Regarding DJK and his time here

ottoman89

ottoman89

Well-Known Member
Watching video of him, am I the only one that thinks he was underused here at Iowa?

Also, would he have put up better numbers in a Pass 1st Offense?


Just curious to get everyones opinion, and believe he was both, underused, and also think he would have put up numbers in a passing team.
 
Yes, he was underutilized. That's true of just about any WR we've had in a long time though, and that's part of the reason we don't have many get drafted, I'm sure. Mo Brown was the last guy that we treated like a go-to guy, and even he didn't get 1,000 yards.

BUT, DJK has still developed into an excellent wideout, who runs the best routes I've ever seen from an Iowa receiver (the only guy that's right up there with him that I've seen play is Hinkel). His blocking kind of sucked his first two years (didn't seem too eager to engage a defender), which also played a hand in his underutilization, IMO. Coincidentally, when he got out of the doghouse midway through last year, his blocking was MUCH improved. He's got everything you want in a receiver save for elite speed, and he doesn't always catch the ball with his hands. But he doesn't drop passes. And he's just a playmaker, bottom line. Plus he's one of my favorite Hawks of all time.
 
tm3308 said:
Yes, he was underutilized. That's true of just about any WR we've had in a long time though, and that's part of the reason we don't have many get drafted, I'm sure. Mo Brown was the last guy that we treated like a go-to guy, and even he didn't get 1,000 yards.

BUT, DJK has still developed into an excellent wideout, who runs the best routes I've ever seen from an Iowa receiver (the only guy that's right up there with him that I've seen play is Hinkel). His blocking kind of sucked his first two years (didn't seem too eager to engage a defender), which also played a hand in his underutilization, IMO. Coincidentally, when he got out of the doghouse midway through last year, his blocking was MUCH improved. He's got everything you want in a receiver save for elite speed, and he doesn't always catch the ball with his hands. But he doesn't drop passes. And he's just a playmaker, bottom line. Plus he's one of my favorite Hawks of all time.
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It's pretty scare to think what he could have done here. What boggles my mind is O'Keefe almost completely forgot what the Jailbreak screen was. That play, is one that I believe DJK would have been pretty sick.
 
DJK is having by far his best season. He still gives up on some plays too early ... and he doesn't go up hard enough after "jump balls." However, that said, he's an excellent player ... and he'll only continue to get better. Definitely a high-ceiling player.

As for underutilized ... I don't think so. Stanzi has gone to him plenty. Only this season has he really asserted himself to the point where he truly seems capable of being a dominant contributer.
 
Remember when DJK was a message-board messiah and everyone ranted and raved about how great he would be?! It seems like only yesterday... it really does. Lo and behold, he's going to be the best receiver ever to wear the black and gold... go figure.
 
tweeterhawk said:
To the OP, no. He should be our go-to guy on virtually every play.
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how many times was he thrown at Saturday?

what's funny about this topic is that a record he just broke was for THE all-time underutilized player in my hawkeye-era.

Compared to Dwight, I think DJ was overutilized.

Second to Dwight - I'm thinking Tavian Banks holds that spot.
 
he's been under utilized. no bubble screens this year, we run Sandeman on reverses instead of him?

that short crossing pattern he caught last week versus Wisconsin should be ran a couple times every week. Hes the best runner after the catch Iowa has had since Tim Dwight.

In the Orange Bowl last year the passing game went down the tubes when he got hurt. Their will be a big drop off next year at wr.
 
IMO this is the first year where DJK has been a full-time starter. Because of his dog-house issues, injuries etc, DJK didn't play every series. Last year, for whatever reason McNutt and DJK rotated in and out for most of the games while Stross played every series. This year for the first few games DJK and Sandeman rotated every other series.

So yes, IMO he was under-utilized and is now just showing what he can do as an every down player.
 
I know this will be difficult for some KOK supporters to fathom but when you have a stable of receivers that includes DJK, McNutt, Reisner, Sandeman you need to shift your offensive balance to the pass.
 
