Under the radar?

O

olddude

Well-Known Member
So I was thinking why is this the Hawks thing. What does it mean?
Is it a lack of respect to the Hawks? Does the media really not see what the Hawks and the coaches have done here? Against ANY team when was the last time we lost by more than one possession?
Or is it more because our coaches and players are well trained in front of the camera? They dont make alot of noise and really as fans we dont either. Almost all Iowa fans dont like espn, infact many plain hate it. So we as a program and fans are not all over espn's or other boards giving anyone any reason to take a harder look or give coverage?
I think KF likes it that way, and thats fine with me.
Why do you all think we are so often "under the radar"?
 


olddude said:
So I was thinking why is this the Hawks thing. What does it mean?
Is it a lack of respect to the Hawks? Does the media really not see what the Hawks and the coaches have done here? Against ANY team when was the last time we lost by more than one possession?
Or is it more because our coaches and players are well trained in front of the camera? They dont make alot of noise and really as fans we dont either. Almost all Iowa fans dont like espn, infact many plain hate it. So we as a program and fans are not all over espn's or other boards giving anyone any reason to take a harder look or give coverage?
I think KF likes it that way, and thats fine with me.
Why do you all think we are so often "under the radar"?
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I'm so sick of people using this as some sort of badge of honor.

We're "under the radar" because we had a terrible season last year (compared to expectations) and lost a ton of talent to the NFL, combined with a new starting QB. Lost the #1 Wr is school history, have a soph RB that has 114 career carries and not a single proven backup. We lost 2 multi-year starting safeties and one of the best punters in college football.
 
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DexterMorgan said:
I'm so sick of people using this as some sort of badge of honor.
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Ok then how about a highly ranked D for many years. Bowl record? My point was not only that one thing but as a program as a whole. We have proven that we are always going to "show up", yet we are "under the radar" or a "dark horse". When does it just become common place that we will compete very well every year?
 


Whoops, see your edit now. Ok last year was a wreck, I agree. Injuries.
As for the rest we have done all this before, I mean I dont see anyone saying 6-6, but come on, history shows that almost every year we are right up there. OH ST I can understand, what about Penn? I am not just talking this year either. Penn is always more in the "light" than Iowa, yet has had a way worse track record than we have had in the last 10 years.
Nebby in a new conf? Why all the hype? Yes their D was great in the B12, but has never played a down in the B10. Their D is not that much better than what ours has been and all those B10 teams played us. Nebby has a fluttering O that can collapse at anytime, our depleated O still won their bowl.
But back to my point, WHAT or WHO do you think builds all the hype or lack of for the programs?
 


olddude said:
Whoops, see your edit now. Ok last year was a wreck, I agree. Injuries.
As for the rest we have done all this before, I mean I dont see anyone saying 6-6, but come on, history shows that almost every year we are right up there. OH ST I can understand, what about Penn? I am not just talking this year either. Penn is always more in the "light" than Iowa, yet has had a way worse track record than we have had in the last 10 years.
Nebby in a new conf? Why all the hype? Yes their D was great in the B12, but has never played a down in the B10. Their D is not that much better than what ours has been and all those B10 teams played us. Nebby has a fluttering O that can collapse at anytime, our depleated O still won their bowl.
But back to my point, WHAT or WHO do you think builds all the hype or lack of for the programs?
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the media.
 


Because whether you want to admit it or not, we are not "great" every year. Yes, I will deal with the occasional 6-6 or 8-4 year, but the media doesn't care about those teams. In the last 5 years we have won a BCS bowl game but have also failed to even go to a bowl. We are pretty good every year for our standards, but when you look at the big picture, there is NO reason we should be favored to win the B10 this year from an outsider perspective. None. We went 8-4 last year with a team that, on paper, was better than this one. As fans of Iowa, we have a little more knowledge (and homerism) for the team and therefore can try to predict a better year for ourselves. Here is the list of our records dating back to 2002. This is why we are still a team that is "under the radar".

2002 Big Ten T–1st 11-2
2003 Big Ten T–4th 10-3
2004 Big Ten T–1st 10-2
2005 Big Ten T–3rd 7-5
2006 Big Ten T–8th 6-7
2007 Big Ten T–5th 6-6
2008 Big Ten T-4th 9-4
2009 Big Ten T-2nd 11-2
2010 Big Ten T-2nd 8-5
 


DexterMorgan said:
the media.
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Right so fans and what coaches and players say, dictates how much coverage and hype a program gets. Like I said if KF likes it that way, I am fine with it, infact I like the way our coaches word things. Just seems silly to me to put much stock in what the media is saying or covering, but then again I never understood the media to well anyway. Why after the president speaks, does some news person have to tell me what he said? I mean he said it in english and that just happens to be what I speak, I think I know what I just heard him say.
 


