Especially Ohio State. I know Sparty has a good defense, but that offense was atrocious. I know the weather conditions were bad, but Iowa and Purdue managed far better with 30-mile-per-hour winds--then again the Boilers and Hawks have real QBs. Have to forgive Sparty for their passing ineptness because Cook was out, but I think they need to stop calling J.T. Barrett a dual threat QB -- he's definitely not a threat passing the ball. Ohio State may as well just run the option and forget about passing altogether if they're going to go with Barrett the rest of the way. About halfway through the second quarter I kept wondering when Meyer was going to put in Jones for a drive to see if they could get something going in the passing game. Then the third quarter passed ... then the fourth. I know Elliott shouldn't have said what he did publicly, but he was actually right, the play-calling was pitiful.
I see in other threads that everyone is worried about Iowa possibly missing the Rose Bowl if they lose to MSU (assuming they beat Penn State next week), but I feel much better about the championship game after seeing MSU vs. OSU. I think Iowa could beat either one of them -- though MSU with Cook is certainly a serious challenge; that wasn't the best Sparty team on the field today and they still beat up Ohio State physically. Before the game, though, I was all but convinced Iowa had little chance of beating the Buckeyes and assumed their athleticism would prove to be too much for Iowa. Not now. The Buckeyes have no offense without Elliot. He's the only effective weapon they have and I certainly understand why he was worked up. How Meyer could squander that much talent on offense is ... mind-boggling. If they had a decent QB, just a serviceable guy, Lund or Appleby or Leidner, they'd be dangerous. As it is, they don't deserve to be in the top 10 and they definitely are not a playoff-caliber team.
Michigan State with Cook is another matter. They're clearly the most dangerous team Iowa could face in the championship game, but Iowa's offense is much more balanced than Ohio State's. Iowa does depend on the run, but nothing like Ohio State does. Beatherd's the difference and I also think Iowa may have a better O-Line, but we'll see. I think Iowa can handle MSU's running game, but Cook's passing could be a problem. If he's not back, if he's still hurt, I would have Iowa favored to win. Even with Cook, Iowa has a good chance, though MSU would be favored -- but I don't think by much and I think the Hawks match up fairly well overall. I think the championship game is going to be a great game and I could see it going down to the wire (with Cook; otherwise Iowa wins like they have been winning, pulling away in the fourth quarter).
I see in other threads that everyone is worried about Iowa possibly missing the Rose Bowl if they lose to MSU (assuming they beat Penn State next week), but I feel much better about the championship game after seeing MSU vs. OSU. I think Iowa could beat either one of them -- though MSU with Cook is certainly a serious challenge; that wasn't the best Sparty team on the field today and they still beat up Ohio State physically. Before the game, though, I was all but convinced Iowa had little chance of beating the Buckeyes and assumed their athleticism would prove to be too much for Iowa. Not now. The Buckeyes have no offense without Elliot. He's the only effective weapon they have and I certainly understand why he was worked up. How Meyer could squander that much talent on offense is ... mind-boggling. If they had a decent QB, just a serviceable guy, Lund or Appleby or Leidner, they'd be dangerous. As it is, they don't deserve to be in the top 10 and they definitely are not a playoff-caliber team.
Michigan State with Cook is another matter. They're clearly the most dangerous team Iowa could face in the championship game, but Iowa's offense is much more balanced than Ohio State's. Iowa does depend on the run, but nothing like Ohio State does. Beatherd's the difference and I also think Iowa may have a better O-Line, but we'll see. I think Iowa can handle MSU's running game, but Cook's passing could be a problem. If he's not back, if he's still hurt, I would have Iowa favored to win. Even with Cook, Iowa has a good chance, though MSU would be favored -- but I don't think by much and I think the Hawks match up fairly well overall. I think the championship game is going to be a great game and I could see it going down to the wire (with Cook; otherwise Iowa wins like they have been winning, pulling away in the fourth quarter).
