The myth of Iowa recruiting and its affect on the field

BSpringsteen

BSpringsteen

Well-Known Member
I know - JD loves to talk about how hard it is to recruit to Iowa. My question is why?

You mean to tell me that with this resume that we can't recruit top 25 classes every year?

• 3rd most players in the NFL in the last 5 years.
• Fantastic facilities
• Winning tradition
• Great fan support
• Great college town
• Good school

I'm not suggesting that we should be clearing classes os 20 4 and 5 star players every year, just that the resume of the program is much better than the recruiting.

Some might say this is a feather in KF's cap. Maybe it is, but now the lack of talent on the field and the horrendous attrition problems the program has faced is rearing its head and wreaking havoc, and ultimately the players on the field are his responsibility.

JD: But Bruce - Iowa is a low population state.
BS: So is West Virginia. Moreso, 3 of the 5 neighboring states have no college football tradition. Illinois? Missouri? Minnesota? These are pro sports towns and states with heavy populations and a good record of producing good talent for us.

JD: Iowa is a horrendous climate, no beaches, no palm trees, snow...
BS: Really? So is the rest of the Big 10.

The point is that 2+2 = 0 when it comes to Iowa recruiting.

We don't need a new coaching staff, we need a new recruiting philosophy. And then we need to keep them on campus.
 
It sure doesn't seem to have the same effect on Oklahoma State, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Kansas State, Boise State, etc... I'm not even sure that Madison is all that more desirable than IC.
 
I tend to agree. I don't know that KF really covets those blue-chip players as much as other coaches do. They don't really fit into the vanilla system he favors. Of course, it *is* harder to recruit to Iowa than to Alabama or Florida or wherever, but the 'recruiting philosophy' (a good term you used) seems to be a part of it.
 
The only time I see the recruiting thing brought up is when people ask why we can't win national titles.

On the whole our level of recruiting should be good enough to put us in the top three or so in the conference. Does anyone know how we stack up over the last ten years or so?
 
DuffMan said:
On the whole our level of recruiting should be good enough to put us in the top three or so in the conference. Does anyone know how we stack up over the last ten years or so?
Click to expand...

In terms of wins and losses? The KXIC postgame call-in show guys said that Iowa is third in wins and seventh in overall recruiting level for some period (not sure how many years they were using, but it's probably a decade or more).
 
You simply don't have the temperament to be co-mvp. This is a classic 2005-2007 Kirk Ferentz stretch. Bad next year again and then good the year after.
 
Eddy - I was crushing Silver Bullet's all AM. The fact that I am writing coherent posts with great analytical points in this condition should be a cause for great concern for you.
 
And while *this year's* team isn't near the top of talented KF Iowa teams, overall, I don't think talent level has been the problem over the years. Obviously KF's teams have been good enough to usually compete with the big dogs in the Big Ten and decent bowl opponents. It's the lapses against inferior teams -- Western Michigan, Minnesota, Indiana, Northwestern -- that have been a regular occurrence which are so frustrating.
 
DuffMan said:
The only time I see the recruiting thing brought up is when people ask why we can't win national titles.

On the whole our level of recruiting should be good enough to put us in the top three or so in the conference. Does anyone know how we stack up over the last ten years or so?
Click to expand...

Its not top 3, I'd guess closer to 6th. I don't see us out recruiting MI, OSU, PSU just based off demographics. We're usually in that 2nd tier with WI and MSU. Not sure where NE falls but I'm guessing they'll at least be in that 2nd tier if not first.
 
Recruiting is a dual-edge sword... remember the US Army HS All-Star game - w/ what 7 stud recruits?? This led to the 'fat-cats' year of '07. Other edge is the walk-on to All-Big 10 (Bruce Nelson, Dallas Clark)... when is last one of these we've had?

Also - last 2 years we've played 18-19 guys as true freshmen - lose that 5th year player who usually is a difference maker or 'next man in'
 
• 3rd most players in the NFL in the last 5 years.
-Cant argue that fact but its highly overrated to most 18 yr olds.
• Fantastic facilities
Not much better than most BCS schools anymore.
• Winning tradition
Alot of teams finish over .500 every year
• Great fan support
Not nearly as great as most biased people on here think.Have you ever been to
an SEC or Big 12 schools tailgate or game?
• Great college town
They all say that. IC is middle of the road.
• Good school
Good...not great.


If those are your only positives...I could overwhelm you with negatives.
but I wont.
 
smoot27 said:
It sure doesn't seem to have the same effect on Oklahoma State, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Kansas State, Boise State, etc... I'm not even sure that Madison is all that more desirable than IC.
Click to expand...

The Oklahoma schools are apples and oranges, IMO. They're in the backyard of Texas, and get tons of better recruits from there than we can, just because they have a stronger foothold. Nebraska has that right now, but it will likely fade the longer they are in the Big 10.
 
teachercoach said:
Recruiting is a dual-edge sword... remember the US Army HS All-Star game - w/ what 7 stud recruits?? This led to the 'fat-cats' year of '07. Other edge is the walk-on to All-Big 10 (Bruce Nelson, Dallas Clark)... when is last one of these we've had?

Also - last 2 years we've played 18-19 guys as true freshmen - lose that 5th year player who usually is a difference maker or 'next man in'
Click to expand...

The "Fat Cats Year" was '06, not '07. It wasn't the highly touted class of 2005 that led to the downfall. Hell, they were a big part of the '08/'09 success. Angerer, Greene, Moeaki, Stross, Eubanks, Richardson, etc. Some of them didn't pan out, but they were just sophomores/redshirt freshmen in the Fat Cats season.
 
We really do have a lot of delusional fans. You are right, IC is is a top flight destination, with top flight education, and the greatest facilities this side of the NFL. Not to mention IC has the most friendly police force of any college town in the country. Who would not want to take advantage of all the superior things we offer here at Iowa. Hopefully none of the powers that be listen to any of you jack wagons.
 
JonDMiller said:
This Might Tick You Off | Hawkeye Nation
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Actually, it does tick me off because we lose to bad teams on a near-annual basis.

Guess what that means? It means that Iowa could have been even better in the W-L than they have been.

I mean, really. All those players sent to the NFL, arguably the two best receivers in Iowa history last year and this year in DJK and McNutt, and we're looking at regular seasons of 7-5 and, most likely, 6-6?

Yeah, we all should be ticked off.
 
JailBreak81 said:
We really do have a lot of delusional fans. You are right, IC is is a top flight destination, with top flight education, and the greatest facilities this side of the NFL. Not to mention IC has the most friendly police force of any college town in the country. Who would not want to take advantage of all the superior things we offer here at Iowa. Hopefully none of the powers that be listen to any of you jack wagons.
Click to expand...
Just like Boise, Idaho, right? Don't talk about their schedule, either. They would beat us.
 
DuffMan said:
The only time I see the recruiting thing brought up is when people ask why we can't win national titles.On the whole our level of recruiting should be good enough to put us in the top three or so in the conference. Does anyone know how we stack up over the last ten years or so?
Click to expand...

I see what you did there...
 
3 years 7 or fewer wins, 3 years 8 or more wins...

That puts Iowa firmly in the mediocre to good range in the conference. Luckily Iowa has had a down B1G for a bit.

But the problem with using that last ten seasons stat is that it includes 2 up cycles and only one down cycle.

Well, Iowa is on its third down cycle to only two up cycles. Also, by forgetting the first down cycle, the overall record is skewed.
 
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