Penn State Stat Comparison and Notes

• Iowa has won 7 of 8 against Penn State
• 6 of the last 10 matchups between PSU and Iowa have been decided by a touchdown or less
• Paterno is the longest tenured Big Ten coach at 45 years, Ferentz is second with 12
• Iowa has only allowed 3 teams score on their opening drive out of the last 30
• DJK needs 130 yards receiving and 13 catches to become the career leader in each category
• Iowa's roster includes 36 players that achieved at least a 3.0 GPA last semester
• Iowa is 1 of 11 teams nationally to have the same full time coaching staff for the last three seasons
• Iowa has outscored their opponents 60-14 in the second half this season
• Iowa is averaging 7.7 yards on 1st down this season
• Iowa's heaviest player is 310 pounds

Hawks in the NFL

Here are some stats of the former Hawkeyes that are in the NFL:

Pat Angerer - LB - Indianapolis- 2 tackles
Jonathon Babineaux - DT - Atlanta - 2 tackles, 2 sacks, 1 FF
Matt Roth - DE - Cleveland - 9 tackles
Dallas Clark - TE - Indianapolis - 21 catches 207 yards 2 TD
Mitch King - DL - Indianapolis - 1 tackle
Tony Moeaki- TE - Kansas City - 12 catches 123 yards 2 TD
Brandon Myers - TE - Oakland - 2 catches 9 yards
Bradley Fletcher - CB - St. Louis - 11 tackles 1 INT
Chad Greenway - LB - Minnesota - 22 tackles
Albert Young - RB - Minnesota - 3 carries 2 yards
Shonn Greene - RB - New York Jets - 30 carries 106 yards
Matt Kroul - DL - New York Jets - 1 Tackle
Kenny Iwebema - DL - Arizona - 2 Tackles
Nate Kaeding - K - San Diego - 2/2 long 41
Colin Cole - DL - Seattle - 10 Tackles
Jason Baker - P - Carolina - 15 punts 43 yard average
Charles Godfrey - S - Carolina - 15 tackles, 3 INT
Aaron Kampman - DE - Jacksonville - 5 Tackles 1.5 Sacks
Sean Consodine - S - Jacksonville - 19 Tackles 1 Sack

Offensive Lineman:
Robert Gallery - Oakland
Marshal Yanda - Baltimore
Eric Steinbech - Cincinnati
Bryan Bulaga - Green Bay
Casey Weigman - Kansas City
Rob Bruggeman - Atlanta
Seth Olsen - Minnesota

On team with no stats:
Derrek Robinson - DE - Cleveland
Treye Stross - WR - Houston
Bob Sanders - S - Indianapolis
Jared Devries - DL - Detroit
Amari Spievey - DB - Detroit
A.J. Edds - LB - Miami
Ladell Betts - RB - New Orleans

Ball State - What we learned

Ball State was the perfect medicine for a battered Iowa team before they start the daunting Big Ten schedule.  While the competition wasn't good enough to find out a lot about the Hawkeyes, here are some things we learned:

1.  Ricky Stanzi has matured into a great quarterback.  Last season he forced a lot of passes into coverage and tried too often for the home run ball.  On Saturday there were several times where Iowa had receivers that might  have been open deep, instead Ricky opted for the shorter wide open pass.  Of his six incompletions on Saturday at least three were blatant drops by the receivers.  Through five games, Stanzi is fifth in the nation in passer efficiency.  Last season he had 5 touchdowns and 5 interceptions through four games, this year it is 9 TD's and 1 INT, and even that interception was a well thrown ball.

2.  The Iowa coaches have taken notice to opposing teams keying on Adrian Clayborn.  Several times on Saturday, you saw Clayborn line up as a tackle and Karl Klug line up as end.  It has been obvious through four games that opposing offenses are scheming to slow down Adrian, so the Iowa coaches have begun to move him around to throw off the blocking schemes.  Though it seems that the defensive line isn't filling the stat sheets, they are causing fewer receivers in routes, which helps the defensive backs.  Couple their helping the defensive backs along with their contributions to the run stopping and the defensive line anchors what is statistically the #1 defense in the nation through four weeks.

3.  Practices at Iowa matter.  All we have seen of Trent Mossbrucker this season is PAT attempts, of which he missed/had one blocked, however he has been demoted.  Michael Meyer had the kickoff duties and has now gained the field goal kicking duties.  Beings that we have not seen much of either kicker, one would have to assume that Meyer has to have been practicing better than Mossbrucker.  Meyer winning this spot during practice will make all the backups on the team work harder and make practices more competitive.

