I don’t think any of us saw this coming. Tony Freeman spoke about why he was leaving the team and according to him, it was because of a lack of respect from Lickliter. The coach even suggested the Freeman transfer. Hmmm. What would the cause of this be? We’re hearing only one side of the story, but there seems to be some evidence backing Freeman up. Cole and Tate were named co-captains for next season, in spite of Freeman being the only Hawkeye to get any All Big Ten honors. I’ll admit that expectations are low for next season, but I seriously hope that Lickliter has a plan.
28
Apr
2008 NFL Draft
The 2008 NFL draft saw three Hawkeyes drafted. Safety Charles Godrey was drafted by Carolina in the 3rd round, defensive end Kenny Iwebema was drafted by Arizona in the 4th and linebacker Mike Humpal was drafted by Pittsburgh in the 6th. No surprise that Young and Sims were undrafted, both are a little undersized for the NFL. I thought that Mike Klinkenborg was going to be drafted but he never heard his name called. Congratulations to Godfrey, Iwebema and Humphal. We’ll look forward to seeing them on Sundays.
The 2007-8 basketball season ended with a bad loss to Michigan in the opening round of the Big 10 tournament. I haven’t commented too much this season as it is a rebuilding season and we can probably expect the same next season. This season’s team is very inexperienced, so the most we can expect is that next season is better. The team’s inexperience showed in how the team had trouble with consistency. They showed flashes of brilliance, but couldn’t seem to maintain that for a whole game. The high points of the season have to beating Michigan State and Ohio State. The low points have to be losing to Utah St and UL Monroe.
The team loses seniors Seth Gorney, Kurt Looby and Justin Johnson, all of whom were big contributors this year’s squad. Next season the team will need seniors-to-be Tony Freeman and Cyrus Tate to fill the void (though Freeman was already the biggest contributor this season) and sophomores-to-be Jarryd Cole, Jake Kelly and Jeff Peterson to continue to improve. Apart from those players, the Hawks are pretty thin. The Hawks have four letters of intent for next season and you can expect they will get a chance for significant playing time. One problem is losing Looby and Gorney leaves only one big man, David Palmer, who saw very limited playing time this season. Recruit Andrew Brommer is 6′9″ and projects as a power forward, so maybe he will get a chance to fill Looby and Gorney’s big shoes.
The Hawks have a chance to surprise some teams next season, but I don’t think anyone should plan on buying NCAA tourney tickets quite yet. The NIT is a realistic goal for the team and the next season they can set their sights on the big dance.
The football team’s depth chart lost a little depth yesterday as recently arrested players James Cleveland and Arvell Nelson were dismissed from the team. The former redshirt freshmen, roommates and future cellmates, were arrested for possession of drugs. Cleveland was a starter for much of the last season at receiver.
I hope the other players notice that this will not be tolerated. I feel like we need to start counting arrests like we count wins. Maybe next season the wins will be higher.
Last week it was announced that Kirk Ferentz had his contract extended an additional year. Normally I wouldn’t think much about this, but I have to wonder why considering the past two years. The Hawks have had two disappointing seasons in a row. Last year the number of arrests doubled the number of wins. So why does Barta feel the need to extend his contract now? The NFL isn’t knocking on the door anymore, two bad seasons and Bobby Petrino solved that problem. Anyone have any guesses or theories?
25
Feb
Two more in trouble
Two more football players are in legal trouble, this time charged with drug possession. James Cleveland, redshirt WR, was charged with possession of oxycodone and carisoprodol. His roommate, fellow redshirt QB Arvell Nelson, was charged with possession of marijuana. Both are suspended indefinitely from the team. Ferentz had no comment on the arrest until the department had a chance to examine the case. Looks like the depth chart lost a little depth.
06
Feb
Signing Day 2008
Today is National Letter of Intent signing day for college football and the Hawkeyes are expected to sign 26 new players. According to the ratings, the Hawks have a lot of 3 star recruits, but no 4 or 5 star recruits for the first time since 2001. The Hawkeye recruiting class is ranked 51st in the nation and 8th in the Big Ten with only Purdue, Northwestern and Indiana lower.
