Perspective

D

dirtwrap

Guest
I think with us sitting at 3-2 and 0-2 in the B1G, I wanted to offer some perspective to the current state of our program. There is neither a glaring deficiency anywhere of something we cannot fix, however, there is no one thing we can fix that will solve all of our problems. I still believe our coaching staff is doing a great job with the system we have in place, with the reality of recruiting, and the moral character that Iowa exemplifies (meaning we don't cheat).

- First of all, we are young. We are starting freshmen and sophomores in so many positions it is unreasonable for us all to believe that they all get it. Wadley, Jewel and Niemenn are the three that will be the toughest to lose, but everyone comes back and this is all great learning experiences because many haven't played. Think the coaches are not trying to evaluate everyone week and not trying? Hooker over Gervase, Ojemudia over Manny right now, Young and IKM over Toks? They are trying folks.

- We have a passing quarterback that right now can't throw the deep ball. It is the same as having a running quarterback with a broken leg. He is close, and I am sure he shows the promise that he will get it down, but right now he is killing our scheme of play action and taking advantage of one on one matchups because he can't do it. But I have faith he will or we will get someone else in there that can.

- We are trying to run a power running game without a power back. Our philosophy is and always has been to play solid defense, shorten the game, and chip away with our running game. Akrum is awesome, amazing and one of my all timers. However, he is a home run guy, like a Tavian Banks or Barry Sanders. All or nothing with him. He doesn't have the bulk to push the pile. But he is still a great asset in the offense in the slot or in the passing game which so far has been our only offense.

- Stanley has yet to find a safety outlet. All quarterbacks need them and he doesn't have one. Our tight ends are usually that but both are so young it hasn't clicked yet with them to think on the fly. One of the major reasons we went 12-0 a couple years ago was on third down time and again CJ knew he had Henry Krieger Coble. Not the most talented tight end in the world, however, he was one of the MVP's of the team. He allowed Kittle to do the flashy stuff, but look what happened the next year. Kittle was still Kittle but he wasnt HKC. Dallas Clark and Tony Moeki were two tight ends that were both the style and substance and not coincidental why we had great seasons with them.

- Our offensive line is both young and honestly, just not as good as years past. Ike getting hurt was a major blow because of his experience in the run game. Right now its patchwork and Welsh is out of position. It is not a cohesive unit.

- Defensively I can't recall hearing the name of a defensive tackle yet. That is not good for Iowa's defense as the play here dictates if we are bend but don't break or we can dominate. Right now we don't have a dominant Jaleel Johnson or Jonathan Babineaux in there. Domination and depth here will be the biggest help to the secondary, because they can't cover forever and Josey can't be everywhere.

- Our winning philosophy is and always has been to score first, sit in our zone and make them one-dimensional. We are having big time problems scoring first for several reasons. Mistakes such as dropped passes, penalties, getting fooled by schemes to audible into the wrong play, field position, etc. Its situational football and we are losing that battle early.

So right now we just are not a great football team. We are good, but not good enough to dominate, impose our will, or win road games. And we probably won't be for the rest of the year. But the season is not lost, I think this is much like 2001 where developing talent, winning a lower tier bowl game and gaining experience will be the key.

The positive though:

- Our quarterback will learn. Everything will slow down for him over the course of the year and the next two that he will win that battle with the defense pre-snap.
- We have talent everywhere. ISM is a field stretcher, I love the way the Young and IKM run, and Fant is a game changer. I think Hockensen will develop into Stanley's outlet as we are kind of seeing that already.
- Our philosophies are not broken or archaic, and I like what I see from Brian. He is learning too for sure, but I think for the most part he has one arm tied behind his back. He would love to run to set up the pass, but right now we can't run, and the passing game is just not good enough to open the run.
- AJ is a stud and will be a game changer on defense over the next couple of years. He will definitely be our x factor.

Sorry for the long post, but overall I like this team and where we are going with it. We wanted Davis out and we got that, and to think we wouldn't have growing pains would be foolish. Changing our coaches would be foolish because in my opinion I haven't seen a system that would be implemented in Iowa, in the B1G, that would be better than what we have. Sure some of these other schools have flashier offenses, but we can't get those horses here. But we can still win with what we have. So I am going to enjoy watching the rest of the games as our young guys develop, do great things, make mistakes, and win and lose.
-
 
dirtwrap said:
I think with us sitting at 3-2 and 0-2 in the B1G, I wanted to offer some perspective to the current state of our program. There is neither a glaring deficiency anywhere of something we cannot fix, however, there is no one thing we can fix that will solve all of our problems. I still believe our coaching staff is doing a great job with the system we have in place, with the reality of recruiting, and the moral character that Iowa exemplifies (meaning we don't cheat).

