My worthless two cent rant.

Hawkfnntn

Well-Known Member
From the glass half full side it took Iowa playing terribly for ISU to win by 3 with a last minute 54 yard FG.. So either Iowas D is pretty dang good again and or ISU isn't what they are all cracked up to be either.

So 2 full games in and offensively neither were any better then what we've seen the last handful of yrs going back to BFs last couple yrs. Neither MG or Lester impressed me at all. Lesters game plan has zero aggression to it. He doesn't try to stretch the field till it's too late. MG is a deer in the headlights out there. He holds the ball too long and doesn't seem to have full confidence in what he's doing. Combination of the stage being too big and it being his first yr in the system I suppose. It's what you run into when you go renting QBs for 1 yr especially from FCS level.

The first two possessions of the game Iowa went run, run, pass, punt. The 3rd possession they actually got a 1st down before taking a sack and punting. In the first Q Iowa ran 12 snaps 3 possessions with 3 punts and got down 6-0. To me it literally starts there. They played with zero aggression. Zero intention of trying to move the ball. They lined up to play in a phone booth and made themselves predictable and easy to defend like always.

Iowa had 2 out of 10 possessions that I'd describe as solid all game long that ended in 10 pts which doesn't cut it obviously. I don't see how an OC or HC can look at that and say that's succeeding any goals they may have had before the game. That wasn't any west coast offense that I watched. It was the same ole same ole double TE run right run left with a little QB option/slow mesh worked in the 2nd half.

There was so much talk about how good the WRs are and how many of them they have... Well I'm still looking. Wetjen was terrible. He shoulda been benched frankly. Yet I kept seeing him out there. Phillips is just so small he looks like a midget out there. Talk about a small target that they don't seem to know how to use. I'm fine with him playing but good grief you can't use him like you would RVZ and expect similar results. It looks to me like the WR room is a total shit show to me still and I'm sure it'll be blamed on RVZ and Buie being hurt but we know it goes beyond that.

The RBs didn't look good till the 2nd half once they had ISU softened up some and Patterson ran hard. I don't exactly blame Washington jr or Williams much for that they didn't have anywhere to go. I don't think Kaleb Johnson woulda done much better. Again you can't let a defense just play you in a phone booth like that for 2/3rds of the game and expect any kind of success. They put too much on the OL by doing that and it's not fair to them and it just doesn't work against decent teams.

So I'm not expecting any magical season the rest of the way based on what we've seen. We aren't going 10-2 or 9-3. The absolute ceiling is 8-4 and even that might be a pipe dream. I'll be happy to eat my words if I'm wrong. I don't think I'm a prophet if I'm right though it looks pretty obvious that 6-7 wins is what's likely. I wonder how the fans are going to digest this if the season continues like this.
 


From the glass half full side it took Iowa playing terribly for ISU to win by 3 with a last minute 54 yard FG.. So either Iowas D is pretty dang good again and or ISU isn't what they are all cracked up to be either.

So 2 full games in and offensively neither were any better then what we've seen the last handful of yrs going back to BFs last couple yrs. Neither MG or Lester impressed me at all. Lesters game plan has zero aggression to it. He doesn't try to stretch the field till it's too late. MG is a deer in the headlights out there. He holds the ball too long and doesn't seem to have full confidence in what he's doing. Combination of the stage being too big and it being his first yr in the system I suppose. It's what you run into when you go renting QBs for 1 yr especially from FCS level.

The first two possessions of the game Iowa went run, run, pass, punt. The 3rd possession they actually got a 1st down before taking a sack and punting. In the first Q Iowa ran 12 snaps 3 possessions with 3 punts and got down 6-0. To me it literally starts there. They played with zero aggression. Zero intention of trying to move the ball. They lined up to play in a phone booth and made themselves predictable and easy to defend like always.

Iowa had 2 out of 10 possessions that I'd describe as solid all game long that ended in 10 pts which doesn't cut it obviously. I don't see how an OC or HC can look at that and say that's succeeding any goals they may have had before the game. That wasn't any west coast offense that I watched. It was the same ole same ole double TE run right run left with a little QB option/slow mesh worked in the 2nd half.

There was so much talk about how good the WRs are and how many of them they have... Well I'm still looking. Wetjen was terrible. He shoulda been benched frankly. Yet I kept seeing him out there. Phillips is just so small he looks like a midget out there. Talk about a small target that they don't seem to know how to use. I'm fine with him playing but good grief you can't use him like you would RVZ and expect similar results. It looks to me like the WR room is a total shit show to me still and I'm sure it'll be blamed on RVZ and Buie being hurt but we know it goes beyond that.