The Daily Iowan has a good recap of the recruits. Looking at the geography of the recruits, it shows the usual pattern for the Hawkeyes. Texas, Florida, Ohio and Michigan are represented, as well as South Dakota and Montana.
Some will be discouraged by the lack of 4 or 5 star recruits, but this is a solid class and it looks like the coaches focused on character, so there won’t be a repeat of last year’s rap sheet. The coaches focused on filling needs like running back where Young and Sims are both leaving. The 2008 class has a couple of recruits who will see significant playing time as freshmen. Keep your eye on Jeff Brinson at RB and Riley Reiff at DE.
Ex-Hawkeye Andre Tippett, who played for the Hawks from 1979 to 1981, was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Tippett was an all pro for much of the 1980s when he played for the Patriots. Congrats to Andre.
03
Feb
Iowa 53 Ohio St 48
Iowa pulled off an upset against the Ohio St Buckeyes, which had beat them earlier in the season by 31 points. The Hawkeye defense was impressive as it held Ohio St to 37.5% shooting and under 50 points for the first time this season. The Hawkeye offense showed more patience than you would normally see from them. The Hawks gave up the ball only nine times, which is a significant improvement. The Hawks were led by Justin Johnson’s 24 points, all from three pointers.
31
Jan
Purdue 51 Iowa 50
The Hawks nearly pulled off a road upset as the Boilermakers won the game on a last second free throw. The Hawkeyes suffered from their usual problem, turnovers, giving up the ball 22 times in the game. It is a testament to their defense that they can stay in so many games when they turnover the ball that much. Add another quality loss for the Hawks.
Justin Johnson led the Hawks with 14 points and Tony Freeman added 13.
13
Jan
Iowa 43 Michigan St 36
I guess the Hawkeyes can play some D. Iowa managed the biggest upset of the Big 10 season, beating no. 6 in the nation Michigan St. The Hawkeyes held the Spartans to their lowest point total in the shot clock era. What makes this even more surprising is Michigan St was averaging 77 points a game. Iowa’s offense wasn’t much better as they made only 11 field goals. Tony Freeman led the team with 22 points.
It was a very exciting win and I hope Iowa can surprise a few more teams this season.
06
Jan
Wisconsin 65 Iowa 41
The Hawkeyes lost their second Big 10 game of the season visiting Madison. The score doesn’t reflect the Hawkeye’s effort in this game. They played very hard. If they didn’t turnover the ball so much (the mark of a young team), they would have had a chance. This season will give the young Hawks experience to compete next season. I’m not sweating the losses much. I am more worried to see the Hawks get better. I hope by the end of the season they can hold on to the ball better.
03
Jan
Indiana 79 Iowa 76
I can’t say I expected such a close game against the Hoosiers, especially with Jaryd Cole out for the season with a torn ACL. The game was close and the Hawks nearly pulled off a comeback win with Justin Johnson hitting six 3 pointers in the last 2 minutes. The Hawks pulled to within 2 with 4 seconds left but Indiana made a steal and that sealed the game. Johnson led the Hawks with 29 points.
It is really good to see the Hawks play this way. The Register had an article about how the Hawks are the second least experienced team in the Big 10, behind only Purdue. No one is expecting a tournament run this year, but it is good to see the team getting better.
It was announced that three football players were leaving the team, Dominique Douglas, Cedeic Everson, and Abe Saterfield. Normally losing players is a bad thing, but this is definitely a case of addition through subtraction. All three had various legal/character problems. They could be trading black and gold for orange jumpsuits.
16
Dec
Class of 08 update
Ferentz and crew have been very busy on the recruiting trail and it is paying off. First off, they landed a juco RB in Nate Guillory. You may as well pencil him as the opening day starter. This weekend they picked up a sack specialist in Joe Gaglione from Mentor, OH, a RB in Jewel Hampton from Indianapolis and a QB in John Wienke from Tuscola, IL, who had originally committed to Michigan. The recent activity puts the Hawks at 15 commits and their ranking rising to 55th from the high 70s. This isn’t going to be a big class as the senior class was smaller, though the Johnson County penal system will free up a few more scholarships.
