Question on EIU

[DodgerHawki]

To answer your question, the only sure bet I see in there is Ark St. The rest of the games could swing either way IMO although UNI and Indiana should be close to a sure thing.

Other than those 3, I could see Iowa losing the other 9. That is unlikely to happen of course, but I don't see any blowouts. We'll see how Iowa does in the close games this year because I think they will be in alot of them. KF hasn't impressed me with his end of game management recently so unless that improves, Iowa could stand to lose 5 or 6 of those 9.

We'll see.

Don't disagree about the potential for close games. Iowa had 6 of them last year, and went 2-4 in those games. Any road wins Iowa gets this year will probably be a "close" game. I suppose if ISU's defense is very bad and the Cyclones turn the ball over a ton it could be a wide spread, but history tells us that isn't happening.
Teams' records in close games vary from year to year, because when the game comes down to one possession at the end of the game, you are going to win some of them, and you'll lose some of them. Teams can help their odds by playing smart football, but that's still not a guarantee. Iowa won all of the close ones in 2004, then lost some close ones in 2005. Was Ferentz smart in 2004 and stupid in 2005? Last year Iowa played poorly for 3 quarters against Illinois, then rallied from 14 down in the 4th quarter to tie the game. Illinois made enough plays on its last drive to kick a FG and win. Was Ferentz smart when Iowa came back from double digits to tie, then dumb when Illinois scored? Sometimes the other team just plays a bit better.
The key for good teams is to not get into lots of close games. Good/great teams win by comfortable margins most weeks, then get a few breaks in the close games that they do get in.

 

[isuno1fan]

isuno1fan - I don't think that you're appreciating how the current Hawkeye is "built." It's built just like the Iowa squads from 2002-2004. Iowa can ride a really strong D and a serviceable at worst O quite a long ways. Furthermore, if you're a subscriber to the view that the Big 10 is weak ... then that should simply reaffirm that Iowa's chances at having a big season are even greater. I frankly think that the most probable outcome is a 8-4 regular season ... with a 9-3 season being not far behind. Having the '09 Hawkeyes end up 7-5 or 10-2 is probably equally probable. Any other outcome is probably not very likely.

So we differ in Iowa's predicted record by 1 game. You are at 8-4 and I am at 7-5.

Hmmmmm....I wonder which game you could possibly think Iowa will win that I don't :wink:

 

[isuno1fan]

Don't disagree about the potential for close games. Iowa had 6 of them last year, and went 2-4 in those games. Any road wins Iowa gets this year will probably be a "close" game. I suppose if ISU's defense is very bad and the Cyclones turn the ball over a ton it could be a wide spread, but history tells us that isn't happening.
Teams' records in close games vary from year to year, because when the game comes down to one possession at the end of the game, you are going to win some of them, and you'll lose some of them. Teams can help their odds by playing smart football, but that's still not a guarantee. Iowa won all of the close ones in 2004, then lost some close ones in 2005. Was Ferentz smart in 2004 and stupid in 2005? Last year Iowa played poorly for 3 quarters against Illinois, then rallied from 14 down in the 4th quarter to tie the game. Illinois made enough plays on its last drive to kick a FG and win. Was Ferentz smart when Iowa came back from double digits to tie, then dumb when Illinois scored? Sometimes the other team just plays a bit better.
The key for good teams is to not get into lots of close games. Good/great teams win by comfortable margins most weeks, then get a few breaks in the close games that they do get in.[/QUOTE]


Couldn't agree more. My point being that I don't see Iowa winning by large margins (if they do indeed win) in all but a couple of their games. By your definition, that makes Iowa an avg team. :biggrin:

 

[isuno1fan]

Tell that to Joe Paterno.

I'll be sure to do that next time we have dinner.

 

[Aclone]

They have 1 solid corner, and the other one will miss the first 2 games.....

Well, when they had their 10 win seasons a few years ago, they didn't even have that many.

 

[Cyhart]

If you're a Hawk, I'm honestly not sure how you can lose King, Kroul, Bruggeman, and Greene and expect to be better than you were last year. But then again, I'm not exactly objective on this subject either.......

 

[TarHeelHawk]

If you're a Hawk, I'm honestly not sure how you can lose King, Kroul, Bruggeman, and Greene and expect to be better than you were last year. But then again, I'm not exactly objective on this subject either.......

