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Nice Tyler Goodson Interview

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Enjoyed reading the interview with Tyler Goodson and, FWIW, I hope and believe #5 will soon be a significant part of the Iowa running game. After having what, two running plays of more than 20 yards last season there's a huge opportunity for the next Akrum Wadley. Goodson looks the part.
 
This quote from Goodson in the article says it all. Humble, grounded young man. Looking forward to seeing him in the black and gold.

GOODSON: Walking out the tunnel for the first time at Kinnick Stadium will make me realize that it’s a blessing that God has given me to play at this level and that all the hard work has paid off.
 
I believe Goodson will take a redshirt ….probably should...... unless Kelly-Martin suffers an injury. IKM is ready for a break-out year IMO (if he can stay healthy).
Goodson will hopefully do what he intends to do - get on the depth chart and see significant playing time this year. His skills are desperately needed.
 
Goodson will hopefully do what he intends to do - get on the depth chart and see significant playing time this year. His skills are desperately needed.
If Goodson plays ahead of Kelly-Martin and/or Mekhi Sargent this year I will be surprised but I suppose it could happen. I anticipate that coach Foster will strategically play him the 4 games where he can get the most work while preserving his redshirt.
 
just a couple thoughts on our runnings backs currently, future, and in general:

We seem to come up with Superman about once every ten years (Ronnie Harmon, Tavian Banks, Shawn Greene) and a lot of MEDIOCRITY in between.

None of the three guys we currently use are all that impressive, although they all do some things well. I like Sargent's ability to catch passes and IKM's potential speed, but so far, neither have really impressed that much. sure hoping that changes in 2019, but I just see more mediocrity.
 
Hope Goodson can stay durable and be a playmaker in limited action. We have a lot of backs, but if IKM continues to struggle with staying healthy we could see more of Goodson that just 4 games. I'll feel pretty good about our future at the position if he draws praise like Shad Byrd has thus far.
 
I think we need to see a little more of the RB passing game. Don't get me wrong I want better production in the run game, but I'm wondering if our days of a big 1500 yard rusher are over. We need to design plays for the RB to catch the ball and make plays that might not happen in a bottled up run game.
 
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Tyler seems to be a fine young talent but to get much playing time as a true freshman in the B1G is rare. Enjoy a few carries in 2019 hold onto the ball and we'll see you in 2020.
 
I believe Goodson will take a redshirt ….probably should...... unless Kelly-Martin suffers an injury. IKM is ready for a break-out year IMO (if he can stay healthy).
Good thing we will still see him play in 4 games.
 
just a couple thoughts on our runnings backs currently, future, and in general:

We seem to come up with Superman about once every ten years (Ronnie Harmon, Tavian Banks, Shawn Greene) and a lot of MEDIOCRITY in between.

Tony Stewart, Nick Bell, Fred Russell, Albert Young, Sedrick Shaw and Ladell Betts say hello,.... just to name a few.
 
Absolutely. Our returning backs are solid, but not dynamic. A Wadley like talent adds that extra dimension which an be the difference in a tightly contested ball game.

Agree with this.

Our running game woes have been more of a problem of our RB's not getting to the next level like Wadley could. I do like our 3 backs but we have a hard time taking 7 yard runs to 25 yard runs on well blocked plays.
 
I think Mekhi is our best back and he demonstrated that down the stretch last year. Yes, he probably won’t break any runs longer than 30 yards but a consistent back who can keep you on schedule and carry tacklers for a few yards is great. Hopefully we can find some explosive plays somewhere else, maybe Goodson can offer that.

As Nu2u suggested, IKM was banged up a lot last year but had some nice runs in the opening game and against Maryland. Hopefully a year older and healthier IKM will give us a good 1 to 2 punch. I haven’t given up on Toren but he appears to be the odd man out with Byrd and Goodson coming in. He has great burst but it was almost hysterical how many times he would run into his own blockers. But with more coaching and a little more patience he could be a nice complement to our smaller backs.
 
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Tyler seems to be a fine young talent but to get much playing time as a true freshman in the B1G is rare.

I appreciate the point, but Northwestern, Ohio State, Wisconsin, and many others in the BIG and around the country have not only played, but featured, true freshman RBs in recent years. Iowa needs playmakers, and as others have noted, Sargent and Young are solid but far from spectacular, while Kelly-Martin is always injured and has not done much when healthy. All three are adequate, but Iowa needs more than adequate, and that's where Tyler Goodson comes in--I hope.
 
just a couple thoughts on our runnings backs currently, future, and in general:

We seem to come up with Superman about once every ten years (Ronnie Harmon, Tavian Banks, Shawn Greene) and a lot of MEDIOCRITY in between.

