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Hawkeyes add Middle Tennessee State to 2019 schedule

Blair Sanderson

Blair Sanderson

Editor
Apr 8, 2003
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IOWA ADDS MIDDLE TENNESSEE STATE TO 2019 SLATE

IOWA CITY, Iowa – The University of Iowa has added Middle Tennessee State to the home football slate for the 2019 season, giving the Hawkeyes a full schedule of games for the next three seasons. The announcement was made Tuesday by UI Deputy Athletics Director Gene Taylor.

Middle Tennessee State will visit Kinnick Stadium on Sept. 28, 2019. The Hawkeyes open the season at home against Miami, Ohio and Big Ten foe Rutgers. Iowa travels to Iowa State and has an open weekend before closing the nonconference schedule against the Blue Raiders.

Middle Tennessee State posted an 8-5 record in 2016, earning a spot in the Hawaii Bowl, where it dropped a 52-35 contest to the host school. Middle Tennessee State averaged 39.7 points per game. MTSU scored 51 points in a win at Missouri.

Coach Rick Stockstill has been at Middle Tennessee State for 11 seasons, posting a 72-65 record. Stockstill has led the Blue Raiders to six bowl games and MTSU has been bowl eligible eight of the past 11 seasons.

Iowa’s nonconference slate in 2017 includes Wyoming and North Texas at home, and a road game at Iowa State. In 2018, the Hawkeyes host Northern Illinois, Iowa State, and Northern Iowa to open the season.
 
Middle Tennessee State plays at Minnesota on 9/16/17.

They open the season at home against Vanderbilt on 9/2 then travel to Syracuse on 9/9 and then on to Minnesota.

In 2018 MTSU plays at Vanderbilt, at Georgia, at Kentucky.

They will have plenty of experience against P5 schools prior to the Iowa game in 2019.
 
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Isn't this sh!tty MTSU game just another reason why we should stop playing Iowa State on an annual basis? We seem addicted to 7 home games, and since the Big 10 has gone to a 9 game schedule, there is only room for one non-conference home and home game. If we make ISU home and home every other year, we could schedule home and home games with other power five schools on a regular basis. Iowa does not have an obligation to play ISU every year. Its time Barta grew a pair and do something for Iowa fans instead of kissing Jamie Pollard's ass.

Verbum Dei

AMDG
 
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Wow, people will complain no matter what. Iowa won't schedule any other P5 teams until ISU is off the schedule so no reason to keep complaining.
 
VerbumDei said:
Isn't this sh!tty MTSU game just another reason why we should stop playing Iowa State on an annual basis? We seem addicted to 7 home games, and since the Big 10 has gone to a 9 game schedule, there is only room for one non-conference home and home game. If we make ISU home and home every other year, we could schedule home and home games with other power five schools on a regular basis. Iowa does not have an obligation to play ISU every year. Its time Barta grew a pair and do something for Iowa fans instead of kissing Jamie Pollard's ass.

Verbum Dei

AMDG
Click to expand...
ABSOLUTLY!
 
VerbumDei said:
Isn't this sh!tty MTSU game just another reason why we should stop playing Iowa State on an annual basis? We seem addicted to 7 home games, and since the Big 10 has gone to a 9 game schedule, there is only room for one non-conference home and home game. If we make ISU home and home every other year, we could schedule home and home games with other power five schools on a regular basis. Iowa does not have an obligation to play ISU every year. Its time Barta grew a pair and do something for Iowa fans instead of kissing Jamie Pollard's ass.

Verbum Dei

AMDG
Click to expand...
Agree with this but should be 2 years on 2 years off. More excitement playing the other P5 team in back to back years. Along with playing ISU back to back. Honestly I don't think ISU fans would hate it either. Gives them flexibility too.
 
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non con games are meaningless... the only non con of any possible value would be one against Iowa State, imho

for me, its all about conference play and winning the Big Ten West Division.

nothing else matters.
 
thirteenandtwo said:
non con games are meaningless... the only non con of any possible value would be one against Iowa State, imho

for me, its all about conference play and winning the Big Ten West Division.

nothing else matters.
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Non conference games are meaningless.... yet, the Iowa vs ISU game is one of the most exciting games of the year?
 
thirteenandtwo said:
non con games are meaningless... the only non con of any possible value would be one against Iowa State, imho

for me, its all about conference play and winning the Big Ten West Division.

nothing else matters.
Click to expand...

I disagree with non-conference games being meaningless. With the playoff system, bowl positions, etc... you need every win you can get.
 
Come on guys we play the Powerhouse called Iowa State in the non-conf. I am surprised College Gameday hasn't picked the cy-hawk trophy for their stop. I mean its is a power 5 vs a power 5.

Oh wait no one cares outside the state of Iowa.