Except nobody really does expect Iowa to better than they were last year. Iowa finished 8-4 last year, and most of the predictions have Iowa at 8-4 this year. Iowa finished 5th in the conference last year, and that's where most of the pre-season publications have them finishing this year.

The only difference is that Iowa is ranked going into this year and doesn't have as many questions at key positions like last years team did. The offensive line will still be stout, and the defense will still be among the best in D-1.

The only people who think that Iowa fans think that this years team will be better than last years team are Cyclone fans.

 

[hawkfan]

Except nobody really does expect Iowa to better than they were last year. Iowa finished 8-4 last year, and most of the predictions have Iowa at 8-4 this year. Iowa finished 5th in the conference last year, and that's where most of the pre-season publications have them finishing this year.

The only difference is that Iowa is ranked going into this year and doesn't have as many questions at key positions like last years team did. The offensive line will still be stout, and the defense will still be among the best in D-1.

The only people who think that Iowa fans think that this years team will be better than last years team are Cyclone fans.

Disagree entirely, I think Iowa will be better as a team this season, than they were last season, and here is why:

QB 08 < QB 09
RB 08 > RB 09
OL 08 = OL 09
WR 08 < WR 09

DE 08 < DE 09
DT 08 > DT 09
LB 08 < LB 09
DB 08 < DB 09

Iowa will be better (or equal) at 6 positions in 09 than they were in 08...they only will be worse at 2 positions (and after news out of the open practice yesterday, DT won't be as much of a downgrade as most opposing fans were hoping)....there is a pretty good argument to be made that, as a team, Iowa will be better in 09 than they were in 08.

If Iowa can stay relatively healthy in 09, this team will win 9 games, and a 10th in the bowl game.

 

[MontyBurns]

OL 08 = OL 09
WR 08 < WR 09

Here is an example of the foolishness.

From the OL, 2 guys who started every game and were good enough to sign NFL contracts both graduated. A 3rd starter just had surgery, a 4th just sat out the open scrimmage with a knee injury, and a 5th starts the season suspended for a DUI. And all that makes them "just as good". :biglaugh:

At WR, the top two guys Iowa threw to in crunch time who tied for the team lead in TD catches -- including the all-conference TE, have graduated. But again, that makes them "better". :biglaugh:

 

[SplitIdentity]

Here is an example of the foolishness.

From the OL, 2 guys who started every game and were good enough to sign NFL contracts both graduated. A 3rd starter just had surgery, a 4th just sat out the open scrimmage with a knee injury, and a 5th starts the season suspended for a DUI. And all that makes them "just as good". :biglaugh:

At WR, the top two guys Iowa threw to in crunch time who tied for the team lead in TD catches -- including the all-conference TE, have graduated. But again, that makes them "better". :biglaugh:

You honestly have no idea what you are talking about.

Last year at this time you were spouting off the same garbage. Iowa's OL would be crap, Greene was fat and might not even make the team, Iowa's D lost a bunch of players, blah blah blah.

Admit it, you know nothing of Iowa football. And, I'm venturing to guess since this is an annual argument from you, you know nothing about football in general.

Spin, spin, spin away!

 

[homerHAWKeye777]

Here is an example of the foolishness.

From the OL, 2 guys who started every game and were good enough to sign NFL contracts both graduated. A 3rd starter just had surgery, a 4th just sat out the open scrimmage with a knee injury, and a 5th starts the season suspended for a DUI. And all that makes them "just as good". :biglaugh:

At WR, the top two guys Iowa threw to in crunch time who tied for the team lead in TD catches -- including the all-conference TE, have graduated. But again, that makes them "better". :biglaugh:

LOL ... man you're hysterical!

You do realize that Bruggeman was just a 1st year starter in '08 don't you? Furthermore, while Olsen was a veteran, he wasn't exactly the most gifted athlete at OG either. If you watch Iowa's PSU game ... you see him getting completely owned by Odrick (in his defense, Odrick is REALLY good). Also, Olsen didn't play against Wisconsin and yet Greene still managed to have one of his best games of the season. That would suggest that Iowa has more than adequate talent/depth at OG.