None of the three guys we currently use are all that impressive, although they all do some things well. I like Sargent's ability to catch passes and IKM's potential speed, but so far, neither have really impressed that much. sure hoping that changes in 2019, but I just see more mediocrity.
Before becoming the starting RB, Wadley had several years as a backup learning how to read lanes and cutback lanes. Similarly, LeShun Daniels didn't really "break out" for the Hawks until his JR or SR year. The point being that for some guys, it can take a while to ascend the learning curve

A number of Iowa fans on these boards have been quick to sell our current group of RBs short. I think that folks really weren't appreciating the inexperience of the group. Furthermore, I don't disagree with Brian ... our run-blocking really could have been a lot better.

With more experience from our RBs and better blocking ... I genuinely believe that we could see some nice improvement in the running game.
 
I appreciate the point, but Northwestern, Ohio State, Wisconsin, and many others in the BIG and around the country have not only played, but featured, true freshman RBs in recent years. Iowa needs playmakers, and as others have noted, Sargent and Young are solid but far from spectacular, while Kelly-Martin is always injured and has not done much when healthy. All three are adequate, but Iowa needs more than adequate, and that's where Tyler Goodson comes in--I hope.
Northwestern was forced to feature a FR by necessity. Besides, schematically, they spread teams laterally pretty well ... and that forces defenses to defend the box with fewer hats. The point being that "scheme" helped Bowser to be pretty productive in '18.

As for Wisky's Taylor ... for one thing, he's an uncommonly gifted runner. However, furthermore, Wisconsin's reliance on power blocking tends to simplify the reads for the RB. It's often advantageous for a running game when the runner doesn't need to think quite as much (it allows them to play faster and rely more upon the instinct that they've already developed).

And for the tOSUs of the world ... they're fielding elite talent at RB, year in and year out. Besides, by Ohio State's standards ... their rushing game was surprisingly lethargic in '18 (particularly given their talent on the field).
 
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I think Mekhi is our best back and he demonstrated that down the stretch last year. Yes, he probably won’t break any runs longer than 30 yards but a consistent back who can keep you on schedule and carry tacklers for a few yards is great. Hopefully we can find some explosive plays somewhere else, maybe Goodson can offer that.

As Nu2u suggested, IKM was banged up a lot last year but had some nice runs in the opening game and against Maryland. Hopefully a year older and healthier IKM will give us a good 1 to 2 punch. I haven’t given up on Toren but he appears to be the odd man out with Byrd and Goodson coming in. He has great burst but it was almost hysterical how many times he would run into his own blockers. But with more coaching and a little more patience he could be a nice complement to our smaller backs.
Agreed. The second half of the conference schedule I thought Mekhi separated himself from the other two not just running but also catching the ball out of the backfield. While all of them will play, I think Mekhi will be the starter.
 
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This quote from Goodson in the article says it all. Humble, grounded young man. Looking forward to seeing him in the black and gold.

GOODSON: Walking out the tunnel for the first time at Kinnick Stadium will make me realize that it’s a blessing that God has given me to play at this level and that all the hard work has paid off.
That quote stood out to me as well ... I appreciate the character of the kids Iowa brings into its programs ... Well-grounded individuals.
 
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Tony Stewart, Nick Bell, Fred Russell, Albert Young, Sedrick Shaw and Ladell Betts say hello,.... just to name a few.
No kidding. HawkeyeReport is always good for a laugh or two when seeing what other's definition of "mediocre" is. On top of what you listed:

Canzeri was just shy of 1000 yards his senior year with 12 rushing TDs, 200 receiving yards, and 1 rec TD. This was while missing part of the NW game, most of the MSU game, and all of the Maryland game. 5.4 yards/carry. That is a damn good season with multiple injuries.

Wadley had over 1000 yards his junior and senior seasons, with 10 rushing TDs and 3 receiving TDs both years as well.

Hell, although he had some shortcomings as a true RB, Weisman had 2770 yards from scrimage and 33 TDs over the span of 3 years. Dude was a workhorse, even if he wasn't dynamic and could usually get you that 3rd and 3.
 
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I know we all like the new Shiny things in life, but I think we also need to remember the Sargent has only been at Iowa since June 9th of 2018. He hasn't even been there a full year yet. He broke records in High school and at IWCC, let's see what he can do with a full year under his belt, and a better understanding of the Offense before we discard him.
 
