- Sep 13, 2002
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Is the general question posed in this week's TwT:
Tory Brecht
Columnist
Whoever coined the phrase “winning fixes everything” clearly never looked at postgame Iowa fan Twitter or online message boards.
Maybe it was because we enjoyed an unseasonably warm fishing day out on the lake prior to kick off or maybe it was low expectations after seeing the Wisconsin butt-kicking in person, but my angling buddy and I quite enjoyed the Iowa victory over Northwestern Saturday evening.
Following the much-needed, losing-streak-stopping victory, I logged online to share feelings of relief and anticipation for the homestretch of the season with my fellow Hawkeye fans.
At first I wondered if I’d stroked out or something and Iowa had actually lost. So much anger and vitriol! The number of alleged Iowa fans who insist a less-than-pretty win over a lousy Northwestern team means Iowa is doomed to lose all of its remaining games was shocking to me.
Have they never seen an Iowa-Northwestern game before?
Anytime Iowa ends up on the right side of the score line against Pat Fitzgerald, it’s cause for celebration to me. Not to mention we got to see a running back eclipse 100 yards and a quarterback make quick twitch decisions and lead the Hawks on back-to-back touchdown drives for the first time in an eternity.
I get people being frustrated with putting the brakes on any semblance of aggressive offense in the second half. But again, I must ask, have you never an Iowa-Northwestern game before!!??
I didn’t engage with the Twitter mob – no one likes “true fan police” – but I was a bit bemused. Considering nearly every pre-season prediction had Iowa at between 7 and 9 regular season wins, sitting 7-2 with a pretty soft remaining trio of Minnesota and Illinois at home and Nebraska on the road is absolutely where most expected and hoped Iowa to be at this point of the season.
Yeah, getting there has been ugly. The offense often looks like that tanker that got jammed up in the Suez Canal last spring – impossible to get moving and stuck in neutral, going nowhere. But I guess I’m of the Herm Edwards (You play to win the game) and Al Davis (Just win, baby) school. Iowa desperately needed a win, and it dispatched Northwestern without too much drama, if a noticeable lack of panache.
The outrage over the Ferentzian brain trust going boa constrictor/turtle/conservative strategy in the second half also puzzles me. This is always going to be how Kirk and Brian Ferentz try to win football games.
And guess what? It almost always works.
Did you know Iowa is undefeated in games it has led at halftime this season? Did you know Iowa is 18-2 since 2019 when it has led – no matter how scantily – at halftime? In fact, the only two losses in that span came in Spencer Petras first two starts in 2020 (Iowa was up 17-14 on Purdue before falling by 4 points and up 20-14 on Northwestern before losing by 1 that season.)
Let me repeat: in 20 games over three seasons employing the ultra-conservative, bleed-the-clock-even-with-a-small-lead strategy, Iowa has gone 18-2 with the only two losses coming by a combined 5 points.
Now, neither I nor my propensity for high blood pressure like this approach. I’m too emotional watching games to enjoy a white knuckle ride in the fourth quarter typically highlighted by ineffective run plays into a stacked box and praying the defense will make yet another stop. But I’ve also come to terms that this is Iowa football under Kirk Ferentz. And he’s pretty good at it.
Interestingly, Iowa actually is 4-5 over that same time period even when trailing at halftime. This tells me that playing in the margins and keeping it close is where this program feels most comfortable, and of late, has actually been quite successful. Yes, like many of you, I often feel like this is playing with fire and there will come a day (hopefully not too soon) when Iowa’s offensive hyper-conservatism costs them late. But that day has not yet come in 2021.
My view is Iowa had to stop the bleeding last Saturday in Evanston, and did. It even did so with a splash of much-needed adrenaline in the form of Alex Padilla. If you believe, as I do, that the coaching staff purposefully took the foot off the gas on offense for much of the second half, there is still reason to believe the “new-and-improved” offense can spark against the remaining slate of opponents.
Padilla and a slowly improving (and healing) offensive line will not face another Penn State, Wisconsin or even Purdue-level defense. And Iowa’s own defense should be able to shut down an Illini team that can’t pass, a Minnesota team that couldn’t muster a single touchdown against Illinois or a Nebraska squad that loves shooting itself in the foot and just canned its entire offensive coaching staff.
Maybe I’m delusional, but despite the “ugly” win this week, I’m bullish on Iowa’s chances of sweeping its last three.
Have a little faith, fellow fans!
