Rob Report: Hawkeyes Still Haunted by '16 Penn St. Game

RobHowe

RobHowe

Administrator
Shortly after Iowa closed out its non-conference slate on Saturday, the Hawkeyes were looking ahead to next week's Big Ten opener against No. 5 Penn State. That, an injury report and more in this week's Rob Report:

LINK
 
Ferentz re: Wirfs:

"...and he's in the Army now, so we're rollin'."

Ol' KF is lightening up in his old age...I like it.
 
Iowa will not be rolled like last season. But, man, PSU is so explosive. I really don't see how we can win. I do see it as a close game IF Stanley keeps his composure. We won't be able to win by running the ball. To me, this will be another ISU game. It'll be a shootout. Our mindset needs to be 35 points to have a chance.
 
ArvadaHawk said:
Iowa will not be rolled like last season. But, man, PSU is so explosive. I really don't see how we can win. I do see it as a close game IF Stanley keeps his composure. We won't be able to win by running the ball. To me, this will be another ISU game. It'll be a shootout. Our mindset needs to be 35 points to have a chance.
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If Penn St. plays poorly, or we force a couple mistakes, we can win. After last years Michigan game, I won't say Iowa can't win a home game. I mean they looked as bad as I have ever seen them when they lost to Penn St. last year, and the very next week beat a very good Michigan team.

I think the plan is going to be try to limit Penn St. possessions like they did vs N. Texas. Iowa is 6th in the nation in TOP, They can't score without the ball, plus it keeps their offense out of a rhythm. In the Iowa vs ISU game they got rolling because they kept getting the ball back. It went ISU TD, Iowa 3 and out, ISU TD, Iowa 3 and out, ISU TD. We can't afford 3 and outs vs Penn St.

Penn St. will still probably get 28+ points, but we need to limit their possessions as much as possible, as they will score, their offense is just good.
 
deanvogs said:
If Penn St. plays poorly, or we force a couple mistakes, we can win. After last years Michigan game, I won't say Iowa can't win a home game. I mean they looked as bad as I have ever seen them when they lost to Penn St. last year, and the very next week beat a very good Michigan team.

I think the plan is going to be try to limit Penn St. possessions like they did vs N. Texas. Iowa is 6th in the nation in TOP, They can't score without the ball, plus it keeps their offense out of a rhythm. In the Iowa vs ISU game they got rolling because they kept getting the ball back. It went ISU TD, Iowa 3 and out, ISU TD, Iowa 3 and out, ISU TD. We can't afford 3 and outs vs Penn St.

Penn St. will still probably get 28+ points, but we need to limit their possessions as much as possible, as they will score, their offense is just good.
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Their defense is that good also. I don't think we're good enough to play ball control and keep getting first downs to control the clock. I think we can score by being aggressive. I don't think we can score by being conservative. We'll see. brian really has not been conservative, yet, this season, in a small sample of 3 games. Going conservative against PSU would be a break in brian's M.O.
 
This isnt NTSU or Wyoming. Hawks need to get the ball to Wadley as oft as possible in as many directions as possible in as many ways as possible.
 
deanvogs said:
If Penn St. plays poorly, or we force a couple mistakes, we can win. After last years Michigan game, I won't say Iowa can't win a home game. I mean they looked as bad as I have ever seen them when they lost to Penn St. last year, and the very next week beat a very good Michigan team.

I think the plan is going to be try to limit Penn St. possessions like they did vs N. Texas. Iowa is 6th in the nation in TOP, They can't score without the ball, plus it keeps their offense out of a rhythm. In the Iowa vs ISU game they got rolling because they kept getting the ball back. It went ISU TD, Iowa 3 and out, ISU TD, Iowa 3 and out, ISU TD. We can't afford 3 and outs vs Penn St.

Penn St. will still probably get 28+ points, but we need to limit their possessions as much as possible, as they will score, their offense is just good.
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This is one game where I think dragging the game out on the ground is going to be the way to go. Keeping the ball out of their hands, especially with our secondary, is the only way we get it done.
 
ArvadaHawk said:
Iowa will not be rolled like last season. But, man, PSU is so explosive. I really don't see how we can win. I do see it as a close game IF Stanley keeps his composure. We won't be able to win by running the ball. To me, this will be another ISU game. It'll be a shootout. Our mindset needs to be 35 points to have a chance.
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I see more ways we lose big than any other scenario. Highly possible they run successfully at 8-9 in the box. They do that we're toast.
 
Fryowa said:
This is one game where I think dragging the game out on the ground is going to be the way to go. Keeping the ball out of their hands, especially with our secondary, is the only way we get it done.
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The problem is that Iowa in doing that can easily have a whole 1st quarter of 3 and outs or close to it. PSU will be looking for it. Stanley was miserable at throwing over the top on Saturday. I don't really understand not being able to make hardly ANY of those over the top plays. Won't fly against PSU. Minimally they are as good as Iowa at the line of scrimmage.

We have home field. There aren't many things we have a decided advantage at in this game. PSU will and can go over the top and likely that will be the difference. Our 1st two backs aren't ball control backs. Michigan had some very large weaknesses last year, especially at QB and he got dinged. That is not PSU coming in.
 
Its good that the D remembers last year and is motivated by that, but weren't they supposedly also pissed off and motivated after ISU 2 weeks ago? That didn't exactly lead to a dominant start vs NT.

Also would help to break Ferentz tradition and actually have a gameplan specifically for PSU. Hint- Bower can NOT cover Barkley (well, none of our lb's can, but...)
 
Fryowa said:
Do you mean Wadley and Butler, or Wadley and Young?

Because I'd argue Toren Young is a textbook example of a time of possession back.
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hawkeyes87 said:
Its good that the D remembers last year and is motivated by that, but weren't they supposedly also pissed off and motivated after ISU 2 weeks ago? That didn't exactly lead to a dominant start vs NT.

Also would help to break Ferentz tradition and actually have a gameplan specifically for PSU. Hint- Bower can NOT cover Barkley (well, none of our lb's can, but...)
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Barkley on a linebacker in coverage is something that worries me. Can't have that.
 
RobHowe said:
Barkley on a linebacker in coverage is something that worries me. Can't have that.
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Exactly. That's why I said in a previous thread that I would like to see us employ a lot of nickel in this game with Rugamba, OJ and Jackson. They all 3 can tackle well, so it's not as much of a worry in the run game as it is for a lot of other teams that have CBs that can't/won't tackle....
 
ArvadaHawk said:
Their defense is that good also. I don't think we're good enough to play ball control and keep getting first downs to control the clock. I think we can score by being aggressive. I don't think we can score by being conservative. We'll see. brian really has not been conservative, yet, this season, in a small sample of 3 games. Going conservative against PSU would be a break in brian's M.O.
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Pittsburgh is not good and they had 38 minutes time of possession and 24 first downs. Iowa can do the same but not have 3 turnovers like Pittsburgh.
 
These are precisely the type of games that Iowa does well in. I expect that will hold true on Saturday.
 
StatelineHawk said:
Pittsburgh is not good and they had 38 minutes time of possession and 24 first downs. Iowa can do the same but not have 3 turnovers like Pittsburgh.
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I agree with you...good point. I would say that I don't think we can hold PSU to less than 35 points, so we need to have an aggressive, let's score points, attitude to have a chance. I think that if we try to ball control it, we lose 35 to 13-ish, but are never really in the game.
 
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