Worst Half of Football All Season
- Thread starter IowaHawkeyeFBnBB4Life
- Start date
Maryland is soft. We went ultra conservative in the 2nd half, and looked pretty bad.
Should have beaten them worse, but it's hard to complain about 8-0.
Should have beaten them worse, but it's hard to complain about 8-0.
The worst half of football this year was trying to run out the clock (against a loaded box) with a 21-point lead and a hobbled QB. I'll take it.
Every one of the last 4 games will be a struggle if this team play like it did in the second half.
Maryland has success at least three times running that counter trap play. Maryland's OC did a nice job finding it. Had it been a closer game, Iowa could have brought a safety down to fill it.
was not the worst half....there appeared to be no injuries!
Well...yes.
Iowa blinked for the first time this year. The offense sure crawled into a shell. Dare I say Old Kirk.
I didn't understand the insistence of not rotating the backs in more like they did the first half. Wadley/Mitchell was working. Daniels gets a heavier load = middling second half. Going with almost purely Daniels = not nearly as much offensive versatility. They became very predictable.
I understand why they did it to a degree - if you're going to use Daniels at all the rest of the year, he needs game reps, but still. It wasn't working, it gave their defense life, which gave Maryland life.
I'm no football genius, but it sure was puzzling to watch.
But yes...it's a win. Just a frustrating win.
Iowa blinked for the first time this year. The offense sure crawled into a shell. Dare I say Old Kirk.
I didn't understand the insistence of not rotating the backs in more like they did the first half. Wadley/Mitchell was working. Daniels gets a heavier load = middling second half. Going with almost purely Daniels = not nearly as much offensive versatility. They became very predictable.
I understand why they did it to a degree - if you're going to use Daniels at all the rest of the year, he needs game reps, but still. It wasn't working, it gave their defense life, which gave Maryland life.
I'm no football genius, but it sure was puzzling to watch.
But yes...it's a win. Just a frustrating win.
We certainly have things to work on. Especially against running QB's. We always struggle with them.
O Line fell apart and the defense didn't wake up until the final Maryland drive.
CJ wasn't on the mark today either.
Oh well, a win is a win and I'm still so glad to be undefeated.
O Line fell apart and the defense didn't wake up until the final Maryland drive.
CJ wasn't on the mark today either.
Oh well, a win is a win and I'm still so glad to be undefeated.
First half at Iowa State was pretty bad too, but will agree second half was pretty awful. I didn't get to see the first half because I was on a college visit with my son. Just happy to have this game behind us and come out with a W. Hoping the line play gets figured out this week.
A
anon_snp6dc585nnj4
Guest
Yep, old Kirk on 4th and 5 in fg range going for it and leading to 7 points.
After an off week, against a bad team, I am not too concerned that they looked like crap.
I am very worried about next week though!
I am very worried about next week though!
Old Kirk second half shows why we never want to see him again. Never take your foot off their neck!
Someone help me out. I thought the Hawks won by 16?
How times have changed when we are bitching about a two TD victory.
How times have changed when we are bitching about a two TD victory.
You're right the in result in the margin is exactly what we're looking for. But you're any objective viewer there's no way that you can say that this team looked like one of the top 10 that all the fans seem to be clammering over. Let alone a formidable team.
A win is exactly what the doctor ordered however, so we will take it anyway it comes!
A few thoughts ....
- Some sloppiness on the OL throughout the game, particularly in the second half. Part of that could be attributable to yet another personnel change on the OL. Part of it may also have been overconfidence, because of how we controlled the game through the first half.
- Through at least much of the 3rd quarter, we had terrible field position. That allowed for their already aggressive D to tee-off even more.
- Like many fans alluded, we were going to probably try to milk the clock more in the 2nd half in order to both protect the lead AND protect Beathard.
- For whatever reason, Beathard came across a bit rusty. He had some missed throws.
- Maryland knew that Beathard was hurt and didn't consider him a threat on the ground. That made it a little easier to defend him.
- On D, since Maryland was playing from behind, we were playing with more guys back in coverage. We didn't have the guy crashing on the interior like we did earlier - and that opened up the QB run more.
- Our D was stuck on the field a long time in the second half. I was seeing sloppier tackling in the second half as a result. Too many "arm tackles" ... and too many arms wrapping up high.