08
Dec
Iowa St 56 Iowa 47
The Hawkeyes are clearly a different team with Tony Freeman. Freeman was unable to play against the Cyclones due to a sore left foot and the Hawkeyes offensive woes continue. The Hawks made a game of it in the first half, but couldn’t keep up in the second.
The Hawks shot only 30.8% for the game. They were lead by Jarryd Cole’s 15 points and 9 boards.
Next up, a surprising good Drake team in the final battle of the Big Four.
06
Dec
Iowa 62 UNI 55
The Hawkeyes managed a nice victory in Cedar Falls where Alford had three game losing streak. Tony Freeman came back from his preseason foot injury and gave the Hawks a much needed spark on offense. The Hawks lead most of the game. The Panthers nearly pulled it out in the end with an effective full court press. The Panthers forced done turnovers but weren’t able to convert them into enough points.
The Hawks were lead by Jake Kelly’s 19 points followed by Freeman’s 15. The Hawkeyes lost the turnover battle 18-7, but it is telling that this didn’t lead to a loss.
Iowa is now 1-0 in the state’s Big Four matchups.
Dominique Douglas reached a plea agreement on his stolen credit card fraud case. He has agreed to pay $223.53 in restitution and will be sentenced at a later date.
Nice that instead of talking bowls we are talking court dockets and plea agreements. Iowa Football.
27
Nov
Sneak peek at 2008
The Hawkeyes’ second straight 6-6 regular season is thankfully over and it is time to look ahead to 2008. First off, who will be there? Iowa loses only twelve seniors, which is a very small graduating class, but among them are nine starters. Albert Young and Damien Sims leave a big hole at tailback and Tom Busch at fullback. Jevon Pugh looked ready to step in to the tailback spot, but with the rumors that he is involved in the recent sexual assault case, so I don’t know that we can count on him playing next season. Who’s left? It has been tough to recruit a tailback with Young and Sims playing so much the past three years, so the Hawks are thin at this position with names like Paki O’Meara, Brian Mungongo, Shonn Greene and Dana Brown. Out of that group, only Shonn Greene has any experience. This has to be the top recruiting target for Ferentz and unfortunately they just lost a decent recruit in Jason Ford who switched to Illinois. There aren’t any other pressing needs on offense other than shoring up the receiver corps and the line.
On defense the Hawkeyes are losing seven starters: LB Mike Humpal and Mike Klinkenborg, S Charles Godfrey and Devan Moylan, DE Kenny Iwebema and Bryan Mattison and CB Adam Shada. Linebacker is the biggest hole to fill due to the two Mikes being such huge performers. AJ Edds showed some promise starting this season and Jacody Coleman and Pat Angerer look to start. The losses at defensive back will be tougher to fill as the Hawks always seem to be thin at those positions and no one seems to stand out. At the ends Adrian Clayborne, who made some big plays off the bench, should start.
So far the 2008 recruiting class is underwhelming. When the coaches son is one of the best recruits, you know there is trouble. With the rise of Illinois and Zook’s skill at recruiting, it will be tougher to get the usual crop from the Land of Lincoln. Iowa needs to pull in good out of state recruits, otherwise they will only be picking up players from Bettendorf, City High and Dowling.
As it looks now, unless the coaches pull in some surprises in the 2008 class and find a way to revitalize their stale offensive attack, next season looks pretty bleak.
27
Nov
Wake Forest 56 Iowa 47
The Demon Deacons handled the Hawkeyes in the 2008 ACC/Big 10 Challenge. Neither team show very well but Wake managed to make the baskets they needed to and converted turnovers into points. Offensively the Hawks were very sloppu and show only 38% while turning the ball over 23 times. Wake wasn’t much better, shooting only 34% but turned the ball over only 15 times.
The Hawks were led by Jaryd Cole with 14 points.
