Need to Upgrade Nonconference Schedule

A

AFAcademyHawk

Well-Known Member
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I am far from the first to propose such a suggestion, but Iowa fans need to put pressure on Barta and company to upgrade the nonconference schedule. Beyond ridding the schedule of FCS opponents (I believe this change is taking place once previously scheduled matchups vs NDSU and UNI take place, per the B1G's direction), and taking into account the switch to a nine-game conference slate, the easiest solution is obviously to modify the Cy-Hawk series. Having lived outside of Iowa for a decade, I can say that this game receives absolutely zero coverage anywhere outside of the Hawkeye state. Why not make the series happen two out of every four years and then use the other two years to schedule home-and-home series with other Power 5 schools or neutral matchups in Chicago or even DC/New York? Doing so preserves the rivalry but allows room for more intriguing matchups for fans and recruits (along with allowing the team to gain experience against other opponents than just the Clones before conference play). I imagine that Hy-Vee and other organizations with monetary ties to the Cy-Hawk series would be up in arms, but Iowa fans would flock in droves to play a quality ACC/SEC opponent.

Again, I realize that the above is not an original idea ... But perhaps some good ole grassroots efforts can get the ball rolling.
 
Agree with you. Hawks have needed an upgrade for years, would be interested to see what everyone's thoughts are on Home/Home series we as a fan base would like to see? Couple that come to mine:

Independent: Notre Dame, BYU
Big 12: West Virginia, TCU, Oklahoma State
PAC 12: Arizona, Arizona State, Colorado, Utah
SEC: Arkansas, Missouri, South Carolina, Kentucky
ACC: North Carolina, Louisville, Boston College, Virginia, Virginia Tech, NC State, Pitt

All are programs that would create great match-ups and games the fan bases could get excited about for the non-conference slate. Interested to see other games everyone would want to see?
 
The new B1G schedule is probably going to make the non-conference schedule worse. With 9 conference games, every other year there will be 5 road games in conference. So unless Barta wants to go down to 6 home games and loose the gate for a game, there will not be a road non-conference game every other year.

The next problem with scheduling is Iowa St. If the Hawks keep ISU on the schedule, they will eat up the non-conference road game in the 4 conference road game years. So with the Clones on the schedule, we can't have a home and home with anyone else. Without dropping Iowa St., our non-conference schedule is destined to be Iowa St. And 2 non power 5 teams because we won't give up the gate money and nobody will agree to play us away without a return trip.
 
I would like to know if the TV money received for Iowa for playing a Power5 team at a neutral site exeeds the gate receipts at Kinnick.
 
I don't know when the contract with ISU is up. But I really hope they go that route. Being in the Big10 West, we need another quality game on the schedule and maybe even a ranked team every now and then, that is if Iowa's goals are the Playoff.

Dreamin.
 
They would not need to go down to 6 home games every year, just 6 home games every other year.

Even years.
4 BigTen home games
1 home game OOC against ISU
1 home game OOC against cupcake U

5 BigTen Road games
1 road game OCC against random P5 team

6 home games. 6 road games

Odd years
5 BigTen home games
1 home game OOC against random P5 team
1 home game OCC against cupcake U

4 BigTen road games
1 road game OCC against ISU

7 home games, 5 road games.

This to me is the ideal set up.
 
Why risk the loss? We get bowl games based on our Ws and our fan base.

The chance of us needing some strength of schedule points to jump someone are so extremely rare that it is not worth the risk of a loss.

Look back and tell me which years a win over a better team would have changed our bowl placement...then do the same with a loss instead of a win.
 
No way do I want Iowa to ever play fewer than 7 home games, regardless of the compromises that must be made in terms of opponent quality. I live for weekends at Kinnick Stadium every fall and would be very disappointed if I could not have 7 weekends every year. Like it or not, ISU is a given for a good long time, and, they are a power 5 team (sic) who has given us fits year in and year out. I hope Barta will do what he can to bring in decent competition for the other 2 games, knowing that his options are limited. And, selfishly, if the kids have to play 9 conference games, and ISU, a couple of cupcakes might be what the doctor ordered for a successful season. Careful what you ask for...
 
Wisconsin, Minnesota, Michigan State, and Nebraska have all taken steps to bolster their nonconference schedules and I would consider them to be our direct peers. The only difference is they aren't forced into playing an in-state rival every year.

I would expect the Hawks to lose at least 50% of these matchups if we played more difficult opponents. That is fine and will most likely not make or break a season. Michigan state won the Cotton Bowl after losing to Oregon, and OSU won the playoff after losing to VA Tech. Cupcake games are dull. But my suggestion was just to revamp the ISU series anyway.

