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I still struggle with how much of this is about Lester. The more things change, the more they look the same. The 2 biggest weaknesses over the last several years were passing offense and offensive line. The 2 biggest weaknesses today are the passing offense and offensive line. Kirk is the one common element in all of this. At a minimum he decides who starts at QB (same limited, guy as last year), and he retained the oline coach who over the last 4 years has overseen the development of what now is one of the most experienced olines in Iowa history. He also moved a failed QB analyst to receiving coach. Add in whatever in-game influence Kirk exerts over the offense and how much blame do you want to place on an OC who's been in place for all of 7 months?
That's a good point. And it's been true of Iowa as a team for a long time.
It is better. It was 121st last year. Average total O and points on an absolute basis aren't truly relevant yet because there hasn't been enough games yet to compare. Those numbers are pumped up by that 2nd half vs Illinois State. Iowa's offense crushed it against Western Michigan last year also.
Forget about winning it. When the Iowa offense came out having to get just 2 first downs to salt the game away I had almost zero confidence they could achieve that. And rightly so.
Not much has changed since last year so far. Still haven't achieved that "not suck" level that we were all hoping they could reach.
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Let's say it, Cade was way off especially in the second half. He started to struggle a bit in the 2nd qtr after starting 7 for 8.
I think it will tell us how much leverage Lester does or doesn't have. No reasonable person plays Cade the entire game vs Troy.
this is the sad part. both offense and defense failed to win the one series each to secure the win. in that respect we are equally weak on both O and D.
Oh I agree 100%. Cade was bad after the first few series. Iowa QB play has been bad for years and is a significant reason why the offense has been bad for years.
There is absolutely zero patience being shown. I get it, we have been forcefed shit sandwiches for several years now and we are beyond hoping for something better.But I see a lot that I am excited about from a design/structure standpoint. We are blowing up huge running lanes. We are getting receivers open.
We gave up 20 points and 260 yards of offense in a half. That is absolutely terrible defense.
You’re as obstinate in not holding the defense accountable as you are in blaming the offense.
That's a good point. And even though we're Hawk fans, and fully expect to be heartbroken, which unit would we rather see out there with the game on the line?
It isn’t good at all. X got burned badly on the long td.
I'm not obstinate. I'm rational. Anybody sugesting that the Iowa defnse isn't light years better than the Iowa offense isn't rational in any way. The first half defense was as good as the second half was a struggle. How many Big 10 teams lost on Saturday while giving up 20 or fewer points? Every defense on the planet gives up points. Iowa's defense isn't any different from that perspective. The difference is that every mistake is magnified because they have to be perfect every game in order for Iowa to win.
KF is not reasonable. It's his way or no way. That's why he was crying when Beth fired his son.
Agree… my analogy for this is the offense is like a person who hasn’t lifted weights in 10 years, if they started a weight lifting program today, would see major gains the first few months.. the defense is like a seasoned body builder, where gains are harder to come by.
You almost nailed it. Good post except assuming that the play calls you questioned were KF's calls.
So was the IL State game offensive performance like me losing 10 lbs after a couple of weeks of the Atkins Diet? 😎
I disagree with your assessment of the OL. The team has averaged 220 yards rushing. McNamara has been sacked 1 time. The OL is not a weakness so far. Not every rushing play goes for 6 yards or more. Cade has had enough protection to find open receivers and throw completions on most passing plays. From what I've seen, I think the OL is much improved this year.
No reasonable person would have kept Cade in up 33-0 in the 4th quarter against Illinois State, either.
So, here's how I see it. While improved, they still lack the physicality needed for real success. While true that KJ broke some long runs against a depleted linebacker corps, the oline still lacks consistency and experiences frequent breakdowns allowing multiple defenders access to the backfield. On one play where the entire ISU front 5 ended up in the Iowa backfield, every Iowa lineman could be seen lying on the turf about 2 yards downfield. They blocked literally no one. When the oline needed to impose it's will on short yardage near the goal line and at the end of the game, it gets very little push and often goes backwards. This was apparent on most plays outside of the few that KJ broke.
