what did he say that was off? i think it was pretty reasonable on everything.
Iowa Wrestling is Dead
- Thread starter NLhawk62
- Start date
a three minute post match interview? and no opening statement until asked.
isn't it the coaches' responsibility to get the guys ready????
bottom line, PSU has better wrestlers
Does the COVID years affect this years' lopsided matchup? Brooks wouldn't be in the lineup, but I dont know about Stocci or the HWT
Plus Iowa got hammered by the gambling but i'm not sure if things would be much different if Abe and others were in the lineup.
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Starocci would be in his final season of eligibility if not for 2021. Instead, he has another year.
Correct that AB wouldn’t be here since he started as a TFR in 2020. This is his 5th year starting.
No Gambling Suspensions:
- Haines TF over Siebrecht if Franek doesn’t transfer in
- Starocci MAJ Brands if PK doesn’t move up to 174 and beat him out.
- Truax DEC Assad
- Kerkvliet DEC Cassioppi
28-6
Cstar is not Majoring Brands... Beating him 3-1 / 6-2 I can see.
Haines right on
Kirk could still major cass...
For me, it's not the loss to PSU that stings so much... It is the complete abscence of fire and aggression. Some had it (149, 174, 197, HWT) but most did not. We were out-wrestled, out-coached, and out-classed on our home mat... We have gone from barely losing to Penn State to not even being competitive as a team anymore.... Where is the Senior Leadership? Where is the fire and desire? We look slow, flat-footed, and timid. Why do so many of our guys stand there like a dancing bear for 7 minutes and then finally try to take shot at the end of the 3rd period when time is out? It's just not the Iowa style we had during the Gable era... Something needs to change in the way Iowa recruits. We can't compete when there is such a huge disparity in our recruiting. Shoot - Iowa State has been getting better recruits the past couple of years... Hopefully some changes will occur during the offseason.
Umm Iowa won the NCAA championship like two years ago and were favored to win the Covid year. So yeah, not like football at all.
With the recruiting class Tom pulled in his first few years…yeah. I don’t know what happened to his recruiting chops but they sure pissed them away.
He didn't at ISU.
What changed?
He's got unlimited resources, unlimited budget, and sits in the hottest high school talent bed right now.
Tom's problem is he won't change his approach.
if you're taking AB out, then Cass and Woods would both be done too
That’s my biggest issue. Iowa went something like 22 straight minutes without taking a shot between the 125 and 149 matches. It’s absolutely maddening to see guys dance around that long wearing The IOWA singlet.
Then to see our 141, 157, 165 pounders get mauled by good wrestlers. Those were supposed to be our most competitive matches of the night, and they were the least. Our guys at those weights are supposed to be our best, and they got completely out classed and out hustled. It’s sickening where this program is at the moment, and it’s a broken record that needs fixed.
As Bull-Headed and Stubborn as Kirk Ferentz is - He does not hold a candle to the level of Tom Brands. I love Tom but his persistence to just doing his business as usual without adaptation is frustrating at times. He knows he's being out-recruited. He said as much when Larry Lee handed him the famous recruiting notebook that Spencer had from Penn State and it was filled with anti-Iowa rhetoric and false truths about Iowa. Tom knows what is being said about his program on the recruiting trail. Remember when Iowa was putting out the "Good Morning Murin" videos and the videos with Sam Stoll doing interviews? Those were great. they were fun, positive and showed Iowa as a fun place to go to for recruits.... That has all stopped. There is no more positive social media existence for Iowa wrestling anymore. It feels like all program momentum has stopped and now we a team that just hopes to hang around and be in the Top 10.. We are still a really good team, just not the Iowa of old anymore
Carl was going to own him eventually at ISU as well. He was getting Taylor, he had Brown. He was starting to get the recruits. It would have taken a few more years is all. Carl hates to lose too much to wait and knew PSU was the perfect pot to cook in. At least we are not getting whipped by ISU every year.
Recruiting, recruiting, recruiting. Until it gets better, there’s no way to compete with PSU.
I'd settle for a coach Carl owns that can recruit and teach guys how to take and finish shots, be proficient in mat wrestling and scrambles.
You have one example of a guy that got better. Do you want to see the list of guys who didn't...
This is the definition of Kirk Ferentz.
And if you knew one, you'd be telling us who it is. Until there's a coach who can consistently beat Carl at NCAAs, I'll take the last one who did.
Who benefits more from the 125 match, Ayala or Davis? I think the answer reveals half the problem with Iowa: TnT are so obsessed with winning every battle that they lose the war. I know this analogy is way out there, but it’s like the obsession with getting a sun tan in the 1980’s. We knew it was bad for your skin in the long run, but at each turn you thought you looked better from that one extra day in the sun. That truth held for your first day out. Your second day out. Your 15th year out. Then you look back when you’re 45 and looking like an alligator and realize it got you nowhere. PSU simply does a better job playing the long game.
Hats off to the Glaziers, Rathjens, and Siebrechts in the room. They seem to let it fly with less regard to the immediate result.
Hats off to the Glaziers, Rathjens, and Siebrechts in the room. They seem to let it fly with less regard to the immediate result.
From an outsider looking in, I think the problem is most Iowa fans went to dominance of the cable days. They don’t wanna be right in the mix every year for the title winning one out of three or 42 out of five or three out of five. They wanna win all the time.
And of course, any fanbase wants that, so I don’t think the majority of people be happy until they achieve that kind of dominance. But that’s a generational kind of thing I don’t know if it’s coming back however, I was a solid team as good as any of the other teams in the mix so I don’t know how much better they’re gonna be able to do, even even if they hire another coach.