MidnightBlueSix said:
It's hard to say he's been underutilized when he's Iowa's all-time leading receiver.
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Erroneous logic. Is it not possible that if KF/KOK had utilized him better, he would have broken the record earlier and finish the year with even better numbers?

We may even have beaten Arizona and Wisky.
 
tweeterhawk said:
Erroneous logic. Is it not possible that if KF/KOK had utilized him better, he would have broken the record earlier and finish the year with even better numbers?

We may even have beaten Arizona and Wisky.
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Yes, it's possible, but by that same logic it means EVERY receiver we've ever had has been underutilized. If he's the most successful we've ever had and even that isn't enough, then by default we always underutilize our receivers. Fact is, he's a markedly better receiver this year than in the previous 3. There's no real argument there. His QB is also lightyears ahead of where he was last year. It may just be that neither of them was ready to add to their workload before now.
 
MidnightBlueSix said:
Yes, it's possible, but by that same logic it means EVERY receiver we've ever had has been underutilized. If he's the most successful we've ever had and even that isn't enough, then by default we always underutilize our receivers. Fact is, he's a markedly better receiver this year than in the previous 3. There's no real argument there. His QB is also lightyears ahead of where he was last year. It may just be that neither of them was ready to add to their workload before now.
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How on earth does this make sense? DJK has been underutilized because he has considerably more talent than all but a handful of receivers in school history. Just because he holds the record doesn't mean he reached his potential, production-wise. There are less talented receivers below him on the list that DID reach their potential, but their potential was not on the same level as DJK's.

It's kind of like Ken Griffey Jr. Just because he's got over 600 homeruns (and thereby far more than almost every player to ever play the game), does NOT mean that he did as much as he could in his production.
 
tm3308 said:
How on earth does this make sense? DJK has been underutilized because he has considerably more talent than all but a handful of receivers in school history. Just because he holds the record doesn't mean he reached his potential, production-wise. There are less talented receivers below him on the list that DID reach their potential, but their potential was not on the same level as DJK's.

It's kind of like Ken Griffey Jr. Just because he's got over 600 homeruns (and thereby far more than almost every player to ever play the game), does NOT mean that he did as much as he could in his production.
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Ok...let me try to simplify. By the logic you're using, he would only have reached his potential if we threw the ball to him on every single play. Otherwise, there would have been catches, yards, and TDs he was capable of accumulating that he did not. What I'm saying is that it's possible that during his first 3 years he didn't have the ability, be it physical or mental, to play at any higher of a level. I mean, he was the leading receiver in 2007, 2008, and 2009. It's hard to argue he wasn't getting enough looks.

A better question would be, "have we passed enough in the past 4 years?" But that again tracks back to Ricky. Maybe DJK would have had better numbers if some of those passes weren't picked or if Ricky was more able to put the ball into his hands in 2008 and 2009. My point is that when he's getting the most looks and as a result has the most catches and yards in school history, it's hard to say he was underutilized. It's kind of like saying Adam Robinson is underutilized right now because he isn't being carried off the field completely exhausted after every game.
 
I think he was definitely under utilized on 4th & 1 Sat. when we run a QB sneak on the 2nd to last play out of field goal range.
 
DJK has given up on some plays in his career, yes I would agree with that statement...but the first thing I thought of on his long TD catch this weekend was he didn't quit for even a half step, and he was in top gear all the way through the catch...I thought, 'He's made it.'
 
tweeterhawk said:
Erroneous logic. Is it not possible that if KF/KOK had utilized him better, he would have broken the record earlier and finish the year with even better numbers?

We may even have beaten Arizona and Wisky.
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Do you remember this guy named Jake Christiansen? Pretty good at throwing the ball about 5 yards in front of receivers?

Also another gentlemen by the name of Shonn Greene? I believe he rushed for 100 yards every game when he was a senior?

I can't remember the third guy's name... Moeaki or something? I think he plays in the NFL?

But no, you're right. We should have targeted DJK 10 times a game, starting with his freshman year. That's the point of the game, right? To see how many receptions one player can rack up?

Last I checked breaking the career record for receiving yards in the sixth game of the season at a school that's been playing football for 121 years is pretty good. But you know me... I don't have the killer instinct.
 
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