Smarthawk wrote: It is going to be an interesting season. We certainly could start 5-0 and maybe should, but we are a young team with inexperience at some key positions. I believe we will go 8-4, 9-3 and play in the Gator Bowl. I think we lose to MSU and Michigan, and lose 1 of the 1st 5. Then perhaps losing to PSU or Nebraska at home but not both. If we can stay relatively healthy, this will end up a pretty good year. Key injuries and the 5-7, 6-6 crowd is going to be correct.

jb7Hawk wrote: Someone look at our first 5 games and tell me how we don't sweep the early part of our schedule?

jshawks wrote: ISU does return alot of talent this year, and with regard to the other teams, until a KF led Iowa team stops playing down to the level of our competition I will never write anyone off. Hopefully the new staff can turn that trend around.

• NIU is the 2011 MAC champ.
• Iowa State and UNI will be formidable challenges, as they have been recently.
• The Chippewas have a lot of people coming back from a 3-9 season. The Chippewas usually are not down.
• We can beat Minnesota at home.

mactyn wrote:
If they are 5-0 to start the seaon, then finishing with at least 10 wins is mandatory.

Hawkinole wrote: I predicted 8-4. The more I ruminate the more firmly I concluded that Iowa will be fortunate to go 7-5.

Central Mich has a lot of people back. UNI, NIU, and Iowa State have good teams coming back. Greg Davis doesn't like our speed at receiver. Vandenberg has talent but has been horribly inconsistent from week-to-week; how fixable is inconsistency?

• NIU is the 2011 MAC champ.
• Iowa State and UNI will be formidable challenges, as they have been recently.
• The Chippewas have a lot of people coming back from a 3-9 season. The Chippewas usually are not down.
• We can beat Minnesota at home.

nchawk01 wrote: a loss might serve them well. They could be a crappy 5-0 team going into sparty...a loss to ISU would certainly create an edge.

RJSimmons wrote:

Smarthawk wrote: It is going to be an interesting season. We certainly could start 5-0 and maybe should, but we are a young team with inexperience at some key positions. I believe we will go 8-4, 9-3 and play in the Gator Bowl. I think we lose to MSU and Michigan, and lose 1 of the 1st 5. Then perhaps losing to PSU or Nebraska at home but not both. If we can stay relatively healthy, this will end up a pretty good year. Key injuries and the 5-7, 6-6 crowd is going to be correct.

We always have some injuries. Which ones would you consider "key" besides QB, which is the obvious one. Just curious. 
I haven't put much thought into what player we could not afford to lose. I'm tempted to say "all of them"
but that may not be the case.

jb7Hawk wrote: CFN says it's reasonable to assume 9 wins with maybe 10 - and I can't get one homer on this thread to say anything other than we have a 7 win ceiling?

WTF?!

And we got so-called fans HOPING we don't go 5-0?  And one is hoping we don't go 4-0?

I'll say it again . . .WTF!?

Seriously, when did our fans and our program become IOWA STATE!?!

Ringerhawk wrote: Most likely we will start 4-1. Be happy.

Ringerhawk wrote: Was you even at the two Minnesota games. I was there minny played much better than we like to give them credit for. I figure we will win vs minny and isu this year in kinnick. But I think we will drop one were not supposed too. Uni or northern Illinois.

BlackTarn wrote: some of you need to take a close look at the talent last year.Iowa had the following in the 2 deeps of 44 players:
16 were Walkons
24 were 2* to 3* rated players out of HS
4 were 4* players,
of the 4* players
one was Coker the starting RB
one was K Davis the #2 option at WR
one was AJ Derby the 2nd string QB who didn't even finish the season on the 2 deeps
the last is CJF who didn't start on the 2 deeps that role went to Z Derby
I would not say Iowa is not a talent laden team to just go out and dominate teams
for Iowa to have 41 of the 44 players being 3* or less on the 2 deeps to start is no where close to being superior to anybody they played last season. actually Iowa was lucky to even have a winning season let alone win any games.
this is why KF gets paid what he does.
this is why he has actually done a hell of a job with the recruits he gets. after 9 years of getting 11-12 2* recruits each year and have the success that Iowa had by winning the games they did, Fans forget about how bad the recruiting classes actually were. KF and his staff did a great job with the talent they got, the last 3 years the Talent being getting as been improving and this year we should see the results of that upgrade in talent;
I truly find it funny how clueless some are about how good Iowa is supposed to be, in reality Iowa just did a better job of developing the players they got