Does anyone else realize that technically we won 31-7? One slip up by special teams lead to the kickoff return for a TD. but only allowing 7 points all game is a pretty decent days work.
Indiana is a different animal entirely but that can be dealt with next week. For now enjoy the 8-0 start!!
Indiana is a different animal entirely but that can be dealt with next week. For now enjoy the 8-0 start!!
I would disagree on the top 10 statement. I am pretty sure that every team other than Baylor has had a game this year where they did not look stellar.
And if in a game where they did not play their best and still win by 16...works for me.
Iowa nursing a 3 TD lead and Maryland selling out and Iowa couldnt/didnt make them pay.
A few bootlegs would have gone for 40 yards today. Maryland was stunting and selling out big time.
A few bootlegs would have gone for 40 yards today. Maryland was stunting and selling out big time.
Exactly. Beathard is not himself, and the risk-reward comes down to trying to score style points vs. keeping him as healthy as possible. The correct choice is obvious.
Yeah, I was thinking first half against ISU was worse but today's second half was at least a close second.
Maryland isn't a rotten fb team. They are not a high school team. Could we have played better? Of course, but hawks win, go 8-0. Now on to Indian, the next challenge. Go hawks.
Yeah...in the first half.
But this is a thread about the second half now, isn't it?
I was gonna post in the game thread after the second time you posted this that I imagined you would start a thread about it about 7 seconds after the final whistle. But, I didn't want to be disappointed.
Up 21, with the defense dominating, Iowa decided to play conservative, and it worked, we cruised to a relatively easy win. If the game were ever in doubt, I think CJ could have done damage to Maryland, but we just didn't need it. We have up 6 points on defense today.
I agree the 2nd half was disappointing... but don't lose sight of the first half which was one of the better halves of football we've played.
Biggest concern of the 2nd half to me is not that we went conservative; we've done that in the 2nd half of previous games this year, but rolled over defenses none-the-less. A little bit disconcerting to go to the run-up-the-gut well today and find nothing there.
Biggest concern of the 2nd half to me is not that we went conservative; we've done that in the 2nd half of previous games this year, but rolled over defenses none-the-less. A little bit disconcerting to go to the run-up-the-gut well today and find nothing there.
Iowa seemed to have a plan of running the clock in the second half and trying to keep CJ from getting hurt...few risky passes over the middle, less runs around the ends...keep the lead, punt, hang back for an int... We have seen this before...it is what one might have expected. Glad it didn't get down to a less than TD lead...
Bathed hurt and play calling was to protect him -- the D played well enough to hold Maryland at bay, but that's the only reason the game was as close as it was (still a 16-point win). 2 passes in the 2nd half? Clearly CJ was hurting and could plant and turn his hips to makes the throws. Plus, why have him take more shots when he was hobbled after that scramble in the first half. Another week of treatment and he'll be fine.
Yep, and the 7 they did score against the Iowa D was largely due to 2 bonehead facemask penalties extending the drive.
Ehhh, I'm thinking this is gonna be a season-long issue, unfortunately. It's not just some hip bruise that he has. It's something that can be easily aggravated any time he takes a hit, regardless of how much he healed up over the week. And there's also the missed practice time, which needs to not become too much of a factor going forward.
I agree that I was not sharp in the 2nd half. But, I don't know how you can say they were conservative. Is a completed pass "aggressive" and an incomplete pass "conservative"? Is missing a block on a DL that then tackles the running back in the backfield "conservative"?
Hawks looked pretty good in the first half, not so good in the second half. I did not detect a change in strategy, just effectiveness.
Hawks looked pretty good in the first half, not so good in the second half. I did not detect a change in strategy, just effectiveness.
Yeah, there was certainly a different game plan. Iowa did opt to run more and protect C.J. rather than take some risks. But, yes, Iowa also missed a number of blocks, throughout the game really, but especially in the 2nd half, which they better get shored up if they're gonna continue trying to keep C.J. from having to do too much.
I think they didn't work the edge on the run enough in the 2nd half, after it worked well in the 1st half. Part of that could've been Maryland's doing, and our blocking, but we definitely didn't have as many run plays designed to get to the edge in the 2nd half, and instead settled for between the tackles running for small to moderate gains and then the occasional loss......
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