IowaLaw's Mid-Season Awards

I'm confused by how Jones is going to be the break out player in the second half. It would be great if he was...I want him to be successful...but it appears he's behind Welsh now, Hockaday when he gets back, so it's improbable how that could happen. I guess stranger things have happened.

I still think they should make Amani Jones a fullback. He would make linebackers not want to play in the fourth quarter. He's a beast...and if he can block...man, what a short yardage blocking weapon.
 
1. No argument - but where were you earlier? Oh yeah, that's right, saying Stanley has regressed, saying that he's a game manager and saying that he had no shot at the NFL and all that talk was premature.

2. No Argument - AN is a beast -

3. TJ Hockenson most improved? He was one of the more hyped players on offense all off season. How bout Welch, Niemann, one our Offensive tackles? Jack Hockaday? Matt Hankins? How bout Render? Having a pretty great season.

4. I am not at all disappointed in Smith. He's really coming on, he's only a true Sophomore and gets better every game. Easely was definitely the # 1 WR coming into this season. ISM probably # 2.

5. There's too many to list - but I would say Sargent or Brents

6. no argument - the sheer fact that Iowa is just plugging in guys at such a clip is pretty amazing. Well coached unit. I would consider Brian Ferentz as well.

7. I'd say one of our RB's

8. who cares Iowa is 5-1

I like that you put yourself out there each week - it draws a crowd, but it's mostly because the takes smack of negative reviews that aren't warranted in most cases.
 
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InGoodCo said:
1. No argument - but where were you earlier? Oh yeah, that's right, saying Stanley has regressed, saying that he's a game manager and saying that he had no shot at the NFL and all that talk was premature. Uhh, after the first 3 games, Stanley HAD regressed, and was completing less than 50% of his passes. In game 1, he was 11/23 for 100 yards and a touchdown. Where were you touting him as an NFL 1st rounder after that performance? Your 20/20 hindsight is impressive.

2. No Argument - AN is a beast -

3. TJ Hockenson most improved? He was one of the more hyped players on offense all off season. How bout Welch, Niemann, one our Offensive tackles? Jack Hockaday? Matt Hankins? How bout Render? Having a pretty great season. Our backup tight end was "one of the more hyped players on offense" going into the year? You're joking, right? That has been said by no fan in history.

4. I am not at all disappointed in Smith. He's really coming on, he's only a true Sophomore and gets better every game. Easely was definitely the # 1 WR coming into this season. ISM probably # 2. If Smith was the #3 receiver coming into the season, why has he started every game and why did he receive exponentially more press than Easely and ISM? Google search his name and you will find 20 articles from the fall. If you're not disappointed with a 2 catch per game avg and zero touchdowns on the season from our starting WR, your expectations for a guy with his skill set are far too low.

5. There's too many to list - but I would say Sargent or Brents. Brents has 8 tackles in 6 games. You are entitled to your opinion, but I wouldn't say that jumps him to the top of the list of newcomers.

6. no argument - the sheer fact that Iowa is just plugging in guys at such a clip is pretty amazing. Well coached unit. I would consider Brian Ferentz as well.

7. I'd say one of our RB's

8. who cares Iowa is 5-1. If you don't care about a topic, you are not required to read it.

I like that you put yourself out there each week - it draws a crowd, but it's mostly because the takes smack of negative reviews that aren't warranted in most cases.
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JFC

Do you even follow Iowa football? It's an honest question. TJ Hockenson was talked about on every Iowa podcast all off season long - I listen to them all. HN, Hawkeye Report, Hawk Central, Bigger Ten, On Iowa, All Hawkeyes, The Huddle, Degenerate Hawkeyes, Washed Up and Walk ons - every single one of them touted TJ Hockenson just as much as Fant. He didn't have the national attention I'll give you that, but your crazy to think that he wasn't considered one of Iowa's biggest weapons coming into the season. Maybe you just follow the team from a different angle? I dunno, but if you're an Iowa fan, you expected him to be as good or better than Fant.

As for Stanley - he did the same things last year. He'd have a sub par game, and then a monster game. Some of us can remember all the way back to then. What I don't remember is coming on here to tell everyone about how bad he looked the first 3 weeks and telling everyone that they were wrong... only to list him as my mid season MVP 3 weeks later.