4.  The field turf will pay for itself.  In past years a rain like last Saturday would have created a disaster of a mess for the immediate future.  Now with the field turf down, the field will remain intact for the entire season.

5.  Iowa appears to be alright at the running back position.  Adam Robinson showed that the Arizona game was an ab oration and he really does have a burst.  He even did something that few running backs at Iowa have done, which is catch the ball out of the backfield.  Backups, Marcus Coker and Brad Rodgers showed that they can bring the punishment on a worn down defense.  They can handle 10-20 carries a game between them to relieve Adam Robinson.

Ball State Predictions Review

Decent week of predictions.

Predictions:

Iowa - 49   45

Ball St. - 10  0

Stanzi will throw for 275+ with three TD's (288 yards 3 TD)

Robinson will find running room to the tune of 100+ and TD  (115 yards 2 TD)

Coker will get 70+ and TD  (60 yards 0 TD)

DJK will again have 100+ receiving and a TD  (87 yards 2 TD)

McNutt will get another catch of 40+ yards (Long of 15)

Mossbrucker will miss a FG (Iowa missed a FG, but not Mossbrucker)

Iowa will NOT allow a kick return of 30+ yards (19 Yards)

The defense gets four turnovers (2)

4+ sacks for the defense (1)

Clayborn will get his first sack of the season (0)

Sash will get his first interception of the year (0)

Prater will get a pick 6 (0)

Iowa vs Ball State - Predictions

When Ball State has the ball-
This is a team the will be similar style wise to Arizona.  They will deploy several different formations ranging from five wide to double tights.  They rely heavily on their ground game and try to gain the edge quite a bit.  Don't expect this team to come out and run power runs at Iowa, look for zone plays and counters.  Their offensive line isn't great, but isn't awful either, they did a pretty good job of containing Kerrigan, the talented end from Purdue last week.  The front is allowing 2 sacks per game on the early season.  The Cardinals will play two different quarterbacks, who are completely different styles.  Kelly Page, #5, is their dual threat quarterback, when he is in the game, look for shotgun zone read plays where he likes to pull the ball and run.  The other quarterback, Keith Wenning #10, is their passer, he can make all the passes and will stand in the pocket almost to a fault.  When he is in, they are more of a passing team and when they pass, they look for Daniel Ifft, who leads the team with 8 catches.  Look for a lot of screens and pick routes run by their wideouts, none of which have blazing speed to beat Iowa downfield.  The longest two pass plays on the season have been for 24 and 25 yards both to tight ends.  When the Cardinals run the ball they have a three headed monster in the backfield, Eric Williams (#6), MiQuale Lewis (#33), and Cory Sykes (#7) all have over 25 carries on the season.  Lewis has found the yards hard to come by this year only averaging 2.8 yards per carry, however he does have good hands with 5 catches out of the backfield.  Williams and Sykes both average over 5 yards a carry and are talented runners.  On top of these three, when #21 David Brown is on the field, the Cardinals are looking to get him the ball in space, usually end arounds coming after he motions in from the slot.  Both Clayborn and Binns will have to be disciplined to stop this play as he is averaging over 9 yards per carry.  Ball security is a problem for the Cardinals as they have 6 fumbles on the season, but have only lost 2 of them.  The key for Iowa will be to stop the run, if they can neutralize the run and force the Cardinals to the air, Iowa will get interceptions and sacks.  When Iowa forces punts, don't expect much in the return game as they are only allowing 1.8 yards per return on the season.

When Iowa has the ball-
Ball State's defense is not good, they are 62nd nationally allowing 345 yards per game.  They do a decent job on first and second down, but last week allowed Purdue to convert 10 of 17 third downs.  They aren't a big blitzing team, which bodes well for Iowa as we all saw what happened last week against a blitzing team.  They are very susceptible to the play action pass, so it is vital for Iowa to be successful with some runs to start the game and get the safeties to suck up in run support.  Last week Ball State would have given up a lot more passing yards to Purdue if Marve would have hit his open receivers.  Their defensive front is anchored by end Robert Eddins (#91), he will keep either Reiff or Zusevics busy on pass plays.  Look for Iowa to run and pass away from Eddins as much as possible as the other end is a significant drop in talent.  Their linebackers are the strength of the defense and will be stout against the run, but aren't the best in pass coverage, look for Iowa to deploy crossers to get open.  The defensive backfield is where Iowa has a distinct advantage, the secondary jumps routes a lot and will get beat deep on double moves. 