25
Nov
Utah St 75 Iowa 62
Iowa’s reputation as a defensive team is quickly disappearing as the Hawks were spanked in the consolation round of the South Padre Invitational by Utah St. The Aggies were effective on converting Hawkeye turnovers into points, while the Hawks were slowed by their zone defense. Justin Johnson, a Tyler, Texas native, lead the Hawks with 14, while Kurt Looby turned in an impressive 10 points and 8 boards.
Don’t get too discouraged by the losses. This is a young team and a new coach and it will take a season before it starts to come together. It isn’t going to get any easier as they play Wake Forest next in the ACC-Big 10 Challenge.
24
Nov
Bradley 67 Iowa 56
Iowa continued with their offensive struggles and the defense couldn’t compensate as Iowa fell to Bradley in the semifinals of the South Padre Invitational. Clearly Bradley is a better team, so the result isn’t much of a surprise. The Hawks were lead by Justin Johnson’s 16 points. The Hawks couldn’t answer the Braves’ Daniel Ruffin who had a career high 24 points. The Hawkeyes streak of games holding their opponents to less than 50 points was broken.
The Hawks moved to 4-0 with another ugly win, this time over Maryland-Eastern Shore. The defense looked great as they have yet to allow a team to score more than 50 points this season. Offensively it was real ugly. It took almost seven and a half minutes to score their first points. Justin Johnson lead the team with 19 points. As a team they shot 42.5% from the floor. Which is ok if you manage to hold your opponent to 28.3%, but they won’t do that every game.
Next up, Bradley in the third round of the South Padre Invitational.
I said a couple of weeks ago that it might be better if the Hawks miss going to a bowl this season and I am even more convinced of this fact. First off, don’t believe the talk that Ferentz is a candidate for the Michigan job. He isn’t going anywhere and neither are his coordinators.
There is no way this team and all their problems deserved to go to a bowl. The Hawks were near the bottom in all offensive categories, not just in the Big 10 but the nation. I attribute this to a couple of factors: an inexperienced QB and O line, the loss of some key players due to legal trouble or injuries, and most importantly, the Hawks are using the same play book, same schemes and same play calling since Ferentz became the head coach. The opposing teams have figured it out and the coaching staff doesn’t seem capable of change. Just think if the Hawks switched to the spread offense in the off season (assuming that they have the players capable of running the spread). The rest of the Big 10 wouldn’t be able to look at last year’s game tapes (or any of the previous game tapes from the last 7 seasons) to prepare for the Hawks.
Barta needs to take a hard look at the staff and all the discipline problems. The Hawks can’t put up another non-winning season. The Hawks missed a golden opportunity this season. Given the craziness in the polls and not playing the Big 2, if the Hawkeyes had played to their potential they would have been in the BCS hunt.
The Hawkeyes have eight months to fix their many problems. I’m not convinced the coaching staff is capable of the necessary change and I could easily see a 2008 record worse than 6-6. Other teams in the Big 10 are making progress. Why can’t the Hawks?
This game could have been very ugly, like football team ugly. The Hawks got behind early and never pulled away until late in the game. Once the Hawks started playing defense they were able to control the game and build a lead late in the second half. What do you expect from a rebuilding year?
Justin Johnson lead the team with 19 points, the only Hawk in double figures.
The Hawkeyes get Maryland-Eastern Shore next in the second round of the South Padre Invitational.
18
Nov
W Michigan 28 Iowa 19
That was a perfect ending to a rotten season, getting beat at home by Directional Michigan. Iowa hadn’t lost to a MAC team since 2000 when they were beat by W Michigan 28-21 in Iowa City.
The Hawks offense had a lot of yards, just under 400, but weren’t able to produce much scoring because of three turnovers. Iowa had the opportunity to come back late in the 4th quarter, but Christensen’s pass was picked off and W Michigan added a field goal to pad their lead to 9, which was too much for the Hawks.
Iowa stands at 6-6 for the second year in a row. There are eight Big 10 teams with 7 or more wins, so the chances of making a bowl are pretty slim. I don’t think they deserve a bowl bid this year. They managed to disappoint us on a consistent basis. And considering that the Hawks didn’t play Michigan or Ohio St, this was their big chance to make a run at the title. Instead they fumbled their way to .500 season again.
