The Shadow spring football tidbits

O

OO44

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My Dark Friend, The Shadow, has his rabbit ears in full force around Fort Kinnick. His phone call to me was shorter than most. However, his enthusiasm and excitement was bubbling over.

1. He started the conversation by raving about #8. Between bites of his food and his chewing of same, I heard that the raw athleticism of Don Shumpert has him giddy. "I haven't seen that in an Iowa receiver since....... then he couldn't come up with a name. The potential he saw in #8 is so great that I had to calm him down and remind him that he has yet to catch a pass for the Hawks. But he is one to watch. He added that K-Mart is looking good also as is Keenan Davis.

2. DeAndre Johnson is apparantly fully recovered from his knee problem in high school. He has great cutting ability and will offer a good chance of pace from the Master Blaster, Marcus Coker. Incoming freshmen will figure in here also, but we have two good backs right now.

3. He has seen Carl Davis up close and raved about his size. What Davis may lack in form and technique, he makes up in bulk. Doyle reshaped his body some and then added 15 pounds of iron.

4. Jordan Bernstine looks good. He has always been a favorite of Shadow's and he hopes that he is poised for a great senior season. He has been working out at both corner and safety.

5. He concluded by saying that punts were being boomed from the entrance of the visitors at Kinnick to the Hawk entrance.

Then as he swigged a big drink of iced tea(he is on the wagon) he added, "Did I tell you about #8?"

Next time I speak with him, I hope his mouth is empty and he has a calmer demeanor.
 
OO44 said:
2. DeAndre Johnson is apparantly fully recovered from his knee problem in high school. He has great cutting ability and will offer a good chance of pace from the Master Blaster, Marcus Coker. Incoming freshmen will figure in here also, but we have two good backs right now.
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A little DYK (Did You Know?) about DeAndre Johnson...

The kid was a state track champion in high school...



...as a shot-putter. Pretty impressive.
 
I have been curious about Johnson since kids day last year. He had a good burst, and I thought he was going to play a role last year, especially after the depth depletion.
I really have a quiet optimism about this year as a whole and I think Iowa is working into the "reload" category of teams.
 
Agree about the reload factor. The coaching staff had a little difficulty dealing with the 02-04 success with respect to recruiting. They didn't stick to their priorities quite like they should have. Now, after the Orange Bowl win, they have stayed the course and focused on the kind of guys that can be successful developing in their program.
 
I am cautiously bullish about the offense this year...that is probably a contradiction of terms..I guess I mean I am not gonna be on the mountaintops screaming 32 points per game...but I think its possible.
 
CAARHawk said:
Agree about the reload factor. The coaching staff had a little difficulty dealing with the 02-04 success with respect to recruiting. They didn't stick to their priorities quite like they should have. Now, after the Orange Bowl win, they have stayed the course and focused on the kind of guys that can be successful developing in their program.
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Agree with the "priorities" focus. While there has not been a nationally recognized, "knock your socks off" overall class, since 2007 / 2008 recruiting has been sensational in the OL, DL and TE units -- the bread and butter of Hawkeye success. They've also managed to sprinkle in key playmakers at RB, LB and DB, slowly / deliberately upgraded overall defensive speed / intensity and position changes / player development at WR has paid off.

I'm not quite ready to say "reload" but certainly they have focused on developing quality depth, which is really the difference between the elite and the competitive teams.

This is partly the evolution of the coaches' willingness to use young talent over blue-collar experience. It has partly been out of necessity. One silver-lining to the key injuries over the past 2 seasons is it has forced the coaches' hands at some key positions (RB, LB, OL) and allowed experience to catch up to talent. I believe 2011 and 2012 will look like a "reload" but might actually be more the positive culmination of 2009 & 2010 "forced" development and experience.
 
STILLBUSTER said:
I'm not quite ready to say "reload" but certainly they have focused on developing quality depth, which is really the difference between the elite and the competitive teams.

This is partly the evolution of the coaches' willingness to use young talent over blue-collar experience. It has partly been out of necessity. One silver-lining to the key injuries over the past 2 seasons is it has forced the coaches' hands at some key positions (RB, LB, OL) and allowed experience to catch up to talent. I believe 2011 and 2012 will look like a "reload" but might actually be more the positive culmination of 2009 & 2010 "forced" development and experience.
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I guess you are talking about Morris, McMillan, and Coker. I would wager to say those guys are reload guys. True they played due to injuries to starters, but they each have the type of talent that would seem to have meant that they would excel coming in as sophomore starters, without some of the freshman or RF inexperience.

Look at it this way. If Jewel, Tarp, and Gettis hadn't got injured, would Iowa had been worse off last season with respect to wins and losses?

It was nice to get the three young players time on the field, but it would have also been nice to have the veterans available.

But, reloading means you have studs like these three young players when your vets go down.
 
Vintage responding to an 0044 thread without lobbing grenades?:eek::D

Vin- I know you think 0044 is a kook, but his stuff from the Shadow and his other sources at Fort Kinnick are always good reading.

Now for your next trip to Iowa City, I have to set up time for a beer or two with 0044 and Vin...I'll definitely have to post pics from that encounter.:p;)
 
CAARHawk said:
Better than Master B***er. ;)
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I dunno about that. If a person is one of the best at working with electricity they're a Master Electrician. And if a person is one of the best at putting a minnow or night crawler on a hook then that person should rightfully be called a Master Ba!t3r.
 
Hopefully,this will be another year(like when we replaced King and Kroul in 09) where perceived ''weak'' areas (Wide Receiver,Safety,LB,D-line,and QB) will surprise and become the foundation for a couple of years of excellence.
It is how programs have sustained success. I am already cringing a bit about that schedule in 2013-14,when we have both Wisky and OSU ...ouch. We get the full ''Nebraska'' treatment those two years.

Shumpert is intriguing. If he can surprise,then with Marvin McNutt,Keenan Davis, ect...WR could be a strength for the team and help out Vandy at Qb considerably. Nothing like having guys who can take a short pass,break a tackle and go the distance to pump up a young QB's confidence...and stats.

I have liked DeAndre Johnson since seeing him take that screen pass last fall in the BTN preview and burst out into the open field with explosiveness...and that was on a bad knee? He has dropped some lbs,so he should be even more explosive this year.
Cross our fingers on health but he and Mr Master Blaster could be a dynamic duo next fall.
When we have a good offensive line,we always have a chance...so I am cautiously optimistic that Iowa can win the Legends next year and square off against OSU in Indy.
 
OO44 said:
5. He concluded by saying that punts were being boomed from the entrance of the visitors at Kinnick to the Hawk entrance.
.
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Sounds good, but are you sure that's what you meant in #5? That's only from the SEast corner of the endzone to the SWest. (cross field)
 
Shumpert managed to make some quality plays on special teams right from the outset last year. That is usually a pretty good sign ... at least with respect to providing a measure for his effort-level, athletic upside, and his investment to the program. As he develops and continues to refine his craft at WR ... his upside is absolutley tremendous.

And, as an FYI to everybody, Shumpert was already turning heads last year due to his impressive combo of speed, size, and athleticism.

The bigger issue will be how he gets down the important WR skills. How well does he high-point the ball? How active is he with his hands when going up after balls? More explicitly ... how well does he catch the ball? Lastly, how about his route-running and blocking? It's one thing to be an athletic freak ... it's quite another to have that translate to a particular position unit. Hopefully he works out .... because I've been excited about him for quite some time.
 
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