There is another game I am selling my tickets to in 2019. MTSU I believe was in the Sun Belt???? Who HOO!!!
 
With now having 9 conference games and 3 non conference unless Iowa goes to 6 home games which Barta is not a fan of this is what to be expected for one of the other 2 non conference games as long as ISU is on schedule. Iowa is in a unique situation besides Pitt/Penn St we are the only Big 10 school with a rival that is in another Power 5 conference and Pitt/PSU before last year had gone 15 years without playing one another. That is why ISU game is such a conundrum now. Barta mentioned in interview after huge opening weekend of games last season about a neutral site game. Even if we don't get rid of ISU I'd hope at least every 4-5 years sacrifice 1 home game for a solid neutral site game vs a Power 5 team (not NIU at Solider again).

But for those complaining about a boring non conference team on the schedule look at the SEC. Every school has 4 non conference games and only 1 team last season, Georgia, played 2 power 5 schools so even the mighty SEC every team had 3 games just like MTSU on schedule last season.
 
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MTSU nothing to gain everything to lose type NDSU game. They'll be tough too just you watch when we play them.. might as well have scheduled Vandy or U of T doesn't look as bad if one of them beat us..
 
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Mock it all you want, but MTSU is probably the best non-conference opponent we will play between now and 2021, with the possible exception of Wyoming this year. So they are an upgrade over what was already on the schedule.

And yes Iowa State, I'm looking at you.
 
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Quite the refreshing hot take to ISU being on the schedule. I didn't know that anyone disagreed.
 
Can't wait until the day we drop Iowa State and schedule a real P5 football team. I'm so sick of hearing the (well-deserved) bullshit
 
BondHawk said:
Mock it all you want, but MTSU is probably the best non-conference opponent we will play between now and 2021, with the possible exception of Wyoming this year. So they are an upgrade over what was already on the schedule.

And yes Iowa State, I'm looking at you.
Click to expand...

This. MTSU's Offensive Coordinator is one of the best offensive coordinators in college football. He's a brilliant offensive mind. He was the OC at Cal and produced top 10 offenses. He left the OC position at Cal to be the OC at MTSU for family reasons. His first season at MTSU he produced a top 10 offense.

Assuming he stays at MTSU, they will be one of the best offenses we see in 2019 if not the best.
 
As usual Mike Hlas writes a shitty article on it. I get it. He is an Iowa State fan and covers Iowa state from Cedar Rapids. But everything he tweets or writes about Iowa is usually in the form of a backhanded complement or mocking. He has some wit but he should stick to just writing about Iowa State.
 
BondHawk said:
Mock it all you want, but MTSU is probably the best non-conference opponent we will play between now and 2021, with the possible exception of Wyoming this year. So they are an upgrade over what was already on the schedule.

And yes Iowa State, I'm looking at you.
Click to expand...
I agree with this. MTSU is a solid program they just don't have the name recognition.
 
terrehawk said:
As usual Mike Hlas writes a shitty article on it. I get it. He is an Iowa State fan and covers Iowa state from Cedar Rapids. But everything he tweets or writes about Iowa is usually in the form of a backhanded complement or mocking. He has some wit but he should stick to just writing about Iowa State.
Click to expand...

What was shitty about his article? I assume you are referring to his article published yesterday regarding the MTS announcement? Iowa deserves to be mocked for lining up yet another meaningless non-conference opponent, while paying out 1.5mil to bring them in! At least Hlas is willing to call it like he (and thousands of others) see's it and isn't afraid to question the scheduling tendencies of Barta and Ferentz. The opening paragraph was spot on and accurately reflects how Iowa fans feel. He isn't buying the long con that Barta and Ferentz have pulled over most Iowa fans for the better part of the past two decades. As Hlas mentioned, our non-conference opponents through the next three years are Wyoming, North Texas, Northern Illinois, UNI, Miami (OH) and Middle Tennessee St. Hlas put it perfectly, welcome to the tingle-free zone, par for the course with GB and KF. Some of our peers elected to take chances and challenges with their non-conference scheduling over the past decade while Iowa played it about as conservative as you could imagine. Low risk / low reward is what we've grown accustomed to.
 