16
Nov
10%
The Des Moines Register has an article this morning about how 10% of the football team has had some sort of legal trouble this season. The violations range from theft to gang rape. I’ll admit that when I first heard about the three suspects in the sexual assault case my first thought was, “Man I hope they are all seniors”. Unfortunately it looks like they are freshmen.
So what should be done? I have no problem with the athletic department treating them like Benny Sapp and kicking them out. Beyond the threat of suspension or expulsion, what can they do? The coaching staff can’t be babysitters 24/7. Is this a failure in recruiting? Did the Wolverines and Spartans pass on Dominique Douglas because they knew he was a bad seed. I’m sure the coaches can find out if a player had discipline problems in high school. So what can be done?
15
Nov
Iowa 59 N Colorado 47
Iowa pulled out an ugly win Wednesday night against a high scoring N Colorado team. The Hawks coughed up 22 turnovers and allowed the Bears to stay close until the last few minutes. Jeff Peterson lead the Hawks with 22 points. Peterson has stepped up in place of the injured Tony Freeman.
This is a young team and they are learning a new system, so there will be more nights like this.
14
Nov
Bowl Projections Week 11
Iowa is officially bowl eligible and so are nine more teams in the Big 10. Having so many teams with 6 or more wins makes guessing where (and if) the Hawks will go bowling very complicated.
| ESPN — Maisel | Insight, Dec 31, Tempe, AZ | Oklahoma St vs. Iowa |
| ESPN — Schlabach | Bell Helicopter Armed Forces, Dec 31, Fort Worth, TX | Air Force vs. Iowa |
| SI | Insight, Dec 31, Tempe, AZ | Oklahoma St vs. Iowa |
| CBS Sportsline | Motor City, Dec 26, Detroit, MI | C Michigan vs. Iowa |
| FoxSports | Insight, Dec 31, Tempe, AZ | Oklahoma St vs. Iowa |
With Michigan and Ohio St losing last weekend, we can count on only one Big 10 team getting a BCS bid. That puts the next two teams down in the Cap One and Outback bowls., most likely the Mich-Ohio St loser and Illinois. Beyond those games, the bowls don’t have to follow the order of the standings. The Alamo Bowl would have its choice and probably take Wisconsin as they have the best record and travel well. Champ Sports, Insight and Motor City would choose between the next tier, Penn St, Purdue and Iowa. I think that Michigan St, Northwestern and Indiana would fall into the bottom tier as they will probably all have six wins and none of them are known for traveling well.
In the last projection of 2006 before the Hawks knew they were headed to the Alamo Bowl, only ESPN got it right with both commentators projecting the Hawks playing in the Alamo Bowl.
My guess is the Hawks will be heading to Tempe for the Insight Bowl. The Hawks have never played this bowl and I imagine they will snag the Hawks before the Motor City Bowl gets a chance.
10
Nov
Iowa 21 Minnesota 16
Iowa became bowl eligible by beating Minnesota in Iowa City. The Hawks didn’t look very good or very bad in this game. The first touchdown was a Jake Christensen pass that went through the arms of James Cleveland and luckily made it to Brandon Myers. The defense did their job, but never was able to sack the quarterback. I was expecting the Hawkeye D to eat up the weak Gopher attack, but they were never able to over power them.
Iowa finishes the season against Western Michigan. A win against the Broncos will ensure an over .500 season.
10
Nov
Iowa 58 Idaho St 43
The Lickliter era opened at Carver Hawkeye as the Hawks cruised to a win against the Idaho St Bengals. Iowa was without Tony Freeman who broke his foot in a preseason exhibition game and will miss 4-6 weeks. Freeman was the only experienced scorer returning from last season’s team. He was replaced by Jeff Peterson who scored 12. The Hawkeyes were led by Justin Johnson’s 21 points and Kurt Looby’s 10 rebounds.