The RBs didn't look good till the 2nd half once they had ISU softened up some and Patterson ran hard. I don't exactly blame Washington jr or Williams much for that they didn't have anywhere to go. I don't think Kaleb Johnson woulda done much better. Again you can't let a defense just play you in a phone booth like that for 2/3rds of the game and expect any kind of success. They put too much on the OL by doing that and it's not fair to them and it just doesn't work against decent teams.

So I'm not expecting any magical season the rest of the way based on what we've seen. We aren't going 10-2 or 9-3. The absolute ceiling is 8-4 and even that might be a pipe dream. I'll be happy to eat my words if I'm wrong. I don't think I'm a prophet if I'm right though it looks pretty obvious that 6-7 wins is what's likely. I wonder how the fans are going to digest this if the season continues like this.
Not worthless. Can’t buy all of it, but your point is well taken.
 


From the glass half full side it took Iowa playing terribly for ISU to win by 3 with a last minute 54 yard FG.. So either Iowas D is pretty dang good again and or ISU isn't what they are all cracked up to be either.

So 2 full games in and offensively neither were any better then what we've seen the last handful of yrs going back to BFs last couple yrs. Neither MG or Lester impressed me at all. Lesters game plan has zero aggression to it. He doesn't try to stretch the field till it's too late. MG is a deer in the headlights out there. He holds the ball too long and doesn't seem to have full confidence in what he's doing. Combination of the stage being too big and it being his first yr in the system I suppose. It's what you run into when you go renting QBs for 1 yr especially from FCS level.

The first two possessions of the game Iowa went run, run, pass, punt. The 3rd possession they actually got a 1st down before taking a sack and punting. In the first Q Iowa ran 12 snaps 3 possessions with 3 punts and got down 6-0. To me it literally starts there. They played with zero aggression. Zero intention of trying to move the ball. They lined up to play in a phone booth and made themselves predictable and easy to defend like always.

Iowa had 2 out of 10 possessions that I'd describe as solid all game long that ended in 10 pts which doesn't cut it obviously. I don't see how an OC or HC can look at that and say that's succeeding any goals they may have had before the game. That wasn't any west coast offense that I watched. It was the same ole same ole double TE run right run left with a little QB option/slow mesh worked in the 2nd half.

There was so much talk about how good the WRs are and how many of them they have... Well I'm still looking. Wetjen was terrible. He shoulda been benched frankly. Yet I kept seeing him out there. Phillips is just so small he looks like a midget out there. Talk about a small target that they don't seem to know how to use. I'm fine with him playing but good grief you can't use him like you would RVZ and expect similar results. It looks to me like the WR room is a total shit show to me still and I'm sure it'll be blamed on RVZ and Buie being hurt but we know it goes beyond that.

The RBs didn't look good till the 2nd half once they had ISU softened up some and Patterson ran hard. I don't exactly blame Washington jr or Williams much for that they didn't have anywhere to go. I don't think Kaleb Johnson woulda done much better. Again you can't let a defense just play you in a phone booth like that for 2/3rds of the game and expect any kind of success. They put too much on the OL by doing that and it's not fair to them and it just doesn't work against decent teams.

So I'm not expecting any magical season the rest of the way based on what we've seen. We aren't going 10-2 or 9-3. The absolute ceiling is 8-4 and even that might be a pipe dream. I'll be happy to eat my words if I'm wrong. I don't think I'm a prophet if I'm right though it looks pretty obvious that 6-7 wins is what's likely. I wonder how the fans are going to digest this if the season continues like this.
ISU's receivers look like NBA centers out there compared to ours. That's not a knock on the kids, it just is what it is. Seeing Lazard, Purdy, and Hall out there tearing it up in the league is pretty tough to beat for recruiting (along with the money). And they're probably going to have Becht in there too shortly.
 


The first two possessions of the game Iowa went run, run, pass, punt. The 3rd possession they actually got a 1st down before taking a sack and punting. In the first Q Iowa ran 12 snaps 3 possessions with 3 punts and got down 6-0. To me it literally starts there. They played with zero aggression. Zero intention of trying to move the ball. They lined up to play in a phone booth and made themselves predictable and easy to defend like always.
The first 15-25 ish plays for any team are 100% scripted and they all stick to it to a T unless something super weird happens. It's even that way in high school. It's how good coaches feel out the other teams' tendencies and it sets up the rest of the play calling for the half.

The frustrating part about it is there's no adaptation when they get stuffed like that. It wastes an entire half of football, and because KF is so ingrained into the "bend don't break theory," the Hawks never have a safety margin scoring wise and they have to scramble to make points in the 2nd half.

A perfect example of how it affects the rest of the game is the fouled up punt return by Wetjen. Hawks had a chance for great field position but Wetjen made two brain farts on the same play. First he lets the ball hit the ground, and then he gets caught with his pants down running backwards. So instead of the ball being on the 35 or 40 the Hawks are inside the 5 or whatever it was. They did drive down and score, but that one drive wasted an entire quarter of football because they ran it (albeit successfully) and the clock was spinning the whole time. I mean yeah they scored, but now you don't have any time left to try and put the game away. Instead you're trying to keep your head above water when all the other team needs is a field goal.

