*** Official 2023 “Conflict Drives”***

[Greenway4Prez]

That’s right, another thread about our offense! This one will be a season-long tracker of how we do in what I’m calling “Conflict Drives”. No matter how any of us feel about it, Kirk wants to establish a two-score lead and turn the keys over to the defense. So, I’m choosing to evaluate the offense with that in mind: how are we doing when we have a lead of 8 or less? When the game is essentially “in the balance”?

Utah St. (1-3)
-opening drive (0-0); 2 plays, 39 yards, TD
- (7-0) 11 plays, 75 yards, TD
Maintained 2+ score lead for rest of game

Iowa State (2-2)
-(0-0) 7 plays, 70 yards, FG
-(3-0) 8 plays, 80 yards, TD
-(20-13) 3 plays, 9 yards, punt

Western Michigan (1-3)
-(0-0) 4 plays, 17 yards, INT
-(0-0) 6 plays, 6 yards, punt
-(0-7) 8 plays, 44 yards, missed FG
-(0-7) 5 plays, 66 yards, TD
-(7-10) 5 plays, 30 yards, punt
-(7-10) 1 play, 25 yards, TD
-(14-10) 5 plays, 28 yards, INT
-(14-10) 5 plays, 4 yards, punt
-(16-10) 6 plays, 53 yards, TD

Penn State (4-0)
-(0-0) 6 plays, 24 yards, punt
-(0-0) 3 plays, 30 yards, fumble
-(0-3) 3 plays, 7 yards, punt
-(0-10) 3 plays, 3 yards, punt
-(0-10) 3 plays, 0 yards, punt
-(0-10) 3 plays, -6 yards, punt
-(0-17) 3 plays, -3 yards, punt
-(0-24) 1 play, -6 yards, fumble
-(0-31) 3 plays, 7 yards, punt
-(0-31) 5 plays, 20 yards, fumble


Lots of football left against better competition, which will really test our offense and give us a real picture of what we have, and I plan on updating this OP as the season goes on.

 

[cmhawks99]

That’s right, another thread about our offense! This one will be a season-long tracker of how we do in what I’m calling “Conflict Drives”. No matter how any of us feel about it, Kirk wants to establish a two-score lead and turn the keys over to the defense. So, I’m choosing to evaluate the offense with that in mind: how are we doing when we have a lead of 8 or less? When the game is essentially “in the balance”?

Utah St.
-opening drive (0-0); 2 plays, 39 yards, TD
- (7-0) 11 plays, 75 yards, TD
Maintained 2+ score lead for rest of game

Iowa State
-(0-0) 7 plays, 70 yards, FG
-(3-0) 8 plays, 80 yards, TD
-(20-13) 3 plays, 9 yards, puny

We’re much, much better than last year. The offense had tons of opportunities in 2022 against SDSU and ISU to put together a meaningful drive in “crunch time” and failed. So far, we’re building a lead quickly and that’s what Kirk wants.

Lots of football left against better competition, which will really test our offense and give us a real picture of what we have, and I plan on updating this OP as the season goes on.

Nice, I like this concept and we are better

 

[icwesthawk]

When the game is essentially “in the balance”?

It seems to me that even when we go up 2 scores, the way we play offense, the game is still in the balance. A bad bounce, a turnover, a blocked punt, punt or kickoff return, lots of ways for the game to all of a sudden be a 1 score game. The technique KF uses, we've taken the all momentum away from ourselves and have to try and get it back with an inferior offense.

 

[cmhawks99]

It seems to me that even when we go up 2 scores, the way we play offense, the game is still in the balance. A bad bounce, a turnover, a blocked punt, punt or kickoff return, lots of ways for the game to all of a sudden be a 1 score game. The technique KF uses, we've taken the all momentum away from ourselves and have to try and get it back with an inferior offense.

Maybe, but 62-3 when up by 8 plus points is a pretty telling stat 🤷‍♂️

 

[pistachio1999]

Maybe, but 62-3 when up by 8 plus points is a pretty telling stat 🤷‍♂️

But it's not sexy!!!!!