Watching the Hawks play at a neutral site in a big city or going home and home vs a Power 5 school is more enticing than one more day to tailgate at Kinnick before a cupcake rolls into town. Good excuse to travel and experience another gameday atmosphere as well.
 
Hawk90 said:
I would like to know if the TV money received for Iowa for playing a Power5 team at a neutral site exeeds the gate receipts at Kinnick.
Click to expand...

Look up some of the games (Wisconsin has played a couple). I know Orlando/Florida Citrus Sports is hosting a "kickoff classic"-type game between Ole Miss and FSU. According to FCS Exec. Dir. Steve Hogan, B1G and other P5 schools have reached out. My guess is those games (sponsors) have to pony up the cash to schools who not only lose a home game/gate receipts, but also incur travel expenses.
 
As an FYI, those neutral-site games are usually sponsored by local sports association, who of course gets TV and other national backing.

I think we will see a return to some of those kick-off classic games, plus some other high-visibility non-conference games in the first couple weeks.

It also wouldn't hurt us to move the ISU game back to either the week before Thanksgiving or even Thanksgiving weekend. Could (with the Nebby game) give us two trophy games in a row.
 
Lots to chew on here. First, for many schools, the Football revenue is the only 'profit center', and pays for dozens of other sports (just about every other sport loses money--think of all travel expenses for baseball, soccer, field hockey, etc). So having AT LEAST 7 HOME GAMES is ESSENTIAL to keep in the black.
Heck, Mich and PSU would get 8 home gmaes in some seasons. With 9 BIG games (and prolly 10 down the pipeline), there will be automatically 5 road games many yrs. So that hurts. Plus, we always have built in home/away w/ ISU makes even tougher for us.

Secondly, I am sick and tired of hearing about our 'weak' schedule. First, you can't control your BIG schedule. You get what they dish you. This yr, appeared weak. Other yrs, it will be brutal. Some opponents will have up and down yrs, and may get luck of draw, but beyond our control. (sidenote the 'myth' the BIG East was better that BIG West was just that. Head-to-head East vs West .500)

IA most yrs (before new 9 game schedule starting) would play TWO P5 conference teams (ISU, and Pitt, ASU, AZ, etc). Last yr, only 5 out of 14 BIG schools did that (Hawks were one). Most P5 schools only play one. Some zero.

The mythical great $EC loads up on patsies. For craps and giggles, let's check out the perennial blue-bloods of SEC....
Gators (with their insane talent base every year)...FAU, NMSU, ECU
LSU...Mcneese, E Mich, WKU, Syr
ALA...MTSU, Lamar, CHSO
GA...Lamar, GASO, SOU

Shame on these guys, with the TALENT they have every yr to play these patsies.

Meanwhile, Hawks continue to play 10 P5 teams every yr.
 
HuckFinn said:
No way do I want Iowa to ever play fewer than 7 home games, regardless of the compromises that must be made in terms of opponent quality. I live for weekends at Kinnick Stadium every fall and would be very disappointed if I could not have 7 weekends every year. Like it or not, ISU is a given for a good long time, and, they are a power 5 team (sic) who has given us fits year in and year out. I hope Barta will do what he can to bring in decent competition for the other 2 games, knowing that his options are limited. And, selfishly, if the kids have to play 9 conference games, and ISU, a couple of cupcakes might be what the doctor ordered for a successful season. Careful what you ask for...
Click to expand...

^^ this is the main point. Iowa and Kinnick have a top football stadium and attendance numbers. The hawks should be able to call their own shots.

They should always have 7 home games and not give in to having to worry about strength of schedule.

I think they should worry more about playing ISU so often.
 
With 9 conference games now, there is no way we play another P5 team each year. As long as we are locked into ISU, it will never ever happen. I hope at some point we just start playing them every other year, or every 3rd year so we can schedule a real opponent. They really drag down our SOS each year.
 
I would love to see us drop Iowa State. We get no benefit from playing them. When we lose to Iowa State, we lose to a sub-par Big 12 team...and have to hear ISU fans excitement all year. When we beat Iowa State, we beat a Big 12 bottom dweller...and we get to hear ISU fans tell us how we should have won regardless due to better talent.

It makes no sense to me to play a bottom dweller year in and year out.

However, if we schedule someone from a major conference, we will get to see a game that carries some excitement, possibly gain some notoriety, and better prepare ourselves for Big Ten level competition. I would rather have a loss to a good out of conference opponent, and we take something away from that game, than a meaningless win that does little to prepare us for the Big Ten season.

