Iowa "must adapt" podcast

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MNHawk

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It was nice to hear Miller and Deace seemingly finally admit that Iowa needs to update their offensive scheme in order to stay competitive. I could not agree more. Here is the issue as I see it though.

After the Tennessee beat down in 2014, Kirk said they would evaluate every aspect of the program with a fine toothed comb. My feeling about that comment was "shouldn't that happen at the end of every season?" In many ways I feel that Kirk has gotten lazy or content with how things are. Revamping this stale offense and particularly this archaic rushing scheme just doesn't seem to be on his radar.

With this scheme, our CEILING is 2nd or 3rd in the B1G west. You can't have an identity of being a running football team and be this consistently bad at running the ball. Somehow it appears that Kirk is oblivious to this. He is a hall of fame coach and deserves a statue outside of Kinnick but he either needs to adapt or hang it up.
 
MNHawk said:
With this scheme, our CEILING is 2nd or 3rd in the B1G west. You can't have an identity of being a running football team and be this consistently bad at running the ball. Somehow it appears that Kirk is oblivious to this. He is a hall of fame coach and deserves a statue outside of Kinnick but he either needs to adapt or hang it up.
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That’s not really true given that they’ve won the Big Ten West fairly recently, but I think we all see your point.
 
BrianFerentzForPresident said:
That’s not really true given that they’ve won the Big Ten West fairly recently, but I think we all see your point.
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I think that’s maybe right, though...

I never thought I’d say this but we have a worse OC than Greg Davis and a horrible OL coach, two things that weren’t true when we won the west. Also can’t recruit upper shelf RBs, and I think those things do put our ceiling lower.

When we had the string of Canzeri, Wadley, and Daniels we got spoiled and there’s nothing (other than Goodson who’s not getting used) incoming that’ll be anywhere close in my opinion.
 
Fryowa said:
I think that’s maybe right, though...

I never thought I’d say this but we have a worse OC than Greg Davis and a horrible OL coach, two things that weren’t true when we won the west. Also can’t recruit upper shelf RBs, and I think those things do put our ceiling lower.

When we had the string of Canzeri, Wadley, and Daniels we got spoiled and there’s nothing (other than Goodson who’s not getting used) incoming that’ll be anywhere close in my opinion.
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Somethings gotta give, that’s for sure. I don’t know whether it’s stubbornness or stupidity, and until Kirk does something different schematically with real success, we won’t know for sure. Your comment on RBs is exactly why I think they need a schematic change. Goodson needs to develop into at least an All Big Ten talent for them to have any shot at more than 8-9 wins right now, and that seems nigh impossible given that the OL won’t be improving next year. The lack of any offensive line development is particularly embarrassing. Honestly, it’s just a mess right now. The only way the Hawks win more than seven next year without one of the QBs turning out to be a world beater is if every west team other than Wisconsin is as bad or worse than they are this year, and I don’t see that happening.
 
Fryowa said:
I think that’s maybe right, though...

I never thought I’d say this but we have a worse OC than Greg Davis and a horrible OL coach, two things that weren’t true when we won the west. Also can’t recruit upper shelf RBs, and I think those things do put our ceiling lower.

When we had the string of Canzeri, Wadley, and Daniels we got spoiled and there’s nothing (other than Goodson who’s not getting used) incoming that’ll be anywhere close in my opinion.
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I think Goodson will be a great player.
I can't tell if it was talent or coaching yet on the ol. But we will definitely know next year. We had some good ol recruits recently.
I think the biggest thing and probably why GD got hired is risk adversion style play. Short passes, get the ball out fast.
I'm not saying be dumb, but the fact is more teams are going for it on 4th down, they are not playing field position is the end all to be all. Or top as a end all to be all. More teams are passing for further yards per attempt these days as well. These teams are beating us at our own game. Why? Because they know our game forwards and back. If they can keep it close into the 4th they stand a decent chance of winning.
Our next qb needs to start right now getting practice reps and doing nothing but every play that is a 25 yarder. Make those plays statistically better through repetition.
That is going to make other teams play back further.
 
