While trying to figure out what to expect from the remaining three games of the season I decided to look at the quality of the opponents that the Hawkeyes have faced to far. To this point their opponents in major conferences have a combined record of 45 wins and 20 losses. Of these seven opponents, five of them have made appearances in the top 25 at one point or another this season including 3 that made it inside the top ten. Of course Iowa lost 2 of these games but the combined point differential was 8 points and both games were within reach, not situations where the Hawkeyes didn't have a chance.
A closer look at some of Iowa's opponents reveals some strengths and weaknesses. Arizona's loss last week against Stanford not only dampened the hopes of the Wildcats in terms of going to the Rose Bowl but also knocked them down in the rankings a bit more. Penn State started slow at 3-3 but now has won 3 and a row to get back into the middle of the Big-10. They play MSU and OSU still this season, if this team has any of the fight that JoPa teams have had in the past they will give both a run for their money. Michigan was the opposite case, they started strong and have faded again this year, the second straight year with such results. Iowa State and Indiana are teams in similar positions; both have records around .500 and have put a scare into much more skilled opponents along the way. Iowa State knocked of Texas earlier this season and took Nebraska into overtime last week, where a failed 2 point conversion in overtime cost them the game. Indiana is another team that has yet to record a signature win but only lost by five to Iowa and kept Ohio State close until the end of the game. Their matchup with Wisconsin this week may be the one to watch outside of Iowa-Northwestern, especially with John Clay potentially being out for the matchup. Iowa has played a very strong schedule so far this year and with the exception of Minnesota that will not change the rest of the year.
For the remaining games this season only one thing is for sure, Iowa should beat Minnesota, one of two teams on their schedule that currently have a losing record. The only win the Gophers have picked up this season was at Middle Tennessee State, where they won by 7 points. The Wildcats from Northwestern and the Buckeyes from Ohio State will be interesting matchups for the Hawkeyes. The two have combined for 14 wins so far this season highlighted Ohio State's win over Miami. Northwestern does not yet have their signature win but only lost to MSU by 8 after leading for most of the game. The Wildcats close out their season against Wisconsin and look for a win, against either those Badgers or Hawkeyes this week, to set themselves up for their bowl game. Ohio State is always tough, the Hawkeyes always know what they are getting into when they face the Buckeyes. After last year's results without Ricky Stanzi I have hope for the first time in a few years against them.
This week's matchup for the Hawkeyes is very similar to last weeks. They are in a game that they should win but playing a team in Northwestern that always shows up to play against Iowa. They normally bring a spread offence to the table that causes problems all over the field. Since I was in Pennsylvania last weekend I got to catch part of the PSU vs NW game and wasn't very impressed by what I saw. After the Wildcats jumped out to a first half lead the Nittany Lions made changes and charged back to win the game handedly. Another problem that the Hawkeyes could face is the let down involved with playing Ohio State in the following week. However, I hope to see Adam Robinson return from his concussion this week and team up with Marcus Coker to keep the ball and the clock moving all game. The defense will need to continue to play as stout as is has the last two weeks to slow down the passing attack and hopefully Ricky Stanzi can be sharp early to get points on the board that weren't converted last week. I'm looking forward to a noon game on ESPN that I will finally get a chance to watch again.
Showing posts with label Michigan. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Michigan. Show all posts
Tuesday, November 9, 2010
Sunday, October 17, 2010
Anxiety from GameCast on a cell phone…and an Iowa win!
To call today's game an up and down event would be an understatement, especially when the only way to find out what was going on was on a cell phone. A slow start, two 3-and outs gaining only 7 yards in between which Michigan and Denard Robinson put together a 75 yard touchdown drive. Then the Hawkeyes got going, recording 3 consecutive touchdown drives totaling over 180 yards while holding the Wolverines scoreless due to an interception and a missed field goal. The second half was about the same as both teams struggled to keep the ball in their possession until Iowa scored with a minute and 45 seconds left in the third quarter. At this point the game got very interesting.