Former Hawkeye and current Atlanta Falcon Jonathan Babineaux had charges of animal cruelty dropped against. The defensive end was charged with killing his pit bull in February. Turns out he was just trying to make the dog less hostile. There’s a Michael Vick joke in here somewhere.
06
Nov
Bowl Projections Week 10
Now that it looks like the Hawks will make it to a bowl, it is time to look at the projections.
| ESPN | Bell Helicopter Armed Forces, Dec 31, Fort Worth, TX | Air Force vs. Iowa |
| SI | Bell Helicopter Armed Forces, Dec 31, Fort Worth, TX | Air Force vs. Iowa |
| CBS Sportsline | Motor City, Dec 26, Detroit, MI | C Michigan vs. Iowa |
The Armed Forces Bowl is supposed to go to the number 6 Pac 10 team, but it looks like the Pac 10 won’t have that many bowl eligible teams. It would take some surprise losses for Iowa to move up to the Motor City Bowl to the Champs Sports Bowl, even if the Hawks win out.
Update:
It turns out that FoxSports doesn’t think the Hawks will go bowling.
06
Nov
Iowa 28 Northwestern 17
Sorry for the late post, real life got in the way this week.
For the second week in a row the Hawkeyes pulled out a come from behind victory. The first quarter was dismal as the offense could manage only 12 yards on 9 plays. The defense gave up two easy touchdowns. In the second quarter the Hawks did better, scoring a touchdown and blocking a field goal before the half. In the second half Jake Christensen came alive and the defense allowed only a field goal.
For the second game in a row we saw some freshmen make contributions. Adrian Clayborne made some big plays. I don’t want start thinking Clayborne is the second coming of Matt Roth or Andre Tippett. He was spelling Iwebema who had worn down the Wildcat linemen. But he is looking very promising.
One more win and the Hawks are bowl eligible.
31
Oct
Douglas busted again
Suspended receiver Dominique Douglas plead guilty to fifth degree theft (i.e. shoplifting) on Tuesday. Douglas was arrested Monday after being caught stealing three DVDs from an Iowa City WalMart. No word on what Douglas, movie selection was. I’d say there is no chance we’ll see him in uniform again. What a dumbass.
Unfortunately the Hawks were known more for their police record in October. Players were also charged with battery and driving on a suspended license.
27
Oct
Iowa 34 Michigan St 27
Iowa changed their offensive attack and managed to pull out a come from behind victory against the Spartans. At halftime it certainly didn’t look like the Hawks would put up much of a fight as Michigan St had a 17-3 lead. The Hawkeyes put up 17 points in the 2nd half to take a 20-17 lead. Michigan St managed to score a field goal with less than 10 seconds remaining to force an OT. Both teams scored touchdowns in the first OT. Iowa scored a touchdown in the second overtime and managed to stop the Spartans from scoring.
There were some interesting stats. Rushes: 44, Passes: 15, which is surprising for a team that was two scores down at the half. Christensen didn’t look very sharp all game, except for the pass he rifled to Paul Chaney in the first overtime.
We also got a look at three starters for the 08 Hawks. Jevon Pugh came in for an injured Albert Young in the second OT and scored the winning touchdown. Jacoby Coleman filled in for an injured Mike Klinkenborg and made some impressive plays. And Adrian Clayborn came in at defensive end and forced a fumble. We will see a lot from these three next season.
There has been a lot of talk this week about how Iowa needs to win against Michigan St to keep their hopes of getting bowl eligible alive. Is getting bowl eligible a good thing? At best Iowa would end up 7-5 which would still put them at the back of the bowl teams in the Big 10. As of this morning all but two teams in the Big 10 have five wins. The best bowl Iowa could hope for is the Motor City Bowl. Considering how disappointing the season has been and faced with going to a lesser bowl, the attendance would be very low. That could damage Iowa’s reputation of traveling so well. Look at what happened to Kansas State under Bill Snyder. They managed to make it to the Fiesta Bowl one season and set a record for attendance. After that they had a string of lesser bowls and KState quickly lost its reputation of traveling well. So sitting out a year might not be a bad thing.