Besides, what you quickly seem to forget is that while Iowa lost 2 guys on the OL due to graduation ... Iowa also got back 2 guys from injury from 2008. Namely, Iowa has BOTH Doering and Richardson back, both of whom are former starters prior to their respective injuries ... and both are, yet again, getting plenty of reps with the first stringers!

I will certainly admit that Iowa's play at C will probably not be quite as good with Bruggeman gone ... however, Koeppel is a guy who's seen game-reps. Furthermore, by many accounts, it sounds like he's doing a solid job too. Thus, with arguably improved play at BOTH OG and OT spots and a slight downgrade at C ... that still pretty much equates to a '09 OL that is AT LEAST as good as the '08 OL.

 

[homerHAWKeye777]

If you're a Hawk, I'm honestly not sure how you can lose King, Kroul, Bruggeman, and Greene and expect to be better than you were last year. But then again, I'm not exactly objective on this subject either.......

And yet the guys you listed were among Iowa's ONLY personnel losses. You seem to underestimate the guys who Iowa had returning.

How about the fact that Iowa's D featured 7 first year starters on D in '08 ... and yet the group still ended up being an elite D? How did that happen? Now with 6 of those first year starters returning and all of them being battle-tested and much improved ... how is it that their improvement won't help the D compensate for K&K's absence? Furthermore, Iowa's D lacked depth at a lot of spot ... now they're a lot more experienced at almost all spots (with safety being a glaring exception). One of the most important spots where Iowa has plenty of talent and plenty of experience is DL ... so again, how will that NOT help Iowa to compensate some for K&K's absence?

Don't get me wrong ... Iowa's D will have to work out some kinks early on in the season ... and I don't doubt that ISU's O will be able to exploit some of those kinks ... however, before it's all said and done ... Iowa will, yet again, be able to say that we have an elite D. And, there's arguably a very good chance that the '09 D could be even better than the '08 D!

 

[hawkfan]

Here is an example of the foolishness.

At WR, the top two guys Iowa threw to in crunch time who tied for the team lead in TD catches -- including the all-conference TE, have graduated. But again, that makes them "better". :biglaugh:

I'll assume you won't reply, but I just as well straighten you out.

Moeaki will be equal to, or better than, Myers as long as he is healthy. Further, Reisner showed flashes last season of being every bit as good of a TE as Myers, so TE is definitely not an area of concern as long as we don't have injuries. Also, like I said, one could easily make the argument that Moeaki has more talent to work with than what Myers had, he just has to stay healthy - which he did in his first two seasons, 07 and 08 have been bad breaks for Tony, this year I hope he reverts to his 05 & 06 form (healthwise). Tell me, when was the last time (under Ferentz) that Iowa was weak at TE? Exactly, it's never happened, so its pretty pointless to assume it will in 09.

At WR, we lost only 1 guy out of the entire unit, and yet somehow you think our WR's are going to be worse? Please, natural progression pretty much ensures that they will all get better, and it isn't like Broddell was an all world WR. Also, we add Keenan Davis, who was a highly sought after 4* recruit that has greatly impressed the coaches so far. So we have DJK, Stross, McNutt, Chaney, and Sandeman all improving, plus the addition of Davis, but you think our WR's won't be as good as last season? Keep dreaming. Even if Broddell was an all conference player (which he wasn't even close to being) it would be pretty easy to argue that our WR's should be improved. One other note: this will be coach Campbell's second year with the WR's, thus they should show dramatic improvement after 2 years in his system (the guy coached at Michigan before Iowa, so he coached a couple of all American WR's, Iowa's WR's are in very good hands with Campbell)

As SourthernHawk indicated, you obviously don't follow Iowa football, so stop attempting to speak with authority on the subject.

 

[CraigTNelson]

I hope that answers your question, original poster guy.

 

[DolphLundgren]

Here is an example of the foolishness.

From the OL, 2 guys who started every game and were good enough to sign NFL contracts both graduated. A 3rd starter just had surgery, a 4th just sat out the open scrimmage with a knee injury, and a 5th starts the season suspended for a DUI. And all that makes them "just as good". :biglaugh:

At WR, the top two guys Iowa threw to in crunch time who tied for the team lead in TD catches -- including the all-conference TE, have graduated. But again, that makes them "better". :biglaugh:

So...about you making up those Moeaki stats?