I think Mekhi is our best back and he demonstrated that down the stretch last year. Yes, he probably won’t break any runs longer than 30 yards but a consistent back who can keep you on schedule and carry tacklers for a few yards is great. Hopefully we can find some explosive plays somewhere else, maybe Goodson can offer that.

As Nu2u suggested, IKM was banged up a lot last year but had some nice runs in the opening game and against Maryland. Hopefully a year older and healthier IKM will give us a good 1 to 2 punch. I haven’t given up on Toren but he appears to be the odd man out with Byrd and Goodson coming in. He has great burst but it was almost hysterical how many times he would run into his own blockers. But with more coaching and a little more patience he could be a nice complement to our smaller backs.

They all had vision issues last fall and ran into contact instead of bouncing it out into the open field many times. If they see the field better then there would of been many runs over 25 yards last fall. Iowa has a good stable of backs, just not great ones yet.
 
I know we all like the new Shiny things in life, but I think we also need to remember the Sargent has only been at Iowa since June 9th of 2018. He hasn't even been there a full year yet. He broke records in High school and at IWCC, let's see what he can do with a full year under his belt, and a better understanding of the Offense before we discard him.

Username check out. :p

I definitely think Sargent is way better than Young and IKM. He has better vision and little subtle cuts to gain extra yardage (see PSU and Nebraska games). I also am really looking forward to see what Goodson is capable of.
 
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Sure the backs left some yards on the field but there were not a lot of holes last year. Run blocking seemed like more of an issue to me. No doubt we still could use a back with a little more wiggle and top end. Hopefully T-Good is that guy. Sargent has decent power, good balance, and seems to be durable. He probably has the best shot of being the featured back this year. No disrespect intended to IKM and Toren, wouldn't surprise me to see either one sieze an opportunity and do well. Knowing how things work around here, we may need to use them all.
 
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Sure the backs left some yards on the field but there were not a lot of holes last year. Run blocking seemed like more of an issue to me. No doubt we still could use a back with a little more wiggle and top end. Hopefully T-Good is that guy. Sargent has decent power, good balance, and seems to be durable. He probably has the best shot of being the featured back this year. No disrespect intended to IKM and Toren, wouldn't surprise me to see either one sieze an opportunity and do well. Knowing how things work around here, we may need to use them all.
If the Hawks were only going to use their RBs within the traditional role of running the ball and chipping guys in pass-pro ... then having 3 serviceable to good guys might be superfluous.

However, first off, I think that each of Iowa's current top 3 (Toren, Mekhi, and Ivory) are better than good. Furthermore, Brian really appears to have a strong pragmatic streak ... and seems to practice the philosophy of centering the offense about the players who generate the best mismatches. In '17, much of the focus was on utilizing Wadley ... and also exploiting Fant in the red-zone. In '18, the focus turned to highlighting the mismatches posed by BOTH Fant and Hockenson.

Now, heading into '18, I expect that our depth at RB will be a feature that gets utilized. Furthermore, if Tracy and Ragaini are as billed ... then we will try to flash them as threats too. I could definitely see Brian experimenting with the match-ups he can generate ... between the use of his slot-guys and the RBs. I could see us using more 11 personnel (ACE-sets) ... and then seeing how the safeties get used. If teams get caught with LBs on the slot ... then go after it. Otherwise, if the safety comes up and helps with coverage on the slot (either in man, or within some zone-framework) ... then you're more likely to get the LB chasing the RB out of the backfield.
 
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Before becoming the starting RB, Wadley had several years as a backup learning how to read lanes and cutback lanes. Similarly, LeShun Daniels didn't really "break out" for the Hawks until his JR or SR year. The point being that for some guys, it can take a while to ascend the learning curve

A number of Iowa fans on these boards have been quick to sell our current group of RBs short. I think that folks really weren't appreciating the inexperience of the group. Furthermore, I don't disagree with Brian ... our run-blocking really could have been a lot better.

With more experience from our RBs and better blocking ... I genuinely believe that we could see some nice improvement in the running game.
But who likes to wait 3-4 years for players to have their breakout season(s)? Get on that depth chart, Goodson. Let's see that speed Buddy!
 
Tony Stewart, Nick Bell, Fred Russell, Albert Young, Sedrick Shaw and Ladell Betts say hello,.... just to name a few.
Yeah, they say hello from our distant past. Most are Hayden recruits. Thanks for reminding us Kirk has been unimpressive with RB recruitment and development for the majority of his two decades. AY wasn't even that great. Didn't get drafted.....
 
But who likes to wait 3-4 years for players to have their breakout season(s)? Get on that depth chart, Goodson. Let's see that speed Buddy!
The thing is that nothing is guaranteed. Some guys are capable of ascending the learning curve faster. Some guys need more film and learning moments. Other guys might expect things to be given to them on a silver platter .... and at Iowa, this latter attitude isn't received well.
 