Hawks2405 wrote:

BlackTarn wrote: some of you need to take a close look at the talent last year.Iowa had the following in the 2 deeps of 44 players:
16 were Walkons
24 were 2* to 3* rated players out of HS
4 were 4* players,
of the 4* players
one was Coker the starting RB
one was K Davis the #2 option at WR
one was AJ Derby the 2nd string QB who didn't even finish the season on the 2 deeps
the last is CJF who didn't start on the 2 deeps that role went to Z Derby
I would not say Iowa is not a talent laden team to just go out and dominate teams
for Iowa to have 41 of the 44 players being 3* or less on the 2 deeps to start is no where close to being superior to anybody they played last season. actually Iowa was lucky to even have a winning season let alone win any games.
this is why KF gets paid what he does.
this is why he has actually done a hell of a job with the recruits he gets. after 9 years of getting 11-12 2* recruits each year and have the success that Iowa had by winning the games they did, Fans forget about how bad the recruiting classes actually were. KF and his staff did a great job with the talent they got, the last 3 years the Talent being getting as been improving and this year we should see the results of that upgrade in talent;
I truly find it funny how clueless some are about how good Iowa is supposed to be, in reality Iowa just did a better job of developing the players they got

Uhhh, ok so Ferentz does a great job with the talent that we have had but isn't that his own problem and isn't 50% of a staff's job to recruit players. That's their own fault man. If they want better talent then they need to be out there getting better talent.

Ringerhawk wrote: Was you even at the two Minnesota games. I was there minny played much better than we like to give them credit for. I figure we will win vs minny and isu this year in kinnick. But I think we will drop one were not supposed too. Uni or northern Illinois.

BlackTarn wrote:

Hawks2405 wrote:

BlackTarn wrote: some of you need to take a close look at the talent last year.Iowa had the following in the 2 deeps of 44 players:
16 were Walkons
24 were 2* to 3* rated players out of HS
4 were 4* players,
of the 4* players
one was Coker the starting RB
one was K Davis the #2 option at WR
one was AJ Derby the 2nd string QB who didn't even finish the season on the 2 deeps
the last is CJF who didn't start on the 2 deeps that role went to Z Derby
I would not say Iowa is not a talent laden team to just go out and dominate teams
for Iowa to have 41 of the 44 players being 3* or less on the 2 deeps to start is no where close to being superior to anybody they played last season. actually Iowa was lucky to even have a winning season let alone win any games.
this is why KF gets paid what he does.
this is why he has actually done a hell of a job with the recruits he gets. after 9 years of getting 11-12 2* recruits each year and have the success that Iowa had by winning the games they did, Fans forget about how bad the recruiting classes actually were. KF and his staff did a great job with the talent they got, the last 3 years the Talent being getting as been improving and this year we should see the results of that upgrade in talent;
I truly find it funny how clueless some are about how good Iowa is supposed to be, in reality Iowa just did a better job of developing the players they got

Uhhh, ok so Ferentz does a great job with the talent that we have had but isn't that his own problem and isn't 50% of a staff's job to recruit players. That's their own fault man. If they want better talent then they need to be out there getting better talent.