Sanderson is in the most fertile recruiting area in the entire country with wrestling, and his other stated they basically have unlimited resources with the best fishing hole in the country.
Iowa wrestling isn't dead, but it needs an overhaul.
Exhibit A...Everyone thought Oklahoma State was dead under John Smith!
What's he do? Brings in Coleman Scott and suddenly the Cowboys are relevant again.
That's not a coincidence. Brought back an alumni that developed and brought in a new energy.
The gambling thingy wasn't the start of Iowa's decline. It just exacerbated it.
Exhibit A...Everyone thought Oklahoma State was dead under John Smith!
What's he do? Brings in Coleman Scott and suddenly the Cowboys are relevant again.
That's not a coincidence. Brought back an alumni that developed and brought in a new energy.
The gambling thingy wasn't the start of Iowa's decline. It just exacerbated it.
I do agree with this but who does Iowa have that they could bring back into the room that can generate that same energy?
There’s a MAJOR difference between owning Iowa’s head coach (with Iowa’s tradition, resources, fan base, etc.) and “owning” the head coach from almost every other program. Every coach would do better at Iowa than they would anywhere else because of what Gable built. So, we actually don’t know if Cael would own the other coaches if they were given the head position at Iowa.
Storm Clouds Are Gathering. Friday night under the lights, versus Penn State, was a very unpleasant experienced. I find little (no) comfort or warmth in that total collapse.
A marginal note: my ardent thought(s) on the recent commentary concerning Familia Ferrari. The notion of including this cast of characters in the University of Iowa wrestling gene pool would be a grievous error. The University of Iowa can, and must do better (much better)!
A marginal note: my ardent thought(s) on the recent commentary concerning Familia Ferrari. The notion of including this cast of characters in the University of Iowa wrestling gene pool would be a grievous error. The University of Iowa can, and must do better (much better)!
I'm not saying it has to be an Iowa alum.
I'm saying new blood/energy/perspective.
And it would likely have to be someone to assume Terry's spot. So that means Terry to HWC.
But at least start at the bottom and work your way up...so Telford is first to go.
Gable was an innovator. Cael is an innovator. Tom Brands has a lot of positives, but he is not an innovator.
PSU’s dynasty will falter. Cael could retire, assistant coaches could take head coaching positions, PSU could get in NCAA trouble. The PSU dynasty WILL end. But the next program to become dominant won’t be Iowa under its current make up. Some program being led by an innovative coach will move to the forefront. If the Hawks stay their current course they will continue to be a top five team. They may even win a national championship every 10 years. But, we are stuck with this script until major changes are made.
PSU’s dynasty will falter. Cael could retire, assistant coaches could take head coaching positions, PSU could get in NCAA trouble. The PSU dynasty WILL end. But the next program to become dominant won’t be Iowa under its current make up. Some program being led by an innovative coach will move to the forefront. If the Hawks stay their current course they will continue to be a top five team. They may even win a national championship every 10 years. But, we are stuck with this script until major changes are made.
I agree. For years, I've been saying in my circle of friends that the Brands never seem to have a long-term strategy for the program or its wrestlers.
I still think how Spencer's knees were managed after the 2021 NCAAs was criminal - no matter whose decision it ultimately was. Tom and the staff should have talked Spencer into fixing them immediately and sitting out the entire 2022 season. He would have had a full 16-18 months to get healthly and get back into shape, but it seemed like the decision was more about the team than the individual. I appreciate Spencer's willingness to help the team but the adults should have known better. How do you think PSU would have handled it?
There's no doubt that TnT know wrestling better than most and that they can coach, but they are clearly lacking in the strategy and planning aspect of the job. This is where Cael seems to really excel, and he's leaving Iowa in the dust because of it. It seems he's always a step ahead of everyone else.
There is absolutely no reason Iowa shouldn't be pulling in 2 or more top 10 P4P recruiters every year. The recruiting effort we are seeing from this staff is lazy. In my opinion, if TnT don't want to make serious changes to how they approach and strategize, then Iowa needs to make a move sooner rather than later.
How would Tom Brands do without the talent, fan support, and money from Hawkeye donors? 🤔
People forget that David Taylor was going to ISU... That would of been the start right there.
We’re currently averaging less than one national champ per season….
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Iowa is no longer a team who produces national champs on a year to year basis not named Spencer Lee.
Don't even think about poaching the Husker coaches.
I don't disagree with one word of your post. I would add that I used to go to the Southern Scuffle when PSU used to go. The two guys that I remember being hero worshipped by kids due to their magnetic personalities and awesome wrestling skills were DT and Nickal. Both these guys would stand at the head of the autograph line and sign/take pictures until Cael would tell them to get ready for the next bout. That's the sort of guy that is more than half way to selling a kid on a program before they even start the sales pitch. Both are natural salesmen (recruiters). That said, both need more coaching experience. DT has his own clinic in M2 so he is building his disciplined approach to coaching, and doing it well. I honestly think he is the next great coach in D1 some day. Most may dismiss Bo but after his MMA career ends, I'd love to see him as an assistant working his way toward a head coach. He may be more raw than DT but has a lot of great qualities. I know he has gotten under the Iowa skin sometimes, but we all need to look past things and find the greater good. Bo is a great guy with an open personality and most of all is open to innovation. A fan base could do much worse.
I do not agree with this. Cael needed the huge resources and amazing location to take this step. He never would have had them at ISU.
I think bringing in the ferries killed any room chemistry. Rathjen and Glazier took exception. Leaders both.
