Difference between a Top 25 team scrimmage & Iowa

[Phenomenally Frantastic]

Geezus, you're an angry little fellow huh. Bet you got an insult for anyone that crosses you, don't ya....

How mad does Iowa football really make you, Frantastic?

unabashed ignorant internet goons bring out the worst in me.

Iowa Football itself is like Groundhog Day. I'm ready for the next regime...but fools like icu81222 lashing out at folks really grind my gears. Don't piss on my shoe and tell me it's raining.

Iowa football is slow. We recruit MAC level talent and run off so many scholarship players it's ludicrous.

Getting spanked all game by Ball State should have opened some eyes. Losing to 2-10 ISWho at home should have woken more zombies. Getting blown out by Minnesota, MINNESOTA!! should have the fan base on the same page..the embarassing blowout loss in the bowl to a young team should have been Ferentz's last gasp but alas we are stuck with him and his $4 MILLION dollar contract for at least one more season.

But dont sit here and tell me we have a good team coming back this year. STOP blowing smoke. 6-6 and another who cares bowl is in the cards. We still have the same inept coaching staff, Norm is dead. RIP. He was the heart and soul of this program and he is gonw. It's over.

 

[RocknRollface]

Said it many times, our program is stuck much like Penn state has been for so many years, boring, predictable, and stick in the past. As much as Joe Pa said their program needed to do things different the more they looked the same. Read how Gary Patterson recognized the need to change and change dramatically because he knew he wouldn't win if he didn't. Hired young explosive minded coordinators and gave them control of the offense. We hire an coordinator that was fired, old, and just an extension of Kirk. We could be lucky going 8-4, but, a lot like last year the record might not say much about the state of the program.

Kirk had the chance to do what Patterson did. He choose to double down on his old ways instead and that decision has lead to where they are now.

 

[cidsports]

I know Frydaze knows me but many of you don't know that when I was inside the program, I never listened to the "outside noise." I was a Ferentz believer through and through. I didn't worry about anything because I believed in the system and the product that was on the field each year. That changed in 2011 and I have had negative thoughts about the program since then. Frydaze, Kakert, and a few others know my thoughts. I'm sorry but I'm about as honest as they come and know as much about the program as anyone. I want the program to be successful as much as anyone but I know it's not possible anymore with the current leadership.

The game has changed, plain and simple. Unfortunately the leadership has not made the proper adjustments and I know that they never will. The Iowa program will simply be a mediocre program with the current leadership that is in place. I am not only talking about the staff, it starts from the top with Gary Barta.

Iowa is stuck in the early 2000s and the game has changed 360 IN THE LAST DECADE.

Here is to the Arizona Wildcats and the Iowa Hawkeyes.

Iowa has been disappointing for 5 years. Hayden Fry went through it, as well.

The Hawkeyes didn't get Michigan in 1997. But, they gave Michigan a hell of a game.

We shall see how 2015 begins in less than 3 weeks.

On Iowa!

 

[EvilMonkeyInTheCloset]

We still have the same inept coaching staff, Norm is dead. RIP. He was the heart and soul of this program and he is gone. It's over.

Okay, let's clarify this sentiment because I know it's one that's shared by many hard-headed fans.

Norm may have been THE heart and soul, but it would've been of the staff and/or team, not the program. If what you said was the case though, then yeah, your comment about it being over is true. Iowa football is done and Barta should drop the program and divide all scholarships and funds into all the other sports to help them out since we're not faring much better in the Big Ten in a lot of them. Fair trade, if the program is dead, right?......

Of course, Hayden Fry had his own set of genius coordinators that had dispersed by the early 90s and he then struggled as well. However, many worship Fry for revitalizing the Iowa program..........aaaand being the heart and soul of the program during his tenure, (though some have and will argue that).

But how could that be if he lost all his coordinators and proceeded to struggle in the 90s much the way Ferentz is struggling in the twilight of his career? If that's the case, then which of the coordinators on Fry's staff was the true heart and soul, and after he left the program was done for?

And taking that a step further, if you buy into that theory, then how could Iowa football have ever been revived if Fry lost the heart and soul of his staff, and then ultimately retired with a program trending into obscurity?

