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DOCHTERMAN WITH "THE ATHLETIC" doesn't know anything about the Iowa fanbase

I am going to take Kirk at his word on this. I am excited about the fall, because, while stubborn as an old mule, he's also a smart man with a healthy ego, who does not want to be remembered this way. I expect there to be improvement. Great improvement? That's subjective, but improvement enough that it will be noticeable both in what we see and what the data will reflect. But my enthusiasm will be on a short leash. If they struggle out of the blocks on offense in the non-conference games, my attitude will quickly change.
The issue is, literally everything you wrote here could have been, and was, written last off-season about the imminent improvements that would manifest themselves in the 2022 season.
 
Here is what I see as the problem. With Cade, an older OL, and an easier schedule, I don't have much doubt that they'll be better in 2023. Lets say they get to 100th. Then some will say "we are on our way". Had we acquired or if we acquire a few more of the highly talented guys, we could probably get to 80th.

But to realistically compete with the best we have to get to 50th. That difference between 80th and 50th will never be acheived by BF. The OC needs to be that difference. Offense isn't just about style and talent. It's about how best to attack the different defensive weakneses, how to adjust or add plays to capitalize on specific player strengths, how to sequence plays to create confusion, ..... In other words, it requires a mental capability that BF doesn't have and will never have.

So that the improvement next year will give the false impression that we are "on our way" and will result in several more years of not fixing the problem.
Would love to know what the conversations between Barta and Brian were like. Gary alluded to criteria I believe, what will those look like?

simply getting to mediocre doesn’t cut it for me. Zero reason to not consistently expect to be in top half of FBS, at least in points per game.
 
So that the improvement next year will give the false impression that we are "on our way" and will result in several more years of not fixing the problem.
I think this year was the last, best chance at "fixing the problem", and KF has decided to not do so. However and whenever it finally happens, KF is in the twilight of his career, he only has so many more seasons in him. What's worrisome is that at the end, KF's tenure is becoming increasingly like the end of Bobby Bowden's time at FSU, where personal loyalty (to his failsons and other long-time assistants) led to stagnation and significant decline. Once the rot sets in, it is nearly impossible to get it out short of tearing the entire program down to the studs.
 
Would love to know what the conversations between Barta and Brian were like. Gary alluded to criteria I believe, what will those look like?

simply getting to mediocre doesn’t cut it for me. Zero reason to not consistently expect to be in top half of FBS, at least in points per game.
If the defense can do it consistently then why not the offense? Two sets of rules the team operates under.
 
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If the defense can do it consistently then why not the offense? Two sets of rules the team operates under.

To an extent, given our ball control style on offense - which I’m fine with as a philosophy, I’m okay with not having video game stat lines. So we’ll never have great statistical rankings.

But zero reason to think that as a floor, that 400 yards/game, 30 ppg can’t be the basic expectations.
 
Yeah these dipshits should go to the children's hospital and walk through. If all you got is to bitch about Brian and Kirk all the time and you don't feel lucky as hell as a human being I don't know what to say. I am an optimist and thankful as hell I and my family are healthy and have the basics to live freely. I can choose to go to games or I could choose to go camping in the fall. Freedom is a fantastic thing. Some use it to complain constantly rather than just moving on to something else that would actually make themselves happy.
Raging over sports teams is an excellent sign that your health is great.
 
Didn't say I was expecting a 2-10 season. Just hoping for one. Would be fine going 6-6. With this pathetically weak schedule that would still bring a little heat.
Outside of a complete implosion there will be no heat. Kirk (and by extension Brian) have the job(s) for as long as they want them.
 
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The issue is, literally everything you wrote here could have been, and was, written last off-season about the imminent improvements that would manifest themselves in the 2022 season.
I don't recall that, but you may be right about improvements expected from '21 to '22. The difference as I see it is that the urgency for improvement this fall was not on the scale or as acute as it was the year before. Others by then had already been convinced that Brian needed to be gone. Maybe I'm a slow learner on this, but I didn't think '22 was going to be as bad as it was. Now, while Kirk has doubled down on Brian, he's also more overtly acknowledging that the offense is a problem and they've taken more measures to address the problem by the addition of McNamara, All, Anderson, Feth and Parker. I'm taking these steps as giving me some optimism about the fall.
 
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