Lastly, I do not know about you, but I am not too hot and bothered by the likes of Buffalo, Iowa State, Ball State, North Texas, Arkansas State, FIU, Missouri State, Tennessee Tech, ULM, Eastern Illinois, a directional Michigan school, NDSU, Maine, the local fifth grade flag football championship team, or any other Southwest Northeast State Technical Auto Diesel A&M Community College University for the Artistically Inspired.

The University of Minnesota landed USC...
Michigan State landed Oregon...
Ohio State landed Texas...
Northwestern landed Stanford...
Wisconsin landed Alabama...

We can do better.
 
1105Kickoff said:
I would love to see us drop Iowa State. We get no benefit from playing them. When we lose to Iowa State, we lose to a sub-par Big 12 team...and have to hear ISU fans excitement all year. When we beat Iowa State, we beat a Big 12 bottom dweller...and we get to hear ISU fans tell us how we should have won regardless due to better talent.

It makes no sense to me to play a bottom dweller year in and year out.

However, if we schedule someone from a major conference, we will get to see a game that carries some excitement, possibly gain some notoriety, and better prepare ourselves for Big Ten level competition. I would rather have a loss to a good out of conference opponent, and we take something away from that game, than a meaningless win that does little to prepare us for the Big Ten season.

Lastly, I do not know about you, but I am not too hot and bothered by the likes of Buffalo, Iowa State, Ball State, North Texas, Arkansas State, FIU, Missouri State, Tennessee Tech, ULM, Eastern Illinois, a directional Michigan school, NDSU, Maine, the local fifth grade flag football championship team, or any other Southwest Northeast State Technical Auto Diesel A&M Community College University for the Artistically Inspired.

The University of Minnesota landed USC...
Michigan State landed Oregon...
Ohio State landed Texas...
Northwestern landed Stanford...
Wisconsin landed Alabama...

We can do better.
Click to expand...

We will always have 2 creampuffs on the schedule. Every team will. If you wanna see some really, really bad schedules, just go look at the SEC. They schedule 3 cream puffs, 1 decent team, and then have 8 conference games. At least we will only have 2 creampuffs, 1 decent team and 9 conference games from here on out.
 
Just get the clowns off the yearly schedule. With 9 conference games there is no way Iowa should be playing them every year. It drags down the sos and forces a road game every other year. There is not really any gain in playing the clowns. Maybe play them once every 3 or 4 years if that.
 
1105Kickoff said:
I would love to see us drop Iowa State. We get no benefit from playing them. When we lose to Iowa State, we lose to a sub-par Big 12 team...and have to hear ISU fans excitement all year. When we beat Iowa State, we beat a Big 12 bottom dweller...and we get to hear ISU fans tell us how we should have won regardless due to better talent.

It makes no sense to me to play a bottom dweller year in and year out.

However, if we schedule someone from a major conference, we will get to see a game that carries some excitement, possibly gain some notoriety, and better prepare ourselves for Big Ten level competition. I would rather have a loss to a good out of conference opponent, and we take something away from that game, than a meaningless win that does little to prepare us for the Big Ten season.

Lastly, I do not know about you, but I am not too hot and bothered by the likes of Buffalo, Iowa State, Ball State, North Texas, Arkansas State, FIU, Missouri State, Tennessee Tech, ULM, Eastern Illinois, a directional Michigan school, NDSU, Maine, the local fifth grade flag football championship team, or any other Southwest Northeast State Technical Auto Diesel A&M Community College University for the Artistically Inspired.

The University of Minnesota landed USC...
Michigan State landed Oregon...
Ohio State landed Texas...
Northwestern landed Stanford...
Wisconsin landed Alabama...

We can do better.
Click to expand...

Beat response yet. If the economics dictate seven home games every year, then so be it and bring on two creampuffs a year. But the ISU series needs to be modified. Seems like the Clones would benefit more from playing another spread team anyway, and they could schedule a Pac-12/Mtn West/AAC team that fits their geographic recruiting profile. I am not saying do away with the series entirely. Just mix it up a bit. Our peers are scheduling more marquee matchups because they don't have a required in-state rivalry game.
 
I see mention of SOS, and I just don't see that as an issue in FB. It is much more of a basketball term.

Iowa's post-season is based on two things...Wins and Fan Base.

Wins gets us into a group and the our fan base compared to others in said group dictates where we go. It is about money not SOS.
 
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