They need the same amount of urgency in the 1st half as they have in the 2nd half. Things don't always go right (like that punt return) and you have to have your foot on the gas early to try and give yourself an out later on. How many times in the first half did they just beat the ball up the middle into a stacked box? Yes, the run isn't working and MG is struggling to see his receivers, but try something different. Out routes behind the sticks aren't going to get first downs. Running into 3 LBs and 4 DLs isn't either. Even if it doesn't work you have to mix it up and ISU did that REALLY well. You try things until something works...
 






The first 15-25 ish plays for any team are 100% scripted and they all stick to it to a T unless something super weird happens. It's even that way in high school. It's how good coaches feel out the other teams' tendencies and it sets up the rest of the play calling for the half.

The frustrating part about it is there's no adaptation when they get stuffed like that. It wastes an entire half of football, and because KF is so ingrained into the "bend don't break theory," the Hawks never have a safety margin scoring wise and they have to scramble to make points in the 2nd half.

A perfect example of how it affects the rest of the game is the fouled up punt return by Wetjen. Hawks had a chance for great field position but Wetjen made two brain farts on the same play. First he lets the ball hit the ground, and then he gets caught with his pants down running backwards. So instead of the ball being on the 35 or 40 the Hawks are inside the 5 or whatever it was. They did drive down and score, but that one drive wasted an entire quarter of football because they ran it (albeit successfully) and the clock was spinning the whole time. I mean yeah they scored, but now you don't have any time left to try and put the game away. Instead you're trying to keep your head above water when all the other team needs is a field goal.

They need the same amount of urgency in the 1st half as they have in the 2nd half. Things don't always go right (like that punt return) and you have to have your foot on the gas early to try and give yourself an out later on. How many times in the first half did they just beat the ball up the middle into a stacked box? Yes, the run isn't working and MG is struggling to see his receivers, but try something different. Out routes behind the sticks aren't going to get first downs. Running into 3 LBs and 4 DLs isn't either. Even if it doesn't work you have to mix it up and ISU did that REALLY well. You try things until something works...
Yeah why not just play 30 mins of football instead? It would be the same thing. The first half was pointless boring and accomplished nothing. Iowa's game plan is to not make any mistakes and hope the other team does. Be it penalties, TOs gets out of position in the run game etc. Iowa's not looking to get some chunk plays and put pressure on the D. If Iowa breaks a running play that'd be fantastic icing on the cake but hell that's not even a realistic game plan. They just hope to soften you up so maybe a playaction pass might work late. But that doesn't work when you're playing from behind or tied with the clock as your enemy.

Wetjen shoulda seen the bench after that play and shouldn't have even been out there to slip on the interception play. He was bad all game. They shoulda had 3 other guys to replace him with according to all that hype I'd heard this off season about a deep WR room. Come on Budmayr earn that raise ya got.
 


Lot of great points. I, too, want to remain optimistic, but I kind of felt like this game was a "must win" going into the Big Ten season. However as I mentioned before, sometimes an early loss can be a turning point or wake up call. Much like Fry said, we play a certain style. We are not going to change all of sudden and become Air Raid. However, we need to find things that we can do, and do effectively. Right now, there doesn't seem to be a lot.

What I saw though, was a team that didn't do much the first quarter and a half, woke up and didn't lay over. However, I just don't think we have the firepower to play from behind. I think the defense played decent. Not great, but kept us in the game and kept a pretty good offense in check.

They forced a 54 yard field goal attempt. And honestly, that tipped 17 yard reception was a back breaker, and a little bit of luck. Very little pass rush and didn't seem to see any blitzes dialed up much but I'm guessing that was by design with Parker fearing to risk and expose our defense.

I grew frustrated with Wetjen. The unsportsmanlike conduct right off. I think he played super safe on punts and the one punt he allowed to hit the ground and then tried to make up for it that pinned us deep. Throw in the slip on the interception. Just not a good game.

Our running game didn't seem to get going until Patterson got in there, but Iowa State started bringing safeties up since we showed we couldn't consistency throw. There were several times they did this and it was man coverage, but no separation.

I do feel bad (in some ways) for Gronowski. I think some is on him. I think he is playing catch up with the speed of the game. However, he seems hesitant to let one rip. I am thinking some of that is there is no separation.

In all, we still had chances. I think they had Gill wide open and had his guy beat on a skinny post with nobody behind him and we missed it. We had a few drops as well. Hopefully we can figure some things out and implement it against UMass and begin to have some success or it could be a long season.
 




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