Washington had a lot more yards than Iowa... but Iowa killed them on the scoreboard.. the only stat that matters is the final score.
Stats are for Losers
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Washington had a lot more yards than Iowa... but Iowa killed them on the scoreboard.. the only stat that matters is the final score.
Sure, but others stats like sacks, turnovers, and Wash failing on 2 or 3 4th downs in their own territory are huge, as well as the blocked FG which is like another turnover after they drove the length of the field.
Washington had a lot more yards than Iowa... but Iowa killed them on the scoreboard.. the only stat that matters is the final score.
Harris's 30 yard INT return should be added to Iowa's total yardage as well as at least 80 yards because Wash didnt punt and Iowa stopped them. Add those 110 yards to Iowa's 328 yards of run/pass offense and Iowa has 438 yards of field position gained. Iowa had 35 more punt return yards also.
Iowa made big plays, they had sacks and hurries.
Yah guy hasnt heard of the hidden yards stat
Iowa was +2 officially in turnovers which is about the only stat you could say they won. Running game stats they did win. But lost Time of Possession stat.
As others said the hidden stats were huge. They are are actually something Iowa teams are good at. Special teams and Defense going for the TD's or as many positive yards as possible.
As others said the hidden stats were huge. They are are actually something Iowa teams are good at. Special teams and Defense going for the TD's or as many positive yards as possible.
It's true. In a given game the score is all that matters. Last year Michigan wasn't close to number one in YPG but they were close to if not the most efficient offense in the country because they scored points when the opportunity was there.
Washington had a lot more yards than Iowa... but Iowa killed them on the scoreboard.. the only stat that matters is the final score.
Go check out the Maryland\NW stats from Friday.
NW had 10 first downs, and a 27 point win.
NW had 10 first downs, and a 27 point win.
yes. stats are useless. coaches and GMs never pay attention to any stats and never have.
Averaging over 8 yards/carry over 25 carries in the running game is huge. Punt returns was another statistical win...
Another useless stat, we lead the conference in rushing yds per game. It is refreshing to watch an elite (half) offense.
Agree, and when you are winning by 3+ scores in the 4th quarter you usually have reserves in and run the ball to shorten the game. On defense you use a prevent defense to keep them from a quick easy score that allows them to pass underneath and move down the field adding yards but eating time.
One stat that's become a popular nerd stat is yards per play. Essentially it's a way to determine the efficiency of your offense. Iowa had fewer total yards.......but also fewer total plays. So what did Iowa do with those plays?
Washington had a lot more yards than Iowa... but Iowa killed them on the scoreboard.. the only stat that matters is the final score.
6.43 yards per play. Means on average, Iowa was gaining a little over 6 yards each play (more or less).
Let's compare that to Washington, who had more total yards, but also way more plays run from scrimmage.
4.91 yards per play.
Meaning Washington was far less efficient when they had the ball compared to Iowa.
Results?...........................40-16. Hawks win.
Stats are simply indicators that help provide context to how the outcome was achieved
I think our starting position on each driver was a lot better than Washington.
Exactly. A bunch of Wash yards came on the last drive against second team guys and some not even in the two deeps. Also Washington had to drive 80yds and Iowa only a little over 50 each time to score because we controlled field position. WE scored on SEVEN straight times with the ball. We're rarely ever going to lose a game like that. Crazy stat, THREE total punts in the game. Two by Iowa for a 58yd average, and ONE punt by a team who lost by 24 points! Bet you never see that in a game. Jed really gambled on that going for it on 4th down three times and he got burnt..
Tough next game for the Huskies as well at Indiana. That should be a fun one to watch..
My favorite stat back in the 70s and 60s was Hawks getting more 1st downs vs osu and michigan. A sports writer said we got that because the goal line kept getting in the way of michigan and osu making it tough to get 1st downs!
Washington had a lot more yards than Iowa... but Iowa killed them on the scoreboard.. the only stat that matters is the final score.
Some folks may not like this ... but Iowa's stats reflect complementary football.
That season we had David Bradley and Nate Kaeding on special teams. Bradley didn't have a super booming leg ... but he did a good job of pinning our opponents within the 20. Kaeding was money in the bank. Furthermore, in that game we returned the ball well and we even got a blocked-punt.
Iowa forced a fumble and got a pick in that game too. So the Hawks won the turnover battle in that game too. Combine that with the aforementioned punt-block ... and you're looking at why Iowa had a 33-7 lead heading into the 4th quarter.
Complementary football is winning football ... or it has been for Iowa over the years.
- Yes, the D gave up yardage ... but also made it hard to score (which is a change from what we've seen in prior weeks in the red-zone). In just 3 drives, Washington possessed the ball for 21 and a half minutes ... and had 13. points to show for it. That is vintage Kirk and Phil ... and their ability to contract a game.
- Take-aways were huge ... and that included BOTH the fumble and pick AND the 2 turnover-on-downs. This effectively gives your O more cross-sectional opportunities to score.
- The special teams put points on the board when they had to ... but, more importantly, they helped Iowa to win the field-position battle.