C/Seahawk said:
What was shitty about his article? I assume you are referring to his article published yesterday regarding the MTS announcement? Iowa deserves to be mocked for lining up yet another meaningless non-conference opponent, while paying out 1.5mil to bring them in! At least Hlas is willing to call it like he (and thousands of others) see's it and isn't afraid to question the scheduling tendencies of Barta and Ferentz. The opening paragraph was spot on and accurately reflects how Iowa fans feel. He isn't buying the long con that Barta and Ferentz have pulled over most Iowa fans for the better part of the past two decades. As Hlas mentioned, our non-conference opponents through the next three years are Wyoming, North Texas, Northern Illinois, UNI, Miami (OH) and Middle Tennessee St. Hlas put it perfectly, welcome to the tingle-free zone, par for the course with GB and KF. Some of our peers elected to take chances and challenges with their non-conference scheduling over the past decade while Iowa played it about as conservative as you could imagine. Low risk / low reward is what we've grown accustomed to.
Click to expand...
exactly how every single every single one of his articles are. And his tweets are obnoxious too
 
C/Seahawk said:
What was shitty about his article? I assume you are referring to his article published yesterday regarding the MTS announcement? Iowa deserves to be mocked for lining up yet another meaningless non-conference opponent, while paying out 1.5mil to bring them in! At least Hlas is willing to call it like he (and thousands of others) see's it and isn't afraid to question the scheduling tendencies of Barta and Ferentz. The opening paragraph was spot on and accurately reflects how Iowa fans feel. He isn't buying the long con that Barta and Ferentz have pulled over most Iowa fans for the better part of the past two decades. As Hlas mentioned, our non-conference opponents through the next three years are Wyoming, North Texas, Northern Illinois, UNI, Miami (OH) and Middle Tennessee St. Hlas put it perfectly, welcome to the tingle-free zone, par for the course with GB and KF. Some of our peers elected to take chances and challenges with their non-conference scheduling over the past decade while Iowa played it about as conservative as you could imagine. Low risk / low reward is what we've grown accustomed to.
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Also, I guess you missed all of the other posts and articles that have been put out. With having Iowa State on the schedule every single year Iowa really has no choice. Power 5 conference opponents are not going to give Iowa a home game without a return. So your entire post is stupid

Most of the programs do not have the same problem because they don't have an in-state rival that's also a power 5 Conference team.
 
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C/Seahawk said:
What was shitty about his article? I assume you are referring to his article published yesterday regarding the MTS announcement? Iowa deserves to be mocked for lining up yet another meaningless non-conference opponent, while paying out 1.5mil to bring them in! At least Hlas is willing to call it like he (and thousands of others) see's it and isn't afraid to question the scheduling tendencies of Barta and Ferentz. The opening paragraph was spot on and accurately reflects how Iowa fans feel. He isn't buying the long con that Barta and Ferentz have pulled over most Iowa fans for the better part of the past two decades. As Hlas mentioned, our non-conference opponents through the next three years are Wyoming, North Texas, Northern Illinois, UNI, Miami (OH) and Middle Tennessee St. Hlas put it perfectly, welcome to the tingle-free zone, par for the course with GB and KF. Some of our peers elected to take chances and challenges with their non-conference scheduling over the past decade while Iowa played it about as conservative as you could imagine. Low risk / low reward is what we've grown accustomed to.
Click to expand...
Mike Hlas is a lowest common denominator writer. He plays the obvious angle that will appeal to low information readers and get them nodding down at the coffee shop, while ignoring that MTSU would win the MAC and be competitive with the bottom half of both divisions in the Big 10 most years.

I have no argument with anyone who wants UNI/Miami (OH)/North Texas off of the schedule, but taking up arms specifically over MTSU just shows an ignorance of college football, and how scheduling and revenue generation to support the program actually works in the 9 conference game era.
 
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Barta and KF are gutless. If Iowa can't compete with other major programs, then make UNI a permanent opponent and join the Missouri Valley. The MAC might be too much...

This is ludicrous. In recent years Wisconsin has played LSU and Alabama, Minnesota has played USC, but Hawkeye fans get Middle Tennessee State. Wow. That really makes a statement. But the statement is, "We can't compete." Top recruits no doubt salivate at the thought of competing with the likes of Miami (Ohio), UNI, Wyoming, and now Middle Tennessee State.

Enjoy watching that MTS battle from the lovely new north end zone. As for me, they couldn't pay me enough to drop by Kinnick for that contest.

Ah, for the days when Iowa played nonconference teams that included Nebraska, UCLA, and Penn State. As you know, Hayden Fry launched the Iowa rebirth on the backs of wins over top ten teams Nebraska and UCLA in the first and third games of the 1981 season. Had Iowa played UNI and Middle Tennessee instead, that season never would have been the same.

As many of us have noted ad infinitum, Iowa has everything to lose and nothing to gain from playing the MAC teams, UNI, Middle Tennessee and the rest. No wonder KF doesn't play a spring game--he has a couple of similar affairs every fall--and he still manages to lose many of them.

And as for the money argument, Iowa has no excuse. Period. The program has so much money it can build the north end zone project but not enough to schedule a decent non-conference football game? Right. This is just the latest embarrassment brought to us by the brilliant mind of GB.
 
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It's not exciting, but I'm going going to lose my cool over it. We could do a lot worse. We could be like an SEC team and schedule 8 lower division opponents (slight exaggeration possible).
 
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