The thing is that nothing is guaranteed. Some guys are capable of ascending the learning curve faster. Some guys need more film and learning moments. Other guys might expect things to be given to them on a silver platter .... and at Iowa, this latter attitude isn't received well.
I don't disagree with anything you've said, BUT, our RB stable is average. 2 things I hope to see: improved interior OL play to go along with Tracy and Goodson getting a lot of touches.
 
I don't disagree with anything you've said, BUT, our RB stable is average. 2 things I hope to see: improved interior OL play to go along with Tracy and Goodson getting a lot of touches.
I don't believe that we have enough data to assert that any individual RB is just okay. For instance, Ivory averaged 9.2 yards per carry in '17 ... and it is a well established fact that he was significantly limited by an ankle injury in '18. Is the 'real' IKM closer to the 9.2 ypc in '17 or the 3.5 ypc in '18?

If you consider Mekhi ... he had only been on campus only a very brief while ... and yet he ended up being our leading rusher! How much can he improve with the benefit of a whole year under his belt? It's pretty well known that a lot of development (in terms of fundamentals) occurs during camps (summer/fall and spring) and bowl prep. Furthermore, there's a lot more emphasis in P5 ball, compared to lower division ball, as it relates to digesting game and practice tape. I'm willing to bet that Mekhi's football IQ is capable of significant expansion. When you know the game better, you can anticipate things better ... and that typically results in better production.

Lastly, there was Toren ... whom, by the coaches own admission, exceeded expectations. In fact, there's a pretty vocal subset of Iowa fans who were of the opinion that Toren was our most consistent back. With better blocking and a little more experience ... how much better can Toren's ypc get? Toren was already at 4.7 ypc in '18 ... is it too much of a stretch to suppose that he could exceed 5.0 ypc? If so ... that's not too bad for "average."

I share your hope and enthusiasm for both Tracy and Goodson ... but I don't think that we need to diminish the potential and ability of our current players.
 
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N
No kidding. HawkeyeReport is always good for a laugh or two when seeing what other's definition of "mediocre" is. On top of what you listed:

Canzeri was just shy of 1000 yards his senior year with 12 rushing TDs, 200 receiving yards, and 1 rec TD. This was while missing part of the NW game, most of the MSU game, and all of the Maryland game. 5.4 yards/carry. That is a damn good season with multiple injuries.

Wadley had over 1000 yards his junior and senior seasons, with 10 rushing TDs and 3 receiving TDs both years as well.

Hell, although he had some shortcomings as a true RB, Weisman had 2770 yards from scrimage and 33 TDs over the span of 3 years. Dude was a workhorse, even if he wasn't dynamic and could usually get you that 3rd and 3.
No doubt! Remember the Weisman for Heisman campain? Lets have some love for the "Hebrew Hammer"! ;)
 
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Yeah, they say hello from our distant past. Most are Hayden recruits. Thanks for reminding us Kirk has been unimpressive with RB recruitment and development for the majority of his two decades. AY wasn't even that great. Didn't get drafted.....
Yeah 3876 yds from scrimmage over 4 years(didn't play much as a freshman) is pretty crappy I guess, why did AY even get any playing time. I didn't know that getting drafted is what makes a successful college football career. Kirk's recruits at running back for various reasons haven't had many long great careers, but he's definitely brought in a lot of very good college backs: Hampton, Wegher, Coker, Canzeri, Daniels, Wadley. I'd say they are doing pretty well.
 
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The thing that I've noticed is that in Brian's blocking/run scheme the RB is intended to follow the blocking patiently and then apply speed to hit the hole. This can lead many times to small or even negative gains. In many cases the hole is actually against not with the flow of blocking and that's when a good back can exploit the defense with cut back moves.
 
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If Goodson plays ahead of Kelly-Martin and/or Mekhi Sargent this year I will be surprised but I suppose it could happen. I anticipate that coach Foster will strategically play him the 4 games where he can get the most work while preserving his redshirt.

So, do you play him early against lesser competition? Or hold him for later in the season incase other guys get dinged up? If we blow out Middle Tennessee State Technical Southwestern College... get him some 2nd half reps...assuming he's ready.

Either way, I'm excited about this kid. Sounds like a winner.
 
Part of the reason Wadley didn’t see touches earlier in his career was that he wasn’t physically ready. Goodson is already about at the weight Wadley was when he graduated.
If the returnees aren’t ready to shine, Goodson will be given the opportunity to do so.
 
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