Preview, Prediction: Iowa Looking to Tame Wildcats

[RobHowe]

Thank you for posting this, it's what many of us have wanted to say but haven't done so in such an eloquent manner.

Yes, wanting Iowa to be better gets you banned and threatened apparently. All we want as Iowa fans is for the program to be better and that doesn't necessarily mean KF has to go. But he should adapt to the times and where appropriate shoulder the responsibility of the performance outcomes. I'm not sure how that's a controversial statement or point of view.

It’s not a controversial statement or point of view. Other people feel that way. It’s being to express it without hijacking various threads with a liitany of the same complaints over and over and over that aren’t germane to the topic of said threads.

 

[HawkGold]

Rob, if you think I'm that negative, you really don't see my posts except for when I respond to you. When I got involved here is taking issue with your taking issue about Iowa not being deeper than NW. To me that is a negative statement. That is a very negative statement. We all get this isn't the 80s Mildcats. Still, for obvious reasons they shouldn't be as deep at good players at Iowa, just like Iowa isn't likely as deep as OSU. Injuries really devastate the Cats more than most programs.

Frankly I do see stressing how hard it is to recruit to IC as pretty negative. You just get to chose what your definition of negative is. It's pretty easy to see that most programs recruit nationally and don't rely on homegrown talent.

Iowa does go through drop offs in recruiting. I don't think the only reason is that we're in Iowa. I just don't see it that way. Top 20 money. Great campus. Great traditions. Great facilities.

 

[HawkGold]

Stanford has high academic standards as does Notre Dame and others. Iowa isn’t easy to get into either.

The point is, this isn’t 1980s Northwestern. They recruit better now than they ever have and compete with other top Big Ten teams for talent. Heck, they recruit better than Illinois, Purdue, Rutgers and Indiana.

Traditionally until Beckman, NW does not out recruit Illinois. There are other reasons. Iowa is not hard to get into by Big Standards at all.. Illinois is much harder. Iowa is pretty similar on difficulty with IU. Purdue is a bit higher but not by much.

MSU, IU, and Nebby are all about the same and near the lower rung in Big difficulty in enrollment.

 

[RobHowe]

Where the head banging against the wall emoji when you need it?

You're talking about general student population admissions to theses schools. Some of these institutions have relaxed standards for athletes, including classes and majors once in school that are favorable. Iowa does not. Believe me, the Iowa coaches have tried to get some relief. Personally, I'm glad they haven't. I don't think standards should be relaxed.

I never said Iowa shouldn't recruit better than Northwestern. I said that Northwestern is recruiting better now than it has in the past. I cover recruiting. I have a decent handle on this stuff. Northwestern is recruiting closely with most schools in the Big Ten outside of OSU, Michigan and PSU.

If you go back to when you steered this conversation off of the game at hand, you said Iowa has not business losing this game. I said Vegas has it as a even game. That line has moved very little this week. If Iowa was a runaway choice here, people would be all over betting on the Hawkeyes.

Again, this isn't like playing Illinois or Rutgers right now. Northwestern was leading Wisconsin in Madison at half this year and was within a score with less than three minutes to go in the game.

In a later post you said Iowa should be SO MUCH DEEPER than Northwestern. Deeper? Yeah. Much deeper? No. Not to me. Not with what I've already stated about where Northwestern is a program, recruiting, etc. It's a good, not great program. Iowa is a good, not great program.

This isn't about perception or where we think these programs should be. It's where they are. Reality. They're both competitive Big Ten teams.

 

[HomerChampless]

Thank you for posting this, it's what many of us have wanted to say but haven't done so in such an eloquent manner.

Yes, wanting Iowa to be better gets you banned and threatened apparently. All we want as Iowa fans is for the program to be better and that doesn't necessarily mean KF has to go. But he should adapt to the times and where appropriate shoulder the responsibility of the performance outcomes. I'm not sure how that's a controversial statement or point of view.

Yet, some of these same who complain about 'Hawk-harping' complain about the, for example, offense incessantly...and never the defense. I'd also like to see some consistency with the threatening of some of these posters as well.

