Which Iowa PG from the past would you add to this team?

[Lumas Etima]

Many posters have argued that what this Iowa team needs is a "true point guard" who can break down defenses, and "drive and dish."

While I would agree that a player like this would be a huge advantage, I would also argue that such players have been rare in Hawkeye history.

A look back: (each of these players led the team in assists at least one year)
- Mike Gesell: Not a true PG
- Devyn Marble: Great player, but not a true PG
- Bryce Cartwright: Not great at breaking down defenses
- Cully Payne: Just, no.
- Jeff Peterson: Never got a good chance to see what he could do
- Tony Freeman: Would have been good if he had stayed
- Jeff Horner: Great player, but at the time, many insisted he was a combo guard, not a PG
- Pierre Pierce: Not a true PG (and not a good person)
- Dean Oliver: I think we have a winner
- Andre Woolridge: Best Hawkeye PG of the modern era
- Mon'ter Glasper: OK player, but not incredibly effective
- Kevin Smith: Fits the "true PG" description, but played out of control at times, then left
- Troy Skinner: Not a PG

 

[Stormn Norman]

Andre Woolridge!! All day everyday! Although my dad would say Ronnie Lester & his dad would Say Carl Cain.

 

[NorthDSMHawk]

Woolridge or Oliver. Mike G would also be in consideration if he could have found his shot more often.

Fun football topic.

 

[CJ Beat Hard]

By PG do you mean pulling guard?

 

[Dick Rambone]

The only correct answer to this question is Ronnie Lester

 

[Lumas Etima]

Fun football topic.

By PG do you mean pulling guard?

There's a reason I don't start many threads. Sorry, board.

 

[m.stoops2013]

Andre Woolridge!! All day everyday! Although my dad would say Ronnie Lester & his dad would Say Carl Cain.

This

 

[Stormn Norman]

There’s a good number of those players in that list that could help the Hawks right now from a leadership stand point alone even if they were not “true” pg’s.. I remember Val Barnes and Kevin Smith being good competitors with being able to defend and get to the rac, BJ could kind of do it all as well..

 

[Stormn Norman]

There's a reason I don't start many threads. Sorry, board.

Lol, good thread but yeah wrong board, but I got excited to answer any!

 

[NorthDSMHawk]

There's a reason I don't start many threads. Sorry, board.

Don't sweat it, this is exponentially more on topic than the ESPN Layoff thread.

 

[HawkIDrummer]

Fran really needs a guy like Dean O or Andre.

 

[Herkmeister]

Ronnie Lester............................ CONVERSATON O-V-E-R!!!!!!

 

[NorthDSMHawk]

Ronnie Lester............................ CONVERSATON O-V-E-R!!!!!!

Except he wasn't the list. Pretty easy to see this is a post-BJ Armstrong list.

 

[Herkmeister]

Except he wasn't the list. Pretty easy to see this is a post-BJ Armstrong list.

I knew he wasn't listed. Just didn't feel right not having him listed. And this was intended to point out why.

He is the GOAT.

 

[NorthDSMHawk]

He is the GOAT.

Agree, and I wasn't even alive to see him play.

 

[Suterman]

Ronnie Lester and there are no other correct answers.

 

[HawkAttackDial911]

Troy Skinner. It would be fun watching him get crushed.

 

[Lumas Etima]

Obviously, Lester, Woolridge, Armstrong and a few others would be huge additions to any team.

But I think it's interesting to note that generally speaking, guys like this ("true point guards") have been rarities for Iowa. More often than not, we've gotten by with combo guards in the PG spot. Guys like Gesell and Horner. Other "combo" guards not on the list above have been guys like Val Barnes or Steve Carfino. We've even had guys like Devyn Marble and Bill Jones and Jake Kelley playing PG on some teams -- guys who pretty clearly are not prototypical "point guards."

On numerous occasions, we've had strong success without a "true point guard." So my question is this: Why is it so vital now?

 

[C/Seahawk]

Many posters have argued that what this Iowa team needs is a "true point guard" who can break down defenses, and "drive and dish."

While I would agree that a player like this would be a huge advantage, I would also argue that such players have been rare in Hawkeye history.

A look back: (each of these players led the team in assists at least one year)
- Mike Gesell: Not a true PG
- Devyn Marble: Great player, but not a true PG
- Bryce Cartwright: Not great at breaking down defenses
- Cully Payne: Just, no.
- Jeff Peterson: Never got a good chance to see what he could do
- Tony Freeman: Would have been good if he had stayed
- Jeff Horner: Great player, but at the time, many insisted he was a combo guard, not a PG
- Pierre Pierce: Not a true PG (and not a good person)
- Dean Oliver: I think we have a winner
- Andre Woolridge: Best Hawkeye PG of the modern era
- Mon'ter Glasper: OK player, but not incredibly effective
- Kevin Smith: Fits the "true PG" description, but played out of control at times, then left
- Troy Skinner: Not a PG

My goodness, once you put our PG's on paper post BJ and Ronnie, it really highlights what a sad state of affairs its been over the past 20 years. Sure there have been some solid players, but overall a clear position of weakness not strength. Doesn't appear to be changing anytime soon either. Back to your original list, if we are not including BJ or Ronnie in this discussion, Woolridge and Oliver are at the top of my list without a doubt following by Cartwright. Gesell, Horner, Marble and Bohannon are fine players in their own right, but I think its pretty clear having them handle PG duties exclusively is a bit out of their wheelhouse as it relates to B1G and P5 level basketball.