21
Oct
Purdue 31 Iowa 6
Hawks had another disappointing loss, this time to Purdue. The offense could never get going. The running game never got established, netting only 77 yards. The passing game suffered too, though it seemed to be more a case of receivers dropping passes and running the wrong routes. Iowa couldn’t convert on 3rd down again, converting only 3 of 16.
On defense the Hawks couldn’t stop the spread offense of Purdue. Curtis Painter threw the ball at will. Their rushing game didn’t make many big plays, but were able to move the ball. The biggest problem for the defense was they spent too much time on the field. Purdue had a 10 minute advantage in time of possession.
So what is the solution to the 2007 Hawkeyes, besides waiting until 2008? I didn’t comment on Drew Tate’s statements about this and last year’s teams because it sounded like a lot of sour grapes. I do think he has a point in that the other teams seem to know what the Hawks would do on every down. The play calling has become very predictable and they lack the ability to adjust in game. This falls to the coordinators. O’Keefe and Parker need to figure out how to best use the players they have.
The last 4 games are all winnable, but the Hawks could also lose all four.
Cheer up Hawk fans, at least we aren’t Minnesota or Iowa St.
Assume for a minute that at the end of the season Barta and Ferentz decide it is time for a change and they get rid of Parker and O’Keefe. One name immediately springs to mind, Mike Stoops. He is currently the head coach at the University of Arizona and word is he is on the hot seat. He has experience as a defensive coordinator at Kansas State and Oklahoma and would be a perfect fit. Now if only Chuck Long were available…
13
Oct
Iowa 10 Illinois 6
This game didn’t turn out like I expected. I certainly didn’t expect the defense to find a way to stop the Illinois attack. Mike Humphal seemed to be wherever the ball was. And Brett Greenwood made the play of the game when he intercepted the McGee pass at the goal line. That interception stopped the Illini at the end of the game and preserved the 10-6 win.
Jake Christensen looked much more comfortable. He distributed the ball to seven different receivers including a touchdown pass to Brandon Myers.
The biggest change for Iowa on offense was 3rd down conversions. They managed to convert 10 of 17 3rd downs. And I don’t believe there was a single three and out possession for the Hawks all day.
This win should take some of the heat off of Christensen. I think the criticism hasn’t been deserved. He has 10 TDs on 2 INTs. The big problem has been the sacks and that is more a problem of the line. Like I wrote before the season started, the offensive line is inexperienced and how long it takes the line to mature will have a big impact on the new QBs success.
Here’s hoping the Hawks have turned the corner and can build on this win.
07
Oct
Penn St 27 Iowa 7
It is pretty hard to find something positive to say about this game. People will blame Jake Christensen. I think the blame can go all around. The defense gave up nearly 500 yards to a QB that lacks confidence and coughs up the ball on every other play. The defense looked like they would handle the Lions early, but the wheels came off in the second half.
The offense never got going. Young led the rushers with only 44 yards. If the Hawks can’t establish a running game, the passing game will never get going, especially with young inexperienced receivers. Note to Johnson-Koulianos: one good catch two games ago isn’t enough.
I don’t want to be the pessimist, but look at the rest of the schedule. Next up, Illinois and Purdue, two teams with the spread offense that baffles Norm Parker. Michigan St and Northwestern: these should have been gimmes, now I couldn’t tell you who would be favored in either. Minnesota and Directional Michigan ought to end the season on a high note at least. This team could finish somewhere between 2-10 and 6-6 and I’d take the under on the number of wins at this point.
It was good that Ferentz got mad after the game. Maybe this will light a fire under their asses for the rest of the season.
02
Oct
Troubling times
There is a good article over at Hawkeye Report on the troubling times at Iowa by Tom Kakert. I couldn’t agree with him more. Check it out.
With an inexperienced line and receivers, the last person to blame is Jake Christensen. What does concern me is how the other Big 10 teams seem to have figured out Iowa. About the only difference in this year’s offensive plays is they are flipped because the QB is lefty. And the defense has never had an answer for the spread offense.
If the coaching staff is good they will find a way to bring the team together. Maybe they can turn this season around.
30
Sep