Nick Easely had 51 catches and 4 TD's last season, he was our leading returning wide out - Brandon Smith had 3 catches. How you can mistake that as him being the #1 WR coming into the year is totally on you.

You're seriously sighting tackles for Brents? Do you know what CB's do? His defensive rating is through the roof - he might be one of the top 10 corners in the country already with how he grades out and dudes a freshman. Weren't you also saying that Iowa should never be starting freshman defensive backs a few weeks ago and saying that they always play inconsistent? Which is rich since we have the last 2 Tatum award winners

You post things to get a reaction. You obviously have agendas with your post, so don't get pissy when your opinions get traction. I enjoy them cause they are easily debunked.
 
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Hockensen is not a backup TE, Iowa starts 2 TEs and he has been listed on the 1 line of every 2-deep going back to last year. He also led the team in snaps for his position last year, by a pretty significant margin, so I don't know why anyone would consider him a "backup."

To keep Smith in perspective, at this point McNutt hadn't even seen the field as a WR, and he went on to top the Iowa record books in pretty much every significant category. Expectations were too high for Smith, going way back to last year, but he is rounding into a nice player. I would agree you could argue for disappointing if you completely disregarded the trajectory.

And to echo @InGoodCo , you are really going to cite tackles to support who the better corner has been? One fairly important data point: Brents was the nickel corner before the starters went down, so he has been playing from the jump. Moss just started to get in at the end of the 1st half against Wisconsin (as the nickel once Brents took over for an injured Hankins).
 
IowaLawWasRight said:
As we move into Week 8 with the Hawks gaining momentum, it's time to start handing out some mid-season hardware, the unadulterated, never sugar-coated, IowaLaw way:

1. Offensive MVP (Nate Stanley). After a slow start to the year, Nate has come on as of late. As his confidence increases, Nate is less indecisive and more willing to chuck the ball down the field. Nate has climbed to 6th in the conference in completion percentage, 6th in passing yards, 3rd in yards per attempt, 3rd in pass rating, and 2nd in touchdown passes. While these are on the cusp of all-Big Ten numbers, and he's still prone to randying around when he loses focus. The good news is that Nate is trending in the right direction for the second half of the season. Honorable Mention: Hockinson.

2. Defensive MVP (Anthony Nelson). Overall, the defense has been top-notch, so it is difficult to single anyone out. Nelson has been the leader of one of the top DLs Iowa has had under Ferentz. He is a run stuffer who ranks 19th in the conference in tackles for loss and 3rd in sacks. The DLs dominance has allowed the new LBs some wiggle room to make mistakes without giving up huge yardage or points. Honorable Mention: Epenesa, Hooker.

3. Most Improved (TJ Hockinson). Coming into the season, TJ was an after thought on offense. All the hype went to our "future first round draft picks" Fant & Stanley, to the flashy young WRs, and to breaking in the new RBs. In 2017, TJ had 24 catches for 320 yards. In 2018, through just 6 games, he already has 22 catches for 400 yards. He leads Iowa in receiving yards and is 9th in the Big 10 overall (1st among tight ends). Honorable Mention: Stanley; Smith.

4. Most Disappointing (Brandon Smith). Smith came in as the team's #1 WR. The "prototypical WR" from the south that we've been waiting for. While Smith has not been bad, he has not come close to meeting basic expectations for a starting WR at a Top 25 program. In 6 games, Smith has 13 catches (he had 5 catches in 1 game, and just 8 the rest of the season) for 189 yards and 0 touchdowns. His long is just 30 yards, which is less than the long of even Mekhi Sargent and Nate Wieting. Smith is going to need to step up for this to be a special season. Fortunately, he's trending that direction. Honorable Mention: Jones; Reiff; Tracey.

5. Newcomer of the Year (Riley Moss). Where did this guy come from? Most thought he was a lock to redshirt after being one of the lesser touted recruits in last year's class. All he's done is come in and be a difference maker at one of the most important positions on the field, cb. What he lacks size and speed, he makes up for with his knack for the ball, similar to Desmond King. Honorable Mention: Colbert; Niemann.