What will happen-
Iowa will have a point to make on Saturday and come out early to make that point.  They will dominate the first drive, going deep early on a play action pass.  Stanzi will parlay that into a big day throwing the ball downfield.  Ball State will learn quickly that they cannot run against the stout front seven from Iowa and go to the pass, where they won't have much luck either.  Look for Iowa to be up 14 at the end of the first quarter, much like the Iowa Sate game and up 28 at half.  In true Ferentz style, he will take the foot off the gas peddle and coast in the second half with Marcus Coker getting his first reps as a Hawkeye.

Predictions:
Iowa - 49
Ball St. - 10

Stanzi will throw for 275+ with three TD's
Robinson will find running room to the tune of 100+ and TD
Coker will get 70+ and TD
DJK will again have 100+ receiving and a TD
McNutt will get another catch of 40+ yards
Mossbrucker will miss a FG
Iowa will NOT allow a kick return of 30+ yards
The defense gets four turnovers
4+ sacks for the defense
Clayborn will get his first sack of the season
Sash will get his first interception of the year
Prater will get a pick 6

10 things to watch for - Ball State

Hopefully all Iowa fans have stepped away from the ledge after last Saturday's loss.  Ball State is coming to town and they should be the best medicine for an Iowa team that is bruised and battered.  Ten things to look for tomorrow:

1.  Who plays running back.  Obviously with the news coming out the week the Jewel Hampton will be lost for the season, the number one thing to look for this week will be who plays.  Jewel was suspended for the opener this year and Adam Robinson took the bulk of the carries, with Paki O'Meara and Jason White also getting carries in mop up duty.  This week both O'Meara and White are inactive due to injuries.  That leaves Iowa with one true running back with game experience.  Look for true freshman Marcus Coker and De'Andre Johnson to be the leading candidates to get carries.  Neither one has played yet this season, so playing would mean losing their redshirt year for the season.  Another player to look for is Brad Rodgers, he played running back last season and this year has been the #2 fullback, however, he knows the plays and could easily step in and give some carries.  We found out this week that true freshman Anthony Hitchens has moved from defensive back to running back, but my feeling is that this is merely to give warm bodies at running back and he won't get any playing time, unless in an emergency situation.

2.  The kickoff team.  We all saw the return last week for a touchdown and the two long returns the week before against Iowa State.  This is a unit that as a whole needs to right the ship, I am sure that this week in practice they got plenty of reps and will be disciplined in their lane responsibilities.  From the opening game, Iowa has lost at least three players that were on this squad to injury, Bruce Davis, O'Mears, and White.  Whether the coaches go to an extreme and put some starters out there to shore it up or pull redshirts off freshman remains to be seen.  Whatever they do, I am sure that the fact that Ball State is #7 nationally at 31 yards per return will be a point of emphasis this week in practice.  Hopefully Michael Meyer can keep kicking it out of the endzone to ensure no big plays.

3.  How will Iowa bounce back?  Last season this team didn't have to deal with losses much, so it will remains to be seen how the react after one.  One of two things will happen, this squad will get that chip back on their shoulder and take care of business in the first quarter like they did against Eastern Illinois or they could come out flat and leave a team in the game, like Western Michigan a few years ago.  With the leadership on this team I see the former happening, but watch out for the later.

4.  Will the OL regain their swagger?  After the Iowa State game, all doubts had basically been cast out the window about the play of the offensive line.  After the Arizona game, all of a sudden fans see a glaring weakness.  Last Saturday it was a collective fail across the offensive line, not just one guy had a poor game, they all did.  Look for Ball State to blitz as much as possible, once they start the game tape from last week they would be foolish not to.  The front five have got to open up some holes for Robinson to run the ball and give Ricky time to complete the play action passes that this defense is susceptible to.

5.  After three games we still don't know who the kicker is.  Iowa has attempted exactly 0 field goals so far this season, so it remains to be seen how Mossbrucker will do.  Last week he had an extra point blocked, never a good thing when you aren't getting enough air under your PAT's that it gets blocked.  If he struggles and Murray isn't available look for Michael Meyer, the kickoff specialist now, to get a shot at the field goals.

6.  Special team as a whole.  Last week the were an unmitigated disaster, this week they are without at least three regular special teamers in David, O'Meara, and White.  Look for Iowa to replenish these teams with a sprinkling of starters that have excelled in the past.  Tyler Nielsen, Micah Hyde, and Tyler Sash to name a few.

