w/ Ryan Harklau (1 hr)
- Thread starter RezClone
- Start date
His information and takes, if true, regarding the gambling stuff and culture of the program are the best information out there, by a long shot.
I'm sure when you played, after one or two games, the coaches were like 'welp, that's who we are, so we're not going to get better'.
I spoke with a number of players and coaches last night at the Victory Day event and I came away with three main thoughts.
First, Clanton (our Oline coach) seems like a very nice but also pretty serious guy. Our linemen really seem to like and respect him. I can't wait to see how physical they are on the field next Saturday.
Second, there seems to be a quiet confidence among these players. Maybe that's true of all teams when they come out of fall camp, but from what I heard these guys have had a lot hard and very physical practices (in the brutal heat as one of the Dlinemen told me). I doubt they're gonna be manhandled by any other team.
Finally, I was impressed by the maturity of so many of the players. Way more respectful and mature than I was at age 18-22.
First, Clanton (our Oline coach) seems like a very nice but also pretty serious guy. Our linemen really seem to like and respect him. I can't wait to see how physical they are on the field next Saturday.
Second, there seems to be a quiet confidence among these players. Maybe that's true of all teams when they come out of fall camp, but from what I heard these guys have had a lot hard and very physical practices (in the brutal heat as one of the Dlinemen told me). I doubt they're gonna be manhandled by any other team.
Finally, I was impressed by the maturity of so many of the players. Way more respectful and mature than I was at age 18-22.
Agree... the vast majority of these guys are WAY more mature than I was at that age. I'm usually very impressed by them when I see interviews. It takes a LOT of hard work and dedication to play at this level. I'd say most kids that age would not be able to hack it.
*same goes for Marching Band kids too btw. Both my kids were in college marching bands... and it takes up almost all your free time... especially at ISU. I still don't know when they find time to study... and the majority of them are engineering students as well. Crazy good kids.
Ooooooo that Kool Aid has extra sugar in it.
Also, liked Harklau talking about Campbell changing his philosophy, and having more physical, hard, full contact practices after reading Andy Reid’s book.
I have to say that Ryan does a great job as a sideline reporter. He had huge shoes to fill since I thought Ben was really, really good.
I'm probably an outlier, but I like "homer" radio guys. I can be plenty negative on my own and god knows you can find the negative on here, so I like hearing that things aren't as bad as I fear.
I'm probably an outlier, but I like "homer" radio guys. I can be plenty negative on my own and god knows you can find the negative on here, so I like hearing that things aren't as bad as I fear.
I'm very bullish on the RB room. I was never completely sold on Brock as an all-conference back. He was good at hitting the hole but lacked the explosiveness and wiggle to turn 8 yards into 25. A healthy Norton and true frosh Sama can give us more.
Yeah, Harklau is usually full of it, but I'd prefer that to the alternative, especially in August. If you can't be optimistic before the season starts, maybe being an ISU football fan isn't for you lol.
I think Brock could have been very good. As good as Breece? Better than Norton's ceiling? Probably not. But a good transition between elite RBs.
But between inconsistent line play and injuries he never was able to really get it going. And even if our OL was great last year, Sanders and Silas just aren't at Brock/Norton's talent level.
He seemed confident about the talent level of the starters at every position except... kicker.
I would prefer to have Brock on the roster. But I have a (biased) belief in the young guys. I saw Brock spin back into a defender way too many times instead of getting 5 more yards. He had terrible instincts with that move. But he was pretty reliable getting to the LBs at least.
I'm all in on the Sama hype train. I think he could be special.
Nor a lot of optimism yet for QBs. Seems to think success for this team will look like playing elite defense and effectively running the ball with multiple TEs on the field.
Silas, definitely not (Rhode Island?!!). But I still think Sanders was building confidence. He has Breece-level speed and athleticism, and I gather he’s learning to work hard, the question is whether he has those Hall-mark instincts.
I’m standing back from the ticket counter on that particular train, waiting to see more. I still remember all too well that AHS kid a few years back everyone was drooling over—who racked up tons of yards in high school, then vanished into the walkon program without so much as sniffing the field.
Who?
It's Sama's development that has me excited. He was not a Big 12 RB as a sophomore or junior in HS. He transformed his body and became much more explosive last season. He then dominated at the highest level of Iowa HS football. His body is already Big 12 ready, and he's always had good instincts as a RB. This is a kid who is coming into his own as opposed to a Jason Scales, who was the same player as a high school junior as he was a college junior.