- First of all, we are young. We are starting freshmen and sophomores in so many positions it is unreasonable for us all to believe that they all get it. Wadley, Jewel and Niemenn are the three that will be the toughest to lose, but everyone comes back and this is all great learning experiences because many haven't played. Think the coaches are not trying to evaluate everyone week and not trying? Hooker over Gervase, Ojemudia over Manny right now, Young and IKM over Toks? They are trying folks.

- We have a passing quarterback that right now can't throw the deep ball. It is the same as having a running quarterback with a broken leg. He is close, and I am sure he shows the promise that he will get it down, but right now he is killing our scheme of play action and taking advantage of one on one matchups because he can't do it. But I have faith he will or we will get someone else in there that can.

- We are trying to run a power running game without a power back. Our philosophy is and always has been to play solid defense, shorten the game, and chip away with our running game. Akrum is awesome, amazing and one of my all timers. However, he is a home run guy, like a Tavian Banks or Barry Sanders. All or nothing with him. He doesn't have the bulk to push the pile. But he is still a great asset in the offense in the slot or in the passing game which so far has been our only offense.

- Stanley has yet to find a safety outlet. All quarterbacks need them and he doesn't have one. Our tight ends are usually that but both are so young it hasn't clicked yet with them to think on the fly. One of the major reasons we went 12-0 a couple years ago was on third down time and again CJ knew he had Henry Krieger Coble. Not the most talented tight end in the world, however, he was one of the MVP's of the team. He allowed Kittle to do the flashy stuff, but look what happened the next year. Kittle was still Kittle but he wasnt HKC. Dallas Clark and Tony Moeki were two tight ends that were both the style and substance and not coincidental why we had great seasons with them.

- Our offensive line is both young and honestly, just not as good as years past. Ike getting hurt was a major blow because of his experience in the run game. Right now its patchwork and Welsh is out of position. It is not a cohesive unit.

- Defensively I can't recall hearing the name of a defensive tackle yet. That is not good for Iowa's defense as the play here dictates if we are bend but don't break or we can dominate. Right now we don't have a dominant Jaleel Johnson or Jonathan Babineaux in there. Domination and depth here will be the biggest help to the secondary, because they can't cover forever and Josey can't be everywhere.

- Our winning philosophy is and always has been to score first, sit in our zone and make them one-dimensional. We are having big time problems scoring first for several reasons. Mistakes such as dropped passes, penalties, getting fooled by schemes to audible into the wrong play, field position, etc. Its situational football and we are losing that battle early.

So right now we just are not a great football team. We are good, but not good enough to dominate, impose our will, or win road games. And we probably won't be for the rest of the year. But the season is not lost, I think this is much like 2001 where developing talent, winning a lower tier bowl game and gaining experience will be the key.

The positive though:

- Our quarterback will learn. Everything will slow down for him over the course of the year and the next two that he will win that battle with the defense pre-snap.
- We have talent everywhere. ISM is a field stretcher, I love the way the Young and IKM run, and Fant is a game changer. I think Hockensen will develop into Stanley's outlet as we are kind of seeing that already.
- Our philosophies are not broken or archaic, and I like what I see from Brian. He is learning too for sure, but I think for the most part he has one arm tied behind his back. He would love to run to set up the pass, but right now we can't run, and the passing game is just not good enough to open the run.
- AJ is a stud and will be a game changer on defense over the next couple of years. He will definitely be our x factor.

Sorry for the long post, but overall I like this team and where we are going with it. We wanted Davis out and we got that, and to think we wouldn't have growing pains would be foolish. Changing our coaches would be foolish because in my opinion I haven't seen a system that would be implemented in Iowa, in the B1G, that would be better than what we have. Sure some of these other schools have flashier offenses, but we can't get those horses here. But we can still win with what we have. So I am going to enjoy watching the rest of the games as our young guys develop, do great things, make mistakes, and win and lose.
-
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You lost me here:

I still believe our coaching staff is doing a great job with the system we have in place, with the reality of recruiting, and the moral character that Iowa exemplifies (meaning we don't cheat).

 
HawkGold said:
You lost me here:

I still believe our coaching staff is doing a great job with the system we have in place, with the reality of recruiting, and the moral character that Iowa exemplifies (meaning we don't cheat).
Click to expand...

Iowa Football is a great program with great coaches and a system that consistently wins more then it loses. Can't be argued.
 