 

[DBAHawkFan]

I will admit that I voice my opinion about the Iowa offense. We all want to see Iowa win. I want them to go undefeated even though it's highly unlikely. Losses will crush me (though not as bad as they used to, either because I don't allow them or I've got more important things to focus on in life), and I'll admit that even after wins now I feel kind of dirty. Mainly because almost every win with Iowa feels like it was a loss. That if it wasn't for luck, or Wadley, we lose. I understand if I watched other football programs as intensely as Iowa that might be the case too. The Florida program appears to have Iowa syndrome on offense for example. Difference is they fire coaches to see if there's a fix (and I'm not saying FIRE BRIAN!!!)

Ever since 2012 the Iowa offense has just been brutal to watch. There were a few years before, 2007/2009 offenses weren't anything to write home about. But consistently 2012 -- Current it's as if KF has dug in even harder in regards to change.

We have good to great players at Iowa. A lot of that is on the coaching. This staff, or maybe just KF is very good at identifying the diamond in the rough. By the time you're a senior at Iowa, there's a good chance you make an NFL camp. If you're a OL/DL/LB/S, there's an even better chance you get drafted. So talent is not the problem.

I'm just tired of offenses ranked in the high 90s to low to mid 100s and that being OK. And the reason it's OK is because it keeps happening. KF and staff can come out and say "Yeah, we aren't pleased with where we are at. We need to execute better", but year in and year out we see the same results.

Anyway, I think this week we figure out the running game. Wadley had his breakout game in 2015, so maybe he produces the same effort

 

[thetrza]

My Prediction: PAIN! and lots of it!

 

[HawkGold]

Where the head banging against the wall emoji when you need it?

You're talking about general student population admissions to theses schools. Some of these institutions have relaxed standards for athletes, including classes and majors once in school that are favorable. Iowa does not. Believe me, the Iowa coaches have tried to get some relief. Personally, I'm glad they haven't. I don't think standards should be relaxed.

I never said Iowa shouldn't recruit better than Northwestern. I said that Northwestern is recruiting better now than it has in the past. I cover recruiting. I have a decent handle on this stuff. Northwestern is recruiting closely with most schools in the Big Ten outside of OSU, Michigan and PSU.

If you go back to when you steered this conversation off of the game at hand, you said Iowa has not business losing this game. I said Vegas has it as a even game. That line has moved very little this week. If Iowa was a runaway choice here, people would be all over betting on the Hawkeyes.

Again, this isn't like playing Illinois or Rutgers right now. Northwestern was leading Wisconsin in Madison at half this year and was within a score with less than three minutes to go in the game.

In a later post you said Iowa should be SO MUCH DEEPER than Northwestern. Deeper? Yeah. Much deeper? No. Not to me. Not with what I've already stated about where Northwestern is a program, recruiting, etc. It's a good, not great program. Iowa is a good, not great program.

This isn't about perception or where we think these programs should be. It's where they are. Reality. They're both competitive Big Ten teams.

This never got steered away more than most conversations. I do get frustrated with "how bad it is to recruit to IC". Iowa should be favored and should win.

Iowa for athletes is NOT hard to get into compared to other Bigs. They are relatively easy by comparisons. NW is harder. Wisky is harder. Illinois used to be...not sure now.

 

[OkstHawk]

Yet, some of these same who complain about 'Hawk-harping' complain about the, for example, offense incessantly...and never the defense. I'd also like to see some consistency with the threatening of some of these posters as well.

It's not just the threats but the fact that there are some posters who have far more leniency than others when they make critiques. It just so happens that those folks also express the same opinions on things like the direction of Iowa football -- the crowd that thinks 7-5 is a good season, that Iowa can't recruit because of whatever reasons. I'm sorry but my opinion is that these are defeatist attitudes...that Iowa is somehow stuck in mediocrity and we should accept it because it makes life easier. Sorry, but THAT should be offensive to any Iowa fan. I want me team to be great and I think they can be.

This site is supposed to be Hawkeye Nation where any hawk fan can come and express their opinion on all things Hawkeye football. I guess I missed when this stopped being about Iowa football and became Ferentz Nation where those of us with differing opinions aren't welcomed heee to express them. The great thing about message boards is that when you see a poster you don't like make a post you can easily scroll on by. If you don't like my opinion don't read what I write...scroll on by, no harm no foul. If I'm such a huge troll why keep coming at me and responding to every little thing that's posted?