Oh wait, that's right. Norm came along....and that Kirk Ferentz guy too....but mostly Norm. So point being, if you're gonna call Norm the heart and soul of something, that something should be of the team or staff. The football program itself has been around for 126 years and has had dozens of coaches and players who embodied the "heart and soul" of the team, the staff, and yes even the program.

Norm is simply one of many, but not the last. So maybe Kirk won't ride off into the sunset victorious. Few ever have at Iowa. But the program will still be here, waiting for the next person to inspire their players and help take the program back to the level its staff, the university, and the fans want it to be at.
No, it doesn't have to be the next head coach, since this is the argument our fans are making by suggesting that all of Kirk's real success was mainly due to Norm, a defensive coordinator. So hell we could in fact get some bum from the Sun Belt to lead the Hawks, just as long as he finds himself an elite coordinator like a Snyder, Alvarez, or a Parker (Norm that is, not Phil.....). Is that also fair to suggest? Or do fans not take that into account when clamoring for the next head coach to replace Kirk Ferentz? Is a head coach truly only as good as his coordinators?

And don't get me wrong, I'm sure you and others don't literally think Iowa football is dead. You simply are suggesting that Norm was the reason Kirk won so much. So then Iowa needs to find it's next leader who is gonna help turn this program around for the better again. Maybe that does still happen while Ferentz is the head coach (many will jump on to argue it doesn't). Who knows?

The only things for certain are that whoever that person may be that ends up taking on the fan-appointed role of the "heart and soul of the team/staff/program/whatever"....are that it is not something that can be manufactured, it doesn't simply happen because we want it to, and all we can do is wait until the time that it does happen.

And if anyone doesn't want to, go ahead. Football is just like any other sport, especially when it comes to fans. You wanna walk away, or go root for someone else until the time comes that Iowa football is playing for a championship is the last few weeks of the season and it actually feels like they're playing for a chance at a championship rather than facing an uphill gauntlet as a several-loss underdog that is still mathematically in the hunt (2014 says hi.....), then you can do that. Nobody will judge you if you decide to stop being an Iowa fan for 4 years, or forever. Well, nobody except yourself. And if you're to that point then you probably don't care, anyway.
And if you want to stick it out, then like I said, come get in line like everyone else and wait.............(the waiting line, the ultimate test of patience. )

But really though, people...yeah, Norm IS gone. Time to move on and watch another season of Iowa football.

/tl;dr

 

[frydaze]

Okay, let's clarify this sentiment because I know it's one that's shared by many hard-headed fans.

Norm may have been THE heart and soul, but it would've been of the staff and/or team, not the program. If what you said was the case though, then yeah, your comment about it being over is true. Iowa football is done and Barta should drop the program and divide all scholarships and funds into all the other sports to help them out since we're not faring much better in the Big Ten in a lot of them. Fair trade, if the program is dead, right?......

Of course, Hayden Fry had his own set of genius coordinators that had dispersed by the early 90s and he then struggled as well. However, many worship Fry for revitalizing the Iowa program..........aaaand being the heart and soul of the program during his tenure, (though some have and will argue that).

But how could that be if he lost all his coordinators and proceeded to struggle in the 90s much the way Ferentz is struggling in the twilight of his career? If that's the case, then which of the coordinators on Fry's staff was the true heart and soul, and after he left the program was done for?

And taking that a step further, if you buy into that theory, then how could Iowa football have ever been revived if Fry lost the heart and soul of his staff, and then ultimately retired with a program trending into obscurity?

Oh wait, that's right. Norm came along....and that Kirk Ferentz guy too....but mostly Norm. So point being, if you're gonna call Norm the heart and soul of something, that something should be of the team or staff. The football program itself has been around for 126 years and has had dozens of coaches and players who embodied the "heart and soul" of the team, the staff, and yes even the program.

Norm is simply one of many, but not the last. So maybe Kirk won't ride off into the sunset victorious. Few ever have at Iowa. But the program will still be here, waiting for the next person to inspire their players and help take the program back to the level its staff, the university, and the fans want it to be at.
No, it doesn't have to be the next head coach, since this is the argument our fans are making by suggesting that all of Kirk's real success was mainly due to Norm, a defensive coordinator. So hell we could in fact get some bum from the Sun Belt to lead the Hawks, just as long as he finds himself an elite coordinator like a Snyder, Alvarez, or a Parker (Norm that is, not Phil.....). Is that also fair to suggest? Or do fans not take that into account when clamoring for the next head coach to replace Kirk Ferentz? Is a head coach truly only as good as his coordinators?