 

[Stormn Norman]

I mentioned Val Barnes earlier along with Kevin Smith. Athletic guards that could defend and get to the Rac. Val could score

 

[Fan In Black]

I would have to see them all punt before I answer.

 

[IamHawkeye]

Andre Woolridge!! All day everyday! Although my dad would say Ronnie Lester & his dad would Say Carl Cain.

Cain was a forward. Too bad he didn't play football. DB, maybe.

 

[TriCityHawk]

Lester and Armstrong

 

[deanhawk88]

I was Hoping this was about Josh Jackson playing some Bball after the bowl game. At least we know he's a top notch defender!

 

[NevadaHawk]

The only correct answer to this question is Ronnie Lester

Absolutely correct! And it ain't close.

 

[IGot5onIt]

Dre All Day

 

[hawkguy77]

If Lester hadn't gotten injured, we may have been NCAA champions in 1980. He is the best player I have ever seen in an Iowa uniform, going back to Don Nelson. Words can't describe how smooth he was.

 

[mpfeiler]

Easy - Ronnie Lester!!!!!!

 

[QChawks]

Troy Skinner would be a huge upgrade

 

[Hawk_4shur]

Ronnie Lester. (Mic drop)

Would love to see Andre Woolridge too.

Kevin Smith getting some love here. We'll he's a Hawk, so I guess I love him too. Incredibly fast, but lots of weaknesses in his game ... like shooting.

BJ Armstrong would help any team.

But, to have Ronnie Lester with these "kids" would be awesome!

 

[tdstick]

Many posters have argued that what this Iowa team needs is a "true point guard" who can break down defenses, and "drive and dish."

While I would agree that a player like this would be a huge advantage, I would also argue that such players have been rare in Hawkeye history.

A look back: (each of these players led the team in assists at least one year)
- Mike Gesell: Not a true PG
- Devyn Marble: Great player, but not a true PG
- Bryce Cartwright: Not great at breaking down defenses
- Cully Payne: Just, no.
- Jeff Peterson: Never got a good chance to see what he could do
- Tony Freeman: Would have been good if he had stayed
- Jeff Horner: Great player, but at the time, many insisted he was a combo guard, not a PG
- Pierre Pierce: Not a true PG (and not a good person)
- Dean Oliver: I think we have a winner
- Andre Woolridge: Best Hawkeye PG of the modern era
- Mon'ter Glasper: OK player, but not incredibly effective
- Kevin Smith: Fits the "true PG" description, but played out of control at times, then left
- Troy Skinner: Not a PG

Forgot BJ

 

[HawkAlum2002]

Gesell is the only one with the size and athleticism that I think could've translated to corner or safety. Woolridge was built more like Bob Sanders but can't see him hitting as hard. Oh wait........

 

[herkyhawk00]

Many posters have argued that what this Iowa team needs is a "true point guard" who can break down defenses, and "drive and dish."

While I would agree that a player like this would be a huge advantage, I would also argue that such players have been rare in Hawkeye history.

A look back: (each of these players led the team in assists at least one year)
- Mike Gesell: Not a true PG
- Devyn Marble: Great player, but not a true PG
- Bryce Cartwright: Not great at breaking down defenses
- Cully Payne: Just, no.
- Jeff Peterson: Never got a good chance to see what he could do
- Tony Freeman: Would have been good if he had stayed
- Jeff Horner: Great player, but at the time, many insisted he was a combo guard, not a PG
- Pierre Pierce: Not a true PG (and not a good person)
- Dean Oliver: I think we have a winner
- Andre Woolridge: Best Hawkeye PG of the modern era
- Mon'ter Glasper: OK player, but not incredibly effective
- Kevin Smith: Fits the "true PG" description, but played out of control at times, then left
- Troy Skinner: Not a PG

Did you really include Troy Skinner on this list?

 

[Slappy Pappy]

Did you really include Troy Skinner on this list?

He would probably be our #1 receiver next year.

 

[tdstick]

Dre All Day

Everyone knew he was going right hand but no one could stop him.

 

[Lumas Etima]

Did you really include Troy Skinner on this list?

Why wouldn't I? As stated, each of the players on the list led the team in assists at least one season.

Skinner was actually our assist leader in 2 seasons, averaging 3.8 in 1989-90, and 3.4 in 1990-91. He dropped to 2.6 in 1991-92, as Kevin Smith took over the starting PG spot.

(Part of the point of my post was to illustrate that "true point guards," who can break down a defense and drive and dish, have been a relative rarity in Hawkeye history. Skinner is a great example. But he was a bad-ass at drawing charges.)

 

[Shafthawk]

I'm going to pretend Kent Hill was a PG and pick him.

 

[Randall Stanhope]

If we're taking about which Hawkeye point guard to add to the football team, and apparently we are, it's gotta be Andre Woolridge. Dude was built.

No gay.

 

[Menace Sockeyes]

If we're taking about which Hawkeye point guard to add to the football team, and apparently we are, it's gotta be Andre Woolridge. Dude was built.

This. Plus he's have better catching hands than many of our receivers.

 

[Randall Stanhope]

Which former Hawkeye point guard is the best punter? That is the question we need to be asking ourselves.