6. Coach of the Year (Seth Wallace). The Hawks lost their top 4 LBs last year in a year. LB play was the biggest question mark on the team. Then our top incoming LB tears his ACL, and our next best LB gets benched in the first quarter of the first game. Despite the adversity, the LBs have not been a huge liability this year. We have started I believe 6 different LBs so far, all with no previous experience, and they are holding their own. Wallace is also the assistant defensive coordinator, so he has helped mold the Big Ten's 2nd ranked scoring defense and 2nd ranked total defense. Honorable Mention: Brian Ferentz; Parker.

7. Poised for a Breakout 2nd Half (Amani Jones). The Amani Jones situation is one of the strangest I have seen under Ferentz. According to the coaches, the guy was far and away Iowa's top LB through fall practices. Then suddenly, after 3 series, he's pulled from the lineup for good? If Bo Bower were treated that way after a few bad series, no one would even remember the guy's name. When Amani did finally see action against Minnesota, he was dominant. He's now back on the bench waiting his turn. With the injury bug going around, it's only a matter of time before Jones gets another shot, and I predict he will run with it. Honorable Mention: Toren Young; Easely.

8. Missing in Action (Devonte Young). It's not often that a guy is good enough to have his redshirt pulled to play WR as a true freshmen. Since WR has been a position that lacks significant talent at Iowa, it would be the one spot where a freshmen should be able to break through. Young recorded no stats that year, and is now in his 3rd year while still yet to make a catch. He had 1 tackle last year and 1 this year on special teams. He also returned 1 kick. Two weeks ago, the coaches asked him to switch to defense and play safety, where we are pretty loaded. I'm not sure there's much playing time to be handed out on that side of the ball. I wish the best for the kid and hope some of his hard work pays off. Honorable Mention: Keith Duncan; Gresonde; Trey Creamer; Drew Cook; Reiff.
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Again. Just stop. You’re not Jon, Deace or Rob. You sound ridiculous.
 
One reason for lack of tackles by a cb? His guy doesn't get thrown to.

Another reason? When his guy gets thrown to, he doesn't catch the ball.

I'd be much more concerned about a corner with a lot of tackles.
 
hwk23 said:
Brandon Smith might be the most improved player over the last few games so I don’t know how he could be “most disappointing”. He’s learning to aggressively fight for the ball which is a good thing. He’s probably going to keep getting better to.
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Especially considering he has Smith as honorable mention for Most Improved. I really think IowaFlawIsAwful is one of those-talks-to-himself-on-the-subway types. Not that there's anything wrong with that?
 
IowaLawWasRight said:
You heard it here first!!

Xerxes and Gester predicted BEFORE the season started that Iowa's backup TE, Hockenson, would lead the team in receptions and be 9th in the Big 10 overall! They didn't overlook him with all the preseason all-American hype Fant got. Not at all. So impressive at their overall football knowledge and contributions to the board!

Not surprisingly, they also predicted each of last week's upsets, point by point, and already know who is going to win the Super Bowl. They will let us know the day after the game just like they called it with Hockenson after his big game. Anyone need help with lotto numbers? Gester's got it, baby!

I'll make my own prediction. BrianFerentz, who has yet to make a single substantive post on this site, will be impregnated by the real Brian Ferentz.
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Damn
 
Smith could possibly be used as a decoy for Fant and Hockinson who attract a lot of attention to no avail.....

He does well when the ball is tossed his way and has a bit of athleticism to boot.....

:cool:
 
I think @IowaLawWasRight is coming around. I mean he still sees the program overall through a negative lens, but he does manage now to post postive things he also sees. He came around on Stanley eventually, and he will be forced to come around on Brandon Smith as well. Right now the fact is he is the 3rd option in the offense behind Noah and TJ. You can see the talent, he will be just fine.
 
deanvogs said:
I think @IowaLawWasRight is coming around. I mean he still sees the program overall through a negative lens, but he does manage now to post postive things he also sees. He came around on Stanley eventually, and he will be forced to come around on Brandon Smith as well. Right now the fact is he is the 3rd option in the offense behind Noah and TJ. You can see the talent, he will be just fine.
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Realistically isnt he in someways like sll of us to varying degrees? Most of us have been negative or at least felt that way? It's not hard to see the improvements and they seem legit enough to begin to overlook the not so loud negatives anymore. At least now we've had a week where Iowa is being tslked about for the playoff.

For some reason the changes seem real snd if not permenent every year its enough to to think we'll see them again?
 
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