Instead, you're going to ban people who don't share the same opinions? Thats the most snowflakey bullshit I've ever seen on a message board. We wonder why the national media makes fun of Iowa--it's because Iowa fans are so damn sensitive about any perceived slight. Case in point what's unfolding here.

Sad that I even had to write this.

 

[DDThompson]

It's an Iowa Hawkeye site, why are you here if you don't like the Iowa Hawkeyes? Why do you have to throw shade at EVERYTHING? I mean everything? There isn't anything that KF can do to change these guys opinion. He just stated that over the years Iowa RB's get clobbered because of bad blocking? Kirk Ferentz. Kirk Ferentz. Think about that for a second. Kirk Ferentz? One of the best offensive line minds in the game maybe ever. Over the years, Iowa RB's get clobbered because of bad blocking. He thinks that's fair to say. Kirk Ferentz? Seriously... Kirk Ferentz

If you can say that and honestly tell yourself you believe it, then I don't know if you actually watch football. It's disheartening to hear that someone looks at the program that way.

Soccer is his sport; not football.

Now if only he held the US Men's National Team to the same standard as he does KF.

Did you hear the US Men's Soccer team lost to Trinity and Tobacco? That powerhouse squad that finished 6 out of 6 but beat USA soccer into fifth place ... in the play-in tournament?

 

[RobHowe]

It's not just the threats but the fact that there are some posters who have far more leniency than others when they make critiques. It just so happens that those folks also express the same opinions on things like the direction of Iowa football -- the crowd that thinks 7-5 is a good season, that Iowa can't recruit because of whatever reasons. I'm sorry but my opinion is that these are defeatist attitudes...that Iowa is somehow stuck in mediocrity and we should accept it because it makes life easier. Sorry, but THAT should be offensive to any Iowa fan. I want me team to be great and I think they can be.

This site is supposed to be Hawkeye Nation where any hawk fan can come and express their opinion on all things Hawkeye football. I guess I missed when this stopped being about Iowa football and became Ferentz Nation where those of us with differing opinions aren't welcomed heee to express them. The great thing about message boards is that when you see a poster you don't like make a post you can easily scroll on by. If you don't like my opinion don't read what I write...scroll on by, no harm no foul. If I'm such a huge troll why keep coming at me and responding to every little thing that's posted?

Instead, you're going to ban people who don't share the same opinions? Thats the most snowflakey bullshit I've ever seen on a message board. We wonder why the national media makes fun of Iowa--it's because Iowa fans are so damn sensitive about any perceived slight. Case in point what's unfolding here.

Sad that I even had to write this.

You act like we're strict here. We're not. We let a lot more go than most other boards/sites.

That said, my job is to make this an enjoyable community and hopefully have a tone of respect between posters. I know it's unrealistic but I'm going to continue trying.

You coming at me, starting a post with "give it a rest" is the tone I would like to see go away around here. Why can't people disagree while still being cordial or respectful?

 

[OkstHawk]

You act like we're strict here. We're not. We let a lot more go than most other boards/sites.

That said, my job is to make this an enjoyable community and hopefully have a tone of respect between posters. I know it's unrealistic but I'm going to continue trying.

You coming at me, starting a post with "give it a rest" is the tone I would like to see go away around here. Why can't people disagree while still being cordial or respectful?

Agree. So I would pose the question that if it's not okay for me "to come at you", which my intention was to make a general statement about excuses related to recruiting that many folks give and not just you, then why would it be okay for other folks like dean and ingoodco to label folks with nicknames (I guess I'm a part of the Dirty thirty?) and hurl insults without repercussions? Honest question if we are trying to clean up the tone.

 

[deanvogs]

Agree. So I would pose the question that if it's not okay for me "to come at you", which my intention was to make a general statement about excuses related to recruiting that many folks give and not just you, then why would it be okay for other folks like dean and ingoodco to label folks with nicknames (I guess I'm a part of the Dirty thirty?) and hurl insults without repercussions? Honest question if we are trying to clean up the tone.

I've been talked to here, and I have been banned for awhile here.

Just stop whining about others, playing the sad sack card, wooo is me, I am treated so unfairly card, because nobody is feeling sorry for you.

 

[DDThompson]

Especially after you tell one of the head honchos in the first line "to give it a rest already".

Did anyone even list the dirty thirty or is this the proverbial throwing a rock into a pack of dogs and the one the yelps is the one you meant to hit.