While a healthy perspective is a good thing, in the end, a coach/a program is ultimately judged by his/its record. fn. Even Ferentz says that, in so many words. I also like this team. The defense is going to keep them in games. They seem like they have more playmakers on offense this year with Wadley, Fant, Vandeberg, Easley, ISM, than last year. It's achieving consistency on offense, which they cannot get to right now. This week is vital. A solid win, the bye week, and they're back in business. A loss, or a sloppy win, and it could be quite bumpy the rest of the year.

fn. not exclusively, because a program that does it wrong, for example, Baylor, shows that it's not just about the record, it's how you get there that matters, too.
 
This OP sounds like an U of I insider not just another bozo on the bus, like me. Some candid observations that such a person could never make on the record.

or Maybe its just Jon
 
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I will explain. First of all, we do things the right way. We don't have a Meyer, or Petrino, or any of the slime SEC coaches that over-sign recruiting players and ruin kid's careers. We play by the rules, are classy doing it, and are honorable. That matters to me. There is a reason Ferentz has been here for a long time. Second, we have a system we are known for. We run the ball. We have strong offensive and defensive lines. We play defense. We play action. We use fullbacks and tight ends. The system works, and we can develop and recruit players in that system because of the talent that we have available to us. Look at our roster, and the majority of our kids are from Iowa and surrounding areas like Wisconsin and Illinois. To get a kid from Florida or Texas or California is really risky because are they really going to like it here. So we have to depend on local talent, which is lineman, tight ends, linebackers, etc. It just is what it is.

Bottomline is we are in the same boat as Nebraska, Minnesota and Wisconsin for the most part. Wisconsin and Iowa are pretty much the same program, and both have had success. What is Nebraska now? What is Minnesota now? They don't know and until they do they will be middling programs. And nationally, besides the blue bloods that have rich recruiting advantages such as pedigree, money, cheating, or population, who is consistently great every year? Do you think that if we got Saban up here that we would be national contenders more than we have been? He tried that at MSU and it didn't work, and if you notice he pretty much runs the same system as we do. Tom Herman isnt setting the world on fire at Texas right now, and look at all the coaches in areas that should be can't miss that are worse than us. No matter the system, it takes talent to win football games and for the most part it ain't here. Remember that stat during the 2015 season that was showed during one of the games outlining the 4 and 5 star players per playoff contender? Alabama had like 60, Clemson was like 56, Ohio State was like 50, and we were like 4. We will always always have to be hard-working over-achievers to win, and its a reflection of our fans.
 
HawkGold said:
That statement is arguable.
Click to expand...
Pr813V9.gif
 
Everyone wants to win every game for sure. But every program has its ups and downs. I think changes need to be made when it shows that the problems cannot be fixed with the current staff. There is a reason we have all freshmen and sophomores on this team, we missed on some recruiting classes and that hurts. I like our staff changes this year and I like the direction of our recruiting. Davis was a good coach but a poor fit, so we changed him. Its constant evolution and some stuff works and some stuff doesn't. Put it this way, I am much more excited about the end of this year and the next couple than in some years past.
 
dirtwrap said:
Everyone wants to win every game for sure. But every program has its ups and downs. I think changes need to be made when it shows that the problems cannot be fixed with the current staff. There is a reason we have all freshmen and sophomores on this team, we missed on some recruiting classes and that hurts. I like our staff changes this year and I like the direction of our recruiting. Davis was a good coach but a poor fit, so we changed him. Its constant evolution and some stuff works and some stuff doesn't. Put it this way, I am much more excited about the end of this year and the next couple than in some years past.
Click to expand...
I agree with this last sentiment. However, I will be much more excited about the end of this year with a win this Saturday. The team can learn and grow from a win, it doesn't take a loss for that to happen.
 
We are not WI, and MSU had passed us by until their team imploded last year. Wisconsin though are not on our level. All they do is win. Three straight Rose Bowls (since we like to bring up our Rose and Orange), Capital One, Cotton...and they've won their last three bowl games. Since 1999, they're a 9 win team playing roughly the same schedule (and we match up evenly with them most years)

They've also blown us away in Basketball results too, as they always seem to make the dance, and go deep into the tourney.

I think Iowa could have easily matched Wisconsin type results if we just adapted our schemes a little better.
 
pythagoras said:
Great Program -> Why are you even a fan if you don't believe so. You would be arguing for sake of argument.
Great Coaches -> See InGoodCo statement
Wins more than loses -> Not Arguable
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Why does a fan have to be positive when things aren't positive. I was a fan when things weren't well. My biggest complaint isn't wins and losses. My biggest complaint is sort of like this:

HF: We need to recruit Florida as we can't get the speed we need in Iowa or the Midwest overall.