i will ask you the same question this same question i just asked another poster who has no answer.
i will rephrase the question.
just who, where and how is KF  supposed to get this top talent to make Iowa a elite school, Texas, maybe with Davis the New OC , but its going to be hard, 7 instate schools to compete against and the entire B12 conference, Oklahoma and Texas the major schools that cherry pick the talent.
Florida, same as Texas to many instate teams to compete against as well as the ACC and SEC Schools and their oversigning, not likely. the upper East Coast, PSU and OSU dominate and the BE, to compete against.
Califoria, maybe,  but you have the Pac 12 to compete against and the surrounding states are lacking top talent so they have to rely on California,
Iowa? i doubt it Iowa is lucky to have 1 4* recruit and maybe at most 5 D1 level talent and as we have seen the last 3 top rated recruits left the state, and i question who is the biggest failure at keeping them home as Darbogh and Campos are within 40 miles of ISU.
Chicago which Iowa has improved in recruiting is the main hub of BT teams recruiting, and ussually ND has a strangle hold on Chicago.
so tell me other than cheating how does KF improve recruiting

BlackTarn wrote: the difference between wrestling and fb is the Fact Iowa has 20+ BT titles and numerous NCAA titles, ans wrestling is more of a individual sport than FB. just saying, not to mention FB has more teams competing for top talent. even UNI is a D1 Wrestling school
and as I asked, how is KF supposed to get the talent with out cheating, having to recruit nation wide and not having a state that produces that many D1 kids

Ringerhawk wrote: ---------------------------------------------
--- WarHawk05 wrote:

Ringerhawk wrote: Was you even at the two Minnesota games. I was there minny played much better than we like to give them credit for. I figure we will win vs minny and isu this year in kinnick. But I think we will drop one were not supposed too. Uni or northern Illinois.

So you think we'll lose either our first season opener in over a decade or to an FCS team that's not suppose to be as good as they were last year? 

I guess this means we're gonna lose to Central Michigan then huh....

---------------------------------------------
No it just is that a lot of years we have trouble winning five games in row. Porker. And the last time we played and x xxxxxx Michigan team in kinnick we lost. See western Michigan. And they just knocked us off the ball that day with a big running game.

Swarm2Kinnick wrote:

BlackTarn wrote:

Hawks2405 wrote:

BlackTarn wrote: some of you need to take a close look at the talent last year.Iowa had the following in the 2 deeps of 44 players:
16 were Walkons
24 were 2* to 3* rated players out of HS
4 were 4* players,
of the 4* players
one was Coker the starting RB
one was K Davis the #2 option at WR
one was AJ Derby the 2nd string QB who didn't even finish the season on the 2 deeps
the last is CJF who didn't start on the 2 deeps that role went to Z Derby
I would not say Iowa is not a talent laden team to just go out and dominate teams
for Iowa to have 41 of the 44 players being 3* or less on the 2 deeps to start is no where close to being superior to anybody they played last season. actually Iowa was lucky to even have a winning season let alone win any games.
this is why KF gets paid what he does.
this is why he has actually done a hell of a job with the recruits he gets. after 9 years of getting 11-12 2* recruits each year and have the success that Iowa had by winning the games they did, Fans forget about how bad the recruiting classes actually were. KF and his staff did a great job with the talent they got, the last 3 years the Talent being getting as been improving and this year we should see the results of that upgrade in talent;
I truly find it funny how clueless some are about how good Iowa is supposed to be, in reality Iowa just did a better job of developing the players they got

Uhhh, ok so Ferentz does a great job with the talent that we have had but isn't that his own problem and isn't 50% of a staff's job to recruit players. That's their own fault man. If they want better talent then they need to be out there getting better talent.

i will ask you the same question this same question i just asked another poster who has no answer.
i will rephrase the question.
just who, where and how is KF  supposed to get this top talent to make Iowa a elite school, Texas, maybe with Davis the New OC , but its going to be hard, 7 instate schools to compete against and the entire B12 conference, Oklahoma and Texas the major schools that cherry pick the talent.
Florida, same as Texas to many instate teams to compete against as well as the ACC and SEC Schools and their oversigning, not likely. the upper East Coast, PSU and OSU dominate and the BE, to compete against.
Califoria, maybe,  but you have the Pac 12 to compete against and the surrounding states are lacking top talent so they have to rely on California,
Iowa? i doubt it Iowa is lucky to have 1 4* recruit and maybe at most 5 D1 level talent and as we have seen the last 3 top rated recruits left the state, and i question who is the biggest failure at keeping them home as Darbogh and Campos are within 40 miles of ISU.
Chicago which Iowa has improved in recruiting is the main hub of BT teams recruiting, and ussually ND has a strangle hold on Chicago.
so tell me other than cheating how does KF improve recruiting

Not trying to be a jerk (in this thread anyway ) but I think Tom Brands would say, "By working harder." I'm not Tom Brands though, so I can only speculate.

