- Sep 13, 2002
- 93,985
- 190,018
- 113
Tuesdays with Torbee
Tory Brecht
Columnist
I have a confession to make: I kind of like PJ Fleck.
Yes, he’s squirrely. Yes, his overly animated sideline shtick and spazzy energy elicit eye rolls.
But you know what? He’s a pretty good coach. Not only has he assembled a very physical and skilled team, he has also instilled discipline and intelligence in how they play. Despite decibel levels approaching jet-engine territory in a raucous Kinnick-at-evening atmosphere, the Gophers’ massive and effective offensive line only committed one false start I can remember. Compare that to James Franklin’s Penn State O-line, which was jumpier than a cat in a roomful of rocking chairs, and I give the nod to the Fleckster in the battle of who prepares better for the Hawkeyes.
Now, I fully admit my one-man admiration club is likely to disband should PJ ever find a way to actually beat Iowa. But for now, I tip my cap in his direction. I also think that a program like Minnesota – always overshadowed by professional sports teams and generally an afterthought in a massive media market – having a larger-than-life coach with catch phrases and a real rah-rah act may be necessary. Dare I say it reminds me a bit of the moribund Iowa program turning to a brash Texan with white pants and aviator glasses and a love of slinging the ball around the field to break out of its slump?
We’ve talked a lot about how frustrating it is when Iowa loses games it should win, but Saturday was the rare instance of Iowa finding a way to win a game it really should have lost.
Make no mistake about it, Minnesota’s team – which features a roster with many players nearing AARP eligibility age – imposed its physical will on Iowa much of the night. That’s probably another reason I like Fleck; I’ve been a smashmouth football aficionado most of my life. Watching road grader linemen blast open big holes that scampering running backs exploit for first down after first down even when the other team knows it’s coming is something I’ll never tire of watching. And since Iowa seems incapable of it this year, I guess I have to get my fix from the Gophers and Badgers.
That said, credit is due to Kirk and Brian Ferentz for opening up the offensive game plan and turning to the deep ball to overcome the physical mismatch presented by the Gophers. Letting a first-time starter “rip it” – as young Alex Padilla said he was instructed to do by the quarterback he replaced – takes guts. And Saturday it paid off with big, game-winning plays.
I can’t be the only Iowa fan salivating at the thought of several more years of Padilla-to-Johnson and Padilla-to-Bruce bombs. I think we also saw some glimmers that the run game could even return to serviceable, if not spectacular, as Tyler Goodson found a few creases for first-down runs. Too often the Iowa offensive line still gets pushed back and Goodson dancing in the backfield loses too many yards, but incremental improvement can be observed.
I didn’t find this past Saturday’s victory nearly as ugly as the win over Northwestern, although judging by the tenor of many fans on Twitter and internet message boards, I may be in the minority. I have come to accept Kirk Ferentz’s idiosyncratic time management decisions: all of us have our fatal flaws. But his proved only perplexing, not fatal, toward the end of the game. Besides, if Iowa punched the ball in for a touchdown near the end, we wouldn’t have experienced the exciting drama of Joe Evans’ strip-sack of Tanner Morgan to end the game.
So Iowa sits 8-2 with two games remaining against Illinois and Nebraska – a pair of programs it has dominated for the better part of a decade. I predicted 9-3 at the start of the season, but I’d be pretty disappointed with that outcome now. The path to a 10-win season is there, and with a little help, maybe even a long-awaited return to Indianapolis. It boggles my mind to hear some of the grumbling and moaning from Iowa fans who feel the process to getting to 9 wins hasn’t been aesthetically pleasing enough.
Iowa’s West Division Championship drought sparked an interesting question on Hawkeye Report this week. That is – if you could choose – would you rather be like Iowa, which has only one championship game appearance but has posted pretty steady seven, eight or nine win seasons; or like Northwestern which has more frequent division titles, but also struggles through bad losing seasons, including a 3-9 clunker as recently as 2019?
At this point, I think I prefer Iowa’s outcomes. I like watching competitive, winning football and going to bowl games. In addition, Iowa has mostly dominated its rivalry games (having never lost to PJ-coached Minnesota, Matt Campbell-coached Iowa State or Scott Frost-coached Nebraska). With the exception of the Badgers, Iowa has had a stranglehold on its traveling trophies for years, and that warms my heart.
With a lot of young talent on the roster and recruiting ticking up, it feels to me like it’s only a matter of time before the Hawkeyes capture that next elusive division title. Win out, and maybe it unexpectedly happens here in 2021.
Follow me on Twitter @ToryBrecht