 

[Niko13]

Total Offense

2022- 132nd
2023- 127th

Calm down with the "much, much better" talk.

 

[LetsGoHawks83]

Total Offense

2022- 132nd
2023- 127th

Calm down with the "much, much better" talk.

While I agree with this. I was thinking about the fast starts that our offense has had so far this year. Scoring on the first 2 possessions in both games. 3 TDs and one FG in those 4 total possessions.

Really like the way we are starting games. Like all aspects in football, they need to repeat that success throughout the game. Cause there are teams coming up that we can't just get up by 10 points and hold on for dear life the rest of the game, like we could against ISU and USU

 

[cmhawks99]

Maybe, but 62-3 when up by 8 plus points is a pretty telling stat 🤷‍♂️

Lol…good stuff.

 

[Greenway4Prez]

It seems to me that even when we go up 2 scores, the way we play offense, the game is still in the balance. A bad bounce, a turnover, a blocked punt, punt or kickoff return, lots of ways for the game to all of a sudden be a 1 score game. The technique KF uses, we've taken the all momentum away from ourselves and have to try and get it back with an inferior offense.

I DO mostly agree with you here, which is why I sometimes get frustrated with how the offense has looked with a 2-score lead. And, are we good enough to just flip a switch should the lead get eaten into? I’m not sure that we are. We’re going to find out so much about this team at Happy Valley.

Total Offense

2022- 132nd
2023- 127th

Calm down with the "much, much better" talk.

Again, as frustrating as it is, our two games have played out how KF wants them to. We’ve put up 150+ yards of offense in each first quarter so far, when did we do that last year?

I would love it if we put 40+ on the board and switched the narrative, but that clearly isn’t how KF wants to win games. So, I’m just going to ride with KF ball and try to look at things from his viewpoint. Time for some gum.

 

[EvilMonkeyInTheCloset]

That’s right, another thread about our offense! This one will be a season-long tracker of how we do in what I’m calling “Conflict Drives”. No matter how any of us feel about it, Kirk wants to establish a two-score lead and turn the keys over to the defense. So, I’m choosing to evaluate the offense with that in mind: how are we doing when we have a lead of 8 or less? When the game is essentially “in the balance”?

Utah St.
-opening drive (0-0); 2 plays, 39 yards, TD
- (7-0) 11 plays, 75 yards, TD
Maintained 2+ score lead for rest of game

Iowa State
-(0-0) 7 plays, 70 yards, FG
-(3-0) 8 plays, 80 yards, TD
-(20-13) 3 plays, 9 yards, puny

We’re much, much better than last year. The offense had tons of opportunities in 2022 against SDSU and ISU to put together a meaningful drive in “crunch time” and failed. So far, we’re building a lead quickly and that’s what Kirk wants.

Lots of football left against better competition, which will really test our offense and give us a real picture of what we have, and I plan on updating this OP as the season goes on.

Nice breakdown, and looking forward to seeing how it progresses through the season!

One thing I would highlight, and have been wanting to point out in its own post, is that last possession. What is Iowa's offense doing in their final possessions with the lead?

I am probably going to eventually make a thread on this, but I would venture to guess (and it's probably been the same throughout Kirk's career) that over the course of Brian's time as OC, our offense in its final possessions when it falls on us to run out the clock, or put the game out of reach with a sustained scoring drive, has been lacking at best, and downright dogsh** at worst.

The other thing I'm gonna look into, and again I should preface that this is probably a Kirk trend more than a Brian trend, is how badly does our scoring drop off once we hit conference play, and are there any points in the season where the lulls in putting points on the board are worse than others. I want to check the stats on that because I swear to christ it seems like every time we get to the middle portion of the season, unless we are playing the Toilet Bowl contenders of the conference, Iowa won't be scoring 21 points in a B10 game until the entire fanbase goes to their primary care physician and schedules and completes a colo-rectal exam followed immediately by a vasectomy (or whatever the equivalent is for women so we don't discriminate) in the same day.

