If history teaches us any lesson about Hawkeye football, it is that even when we don't appear to have an overwhelmingly strong team ... when they "believe" in themselves as a unit AND when the leadership emerges on the squad from within ... then the team typically turns out to be pretty darn good.
Just look at the '03, '04, and '09 squads.
The '03 squad was hit by injuries on BOTH sides of the ball. Our offense seemed to be Fred Russell. The DL was a bit of a MASH unit - but quality guys kept on stepping up and stepping in, in order to fill the void (Clauss was dinged throughout a hunk of the season and we lost Babs to a season ending injury). Even Bob Sanders was limited some by injuries through the season. All the same, the D still played well ... and the O improved throughout the entire year. All the same, the Hawks could play with just about anybody by the end of the season.
The '04 squad was an unbelievable story. The D remained surprisingly healthy ... but it wasn't a terribly deep group. The O was absurdly one-dimensional because injuries decimated the Hawks at running back and the OL faced a huge amount of adversity as well. All the same, the Hawks could play with just about anybody by the end of the season.
The '09 squad was fascinating as well. Most of us would agree that nearly no other Hawk squad had as much NFL caliber talent as this one. On paper, with the benefit of hindsight, this squad was obviously destined for greatness. In fact, most of us would contend that had Stanzi not gotten injured in the game against Northwestern ... the Hawks could have enjoyed even greater success that season. Despite all the "talent" on this squad - the team never came across as a "dominant one." The Hawks only barely slid past the likes of UNI and Arkansas State ... and needed a miraculous comeback to defeat Indiana. Of course, as the pattern continues ... the Hawks could play with just about anybody by the end of the season (at least with a healthy Stanzi).
The 2015 squad appears to be built similarly. Hopefully they overcome the adversity and still continue having a great season!
Just look at the '03, '04, and '09 squads.
The '03 squad was hit by injuries on BOTH sides of the ball. Our offense seemed to be Fred Russell. The DL was a bit of a MASH unit - but quality guys kept on stepping up and stepping in, in order to fill the void (Clauss was dinged throughout a hunk of the season and we lost Babs to a season ending injury). Even Bob Sanders was limited some by injuries through the season. All the same, the D still played well ... and the O improved throughout the entire year. All the same, the Hawks could play with just about anybody by the end of the season.
The '04 squad was an unbelievable story. The D remained surprisingly healthy ... but it wasn't a terribly deep group. The O was absurdly one-dimensional because injuries decimated the Hawks at running back and the OL faced a huge amount of adversity as well. All the same, the Hawks could play with just about anybody by the end of the season.
The '09 squad was fascinating as well. Most of us would agree that nearly no other Hawk squad had as much NFL caliber talent as this one. On paper, with the benefit of hindsight, this squad was obviously destined for greatness. In fact, most of us would contend that had Stanzi not gotten injured in the game against Northwestern ... the Hawks could have enjoyed even greater success that season. Despite all the "talent" on this squad - the team never came across as a "dominant one." The Hawks only barely slid past the likes of UNI and Arkansas State ... and needed a miraculous comeback to defeat Indiana. Of course, as the pattern continues ... the Hawks could play with just about anybody by the end of the season (at least with a healthy Stanzi).
The 2015 squad appears to be built similarly. Hopefully they overcome the adversity and still continue having a great season!