I will take Hockenson any day. And can NF please catch it every time he should? and can maybe he block better? Great player yes, but he isn't perfect. Has stuff to work on.
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I will take Hockenson any day. And can NF please catch it every time he should? and can maybe he block better? Great player yes, but he isn't perfect. Has stuff to work on.
I don't think so either unless he shows he can block and no drop balls he should get. Will probably have a great combine which will make up for some.
Especially in a game where they almost scored 50 points on the road and the team went to 4-1. Looks like all they care about is personal stats and not team wins. Not saying that is true, but it makes it look that way.
I see a few people bringing up the huge drop against Northwestern in OT last year. I would add that if you look at the next game or two after that(can't remember which one) we ran the EXACT same play in a big spot, but had TJ in that spot and he caught it(not that Noah would have dropped 2 in a row). I'm sure that wasn't a mistake that TJ was in there.
I think everyone pretty much agrees that unless he gets injured, this is his last season with the Hawks. Imagine the uproar in Hawkeyenation if Iowa goes to a mid-level bowl and Fant is persuaded to skip the game to protect himself/focus on the combines.
To his credit, I have not seen or heard anything from Noah himself indicating he is unhappy or is not a team player. Until I do, I don't take too seriously anything his family members say.nor do I hold it against him.
To his credit, I have not seen or heard anything from Noah himself indicating he is unhappy or is not a team player. Until I do, I don't take too seriously anything his family members say.nor do I hold it against him.
No use. The preceding comment tells me it's just not worth it.
Love Fant's game and I glad he's a Hawkeye,... everybody comes with family....
This whole thing makes me shake my head. At the family members of Fant who are going public in this way with their displeasure of how their player is being used. As well at the Iowa fans who are quick to drone on "Hockenson is better," "start blocking and you'll play more," and so on. My goodness people. My only concern is how the players on the team feel, and from all accounts everyone is all in. Don't ascribe bad intentions to Noah Fant or to Hockenson. Watch the game, the first guy to congratulate Hockenson on his reception for a TD is Fant. Same when Fant scores his. Watch Fant as a blocker on running plays. He's improved a ton since his freshman year. If he's blocking a DB or a LB he gets movement. If he's against an end, he can hold him to a stalemate, which is really what you're looking for given Fant's athletic ability.
Re-watching the game against Minnesota and it's like an eyelash away from Fant having a huge game. On the play right before the fake FG, Iowa gets to the line and snaps the ball but the play is whistled dead for a Minny timeout. Iowa is running a bubble screen to Fant with two wideouts blocking in front of him and just one safety who is 5+ yards away from Fant. That is likely a TD. Minny calls TO, Iowa goes to a different play and it doesn't work, so then the fake FG happens.
Also in the first half (second quarter) and Fant runs the seam route where he's beaten the LB easily. Stanley just needs to put the ball out in front of him instead of on his back hip, or just put some air under it and it's a long TD. The ball is thrown behind him and the safety is able to get over and knock it away.
Then the first play of the 4th quarter Iowa is on it's own 40 and play-action, Young goes into the flat and Fant runs either a wheel route or out and up and Stanley goes to deliver the ball. But Jackson doesn't block the d-end well on the backside so Stanley gets hit as he throws. Stanley has correctly seen that Fant is just clearing the linebacker who is covering him and in the next 2-3 strides is likely to create a lot of separation.
All 3 were schemed specifically with Fant in mind and all are set up perfectly to work but don't for various reasons (other team recognizes bad matchup and calls TO, poor throw by the QB and missed block by the OL). In the famous words of KF, that's football. It's obvious Iowa goes into every game with a whole slew of things specific to Fant's talents (as they should). I have no idea why he plays 2/3 of the snaps compared to Hockenson. My guess is that Hockenson is a better in-line blocker and Fant is running way more long routes down the field so getting some breaks is part of the deal. But I don't know.
The fans who want to bag on Fant and yelling he's "not as good" as Hockenson make me sick. How about we just say they are different? All the plays Iowa runs to get Fant in space are to take advantage of his skills. Hockenson can't run those same plays with the same level of effectiveness. Period. He doesn't have have the same level of athleticism or speed. Hockenson is great at getting leverage on defenders and making contested catches. His TD reception against Minny was perfect example of that. Reads where the safety is playing him, turns and works back to the QB, catches the pass with the guy draped all over him.
usually this is the kind of crap that comes along with 5 star recruits, not 3 stars. That's what I always liked about the 2 and 3 star players we get. Everyone seems to be incredibly humble and down to earth. As a fan you love all the players that dawn the Hawkeye jersey, but this is a really bad decision by the family. Really puts Noah in a tough and embarrassing situation.
I’m not sure how Fant isn’t an every down player honestly. If you think he’s a liability in the run game, then split him out wide and take ISM/a smaller WR off.