That is honestly what it feels like watching Iowa's offense operate in weeks 6-9 it seems like over the last several years, save for the very rare instances where either the schedule breaks right or something like 2017 Ohio State happens where we go into a coma, piss our pants, forget who we are for 3 hours and beat a legitimate top 5 team, 55-24...............

 

[ICWestfan]

I like it. Make it ***Official*** @Greenway4Prez

Question- will you track it when Iowa is behind or do you consider trailing in a game a "Lead of 8 points or less" ?

 

[RagnarLothbrok]

But it's not sexy!!!!!

It doesn’t need to be. It just needs to be effective, meaning you can run the football, move the chains, and chew up clock. Right now, Iowa is doing none of the above in the 4th quarter.

 

[Greenway4Prez]

I like it. Make it ***Official*** @Greenway4Prez

Question- will you track it when Iowa is behind or do you consider trailing in a game a "Lead of 8 points or less" ?

Yeah, I’ll track it in a game that Iowa is trailing too!

 

[Greenway4Prez]

Nice breakdown, and looking forward to seeing how it progresses through the season!

One thing I would highlight, and have been wanting to point out in its own post, is that last possession. What is Iowa's offense doing in their final possessions with the lead?

I am probably going to eventually make a thread on this, but I would venture to guess (and it's probably been the same throughout Kirk's career) that over the course of Brian's time as OC, our offense in its final possessions when it falls on us to run out the clock, or put the game out of reach with a sustained scoring drive, has been lacking at best, and downright dogsh** at worst.

The other thing I'm gonna look into, and again I should preface that this is probably a Kirk trend more than a Brian trend, is how badly does our scoring drop off once we hit conference play, and are there any points in the season where the lulls in putting points on the board are worse than others. I want to check the stats on that because I swear to christ it seems like every time we get to the middle portion of the season, unless we are playing the Toilet Bowl contenders of the conference, Iowa won't be scoring 21 points in a B10 game until the entire fanbase goes to their primary care physician and schedules and completes a colo-rectal exam followed immediately by a vasectomy (or whatever the equivalent is for women so we don't discriminate) in the same day.

That is honestly what it feels like watching Iowa's offense operate in weeks 6-9 it seems like over the last several years, save for the very rare instances where either the schedule breaks right or something like 2017 Ohio State happens where we go into a coma, piss our pants, forget who we are for 3 hours and beat a legitimate top 5 team, 55-24...............

Yeah, the final drive thing is…not good. I think Kirk is thinking “If we get a first down running it three times, great. If not, I trust the defense to close it out.” I think he’d RATHER the defense close it out.

I had to look back through scores from past seasons; 2017 was feast or famine. 2018 we were consistently putting points on the board, 2019 was definitely a more defensive-centered team, but we exploded in the bowl game. The last two years, oof.

 

[Greenway4Prez]

Updated to include Western Michigan.

Horrible start, but eventually woke up. That’s the best we’ve run the ball in a loooooonnngg time, but….can it translate to conference play?

 

[ICWestfan]

Updated to include Western Michigan.

Horrible start, but eventually woke up. That’s the best we’ve run the ball in a loooooonnngg time, but….can it translate to conference play?

Another request- Add the W/L record for each team Iowa has played please.

I'll look at the numbers later.

 

[Greenway4Prez]

Another request- Add the W/L record for each team Iowa has played please.

I'll look at the numbers later.

Got it!

 

[EvilMonkeyInTheCloset]

Another request- Add the W/L record for each team Iowa has played please.

I'll look at the numbers later.

They're all 1-2.

That = Iowa National Championship. Deal with it.

 

[ICWestfan]

2 really bad drives to open the game as opposed to USU and ISU games so an anomaly? Also, when Iowa was < 8/>8 they only 2 scoring drives of +50 yards so relying on D/ST for field position. That's not a criticism but an indication of how they play.

PSU is going to be interesting. They have major talent on O, their D is very opportunistic.

 

[Greenway4Prez]

Updated to include the Penn State “game”!

 

[ICWestfan]

Updated to include the Penn State “game”!

Thanks (I think). Update opponents records please.