KF: We can't recruit speed because we are Iowa.

HF made us sort of proud to be from Iowa.
KF acts embarrassed about being in Iowa.

HF made fans enter each game like there is a chance.
KF plays not to win.

I am a fan who misses the different mindset.

Iowa under HF scared the opponents no matter what the record
Iowa under KF scares opponents that they will be embarrassed by losing to Iowa (unless you are IL, MN, Purdue or IN).

That pretty much sums it.

My question in reverse. If you are a real fan how can you even be a fan accepting mediocrity. Note, Mediocrity is better than being bad. It's just not good.


More wins than losses doesn't mean much when those wins include FCS, Illinois, Purdue, Indiana, Rutgers, Wyoming this year, and NTSU. A winning record against MSU, Nebby, OSU, Mich, PSU, Maryland, MSU, Wisky (or even .500) would mean something. Granted if OSU, M, and PSU are on the schedule in a given year, that isn't so easy.

We struggled against very weak teams NC. Why would you expect to do so well in conference minus IL, IU, Purdue and Rutgers?

My first Hawkeye game was watching Iowa lose to a bad Illinois team in what I think was a 3 win season. I won two tickets on the WHO radio pick em contest. I was afraid I was going to get the radio or the weekend in MSPL. No one was more excited. Even back then it seemed Iowa was at least trying to win as opposed to trying not to lose.

I honestly don't know how a good fan can be so satisfied with what we've seen. Bowl games? Can we not get blown out repeatedly? That's not reasonable? The guy is a 20 year coach acting like he's trying to coach ISU as a developmental squad.

Wouldn't mind seeing a shoulder check.
 
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dirtwrap said:
I will explain. First of all, we do things the right way. We don't have a Meyer, or Petrino, or any of the slime SEC coaches that over-sign recruiting players and ruin kid's careers. We play by the rules, are classy doing it, and are honorable. That matters to me. There is a reason Ferentz has been here for a long time. Second, we have a system we are known for. We run the ball. We have strong offensive and defensive lines. We play defense. We play action. We use fullbacks and tight ends. The system works, and we can develop and recruit players in that system because of the talent that we have available to us. Look at our roster, and the majority of our kids are from Iowa and surrounding areas like Wisconsin and Illinois. To get a kid from Florida or Texas or California is really risky because are they really going to like it here. So we have to depend on local talent, which is lineman, tight ends, linebackers, etc. It just is what it is.

Bottomline is we are in the same boat as Nebraska, Minnesota and Wisconsin for the most part. Wisconsin and Iowa are pretty much the same program, and both have had success. What is Nebraska now? What is Minnesota now? They don't know and until they do they will be middling programs. And nationally, besides the blue bloods that have rich recruiting advantages such as pedigree, money, cheating, or population, who is consistently great every year? Do you think that if we got Saban up here that we would be national contenders more than we have been? He tried that at MSU and it didn't work, and if you notice he pretty much runs the same system as we do. Tom Herman isnt setting the world on fire at Texas right now, and look at all the coaches in areas that should be can't miss that are worse than us. No matter the system, it takes talent to win football games and for the most part it ain't here. Remember that stat during the 2015 season that was showed during one of the games outlining the 4 and 5 star players per playoff contender? Alabama had like 60, Clemson was like 56, Ohio State was like 50, and we were like 4. We will always always have to be hard-working over-achievers to win, and its a reflection of our fans.
Click to expand...

Your initial post was pretty good. I agree for the most part. Young team with some talent and then the Ike injury does hurt (no pun intended). Think they need to move Welsh back inside and play Wirfs. Lets talk expectations. People only become happy/sad/disappointed based not on the result itself but on the expectation they placed on a result. For example: If you thought this was a 10 win team because the OL was back, BF replaced GDGD, Jewell was back and Eppy was going to dominate...then you are disappointed because there is virtually no path to 10 wins. If you realized some of the challenges out there that this team was going to have and you thought it was a 7 win team, then you are fine. ALL based on expectations.

Since you mentioned Saban, I actually disagree here. Unlike KF, Saban has shown the ability to adjust. They are a run heavy offense but their blocking scheme is different. They aren't a zone blocking team. They do use the split zone which allows them some mis-direction though. They also have utilized the RPO (run pass option) with Hurts and there's quite calls for power read runs for him. They are also way more up tempo than we are. On defense, they are much more aggressive with their play calling...blitzing, etc. They don't fall back in a prevent/zone nearly as much as the Hawks do.
 
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