 

[DJK15]

I feel much better about replacing King/Kroul after the open practice Saturday. Ballard finally moved to DT with Binns forcing his way into the starting lineup at DE. Here's Iowa's starting defensive line:

DE - Clayborn
DT - Klug
DT - Ballard
DE - Binns

Looks good to me.

And Monty, you really need to drop it with the Andy Brodell talk. He was a nice player, but wasn't even the best receiver on last years team, that was DJK. This season, DJK returns and Stanzi has new targets in McNutt and Davis.

There's really only 2 positions that concern me right now. C and CB. CB will be fine once Prater is back and hopefully Eubanks can get his **** together at center. Other than that, the Hawks are ready to roll.

 

[GaryJohnson]

Had it been Colin Sandeman who returned the punt for a TD vs ISU last year, Monty would be gleefully pointing out that Sandeman is therefore clearly Iowa's best WR but isn't even a starter this year and therefore Iowa is going to be terrible, etc, etc. But, since it just so happened to have been Brodell...

Monty is CF's version of EverHawk. Or Mr.Iowa.

 

[CycoCyclone]

The EIU D front 7 is the best unit arguably in the Big 11. That's not where I'd put your question marks.

CB, there's one hurt...sat out the public practice ( I didn't pay attention to the name). Once that's either filled or he's healed, defense will again be stout.

OL - 2 tackles sat out the open practice, and the unit won't play together until the ISU game (1 suspension first game). I've heard comments that this time last year the unit was far more gelled.

RB- If Hampton can't stay healthy (and even a partial tear for a RB is disasterous) don't look for a lot here. Even if Hampton does come back, I'd look for a lot less lateral transitions.

Ricky and WR will be fine if they have time to throw, but with the above ? I'm not sure how happy I'd be with the offense.

 

[DJK15]

OL - 2 tackles sat out the open practice, and the unit won't play together until the ISU game (1 suspension first game). I've heard comments that this time last year the unit was far more gelled.

The OL had a LOT more question marks at this time last season...

Bulaga - Lots of potential but still young and unproven
Vandervelde - 1st year starter
Bruggeman - 1st year starter, coming back from injury
Olsen - Solid
Calloway - Got absolutely bitchslapped numerous times the year prior

I'm not worried about guys not dressing for the open practice. Guys like Bulaga, Hampton and Wegher will be fine, there's just no reason to risk anything.

The OL will take a couple games to "gel" due to injuries and suspensions, but once they're all out there, they'll be one of the best in the conference.

Bulaga - Almost a shoe-in All-American
Richardson - Career was thought to be over - not only is he back, but has earned a starting spot and has looked great in practice
Eubanks/Koeppel/Vandervelde/Ferentz - a definite question mark
Vandervelde/Reiff/Doering - Probably Vande's spot when he comes back from injury, got the job done last season, should be even better this year
Calloway - Tremendous improvement, along with Bulaga, the best tackle tandem in the conference

No matter who's running the ball, by game #3 (Calloway and hopefully Vandervelde back in the lineup) this line will be blowing people up.

 

[CycoCyclone]

The OL had a LOT more question marks at this time last season...

Bulaga - Lots of potential but still young and unproven
Vandervelde - 1st year starter
Bruggeman - 1st year starter, coming back from injury
Olsen - Solid
Calloway - Got absolutely bitchslapped numerous times the year prior

I'm not worried about guys not dressing for the open practice. Guys like Bulaga, Hampton and Wegher will be fine, there's just no reason to risk anything.

The OL will take a couple games to "gel" due to injuries and suspensions, but once they're all out there, they'll be one of the best in the conference.

Bulaga - Almost a shoe-in All-American
Richardson - Career was thought to be over - not only is he back, but has earned a starting spot and has looked great in practice
Eubanks/Koeppel/Vandervelde/Ferentz - a definite question mark
Vandervelde/Reiff/Doering - Probably Vande's spot when he comes back from injury, got the job done last season, should be even better this year
Calloway - Tremendous improvement, along with Bulaga, the best tackle tandem in the conference

No matter who's running the ball, by game #3 (Calloway and hopefully Vandervelde back in the lineup) this line will be blowing people up.

I honestly hope you're right, but I wouldn't say that's a lock yet. We know how Kirk likes to play close to the vest, I think just as in poker you have to assume that Bulaga might be worse than we thought, but Calloway will def be back.

What's the name of your lock-down corner?