Tired of 'Iowa could have been 8-5 last year'

L

LutherHawk

Well-Known Member
I have heard this repeated many times by the media (and even by KF)...'Iowa could have just as easily been 8-5 last year' as 11-2.
The problem with this statement is:
1. They weren't.
2. Most good teams have close wins (go back and look at any team last year...FL, AL, OSU (against Iowa), Boise St. etc) and you will see that ALL teams have close wins.
3. Take away the 'gimme' pick 6's and the close wins are actually not so close.
4. Good teams learn/know how to win.
5. The Hawks sent 6 guys to NFL from last year's team and have approx. 4 - 6 players that will get drafted next year. This is indicative of a really good team.

It's almost as if the Hawks won a couple of games on the last play or something (ok, I will concede this)...but, they also took OSU to OT, man-handled WI at Camp Randall, showed explosiveness by scoring 28 pts in one quarter versus Indiana, beat up PSU at Happy Valley, and made big plays on special teams all season.
 
It swings both ways. Iowa could have been 10-2 or better in 08. Iowa could have been 9-3 in 05. Just matters what side of the fence your on.
 
LutherHawk said:
I have heard this repeated many times by the media (and even by KF)...'Iowa could have just as easily been 8-5 last year' as 11-2.
The problem with this statement is:
1. They weren't.
2. Most good teams have close wins (go back and look at any team last year...FL, AL, OSU (against Iowa), Boise St. etc) and you will see that ALL teams have close wins.
3. Take away the 'gimme' pick 6's and the close wins are actually not so close.
4. Good teams learn/know how to win.
5. The Hawks sent 6 guys to NFL from last year's team and have approx. 4 - 6 players that will get drafted next year. This is indicative of a really good team.

It's almost as if the Hawks won a couple of games on the last play or something (ok, I will concede this)...but, they also took OSU to OT, man-handled WI at Camp Randall, showed explosiveness by scoring 28 pts in one quarter versus Indiana, beat up PSU at Happy Valley, and made big plays on special teams all season.
Click to expand...

We could have pretty easily been 8-5, though. How often has a team blocked two FGs in a row to end a game? What if that LB from MSU didn't blitz and McNutt was covered on the slant? What if Minnesota had any level of competence on offense? What if Sash doesn't get that pick 6 against Indiana?

You go back to '08 and we were 12 points away from being 12-0 - what if Stanzi doesn't throw that tantrum at Pitt and Coach O'Keefe didn't need to sit him down in the second half of the game? What if Shonn got that first down against MSU? What if we picked up that corner blitz at Illinois and they don't get the easy TD or what if Norm hadn't gone into the prevent to end the game? What if Shonn didn't get cheap shotted against NU and knocked out of the game?

Many games come down to one or two plays. With our losses on o-line and with Moeaki, Angerer, Spievey and Edds gone, I think we've got an 8-4 team this year.
 
If Iowa has a lead of more than 7 points in the second half, KF is likely to shift into ultra-conservative mode. Particularly when he has a good punter and defense. As a result, we will have more close games than other teams.
 
TMFS's pick 6 in the indiana game was pretty fortunate and turned the momentum of that game.

the punt block and scoop and score was pretty fortunate. that ball takes any sort of "football" bounce and he doesn't get in the end zone, who knows how that game finishes.

michigan state had an interference call that went in our favor(granted, it was the right call but refs often miss them)
 
I don't know why fans wring their hands and moans about this. I could look at any game played in the country that is within 7 points, and take 1-3 plays and say these are what won/lost the game. That is the way EVERY CLOSE game is. It is no different for Iowa.
 
i agree dean...but the guys need to know how close it was so they don't lose that chip on their shoulders. they need to feel that close games like that can go either way and to keep working hard
 
deanvogs said:
I don't know why fans wring their hands and moans about this. I could look at any game played in the country that is within 7 points, and take 1-3 plays and say these are what won/lost the game. That is the way EVERY CLOSE game is. It is no different for Iowa.
Click to expand...

Exactly the point I was attempting to make here. It is just plain obtuse to look at any game and say, 'well if this play went that way, then this would have happened'.
There is a fallacy in thinking this way because we are only focusing on the fortiuitous or unfortunate plays. EVERY play in football could turn into a fortuitious or unfortnate play. EVERY play!
Take Clayborn's blocked punt and ensuing TD. Who's to say that Iowa would not have scored on its offensive posession without the blocked punt and then went on to intercept the ball, and then give up a long TD run by Royster, and then.....
The outcome of every play (down and distance, time on clock, momentum, score) affects the decisions and outcome of the very next play...and so on...and so on....
 
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