Feelinfroggy65 wrote:

Swarm2Kinnick wrote:

BlackTarn wrote:

Hawks2405 wrote:

BlackTarn wrote: some of you need to take a close look at the talent last year.Iowa had the following in the 2 deeps of 44 players:
16 were Walkons
24 were 2* to 3* rated players out of HS
4 were 4* players,
of the 4* players
one was Coker the starting RB
one was K Davis the #2 option at WR
one was AJ Derby the 2nd string QB who didn't even finish the season on the 2 deeps
the last is CJF who didn't start on the 2 deeps that role went to Z Derby
I would not say Iowa is not a talent laden team to just go out and dominate teams
for Iowa to have 41 of the 44 players being 3* or less on the 2 deeps to start is no where close to being superior to anybody they played last season. actually Iowa was lucky to even have a winning season let alone win any games.
this is why KF gets paid what he does.
this is why he has actually done a hell of a job with the recruits he gets. after 9 years of getting 11-12 2* recruits each year and have the success that Iowa had by winning the games they did, Fans forget about how bad the recruiting classes actually were. KF and his staff did a great job with the talent they got, the last 3 years the Talent being getting as been improving and this year we should see the results of that upgrade in talent;
I truly find it funny how clueless some are about how good Iowa is supposed to be, in reality Iowa just did a better job of developing the players they got

Uhhh, ok so Ferentz does a great job with the talent that we have had but isn't that his own problem and isn't 50% of a staff's job to recruit players. That's their own fault man. If they want better talent then they need to be out there getting better talent.

i will ask you the same question this same question i just asked another poster who has no answer.
i will rephrase the question.
just who, where and how is KF  supposed to get this top talent to make Iowa a elite school, Texas, maybe with Davis the New OC , but its going to be hard, 7 instate schools to compete against and the entire B12 conference, Oklahoma and Texas the major schools that cherry pick the talent.
Florida, same as Texas to many instate teams to compete against as well as the ACC and SEC Schools and their oversigning, not likely. the upper East Coast, PSU and OSU dominate and the BE, to compete against.
Califoria, maybe,  but you have the Pac 12 to compete against and the surrounding states are lacking top talent so they have to rely on California,
Iowa? i doubt it Iowa is lucky to have 1 4* recruit and maybe at most 5 D1 level talent and as we have seen the last 3 top rated recruits left the state, and i question who is the biggest failure at keeping them home as Darbogh and Campos are within 40 miles of ISU.
Chicago which Iowa has improved in recruiting is the main hub of BT teams recruiting, and ussually ND has a strangle hold on Chicago.
so tell me other than cheating how does KF improve recruiting

Not trying to be a jerk (in this thread anyway ) but I think Tom Brands would say, "By working harder." I'm not Tom Brands though, so I can only speculate.

It is much easier to take a 170 lbs Iowa farmboy and turn him into an All Conference wrestler than it is to turn that same kid into a even a marginal major college football player. Keep in mind that when it comes to recruiting for wrestling, you have a multitude of local athletes who can wrestle in the lighter weight classes who lack the size to play even small college ball. Give Brands a random sample of 10 players from the Iowa football team and he could probably turn half of them into decent to outstanding wrestlers. On the other hand, the greatest coaches in college football history would probably struggle to have any success at doing the same thing with a random sample of 10 Iowa wrestlers.

Dohly wrote: I am boldly predicting that the Hawks will attempt to win every game they play this year as will their opponents.

RJSimmons wrote: I believe that the wrestling and football comparison is apples and oranges, with one exception. What each coach will and wont accept. Tom Brands wont accept failure. Tom Brands wont accept a lack of effort. Tom Brands wont accept anything less than 100%. 
Every coach has their own level of expectations. Tom Brands is much, much higher than KF's.