Denard Robinson suffered a shoulder injury on the first Michigan play of the third quarter, prompting Tate Forcier to take over at quarterback. Watching the GameCast on the phone made this even more interesting since there was no notification about the injury, I was left to wonder why Robinson had left the game. Robinson is the most dynamic quarterback in the Big-10 but the Hawkeyes had 2 weeks to formulate a game plan to stop him. The problem with this is that with an injury like we saw today, the whole game plan has to change in a matter of minutes. Forcier came into the game for Robinson and immediately drove the Wolverines down the field and into scoring position. Fortunately for the Hawks, they forced a fumble by Vincent Smith on their own 15 yard line to end the threat. After an Iowa punt Forcier took over again, this time he made his own mistake on the third play of the drive and had his pass intercepted by the Iowa defense. The offense took just under 3 minutes to cash in on this mistake and got a late game touchdown, something that I pointed out they needed more of after the last game. The next 3 drives traded touchdowns back and forth, leaving Iowa with a 35-21 lead with just over ten minutes to go. Iowa went three out and on the next drive and Forcier once again drove the Michigan offense down the field to make it a 7 point game. The next drive Ricky Stanzi stepped up with Adam Robinson to get the job done. They drove into Michigan territory and although the drive stalled, took another 4 minutes off the clock. 4th and 7 deep in Michigan territory seemed to take forever to update, the nerves of waiting to read if the freshman kicker Michael Meyer had hit the field goal were killing me. When the phone finally revealed that he had hit it I was highly relieved, a ten point lead with less than 3 minutes to go sounded much better than the simple 7 point lead the Hawks had been clinging to. The defense stepped up when Forcier took the field for the last time, intercepting his third pass of the drive to seal the game. Adam Robinson picked up a first down for good measure, allowing the Hawkeyes to kneel down and pick up a victory in Ann Arbor for the first time since 2002.
I said earlier this week that forcing turnovers was going to be the key to this week; yards were going to be gained regardless of how well the defense played. Little did I know that the yards were going to be picked up through the air and that the turnovers were going to come at the hands of last year's starting quarterback and not Denard Robinson. The Hawks were semi successful at stopping Robinson, he completed 13 of 18 passes but only for 97 yards and had one interception. Robinson also ran 18 times for 105 yards in the half that he played, both stats were on pace for the 200 passing 200 rushing that he has been averaging this season. They key for Iowa was that Michigan only had 7 points from their initial touchdown drive to show for all this success. Forcier brought a whole new aspect to the game, something that the team surely hadn't prepared for much the last 2 weeks. Forcier completed 17 of 26 passes for 239 yards and a touchdown but also threw 2 interceptions and had the costly fumble by his running back while he was in the game. The stat that worries me is the 523 total offensive yards that Michigan was able to gain. The Wolverines gained 31 first downs, including 3 by converting fourth down situations. Points were kept off the board though by the opportunistic Hawkeyes defense with the 4 turnovers and a blocked field goal.
With the exception to a very slow start to the third quarter, the offense looked as fantastic statistically as I had expected it to. Stanzi was 17 of 24 passing for 247 yards with 3 touchdown passes to Derrell Johnson-Kulianos, who had 4 total receptions for 70 yards. The ball was spread around well by Stanzi again this week, 7 teammates had receptions, Robinson and McNutt matched DJK with 4 receptions on the day. Adam Robinson did everything asked of him today, he ran 31 times for 144 yards and 2 touchdowns. With Adams 61 receiving yards he was over 200 total offensive yards for the game. The thing that I was the most pleased to see about the offense was the points scored in every quarter, something that it seems there was a lack of in tight games so far.
Special teams did their job today; Michael Meyer hit all 5 extra points as well as the game clinching 30 yard field goal. Ryan Donahue was called upon 5 times and averaged 46 yards per punt, I would like to see the number downed inside the 20 higher than 1 but without actually watching the game I don't know how often that could have been asked for today. DJK handled kickoff duties today and averaged 30 yards a return, none of the Michigan punts were returned. Kick coverage was good as well today, as it has been since the Arizona game, allowing an average of 20 yards on kickoffs and only 6 total yards on 3 punt return attempts.
When all is said on done it's nice to see the W on the board for the week. We will find out how good Michigan and Penn State really are in the next few weeks. Today's offensive effort was great to see, last year I would have doubted the teams ability to score enough points to win a shootout. The next 2 weeks continue to be huge for the Hawkeyes; first Wisconsin comes to Iowa City coming off their win against number 1 Ohio State followed by Michigan State, currently undefeated and atop the Big-10 standings. These two teams will both be in contention for the Big-10 title when the end of November rolls around so a couple of wins could set the stage for the Hawkeyes. For those who are watching the standings currently, the Hawks are one of 3 teams tied for first based on the conference record.
