imagination used to call plays.

Did Iowa ever pass three times in a row? Four completions to wide receivers is not encouraging. When it came to run plays the sweeps probably gained the most yards. The runs up the middle produced little. Why? Sure you can blame the line, but maybe the opponent knows exactly what the OC does historically calling plays.

There are more weapons on offense and they didn't get used on Saturday. Maybe, just maybe, getting the passing game will open up the running game.
 
on second through. If it looked different to you here is another reason it did. Iowa's usualzone running requires mobility. Zone blocking followed by a handoff / or fake followed by a roll out and a pass to TE or deeper depending on what's there. This is standard Iowa Fare dating back 25 years. We didn't see that at all. Radio said a lot of counter runs.

So until I see the normal bread and butter running and blocking scheme I'm not sure i have a definitive take on this crew.
 
eyekwah said:
Iowa ran 66 plays vs Utah State. 30 passes and 17 completions. Tight ends caught 10, 4 by wide outs, 4 by backs. Iowa ran 36 times for 88 yards, 2.7 yes per carry.

By contrast USt, passed 48 times, completing 32. They ran 24 times for 116 yard. A lot of their yards came late in the 4th quarter. USt ran 72 plays to Iowa's 66.

I know Iowa wants an even balance between Run and Pass plays, but the box score of this game is indicative of the lack of imagination used to call plays.

Did Iowa ever pass three times in a row? Four completions to wide receivers is not encouraging. When it came to run plays the sweeps probably gained the most yards. The runs up the middle produced little. Why? Sure you can blame the line, but maybe the opponent knows exactly what the OC does historically calling plays.

There are more weapons on offense and they didn't get used on Saturday. Maybe, just maybe, getting the passing game will open up the running game.
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How many of the plays and yards were meaningful? How many came against the Iowa bench D-played most of the 4th QTR and played a very soft zone most of that time. How many were just throwing between the 20s? A lot of offenses have gained a lot of yards, between the 20 and the opposite 30, in the last 25 years and a lot of those teams left with a loss.
 
hawkinn3 said:
I await Brian sending out Cade on a torn quad to throw a Hail Mary down 35 in the 4th so he can get meet his contract requirements.
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Contract requirements or not I don't think it happens. Saturday was the perfect opportunity to pad his own numbers and we disappeared after the first two drives and went back to normal Brian ball. I honestly think he's clueless how to put up 25 a game and don't see how he can get those requirements met without the defense and special teams bailing him out.
 
JoeyLabasForPresident said:
Heck, Cade showed more deep ball accuracy in one game than the last two guys did in six seasons. If we continue to get nothing from the run game, we just have to lean into the passing game, and unlike Petras, this QB can make defenses pay.
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If Cade does end up having this naggy injury all year and the running game continues to be an issue, I wonder if they will have to have Cade do quick hitters when passing to avoid the potential to get hit or to offset the blitzes. They need to do everything they can to keep him upright.
 
BigD said:
That was a beautiful pass to Regaine and Inagree he should have caught it as it was perfectly placed. Maybe it surprised him as he likely is used to those passes being well over throw.

I was satisfied with the pass protection this first game. THE BIG question however is did we just beat a glorified high school team that is a very very poor team? Next week that will not be true. Next week’s game will be a better barometer of where we are.

Right now I feel like I am watching a NFL game with LSU and Florida State playing each other.. Definitely pass first type of teams. Fun to watch and both top ten rated teams. Florida State on offense reminds me of Ohio State. Would be a great addition to the B1G.
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Iowa State does pack a legitimate defense with some quality depth at CB/Safety. We will surely know a lot after next Saturday's game.
 
After a rewatch, I saw experienced offensive linemen who missed blocks, did not see defenders to block them, were unable to physically dominate, and some were painfully slow and awkward. It was something different on every play. If I can see it, Kirk's sister can see it and so Kirk, Briand and George can see it.

I thought that if Cade was injured they could at least grind out a few wins by running the ball. Now this is in jepardy

I hope things improve. If they could win 7 games with last year's O, they can do it again, and maybe improve upon it.
 
Look, it could be a lot worse. Think two blocked field goals or nearly losing to SDSU.

We have a QB if he can stay healthy.

There is plenty of tape for the coaches to chew ass in the OL room. I maintain that the coaches are overthinking the OL. Too much going on. Line up and let them drive block. And, I think we all saw better pass protection than has been seen in three seasons. There is a lot to improve, but also some bright spots to build on with the OL.

The D and special teams both have room to improve. They will.

Beat the Clowns!!!
 
NorthKCHawk said:
Look, it could be a lot worse. Think two blocked field goals or nearly losing to SDSU.

We have a QB if he can stay healthy.

There is plenty of tape for the coaches to chew ass in the OL room. I maintain that the coaches are overthinking the OL. Too much going on. Line up and let them drive block. And, I think we all saw better pass protection than has been seen in three seasons. There is a lot to improve, but also some bright spots to build on with the OL.

The D and special teams both have room to improve. They will.

Beat the Clowns!!!
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I don't think he will stay healthy. He's not healthy, now. We did see a lot of pulling on the OL. There is no where to go but up for the run blocking. 2.7 yds per carry against Ut State?
 
It takes a special OL to execute a zone blocking and trap pull system. Drive blocking doesn't take as much talent or athelticsim. Just brute force. Let's face it, as others have posted, KF has been great at developing individual OL, but has not had many great packages of late. Iowa's blocking scheme can be amazing when it works in concert. Think Freddy Russell blasting through 3 yard wide holes and not getting touched until he hits the safety. but, if one guy misses his block or assignment, you have a DL in the backfield before the RB can do a thing. You have what you have in the OL right now. Tweaks and tryout times are over with. I would just simplify the blocking scheme and challenge my guys to win some one on one battles. Maybe we don't pop long runs, but we also should not be getting stuffed behind the line every three plays. Three yards and a cloud of dust and then trust your QB to make some passes to really move the sticks.
 
Still hoping that Parker can make an impact and slide Dunker inside. I will give the o-line until the Penn St. game, after that I am going to tap out if nothing improves. If the O-line doesn't improve at that point, sign me up for Kirk ball.
 
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