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MNHawk said:
It was nice to hear Miller and Deace seemingly finally admit that Iowa needs to update their offensive scheme in order to stay competitive. I could not agree more. Here is the issue as I see it though.

After the Tennessee beat down in 2014, Kirk said they would evaluate every aspect of the program with a fine toothed comb. My feeling about that comment was "shouldn't that happen at the end of every season?" In many ways I feel that Kirk has gotten lazy or content with how things are. Revamping this stale offense and particularly this archaic rushing scheme just doesn't seem to be on his radar.

With this scheme, our CEILING is 2nd or 3rd in the B1G west. You can't have an identity of being a running football team and be this consistently bad at running the ball. Somehow it appears that Kirk is oblivious to this. He is a hall of fame coach and deserves a statue outside of Kinnick but he either needs to adapt or hang it up.
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Hayden would scratch where it itches. Apparently KF wasn't listening. I remember Hayden Fry teams throwing it 55 times in a game, whatever the game dictated and he needed to do to win the game.
 
Next year our O line is going to be rough. Who will play tackle or guard?

Add in a new QB with no experience.

Add in a couple new D linemen.

And that schedule is brutal.

We will be a 6 win team next year. Go Ferentz family.
 
I'm not convinced that Jon Miller knows his X's and O's. There is nothing wrong with zone blocking per se. Lots of teams do it. Iowa does not do it all the time either. Brian has started the evolution...and I think it will continue. Iowa does not run up the middle all the time either.

Look I'm just as frustrated was everyone else and I do my share of fussing about the offense. I know that I'm no X and O guy, but I can see the sub par performance.

Like a lot of you I'd like to see Goodson more, I'd like to see our WR get open more, I'd like to see more run after catch from Smith - Marsett and Smith. Hey, ever notice those great catches smith makes? Ever thought about why he has to make them? Ya a guy is draped all over him...and that is because he does not get open. Ever see smith with RAC? or Marsettt with RAC in Big Ten Play? Me either. They don't very get open very often

This year they have good TE's but chose not to target them very much. I think that was a mistake.

Its always something, this year its the guards, next year its the tackles, and the QB, and the year after that it will be something else. Welcome to Iowa football. I don't know what the recruiting ceiling is but hope that it is higher... because other teams are attracting skill players
 
Changing the game plan won't work for every opponent but it is better than going with the same worn out game plan that has a small chance of success. A success that largely depends on the other team not playing their strengths.

Against weaker opponents, opponents where Iowa has a decided edge in certain areas such as the offensive/defensive line just go with the same conservative game plan, It works. but to keep losing with the same game plan against a team that Iowa doesn't match up against is foolhardy.
 
Motigerhawk said:
Next year our O line is going to be rough. Who will play tackle or guard?

Add in a new QB with no experience.

Add in a couple new D linemen.

And that schedule is brutal.

We will be a 6 win team next year. Go Ferentz family.
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Left guard will be better next year . He is a senior and awful . No way the starter next year will be as bad
 
The KF offense has very little deception, motion, counter plays, so that teams can just sit on our tendencies and flow toward our first motion with a very high likely hood of correctly going to the ball carrier in the run game. The naked bootleg or one blocker bootleg works pretty well because it is a counter which we dont use very often.

In 21 years I am not sure I have ever seen a double screen used by KF faking a screen one way and coming back to screen the other way. Again sort of a deceptive counter play style. The hawk offense is too easy for opposing D Coord and players to decipher.

More teams are using counter shovel passes, players in motion looping back around behind the qb to swing out to the sideline for a pass in wide open space, of course the occasional run by a qb to the opposite direction or reading the DEnd, the RPO action. A lot of stuff that the hawks do not use.
 
This offense will always suck with BF at the helm. He is truly clueless. Other than that, we simply don't have enough athletes that can make a difference. Outside of Goodson, and maybe Tracy, who do we have? ISM makes maybe 2 catches a game, and struggles to get open. Boy wonder and KF don't think Goodson should be on the field more apparently, for some odd reason. Why not try Martin? He cannot be worse than Nico Ragaini or Max Cooper. When you're offense is this bad one would think the coaching staff would be trying different things. Not the Ferentz clan though.
 
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