I will have a preview later in the week of the Wisconsin game, as they come to town attempting to knock Iowa out of the way and work their way up the standings.
Denard Robinson suffered a shoulder injury on the first Michigan play of the third quarter, prompting Tate Forcier to take over at quarterback. Watching the GameCast on the phone made this even more interesting since there was no notification about the injury, I was left to wonder why Robinson had left the game. Robinson is the most dynamic quarterback in the Big-10 but the Hawkeyes had 2 weeks to formulate a game plan to stop him. The problem with this is that with an injury like we saw today, the whole game plan has to change in a matter of minutes. Forcier came into the game for Robinson and immediately drove the Wolverines down the field and into scoring position. Fortunately for the Hawks, they forced a fumble by Vincent Smith on their own 15 yard line to end the threat. After an Iowa punt Forcier took over again, this time he made his own mistake on the third play of the drive and had his pass intercepted by the Iowa defense. The offense took just under 3 minutes to cash in on this mistake and got a late game touchdown, something that I pointed out they needed more of after the last game. The next 3 drives traded touchdowns back and forth, leaving Iowa with a 35-21 lead with just over ten minutes to go. Iowa went three out and on the next drive and Forcier once again drove the Michigan offense down the field to make it a 7 point game. The next drive Ricky Stanzi stepped up with Adam Robinson to get the job done. They drove into Michigan territory and although the drive stalled, took another 4 minutes off the clock. 4th and 7 deep in Michigan territory seemed to take forever to update, the nerves of waiting to read if the freshman kicker Michael Meyer had hit the field goal were killing me. When the phone finally revealed that he had hit it I was highly relieved, a ten point lead with less than 3 minutes to go sounded much better than the simple 7 point lead the Hawks had been clinging to. The defense stepped up when Forcier took the field for the last time, intercepting his third pass of the drive to seal the game. Adam Robinson picked up a first down for good measure, allowing the Hawkeyes to kneel down and pick up a victory in Ann Arbor for the first time since 2002.
I said earlier this week that forcing turnovers was going to be the key to this week; yards were going to be gained regardless of how well the defense played. Little did I know that the yards were going to be picked up through the air and that the turnovers were going to come at the hands of last year's starting quarterback and not Denard Robinson. The Hawks were semi successful at stopping Robinson, he completed 13 of 18 passes but only for 97 yards and had one interception. Robinson also ran 18 times for 105 yards in the half that he played, both stats were on pace for the 200 passing 200 rushing that he has been averaging this season. They key for Iowa was that Michigan only had 7 points from their initial touchdown drive to show for all this success. Forcier brought a whole new aspect to the game, something that the team surely hadn't prepared for much the last 2 weeks. Forcier completed 17 of 26 passes for 239 yards and a touchdown but also threw 2 interceptions and had the costly fumble by his running back while he was in the game. The stat that worries me is the 523 total offensive yards that Michigan was able to gain. The Wolverines gained 31 first downs, including 3 by converting fourth down situations. Points were kept off the board though by the opportunistic Hawkeyes defense with the 4 turnovers and a blocked field goal.
With the exception to a very slow start to the third quarter, the offense looked as fantastic statistically as I had expected it to. Stanzi was 17 of 24 passing for 247 yards with 3 touchdown passes to Derrell Johnson-Kulianos, who had 4 total receptions for 70 yards. The ball was spread around well by Stanzi again this week, 7 teammates had receptions, Robinson and McNutt matched DJK with 4 receptions on the day. Adam Robinson did everything asked of him today, he ran 31 times for 144 yards and 2 touchdowns. With Adams 61 receiving yards he was over 200 total offensive yards for the game. The thing that I was the most pleased to see about the offense was the points scored in every quarter, something that it seems there was a lack of in tight games so far.