7.  How will Stanzi rebound after the beating he took.  Everyone remembers Jake Christiansen and how his footwork went to pot once he took a few sacks.  Last week Stanzi seemed like a pinata he was hit so much.  Watch on the first drive to see how his footwork is in the pocket, if he is calm and comfortable back in the pocket, he has the opportunity to have a huge game against a shaky defense.  If he has the Christiansen "happy feet" in the pocket he will begin to miss his target and Iowa fans could be in for a long day.

8.  Keeping Adam Robinson healthy.  Last year Robinson was dinged up most of the season, this year that luxury has gone out the window with Hampton's injury.  If Iowa wants any shot at making a BCS bowl again this year they had better keep Robinson relatively healthy and on the field.  If he goes down for any length of time, Iowa has no proven backup on the team and the road to the BCS would become a lot rougher.

9.  Will mother nature show herself on Saturday.  Forecast is for a 60% chance of rain, some place say the game will be wet others say it will wait until after the game to really rain.  If the game gets wet, it actually helps Ball State, their pass defense is suspect and a slippery field and wet ball may neutralize Iowa's aerial attack.  Ball State on the other hand would rather run the ball and rain doesn't effect them as much.

10.  Will the real Adrian Clayborn please step up?  A lot has been said about Adrian's dip in numbers through the early part of the season.  Looking back at last year however, through three games he had 13 tackles, 1.5 tackles for loss, and 1 sack.  This season he has 10 tackles, 1.5 tackles for loss, and 0 sacks.  So he has 3 less tackles and 1 less sack through three games, hardly falling off the face of the earth totals.  Also if you look at the teams that Iowa has played this year, they are quick pass teams that don't give up many sacks and their whole game plan is to get the ball out of the quarterback's hands quickly.  Watching the first three games for Iowa, you can see a concentrated effort by opposing coaches to double and chip block Adrian almost every pass play, that in turn has opened things up for the other defensive lineman who have responded well.

Next Man In

Haven't we seen this before?  Iowa comes into the season with a stable of running backs, leaving fans wondering how the carries will be handed out?  Then one guy leaves the team for personal reasons, another gets injured and all of sudden, a position of strength has become a glaring weakness.  In the last four days, Iowa fans have been hit with a cold dose of reality, first they lose to Arizona, which by itself is a gut punch, but in the process Jewel Hampton has been lost for the season.  For the second year in a row, Hampton has torn his ACL, this time on his left knee.  Couple that with Brandon Wegher leaving the team in fall camp for personal issues and Iowa is on thin ice in their backfield.  To top it off, the two backs that were second and third string for the opener have both been injured on special teams and are unavailable for this weekend.  Meet true freshman Marcus Coker and De'Andre Johnson.  Coker came to Iowa with plenty of accolades and probably would have been playing earlier if it hadn't been for a shoulder injury in camp.  He is more of a bruiser in the backfield being great at between the tackles runs.  In my opinion you will also see the red shirt pulled off of De'Andre Johnson, more of a speed back, who can come in for a change of pace back from Coker and Robinson. 

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What we learned - Arizona

1.  Iowa may be a great team, but there isn't a team in the country that can give up a punt block inside their ten, an interception returned for a touchdown, and a kickoff return for a touchdown on the road and win.  Even with all of these things going wrong for Iowa, they still battled back and tied the game late in the fourth quarter, which could help show them that they can handle adversity. 

2.  A blueprint to beat Iowa has been created.  If you want to stymie the Iowa offense, blitz, blitz, and blitz some more.  I didn't count, but I will bet that more than 50% of the plays Arizona blitzed.  Now, Stanzi just missed on a couple of deep passes that could have changed the Arizona game plan pretty quickly.  Now he did hit on a couple of deep balls, but not enough to force Arizona to change.  My question would be, where was the screen?  A few years ago, Iowa was one of the best screen teams in the nation, now you never see them.  On offense, Nick Foles did exactly what you have to do to beat Iowa, be patient and find the holes in Iowa's zone defense.  He didn't try to force passes and didn't have to, the question would be, Coach Wilson appeared to be making defensive calls, did that take time away from him working with the linebackers on their zone drops?  Iowa's defense played well enough to win, they gave up one drive for a touchdown and even that one was the result of a deep ball by Foles that required a diving catch by the wide out.

