Was reading the Land of Ten, and saw this article by Scott Dochterman.
ANSWER: With Iowa’s Big Ten schedule, which included crossover games with Penn State, Ohio State and Michigan State, most fans and observers predicted a 7-5 or even 6-6 record. I was on the high side at 8-4. Very few people picked Iowa to win more than 8 games this year.
But my question then was, which games would you be OK losing? It’s one thing to say in June that Iowa probably will lose at Northwestern. It’s quite another to live through it when it actually happens in overtime at Evanston. Knee-jerk frustration often dwarfs the perspectives of prediction past.
Iowa sits at 6-4 right now and will be favored to win its final two games against Purdue and Nebraska. If that happens, is it a successful regular season? In a word, yes. With a new offensive coordinator and passing system, a sophomore quarterback, new receivers and then injuries at tackle coupled with a more brutal schedule that initially expected, an 8-4 record is better than predicted. All of the losses will have come to teams with better records. At 8-4, the Hawkeyes will have retained three of the four traveling trophies. It appears that at least eight of Iowa’s opponents are bowl teams this year. Then there’s that blowout win against Ohio State.
But it’s also understandable for fans to have some sour feelings about the season. The offense never really got on track consistently, especially in losses to Wisconsin, Michigan State and Northwestern. There were a lot of overthrown deep passes. Injuries along the offensive line derailed a promising running game. There just wasn’t enough sustained momentum in the Big Ten season for fans to feel good. In some ways, this year was just like 2013. Good, but not great.
By the numbers, an 8-4 record is good enough for this season. But that doesn’t include the bowl game. That is a must-win for the program at this point. If Iowa finishes 9-4, it probably ends up ranked. That’s something many of us didn’t expect entering the season.
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........For the most part, I agree with his assessment. Before the season began, I think the majority of people here were thinking anywhere from 6 to 8 wins. For the youth in key spots, I think 8-4 is good enough, however to see the potential this team has, and the eggs they laid against Northwestern, Michigan State and Wisconsin can leave people sour. They should get a winnable bowl game though.
ANSWER: With Iowa’s Big Ten schedule, which included crossover games with Penn State, Ohio State and Michigan State, most fans and observers predicted a 7-5 or even 6-6 record. I was on the high side at 8-4. Very few people picked Iowa to win more than 8 games this year.
But my question then was, which games would you be OK losing? It’s one thing to say in June that Iowa probably will lose at Northwestern. It’s quite another to live through it when it actually happens in overtime at Evanston. Knee-jerk frustration often dwarfs the perspectives of prediction past.
Iowa sits at 6-4 right now and will be favored to win its final two games against Purdue and Nebraska. If that happens, is it a successful regular season? In a word, yes. With a new offensive coordinator and passing system, a sophomore quarterback, new receivers and then injuries at tackle coupled with a more brutal schedule that initially expected, an 8-4 record is better than predicted. All of the losses will have come to teams with better records. At 8-4, the Hawkeyes will have retained three of the four traveling trophies. It appears that at least eight of Iowa’s opponents are bowl teams this year. Then there’s that blowout win against Ohio State.
But it’s also understandable for fans to have some sour feelings about the season. The offense never really got on track consistently, especially in losses to Wisconsin, Michigan State and Northwestern. There were a lot of overthrown deep passes. Injuries along the offensive line derailed a promising running game. There just wasn’t enough sustained momentum in the Big Ten season for fans to feel good. In some ways, this year was just like 2013. Good, but not great.
By the numbers, an 8-4 record is good enough for this season. But that doesn’t include the bowl game. That is a must-win for the program at this point. If Iowa finishes 9-4, it probably ends up ranked. That’s something many of us didn’t expect entering the season.
____________________________________________________________________________
........For the most part, I agree with his assessment. Before the season began, I think the majority of people here were thinking anywhere from 6 to 8 wins. For the youth in key spots, I think 8-4 is good enough, however to see the potential this team has, and the eggs they laid against Northwestern, Michigan State and Wisconsin can leave people sour. They should get a winnable bowl game though.