Special teams did their job today; Michael Meyer hit all 5 extra points as well as the game clinching 30 yard field goal. Ryan Donahue was called upon 5 times and averaged 46 yards per punt, I would like to see the number downed inside the 20 higher than 1 but without actually watching the game I don't know how often that could have been asked for today. DJK handled kickoff duties today and averaged 30 yards a return, none of the Michigan punts were returned. Kick coverage was good as well today, as it has been since the Arizona game, allowing an average of 20 yards on kickoffs and only 6 total yards on 3 punt return attempts.
When all is said on done it's nice to see the W on the board for the week. We will find out how good Michigan and Penn State really are in the next few weeks. Today's offensive effort was great to see, last year I would have doubted the teams ability to score enough points to win a shootout. The next 2 weeks continue to be huge for the Hawkeyes; first Wisconsin comes to Iowa City coming off their win against number 1 Ohio State followed by Michigan State, currently undefeated and atop the Big-10 standings. These two teams will both be in contention for the Big-10 title when the end of November rolls around so a couple of wins could set the stage for the Hawkeyes. For those who are watching the standings currently, the Hawks are one of 3 teams tied for first based on the conference record.
I will have a preview later in the week of the Wisconsin game, as they come to town attempting to knock Iowa out of the way and work their way up the standings.
Friday, October 15, 2010
Same game : changing views…and a preview of the Wolverines
If I wrote this article in the week after the Iowa vs Penn State game it would have a very different perspective then it does now. When the game took place I saw it as a one loss Iowa team taking on a one loss Nittany Lions team with the winner competing for the Big-10 title regardless of which team was the winner. I expected another game where whoever scored last was going to win the game, Iowa showed up to play as expected, Penn State failed to live up to my expectations. Those expectations were lowered even more the following week when Penn State lost to a tough but not outstanding Illinois team by 20 points.
Regardless of how good or bad of a team Penn State ends up being there were many aspects of Iowa's game that looked outstanding. With the exception of one throw in the first half where he was intercepted, Ricky Stanzi had a great day. He went 16 of 22 throwing for 227 yards and a touchdown, rushing 6 times for 9 yards and another touchdown. The ball was distributed all over the field again as well, 6 different receivers made receptions, 4 of them had over 25 yards receiving for the game. Marvin McNutt and DJK once again were the favorite targets for Stanzi hitting them for 5 and 4 catches with 93 and 64 yards respectively. Adam Robinson continued his solid season as well rushing for 95 yards on 28 carries. The one thing I once again didn't like about this game was the slowdown at halftime by the offense. They put 17 points on the scoreboard in the first half but failed to score another touchdown the rest of the game. Overall the day was successful, only the one turnover by the offense, nearly 350 yards which generated 17 first downs and had a tendency to keep the clock rolling.
As good as the offense was the defense matched it. Through the last 2 games, yes one was against Ball State but still; they have allowed only 3 points. Penn state made it inside Iowa territory twice in the first half, only 6 yards in on one drive. A fourth down stop on the goal line in the third quarter kept Iowa in control of the game, something they never really gave up from the first drive. The final nail in the coffen for the Nittany Lions was the interception return for a touchdown by Shaun Prater with 2 minutes left in the 4th quarter. The defense did all that was asked of them in the game, although they gave up over 300 yards they stepped up when it was needed, the interception and the 4th down stop.
Special teams performed well again this week as well. Freshman Michael Meyer was solid, making all 3 extra point attempts and converting his only field goal try of 20 yards. Ryan Donahue was also excellent in the punting department. He had 7 punts which averaged 40.3 yards per kick and had 3 downed inside the Penn State 20 yard line. The fact that 3 of his punts were downed inside the 20 was the most impressive special teams stat to me, his 4 kicks that weren't downed they were from well within Iowa territory; the 29, the 35, the 11 and the 23. Making the opponents drive as fast as possible is going to be key as the season moves on, beginning this week with Michigan.
Denard Robinson may be the most feared 2 words in the Big-10 outside of Ohio State. This week Iowa goes into Michigan to face Denard and his 5-1 Michigan Wolverines. Last week Michigan got their first real test of the season against Michigan State and it turned out that they are human after all. This week Iowa hopes to repeat the Spartans performance and force Robinson to throw the ball. Michigan State did this mainly once they got the lead any Michigan had to try to mount a comeback. I hope that Iowa's ability to start fast will hold up again this week against the 112th (out of 120) ranked defense that allowed 536 yards, including 249 on the ground, last week to the Spartans. Iowa's secondary has a great ability to get to the ball and Robinson's arm is untested so multiple interceptions are possible. The front four will need to contain Robinson as well; they have done well at generating pressure this year. However, getting pressure will not be enough against a shifty quarterback.