Follow me on Twitter @ToryBrecht
Tuesdays with Torbee
Tory Brecht
Columnist
Whoever coined the phrase “winning fixes everything” clearly never looked at postgame Iowa fan Twitter or online message boards.
Maybe it was because we enjoyed an unseasonably warm fishing day out on the lake prior to kick off or maybe it was low expectations after seeing the Wisconsin butt-kicking in person, but my angling buddy and I quite enjoyed the Iowa victory over Northwestern Saturday evening.
Following the much-needed, losing-streak-stopping victory, I logged online to share feelings of relief and anticipation for the homestretch of the season with my fellow Hawkeye fans.
At first I wondered if I’d stroked out or something and Iowa had actually lost. So much anger and vitriol! The number of alleged Iowa fans who insist a less-than-pretty win over a lousy Northwestern team means Iowa is doomed to lose all of its remaining games was shocking to me.
Have they never seen an Iowa-Northwestern game before?
Anytime Iowa ends up on the right side of the score line against Pat Fitzgerald, it’s cause for celebration to me. Not to mention we got to see a running back eclipse 100 yards and a quarterback make quick twitch decisions and lead the Hawks on back-to-back touchdown drives for the first time in an eternity.
I get people being frustrated with putting the brakes on any semblance of aggressive offense in the second half. But again, I must ask, have you never an Iowa-Northwestern game before!!??
I didn’t engage with the Twitter mob – no one likes “true fan police” – but I was a bit bemused. Considering nearly every pre-season prediction had Iowa at between 7 and 9 regular season wins, sitting 7-2 with a pretty soft remaining trio of Minnesota and Illinois at home and Nebraska on the road is absolutely where most expected and hoped Iowa to be at this point of the season.
Yeah, getting there has been ugly. The offense often looks like that tanker that got jammed up in the Suez Canal last spring – impossible to get moving and stuck in neutral, going nowhere. But I guess I’m of the Herm Edwards (You play to win the game) and Al Davis (Just win, baby) school. Iowa desperately needed a win, and it dispatched Northwestern without too much drama, if a noticeable lack of panache.
The outrage over the Ferentzian brain trust going boa constrictor/turtle/conservative strategy in the second half also puzzles me. This is always going to be how Kirk and Brian Ferentz try to win football games.
And guess what? It almost always works.
Did you know Iowa is undefeated in games it has led at halftime this season? Did you know Iowa is 18-2 since 2019 when it has led – no matter how scantily – at halftime? In fact, the only two losses in that span came in Spencer Petras first two starts in 2020 (Iowa was up 17-14 on Purdue before falling by 4 points and up 20-14 on Northwestern before losing by 1 that season.)
Let me repeat: in 20 games over three seasons employing the ultra-conservative, bleed-the-clock-even-with-a-small-lead strategy, Iowa has gone 18-2 with the only two losses coming by a combined 5 points.
Now, neither I nor my propensity for high blood pressure like this approach. I’m too emotional watching games to enjoy a white knuckle ride in the fourth quarter typically highlighted by ineffective run plays into a stacked box and praying the defense will make yet another stop. But I’ve also come to terms that this is Iowa football under Kirk Ferentz. And he’s pretty good at it.
Interestingly, Iowa actually is 4-5 over that same time period even when trailing at halftime. This tells me that playing in the margins and keeping it close is where this program feels most comfortable, and of late, has actually been quite successful. Yes, like many of you, I often feel like this is playing with fire and there will come a day (hopefully not too soon) when Iowa’s offensive hyper-conservatism costs them late. But that day has not yet come in 2021.
My view is Iowa had to stop the bleeding last Saturday in Evanston, and did. It even did so with a splash of much-needed adrenaline in the form of Alex Padilla. If you believe, as I do, that the coaching staff purposefully took the foot off the gas on offense for much of the second half, there is still reason to believe the “new-and-improved” offense can spark against the remaining slate of opponents.
Padilla and a slowly improving (and healing) offensive line will not face another Penn State, Wisconsin or even Purdue-level defense. And Iowa’s own defense should be able to shut down an Illini team that can’t pass, a Minnesota team that couldn’t muster a single touchdown against Illinois or a Nebraska squad that loves shooting itself in the foot and just canned its entire offensive coaching staff.
Maybe I’m delusional, but despite the “ugly” win this week, I’m bullish on Iowa’s chances of sweeping its last three.
Have a little faith, fellow fans!
Follow me on Twitter @ToryBrecht