And don't get me wrong, I'm sure you and others don't literally think Iowa football is dead. You simply are suggesting that Norm was the reason Kirk won so much. So then Iowa needs to find it's next leader who is gonna help turn this program around for the better again. Maybe that does still happen while Ferentz is the head coach (many will jump on to argue it doesn't). Who knows?

The only things for certain are that whoever that person may be that ends up taking on the fan-appointed role of the "heart and soul of the team/staff/program/whatever"....are that it is not something that can be manufactured, it doesn't simply happen because we want it to, and all we can do is wait until the time that it does happen.

And if anyone doesn't want to, go ahead. Football is just like any other sport, especially when it comes to fans. You wanna walk away, or go root for someone else until the time comes that Iowa football is playing for a championship is the last few weeks of the season and it actually feels like they're playing for a chance at a championship rather than facing an uphill gauntlet as a several-loss underdog that is still mathematically in the hunt (2014 says hi.....), then you can do that. Nobody will judge you if you decide to stop being an Iowa fan for 4 years, or forever. Well, nobody except yourself. And if you're to that point then you probably don't care, anyway.
And if you want to stick it out, then like I said, come get in line like everyone else and wait.............(the waiting line, the ultimate test of patience. )

But really though, people...yeah, Norm IS gone. Time to move on and watch another season of Iowa football.

/tl;dr

Dang guy, your posts are hard to decipher at times.

What I feel is Norm Parker had a huge impact on Kirk Ferentz as a mentor and I think his loss to the Iowa/Kirk Ferentz lead program is still very much being felt....from his salty defenses to his wisdom.

Iowa football has never been dead. Right now it's in severe need of a positive injection to super charge it from the way the last 5 years have played out. At some point it needs to turn around as the program has been running on a treadmill as we aren't inching forward. Tough when Wisconsin will still be strong this year, though not the Wisconsin of the past several years, and Minnesota continues to improve and Nebraska begins to settle in under the Riley regime.

Fans get anxious. Fans get frustrated. Fans want winners on the field. It's who fans are. Every fan holds different emotions/standards for their teams performance. I have zero trouble with those who think our program is still the best in America, and those who feel a change in leadership is absolutely needed.

My guess is you're trying to say the same thing here. Am I right?

 

[Suterman]

Well said Monkey. I choose to remain optimistic until I can't be any more. We can have a great year this year and until the record tells me we can't, I'm going to remain optimistic. It's a lot more fun.

 

[cidhawkeye]

Okay, let's clarify this sentiment because I know it's one that's shared by many hard-headed fans.

Norm may have been THE heart and soul, but it would've been of the staff and/or team, not the program. If what you said was the case though, then yeah, your comment about it being over is true. Iowa football is done and Barta should drop the program and divide all scholarships and funds into all the other sports to help them out since we're not faring much better in the Big Ten in a lot of them. Fair trade, if the program is dead, right?......

Of course, Hayden Fry had his own set of genius coordinators that had dispersed by the early 90s and he then struggled as well. However, many worship Fry for revitalizing the Iowa program..........aaaand being the heart and soul of the program during his tenure, (though some have and will argue that).

But how could that be if he lost all his coordinators and proceeded to struggle in the 90s much the way Ferentz is struggling in the twilight of his career? If that's the case, then which of the coordinators on Fry's staff was the true heart and soul, and after he left the program was done for?

And taking that a step further, if you buy into that theory, then how could Iowa football have ever been revived if Fry lost the heart and soul of his staff, and then ultimately retired with a program trending into obscurity?

Oh wait, that's right. Norm came along....and that Kirk Ferentz guy too....but mostly Norm. So point being, if you're gonna call Norm the heart and soul of something, that something should be of the team or staff. The football program itself has been around for 126 years and has had dozens of coaches and players who embodied the "heart and soul" of the team, the staff, and yes even the program.