This week has the potential to be a statement game for the Hawkeyes. Winning in the "Big House," something that the Hawkeyes haven't accomplished since 2002, would put Iowa on pace in the Big-10 with a 2-0 record. Regardless of the hype, or in this case skepticism, about Michigan, a win in Ann Arbor would be a huge one for the Hawkeyes. I personally think it can be done, Josh Nesbitt from Georgia Tech was supposed to run all over the Hawkeyes in the Orange Bowl last year and that didn't happen. Either way the matchup between the Hawkeyes and Wolverines Saturday should be a good one.
Regardless of how good or bad of a team Penn State ends up being there were many aspects of Iowa's game that looked outstanding. With the exception of one throw in the first half where he was intercepted, Ricky Stanzi had a great day. He went 16 of 22 throwing for 227 yards and a touchdown, rushing 6 times for 9 yards and another touchdown. The ball was distributed all over the field again as well, 6 different receivers made receptions, 4 of them had over 25 yards receiving for the game. Marvin McNutt and DJK once again were the favorite targets for Stanzi hitting them for 5 and 4 catches with 93 and 64 yards respectively. Adam Robinson continued his solid season as well rushing for 95 yards on 28 carries. The one thing I once again didn't like about this game was the slowdown at halftime by the offense. They put 17 points on the scoreboard in the first half but failed to score another touchdown the rest of the game. Overall the day was successful, only the one turnover by the offense, nearly 350 yards which generated 17 first downs and had a tendency to keep the clock rolling.
As good as the offense was the defense matched it. Through the last 2 games, yes one was against Ball State but still; they have allowed only 3 points. Penn state made it inside Iowa territory twice in the first half, only 6 yards in on one drive. A fourth down stop on the goal line in the third quarter kept Iowa in control of the game, something they never really gave up from the first drive. The final nail in the coffen for the Nittany Lions was the interception return for a touchdown by Shaun Prater with 2 minutes left in the 4th quarter. The defense did all that was asked of them in the game, although they gave up over 300 yards they stepped up when it was needed, the interception and the 4th down stop.
Special teams performed well again this week as well. Freshman Michael Meyer was solid, making all 3 extra point attempts and converting his only field goal try of 20 yards. Ryan Donahue was also excellent in the punting department. He had 7 punts which averaged 40.3 yards per kick and had 3 downed inside the Penn State 20 yard line. The fact that 3 of his punts were downed inside the 20 was the most impressive special teams stat to me, his 4 kicks that weren't downed they were from well within Iowa territory; the 29, the 35, the 11 and the 23. Making the opponents drive as fast as possible is going to be key as the season moves on, beginning this week with Michigan.
Denard Robinson may be the most feared 2 words in the Big-10 outside of Ohio State. This week Iowa goes into Michigan to face Denard and his 5-1 Michigan Wolverines. Last week Michigan got their first real test of the season against Michigan State and it turned out that they are human after all. This week Iowa hopes to repeat the Spartans performance and force Robinson to throw the ball. Michigan State did this mainly once they got the lead any Michigan had to try to mount a comeback. I hope that Iowa's ability to start fast will hold up again this week against the 112th (out of 120) ranked defense that allowed 536 yards, including 249 on the ground, last week to the Spartans. Iowa's secondary has a great ability to get to the ball and Robinson's arm is untested so multiple interceptions are possible. The front four will need to contain Robinson as well; they have done well at generating pressure this year. However, getting pressure will not be enough against a shifty quarterback.
This week has the potential to be a statement game for the Hawkeyes. Winning in the "Big House," something that the Hawkeyes haven't accomplished since 2002, would put Iowa on pace in the Big-10 with a 2-0 record. Regardless of the hype, or in this case skepticism, about Michigan, a win in Ann Arbor would be a huge one for the Hawkeyes. I personally think it can be done, Josh Nesbitt from Georgia Tech was supposed to run all over the Hawkeyes in the Orange Bowl last year and that didn't happen. Either way the matchup between the Hawkeyes and Wolverines Saturday should be a good one.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)