This is not a program that 'does it' every year at the 9 or 10 win level. People don't expect that regularly from a national perspective.

So the odds are better that when Iowa does perform very well nationally, they will have come from 'off the radar'.

2002 was off the radar. That started a streak of three straight years where Iowa finished 8th in the final ranking.

Iowa hasn't done that since the 1920's.

Iowa was +18, +11 and +11 compared to any preseason expectation in those years. The next two they were double digit the other way

So without the year to year high level consistency (that only a handful of programs achieve) there will be an ebb and flow to expectations.

The media noticing from a national level will lag a bit. Then after a few years of high success, the media jumps on without takin into account the talent drain from those successful teams an how a program like Iowa doesn't recruit and replenish that talent at the same level as those handful of teams do.

It's tough to change that last aspect given the reality of iowa's recruiting demographics.
 


Hawkeye11en1 said:
Because whether you want to admit it or not, we are not "great" every year. Yes, I will deal with the occasional 6-6 or 8-4 year, but the media doesn't care about those teams. In the last 5 years we have won a BCS bowl game but have also failed to even go to a bowl. We are pretty good every year for our standards, but when you look at the big picture, there is NO reason we should be favored to win the B10 this year from an outsider perspective. None. We went 8-4 last year with a team that, on paper, was better than this one. As fans of Iowa, we have a little more knowledge (and homerism) for the team and therefore can try to predict a better year for ourselves. Here is the list of our records dating back to 2002. This is why we are still a team that is "under the radar".

2002 Big Ten T–1st 11-2
2003 Big Ten T–4th 10-3
2004 Big Ten T–1st 10-2
2005 Big Ten T–3rd 7-5
2006 Big Ten T–8th 6-7
2007 Big Ten T–5th 6-6
2008 Big Ten T-4th 9-4
2009 Big Ten T-2nd 11-2
2010 Big Ten T-2nd 8-5
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Ok so for the sake of argument, lets use Nebby, they seem to be getting alot of hype.

02 7-7 (3-5)
03 10-3 (5-3)
04 5-6 (3-5)
05 8-4 (4-4)
06 9-5 (6-3)
07 5-7 (2-6)
08 9-4 (5-3)
09 10-4 (6-2)
10 10-4 (6-2)
The last two years are the only ones where they didnt lose more than 2 in conf play. Are you telling me, this record is that much better than ours to justify the difference in being hyped to being a dark horse? Or are you saying it's more like a band wagon thing where, if a team did well last year (in Nebbys case 2 years) that they must be the favorite's?

Also hadnt our team had so many injuries and just plain gave up (minney) we would not have been 8-5. Infact many said we were the best 8-5 team they have ever seen, so atleast one or two of those losses must be taken with a grain of salt and a dose of reality.
 
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JonDMiller said:
This is not a program that 'does it' every year at the 9 or 10 win level. People don't expect that regularly from a national perspective.

So the odds are better that when Iowa does perform very well nationally, they will have come from 'off the radar'.

2002 was off the radar. That started a streak of three straight years where Iowa finished 8th in the final ranking.

Iowa hasn't done that since the 1920's.

Iowa was +18, +11 and +11 compared to any preseason expectation in those years. The next two they were double digit the other way

So without the year to year high level consistency (that only a handful of programs achieve) there will be an ebb and flow to expectations.

The media noticing from a national level will lag a bit. Then after a few years of high success, the media jumps on without takin into account the talent drain from those successful teams an how a program like Iowa doesn't recruit and replenish that talent at the same level as those handful of teams do.

It's tough to change that last aspect given the reality of iowa's recruiting demographics.
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So basicly the media is late to the show and jumps on the bandwagon. Is that pretty much it? I do understand what you are saying Jon, with winning 10 plus every year for many years thou. But it just seems like alot of hype gets thrown around to teams that dont do that.
 
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olddude said:
Ok so for the sake of argument, lets use Nebby, they seem to be getting alot of hype.

02 7-7 (3-5)
03 10-3 (5-3)
04 5-6 (3-5)
05 8-4 (4-4)
06 9-5 (6-3)
07 5-7 (2-6)
08 9-4 (5-3)
09 10-4 (6-2)
10 10-4 (6-2)
The last two years are the only ones where they didnt lose more than 2 in conf play. Are you telling me, this record is that much better than ours to justify the difference in being hyped to being a dark horse? Or are you saying it's more like a band wagon thing where, if a team did well last year (in Nebbys case 2 years) that they must be the favorite's?

