7-0 to start...
- Thread starter ISUonthemove
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that's what Iowa fans thought... and we had the 2005 class to work with.
It's really hard predicting this kind of stuff. And 2 years worth of hype only makes it that more painful if the goal is not achieved.
First, let's remember that he's talking about 2009, not 2008. If you haven't checked your calendar lately, that's next year, not this year. Second, predicting wins this early is stupid because we don't know how good certain teams are going to be. A year ago we might have predicted Kansas to be an easy game for us in 2008, but Kansas was great last year and looks like they will be good again. That kind of thing could happen with any number of teams.
So while it's crazy to W and L the 2009 schedule this early, it's not crazy to be optimistic. We lose 17 scholarship seniors after this year. However, of those 17, six have seen little playing time throughout their careers (Joe Blaes, Wallace Franklin, Jason Harris, Chris Weir, Travis Ferguson, Joe Vanstrom) and two have been mostly back-ups (Nick Frere, Brandon Hunley). That means that unless one of the above players has a breakout year, we lose only nine players who have been or are expected to be big contributors (JJ Bass, Michael Bibbs, Chris Brown, Doug Dedrick, Jason Scales, Chris Singleton, Kurtis Taylor, Brandon Johnson, RJ Sumrall). If I had to guess right now, that's only six starter spots that need to be replaced (4 on defense, 2 on offense).
In short, 2009 could be setting up like 2005. 2006 and 2007 were sort of like our late 2002-2003 period where we lost a lot of games. I'm hoping this year (2008) can be kind of like 2004 where we were led to a minor bowl game by an underrated defense and young skill players. Once we get to 2009, the schedule is basically the same as it was in 2005 except North Dakota State replaces Illinois State, we play Army at home instead of on the road, and we have a road game at Kent State. Hopefully by then we have stronger depth and better coaching to lead us to more than seven wins.
So while it's crazy to W and L the 2009 schedule this early, it's not crazy to be optimistic. We lose 17 scholarship seniors after this year. However, of those 17, six have seen little playing time throughout their careers (Joe Blaes, Wallace Franklin, Jason Harris, Chris Weir, Travis Ferguson, Joe Vanstrom) and two have been mostly back-ups (Nick Frere, Brandon Hunley). That means that unless one of the above players has a breakout year, we lose only nine players who have been or are expected to be big contributors (JJ Bass, Michael Bibbs, Chris Brown, Doug Dedrick, Jason Scales, Chris Singleton, Kurtis Taylor, Brandon Johnson, RJ Sumrall). If I had to guess right now, that's only six starter spots that need to be replaced (4 on defense, 2 on offense).
In short, 2009 could be setting up like 2005. 2006 and 2007 were sort of like our late 2002-2003 period where we lost a lot of games. I'm hoping this year (2008) can be kind of like 2004 where we were led to a minor bowl game by an underrated defense and young skill players. Once we get to 2009, the schedule is basically the same as it was in 2005 except North Dakota State replaces Illinois State, we play Army at home instead of on the road, and we have a road game at Kent State. Hopefully by then we have stronger depth and better coaching to lead us to more than seven wins.
oh no u better fix that wall.. my dad will kill me!!
sorry dane cook was going through my head..
anyway.. as much as i would love a 10 win season i will be more then happy with 7 or 8
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I would not be especially surprised to see 9 wins out of this schedule in 09. It appears to be our best chance for a breakout year, given the combination of personnel and schedule. I think expecting anything less than 7 wins out of that schedule shows a loser's mentality. If thats all the more anyone ever expects then we made the biggest mistake in the world in getting rid of McCarney.
Did I sleep through the 2008 seasons? It must have been a good one with all the talk around here to how good 2009 is going to be.
I am so with you. New for '08 I am debuting my homemade Iowa State 14-0 shirt. I will wear it until we lose. Going to start every year with it.
It would be way funnier if the first game it said 14-0 and then after every loss you crossed out the previous then wrote 13-1, 12-2, 11-3... etc, etc...
Right now I'm just hoping to start the season 1-0, and once we start 1-0 then we can worry about going 2-0 and so forth. I think the best way to go about it is 1 game at a time and move on to the next one.
I wouldn't be at all surprised to see kansas struggling to be 7-5 this year. They actually play difficult teams this season, and they lost more talent than they'd like to admit. I see them going 7-5 this year, and probably 6-6 the following season...if not worse... Not that that makes us any better. But, it helps...
In a heartbeat I would. If we had a 10 win season next year and Chiz left, I think we could get some pretty good people in for our job.
This is a good synopsis, the original post a bit more far-fetched.
But, if we win a game or two we're not supposed to this fall - we'll see a lot more of the 10+ win predictions for '09. And who knows - maybe it'll finally be our time...
2008 was GREAT! We won the North (finally) but lost to A&M in 4 OTs of the B12 Championship game. We still managed to get a BCS bid, The Orange Bowl, where we beat the Hawks 72-6!