- When given the opportunity, the O actually scored points. When the D does its job and the O scores points ... that forces the opposing team off their game-plan. When a team is forced away from their game-plan ... it often makes them more predictable and more risk-taking. When a team is forced to search out chunk-plays ... rather than simply taking them when our D gives them up ... that is when turnovers occur. Heck ... that's what happened when Ohio State started strip-sacking us the prior week.
That season we had David Bradley and Nate Kaeding on special teams. Bradley didn't have a super booming leg ... but he did a good job of pinning our opponents within the 20. Kaeding was money in the bank. Furthermore, in that game we returned the ball well and we even got a blocked-punt.
Iowa forced a fumble and got a pick in that game too. So the Hawks won the turnover battle in that game too. Combine that with the aforementioned punt-block ... and you're looking at why Iowa had a 33-7 lead heading into the 4th quarter.
Complementary football is winning football ... or it has been for Iowa over the years.
Many found that out last season as Iowa won ten games with the worst offensive stats in college football. The score is the only stat that counts.
Washington had a lot more yards than Iowa... but Iowa killed them on the scoreboard.. the only stat that matters is the final score.
So lots of great points here Homer. However, it hasn't been working out like this the last few years. Washington racked up 166 yards in their first 2 possessions, and of course we got the great blocked field goal which kept them to 7 points. We all know Phil's plan of making a team go 80 yards slowly down the field. Washington in their first 2 drives was definitely taking what we were giving and having their way w/us. The big key in my opinion is that we were able to move the ball as well w/our running game and we forced some turnovers. Great interception by Harris, strip sack, etc. O line was dominant in the running game and we've got a top 3 back in the country. That allowed Lester to scheme that great little flare out to him for the TD and of course the sweet play action for the TD as well. Was glad to see our defense stiffen and make a few big plays. Going to give them more confidence moving forward.
Huskies sure moved the ball easily all game long ... and they are not very good. Good thing they are not very good.
Washington had a lot more yards than Iowa... but Iowa killed them on the scoreboard.. the only stat that matters is the final score.
Dad Belichek probably called DC boy Belichek on Sunday and said "Dude, you got pantsed by a Kirk Ferentz offense, JFC!".
What f-ing game were you watching Clone boy? Huskies were much less physical. They were getting the crap beat out of them.
Efficiency is a measure of execution. As for yards, who cares, all that matters is touch downs and field goals. You want to get touch downs and hold them to field goals, no other stat matters more then that except maybe turn overs, but turn overs, kind of goes back to the efficiency and execution part. The rest of the stats are like a kit car. yeah they look flashy, but they still a Volkswagen underneath.
It helps when your average starting field position is the 45. That is an insane stat brought over by loss of downs and turnovers.
Actually, I'd claim the opposite ... over the past few years, Iowa's shown how even a meager offense can score when the defense and special teams play like they had. However, you're right though ... that banking ONLY on D and ST is not very sustainable. Getting the offense to be able to play its part pays off everything else.
But anyhow, my point before wasn't that the O could get off doing nothing ... but that, at the bare minimum, the O has to be able to capitalize off of the field-position that the defense and special-teams affords them. Furthermore, sustaining some drives is favorable too ... so that that D doesn't get gassed. Some fans like to point out the Tennessee and Michigan games as examples of the Hawks getting pummeled ... but those games really illustrate that that the O has to do their jobs too. You can't be competitive with great teams (if you're Iowa) if you cannot be a threat in all areas. The Ohio State game proved that we needed to be able to BOTH run and pass the ball ... and we couldn't really do either with consistency (although I was heartened by the passing game in the first-half).
turnovers killed us against Ohio State... if we get another chance at them, I think we take them
Sometimes I just have to wonder if you're serious or the most delusional poster on the interwebs.
Turnovers were certainly part of the equation. However, our D wasn't able to get off the field against Ohio State either. On the first drive of the 2nd half ... the score being 0-7 ... the Hawks had Ohio State on a 3rd and 6 ... and couldn't get off the field. Instead Ohio State hit us for a 53 yard gainer ... and that was a complete dagger.
Then, in a bat of an eye ... the score when from 0-7 to 0-21 (thanks to strip-sack).
Finally, we're driving (given the above score) ... and then, as you noted, we then turn the ball over (interception).
In each of these cases, both of the turnovers occurred on 1st down ... when we were trying to pass the ball. Usually you'd think that when Iowa is passing on first down ... it's veritably like a "trick play" and should be a surprise. However, given that we're not exactly made to come back from a multiple-score deficit ... perhaps the timing of the game made us more predictable. Furthermore, in the case of the first strip-sack, we had poor field-position ... so the D is less apt to get burned by taking some aggressive risks.
Then, when we were still down 0-21 ... the D fails to get off the field again ... after forcing a 3rd and 11. Instead, they team gets 9 yards ... and since they're in plus-territory, they go for it on 4th and 2 ... and convert. The wheels were already off at that juncture ... but that cemented it.