Also hadnt our team had so many injuries and just plain gave up (minney) we would not have been 8-5. Infact many said we were the best 8-5 team they have ever seen, so atleast one or two of those losses must be taken with a grain of salt and a dose of reality.
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I get what you are saying about them but they are in the media, IMO, for 2 reasons. They are switching major BCS conferences. This doesn't happen too often. That is giving them all sorts of media attention. Also, as a team with such tradition as Nebraska, if they have a few 10 win seasons in a row they are going to be media darlings. I know they haven't had the best run over the last 10 years, but in the eyes of the media they are still a big time program. We, are not.
 


Hawkeye11en1 said:
I get what you are saying about them but they are in the media, IMO, for 2 reasons. They are switching major BCS conferences. This doesn't happen too often. That is giving them all sorts of media attention. Also, as a team with such tradition as Nebraska, if they have a few 10 win seasons in a row they are going to be media darlings. I know they haven't had the best run over the last 10 years, but in the eyes of the media they are still a big time program. We, are not.
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Yeah, I was not picking on them, just trying to understand the media machine. I to thought maybe the "history" of a program or what ever you wish to call it, had something to do with it. Penn gets more attn than we do as well. Thats understandable I guess. Now that I think about it, I like this set up the way it is. Works better for my own personal reasons. :D Numbers have always been easy for me, understanding people and society has only become an interest of mine in the past few years. You could say I am rather inept at it. So thanks for bearing with me in my goal to better understand some things that a normal 12 year old would, much less a 40+ year old.
 


I enjoy media spin. Read Chomsky's work on filters. it deals with why the media reports what it does. usually money is behind everything. The media caters to those who provide it the most capital unless regulated by a different societal influence.
 


DexterMorgan said:
I'm so sick of people using this as some sort of badge of honor.

We're "under the radar" because we had a terrible season last year (compared to expectations) and lost a ton of talent to the NFL, combined with a new starting QB. Lost the #1 Wr is school history, have a soph RB that has 114 career carries and not a single proven backup. We lost 2 multi-year starting safeties and one of the best punters in college football.
Click to expand...

olddude said:
Ok then how about a highly ranked D for many years. Bowl record? My point was not only that one thing but as a program as a whole. We have proven that we are always going to "show up", yet we are "under the radar" or a "dark horse". When does it just become common place that we will compete very well every year?
Click to expand...

I think this "badge of honor" is a selling point for the program. However, one of the reasons that I think we are "under the radar" is because while we rarely lose by more than one posession we don't necessarily carry the margin of victory that other top tier programs do. Although we don't get blown out or lose by multiple scores, we also don't win by them either and that is a big reason that we don't get alot of the preseason love. Then when we do get that preseason love we tend to lose a few of those one possession games and the media tends to once again write us off.

At the same time however, I refuse to label us a true dark horse, because any given season if things go right we could be right there on top of the conference and I think people realize that.
 


kicker22 said:
I think this "badge of honor" is a selling point for the program. However, one of the reasons that I think we are "under the radar" is because while we rarely lose by more than one posession we don't necessarily carry the margin of victory that other top tier programs do. Although we don't get blown out or lose by multiple scores, we also don't win by them either and that is a big reason that we don't get alot of the preseason love. Then when we do get that preseason love we tend to lose a few of those one possession games and the media tends to once again write us off.

At the same time however, I refuse to label us a true dark horse, because any given season if things go right we could be right there on top of the conference and I think people realize that.
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Come to Iowa, when we lose it's always close.
 


DexterMorgan said:
Come to Iowa, when we lose it's always close.
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Maybe you missed my point. By no way shape or form to I accept or believe in moral victories. However, I believe that the fact we don't get blown out or lose by multiple scores is a fact that IMO we can play with anybody in the country and make a game out of it. There's a lot of schools that can't claim that.
 


kicker22 said:
Maybe you missed my point. By no way shape or form to I accept or believe in moral victories. However, I believe that the fact we don't get blown out or lose by multiple scores is a fact that IMO we can play with anybody in the country and make a game out of it. There's a lot of schools that can't claim that.
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I know, I'm just kidding. I just think it gets used way to much around HERE as a badge of honor.
 




Got to admit though, it still sounds better than pitching to recruits "come to iowa where every game will be close and you're free to play down to the level of your opponent".
 


BabcockIC said:
I enjoy media spin. Read Chomsky's work on filters. it deals with why the media reports what it does. usually money is behind everything. The media caters to those who provide it the most capital unless regulated by a different societal influence.
Click to expand...

That's my perception of the reason why the SEC + Texas gets the hype and attention/bias that they receive on ESPN (among other sports outlets). There is such a strong football-following culture down there that they likely provide ESPN their most zealous following. And also, with a zealous following, the capital follows ... and that is what ends up doing the "talking."

I presume that also powers a lot of the Notre Dame hype too.
 


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