Cuz there's a lot of that going on

 

[RobHowe]

Agree. So I would pose the question that if it's not okay for me "to come at you", which my intention was to make a general statement about excuses related to recruiting that many folks give and not just you, then why would it be okay for other folks like dean and ingoodco to label folks with nicknames (I guess I'm a part of the Dirty thirty?) and hurl insults without repercussions? Honest question if we are trying to clean up the tone.

It’d be great if everybody interacted with respect despite what we may consider long standing “feuds.” You’re can do better. Dean can do better. Even though I try to cognizant of it, I mess up. I can be better.

It’s hard for me to see everything on here. I try to read as much as I can but I also have stories to write and games to cover (heading to Evanston now). I obviously do see it when people come at me. It’s best when you guys help by policing yourselves. I want to believe that you’d like to be respectful of each other as Hawkeye fans but then I read the boards and it seems the threads with the most responses are when you guys are being mean to each other. Maybe I’m just lost on it. I don’t know.

BTW, Northwesten is now a 2-point favorite today. Iowa was a 1.5-point favorite yesterday. Late money coming in on the Cats.

 

[Kennyfromminne]

I see this as a game we win. 28-24 Hawks

 

[IndianaHawk]

I just jump over the posts by the same few people. I really don't care what they have to say.
As far as the game-I have no freaking idea who is going to win. I haven't been this on the fence on a game in a long time.

 

[hawkeyebob62]

It's not just the threats but the fact that there are some who have far more leniency than others when they make critiques posters . It just so happens that those folks also express the same opinions on things like the direction of Iowa football -- the crowd that thinks 7-5 is a good season, that Iowa can't recruit because of whatever reasons. I'm sorry but my opinion is that these are defeatist attitudes...that Iowa is somehow stuck in mediocrity and we should accept it because it makes life easier. Sorry, but THAT should be offensive to any Iowa fan. I want me team to be great and I think they can be.

This site is supposed to be Hawkeye Nation where any hawk fan can come and express their opinion on all things Hawkeye football. I guess I missed when this stopped being about Iowa football and became Ferentz Nation where those of us with differing opinions aren't welcomed heee to express them. The great thing about message boards is that when you see a poster you don't like make a post you can easily scroll on by. If you don't like my opinion don't read what I write...scroll on by, no harm no foul. If I'm such a huge troll why keep coming at me and responding to every little thing that's posted?

Instead, you're going to ban people who don't share the same opinions? Thats the most snowflakey bullshit I've ever seen on a message board. We wonder why the national media makes fun of Iowa--it's because Iowa fans are so damn sensitive about any perceived slight. Case in point what's unfolding here.

Sad that I even had to write this.

"BOLD 1": It's the fact they aren't snarky, douche-y ass-clowns in the way they respond. Goes a long way...

"BOLD 2": I can see how Rob likes you so much...

 

[83Hawk]

No, I am sure he just wants to drive away the guys who have absolutely NOTHING else to talk about. It gets old. It's tiring...and you aren't fair in a lot of your assessment. You don't think that KF is good at developing mediocre talent? That's basically the ingredients he works with every season and he churns out players to the NFL like no other program on similar footing. Iowa typically has NO issues running the ball dude. You're straight up crazy. Heard of the Doak Walker? Heard of 2 1000 yard rushers last season? Canzeri? You name it, doesn't matter who they got back there, they run ball. All teams get some tackles for a loss. Iowa also puts DL players into the league at AN alarming rate. I mean, tons. Do you think that's because they DON'T get to the quarterback? Is that your assessment? KF seems to have had some good QB play, this season, last season, the season before that... etc.

I don't think your pretty darn fair in anything.

Not meaning to be negative, but Iowa has not been very good at pressuring the QB for several years now. Given that the Hawks have put several D linemen in the NFL, one wonders if it a scheme issue.

 

[OkstHawk]

I've been talked to here, and I have been banned for awhile here.

Just stop whining about others, playing the sad sack card, wooo is me, I am treated so unfairly card, because nobody is feeling sorry for you.

Not the intention, just want consistency and the same language to be applied to everyone.

"BOLD 1": It's the fact they aren't snarky, douche-y ass-clowns in the way they respond. Goes a long way...

"BOLD 2": I can see how Rob likes you so much...

Case in point right here. Maybe you could go back and read Rob's post.