Try to keep up, it doesn't matter, who is better than better than BYU and Miami. you lost to them...
Is Wisconsin better this year than last?
- Thread starter thewop
- Start date
Try to keep up, it doesn't matter, who is better than better than BYU and Miami. you lost to them...
WISCO: Agree on Offense although Defense appears better at this point.
IOWA: Appears that both O and D are playing better.
This is one year where I wish Bucky and Herky met later in the schedule. Whether Iowa's overall improvement is enough to prevail on Saturday over an improving Wisconsin at home remains to be seen. We will know a lot more Saturday afternoon!
LOL at Nebby....2-2 almost 1-3 with a loss to So. Miss.....got throttled by Miami which will probably lose to Pitt in ACC.....Nebby has bye week leading up to Iowa game, Iowa has short week so it will be an interesting
Not at all - I simply didn't break down the Hawks. I did mention that the Hawks had improved in ALL facets, had I not? Furthermore, I'd be inclined to bet that the Hawks are probably playing better on special teams. On the flip side, the game IS at Camp Randall.
Since when does a "dogfight" equate to a sure loss? I simply indicated that Hawk fans shouldn't count on the game being a victory ... a statement akin to saying, "don't count your chickens before they hatch."
Wisconsin doesn't have a talented back like I bet did last year with Gordan. Conversely Iowa has upgraded at the QB position.
This Badger fan fears this Iowa team, a lot.
Badgers are a few weeks away from being VERY good but are not there yet.
Defense hasn't been as good as the numbers suggest and a physical Iowa team could beat up these two green RB's behind a young, questionable OL, playing two Freshman and a beginner soph.
Stave is greatly underrated and could actually pull Badgers through, we'll see soon enough.
All that being said, IMO, the winner of this game , will prevail in the West but lose to OSU, MSU or even, maybe Mich.
Badgers are a few weeks away from being VERY good but are not there yet.
Defense hasn't been as good as the numbers suggest and a physical Iowa team could beat up these two green RB's behind a young, questionable OL, playing two Freshman and a beginner soph.
Stave is greatly underrated and could actually pull Badgers through, we'll see soon enough.
All that being said, IMO, the winner of this game , will prevail in the West but lose to OSU, MSU or even, maybe Mich.
I didn't ... and compared to many fans, I'm somewhat rational. Iowa would be able to make either game competitive. I don't know if we'd win or lose ... but we certainly wouldn't get smoked.
You do seem rational, so my question to you is, what are you basing your assessment on? hawks D has not faced a QB that is near the level of the two that played last night.
Hawks O seems better with CJB, but have not faced a team that is good on both sides of the ball.
Hawks D is question mark, has not faced even an average offense yet this season.
First off, I'm basing it off the fact that Iowa has a very competent run defense and the defensive scheme used in the secondary really tends to take away the big play. The only time Iowa's defense allows a lot of points to get scored on them is when they're tackling poorly and when they're playing with poor technique on the edge - thereby letting the opposition get the edge too easily. So far this season, Iowa has shown that they're much better at setting the edge than last year and their pursuit to the ball is improved as well. Furthermore, Iowa's tackling is far better as well.
To complement the general observations concerning how Iowa has been executing it's D, Iowa also happens to have one of the best cornerbacks in the B1G. What Dez King brings to the table, limits where opposing QBs tend to go with the ball.
You're correct in asserting that Iowa has not faced any "juggernaut" offenses. However, Iowa has faced 2 power 5 teams that featured veteran offensive lines. Despite facing that experience, the DL still managed to control the line of scrimmage. Furthermore, Iowa has faced veteran, talented QBs in Tre Roberson (a former starting QB at Indiana) and Sam Richardson (ISU starting QB). Both guys are mobile AND efficient passers. Also, Iowa's D has faced highly talented and/or elite WRs in Allan Lazard of ISU and Tyler Boyd of Pitt. There are very few WRs in college football this year who are better than Boyd. While Boyd got his catches ... Pitt had to be VERY creative to get him open.
This latter fact is a credit to Jim Chaney, current Pitt OC and a long-time former Purdue OC under Joe Tiller. Also, Iowa State's OC is Mark Mangino. I mention the OCs because while neither offenses are juggernauts, they're most definitely very well coached. Purdue always used to give Iowa fits ... and that was due more to the quality of the coaching than the talent of the players. Apart from being a bully, Mangino's resume is impressive.
I mention the above, because while we cannot compare how the Iowa D fared against comparable offenses - we can analyze how the Iowa defense executed against the offenses that were on their schedule. While the Iowa defense really is rather young, it has been playing at a very high level. There is little reason to assume that they would all of a sudden execute poorly against other foes - particularly against ones that they'd likely be very focused upon.
I won't contend that Iowa's D would dominate BYU's or Miami's respective Os ... however, I they would execute our defensive scheme. A direct result of this is that both opposing offenses would have to earn all their points against Iowa's D. To complement this point, Iowa's offense has had MANY long sustained drives. This would allow for the O to melt off clock ... not only further reducing the number of points that could get scored in the game, but also keep the D relatively fresh. Consequently, the game would likely be on the lower-scoring side - and such games allow for a team to remain "in it." Of course, this contention is predicated on the Hawks not turning the ball over with great frequency. Anyhow, if you follow the above logic, Iowa would in no way be guaranteed victors ... however, it more than gives plausibility to my original contention that Iowa wouldn't get "smoked."
yeah. and most teams would be 5-0, or 4-1 with the schedule the Huskers have played.
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