Norm is simply one of many, but not the last. So maybe Kirk won't ride off into the sunset victorious. Few ever have at Iowa. But the program will still be here, waiting for the next person to inspire their players and help take the program back to the level its staff, the university, and the fans want it to be at.
No, it doesn't have to be the next head coach, since this is the argument our fans are making by suggesting that all of Kirk's real success was mainly due to Norm, a defensive coordinator. So hell we could in fact get some bum from the Sun Belt to lead the Hawks, just as long as he finds himself an elite coordinator like a Snyder, Alvarez, or a Parker (Norm that is, not Phil.....). Is that also fair to suggest? Or do fans not take that into account when clamoring for the next head coach to replace Kirk Ferentz? Is a head coach truly only as good as his coordinators?

And don't get me wrong, I'm sure you and others don't literally think Iowa football is dead. You simply are suggesting that Norm was the reason Kirk won so much. So then Iowa needs to find it's next leader who is gonna help turn this program around for the better again. Maybe that does still happen while Ferentz is the head coach (many will jump on to argue it doesn't). Who knows?

The only things for certain are that whoever that person may be that ends up taking on the fan-appointed role of the "heart and soul of the team/staff/program/whatever"....are that it is not something that can be manufactured, it doesn't simply happen because we want it to, and all we can do is wait until the time that it does happen.

And if anyone doesn't want to, go ahead. Football is just like any other sport, especially when it comes to fans. You wanna walk away, or go root for someone else until the time comes that Iowa football is playing for a championship is the last few weeks of the season and it actually feels like they're playing for a chance at a championship rather than facing an uphill gauntlet as a several-loss underdog that is still mathematically in the hunt (2014 says hi.....), then you can do that. Nobody will judge you if you decide to stop being an Iowa fan for 4 years, or forever. Well, nobody except yourself. And if you're to that point then you probably don't care, anyway.
And if you want to stick it out, then like I said, come get in line like everyone else and wait.............(the waiting line, the ultimate test of patience. )

But really though, people...yeah, Norm IS gone. Time to move on and watch another season of Iowa football.

/tl;dr

Alvarez was never an elite coordinator at Iowa. If Kirk can go find coordinators like Brashier and a Snyder I am going to go out on a limb here and say things may improve

 

[frydaze]

Alvarez was never an elite coordinator at Iowa. If Kirk can go find coordinators like Brashier and a Snyder I am going to go out on a limb here and say things may improve

I missed that in Monkey's post---yes, Barry Alvarez was NEVER a D-Coordinator while at Iowa for Fry...he was a LB coach from the day he arrived from Mason City to the day he left for Notre Dame. Bill Brashier was Hayden's D-Coordinator at Iowa his entire time at Iowa, until the final 3 years or so when Brashier retired and Bob Elliott stepped in.

Barry ultimately became the D-Coordinator for the Irish, and that lead to being named Wisconsin's head coach ultimately.

 

[5Fan5]

I went to Arizona State's fall scrimmage today and then watched highlights and talked to a number of family and friends that attended the Iowa scrimmage.

Night and Day difference

Athletes: Night & Day difference. Iowa is slow & ..........ASU has a bunch of strong, lean, and fast athletes roaming the field.
Enthusiasm: Night & Day. Iowa did their normal even keel, ho hum practice. ASU players were seriously excited to be playing in front of a crowd for the first time this fall. Coaches were running down sidelines congratulating players on plays.
Big Plays: Night & Day. Iowa's highlights were a pick six and a bunch of 7-9 yard gains. ASU had a punt return for a TD, a number of long runs and passes.

Watching the highlight film tonight was night and day. I'm sorry that there are plenty of hawkeye kool aid drinkers that hate me but there is a huge difference.

Iowa is going to go 3-5 or 4-4 in the weakest Power 5 division in college football and ASU is going to go 6-2 or 7-1 in the 2nd best Power 5 division in college football. It's sad but unfortunately it's time for a change. Hopefully this is the season the athletic department realizes it.

Sounds like ASU needs to focus on special teams and pass defense...

The Sun Devils ranked 114th out of a possible 125 in punt return defense last season allowing over 13 yards per return and two touchdowns on the year. Not sure that boasting of having that unit allow yet another score is something to try to utilize in this case. Same for the 'long passes' - ASU was 103rd overall in yards allowed via the pass last year.

From where I stand, looks as if you are a Sun Devil fan basking in the hope that ASU will be an improved team in 2015 while all many here on HR are doing is expressing the same manner of optimism.