I would guess that 1) he thinks he is an amazing coach and knows best 2) he probably wanted him to go to Nebraska. But this isn't Noah's tweet so who really gives a rat's ass what his brother thinks?
Awesome post! What people fail to realize, and I know the vast majority of Iowans would underneath it all love to say Hock is the superior TE/receiver it’s just not the case.. they are both very good, that’s the truth but just the attention that Fant gets on the field opens things up for other players and Hock does a great job of taking advantage of it! The only problem I see with Noah and Hock would be is if I was the opponents D coordinators! The Hawkeyes have great problem and that’s having two very good TE’s that compliment each other well! I hope neither one of them read any of this garbage and circle up and support each other as brothers and team mates!
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When a WR runs a 30 yard route, usually they will be rotated out for a play. Fant is running similar routes carrying an extra 30+ lbs. On the Jet-Sweep, it was demonstrated that Fant is not as good as ISM on every route. Hock is a better blocker.
This all leads to the fact that Iowa uses different personnel on different downs.
Do I think he should get more snaps, yes, but expecting him to be in EVERY play would reduce his effectiveness. A fresh FANT on even a slightly tired LB is asking for a touchdown on every attempt.
What's a good hybrid name for the two headed monster that is Fant and Hockenson?
Fock?
Fock?
How damn ignorant are you? To compare a post by someone that no one can verify is a family member to the Ball Family issues is beyond stupid!!!! And, one play has no bearing on the other. One play can be brilliant while the other may be brutally stupid. Just like you may one day make a smart post.
Are you sure that the poster is a family member or just someone who chose that moniker? I haven't seen anyone post that knows for sure. Besides, since when does being a family member cost them their right to giving their opinion?
Agree - can’t run deep routes and not get gassed. UNI game he caught a pass down the left sideline and got tackled inside the 10. We hurried up to do a run play so no substitution and Noah was gasping for air and ended up missing his block and being partly to blame for a run to his side that was stopped dead.
Absolutely - the whole fact that Noah has been as productive as he's been given number of snaps that he's seen ... that exactly points to him be very well utilized ... and utilized within schemes that play to his strengths.
I think that ALL Iowa fans would love to see Noah see the field more. However, I think that most of us want to make sure that he's not a liability when he's seeing those reps. Furthermore, we don't want him getting "used up" too early either ... so it's good to keep him healthy and fresh. Part of his great utility is that he's a match-up nightmare against opposing LBs and DBs ... however, that advantage evaporates if he gets dinged OR if he is seeing too many reps and is fatigued.
Just got done reading through some of those tweets.
Yikes.
You'd think Noah would catch word and be like STFU to his fam
Yikes.
You'd think Noah would catch word and be like STFU to his fam
Would like your honest reply. Didn't CJBs dad make some noise in 2014 and not long after CJB magically was elevated to starter?
Pretty much apples to watermelons, don't you think. Fant is NOT sitting on the bench. He is starting, and has already done enough to be mentioned as possibly the top TE in college football, by numerous sources. He has in less then two seasons destroyed the TD's record for a school that has produced many NFL TE's, and could really put that number out there. How does his situation compare in anyway to a QB who wasn't playing, at basically a position where only one guy gets basically all the snaps?
Good post- Just saw Fant is on pace to break Big Ten TE TD record.......also as a coach, he should know better especially to be posting this on social media for all to see. Furthermore, not many programs that would be using him as well as Iowa has and currently is- dude still can't block on the LOS and as many pointed out- Hock is actually a better "TE".
In my opinion, Fant and Hock are our two best offensive players and 2 of our top 3 overall players on the team. I would like to see them BOTH on the field together at least 75% of the time. With that said, twitter is probably not a great place to voice these concerns. Just do it directly with the coaches. Also, our coaches have set Fant up nicely to have a career in the NFL.
We don't know if it's a family member for certain and it certainly can be denied. Not sure where I indicated that they don't have the right to give their opinion. The right to do something however doesn't guarantee that it is a good decision.
When a family member tweets something like this, they surely realize that no good can come of it. What is most concerning to me is that you have to wonder if these feelings are that of Noah himself. It's hard to believe that both his brother and father would put him in this position otherwise. I can't help but wonder if an entitled attitude might be the reason he isn't getting more snaps in the first place. Our head coach is not a big fan of that sort of thing. I really hope this is meaningless speculation and that Noah cares about his team first and his personal stats second. Iowa fans love Noah because he is a Hawkeye, but if he does anything or has an attitude that will hurt the team, Hawkeye Nation will turn on him faster than you can blink.
The real issue is this guy could be costing him $$ by his bs.
That would be great karma.
The apple doesn't always fall near the tree, so who knows.
He may not like them opening their mouths, but they might not care if he likes it.
Lot of weird people out there these days
So who really knows besides them.......
Only thing I know is he definitely has some dbags in the fam(assuming those accounts are real).