3.  Iowa's special teams are a point of concern.  After the first game, I said that Iowa will not be out special teamed all year, my how the wheels have fallen off of that bus.  There have been some changes on the kick coverage unit since the first game and there will be some starters that will be required to play on this unit and risk injury.  The punt coverage unit, gave up a blocked punt and had a 15 yard catch interference penalty, which really overshadowed a great game by Donahue, who averaged just short of 47 yards per punt.  The field goal team let a kick get blocked that would have given Iowa the lead.  Alone any one of these things can be overcome, but all in one game spells disaster.

4.  Iowa fans need to calm down.  If you take the first couple of minutes out of the equation, Iowa dominated the game both offensively and defensively.  Yes Foles threw for a lot of yards, but aside from the first 8 yard drive, only scored one touchdown and two field goals.  Giving up 13 points on the road to a ranked opponent is good enough to win a majority of the times.  The offense moved the ball well and just missed a few plays, the opening drive had Stanzi miss McNutt by inches on a deep ball and later in the game, had a deep ball go through DJK's hands that would have been a touchdown.  Both of those drives ended in punts.  On the second drive, normally sure-handed McNutt had a ball go through his hands for a pick six touchdown. 

5.   I hate to throw a former Hawkeye under the bus, but Mike Stoops is an embarrassment on the sidelines.  ESPN did a great job of cutting to him after every penalty or call and he was always looking like a six year old in the toy aisle of Target throwing a fit.  It really makes you appreciate the demeanor of Kirk Ferentz, who if you see him yelling, it is usually a blatant call and garners more results, than a coach who complains about everything.

6.  Even though they claim to be the sports leader, ESPN had a giant failure Saturday night.  The Clemson and Auburn game went into overtime and that isn't something you can account for, but you have like six overflow channels and ESPNews that you could have started the Iowa game on.  To top it all off, after the conclusion of the first game, they show the interviews with both a coach and a player, while the Iowa game is in progress.  For that you get a big FAIL.

Arizona Game - Prediction Recap

Predictions:

Iowa 31  - 27
Arizona 10 - 34

Both Hampton and Robinson will go over 100 yards (Hampton - 30, Robinson - 5)
Stanzi will remain interception free (1, however it should have been caught)
Foles will throw two interceptions (1)
Arizona will bust a kickoff return for more than 50 yards (100 Yards, I hate being right)
McNutt will catch another ball for 40+ yards (37 yards)
Donahue will down 2 punts inside the 10 (1)
DJK will show up with 6+ catches (7 catches)
Grigsby will be held in check with less than 75 yards (27 yards)

Arizona game - What will happen

When Arizona has the ball:  Look for Arizona to attack the Iowa defense on the edges, they will try to use their speed to get their running backs to the edge and avoid the massive Iowa front 7.  Look for mis-direction plays and zone-read plays to try and slow down the Iowa defense.  The passing games will be quick passes to the outside including screens trying to get their talented receivers in the open against Iowa's base defense.  Iowa's defense will have to show that they can stop the run and force Arizona into third and long situations, where they can bring some pressure to help the defensive backs.  Iowa will be helped by the fact that Arizona's offense is very similar to the opponent last week in Iowa State.   

When Iowa has the ball:  Iowa is by far the best offense that Arizona has seen this season.  In both games, Arizona has grabbed the lead and enforced their will on the opposing offense.  Iowa will start out by running the ball and getting the Wildcat safeties to creep up into the box and then hit them with a deep play action pass.  Don't expect to see much play-action bootlegs in this game from Iowa, Arizona's defense is very athletic and able to recover on that type of pass.  Instead look for play action drop back passes to the tight ends against Arizona's new linebackers.

What will happen:  A lot has been said about the start time Kirk Ferentz will have learned from the last time Iowa was in the state and have the team ready to go.  Remember that Iowa went to Happy Valley and The Horseshoe last year and weren't fazed by 100,000+ fan stadiums.  Iowa will undoubtedly take the ball to start the game and look for them to move it a little bit, but ultimately stall out.  Donahue will be a weapon, pinning Arizona deep in their own zone.  The game will go back and forth for the first half, before Iowa strings a couple of drives together to go up 14-3 at halftime.  In the second half Iowa's offensive and defensive line will take control and dominate the second half.

Predictions:

Iowa    31
Arizona 10

Both Hampton and Robinson will go over 100 yards
Stanzi will remain interception free
Foles will throw two interceptions
Arizona will bust a kickoff return for more than 50 yards
McNutt will catch another ball for 40+ yards
Donahue will down 2 punts inside the 10
DJK will show up with 6+ catches
Grigsby will be held in check with less than 75 yards

10 Things to look for - Arizona

Iowa's first real road game will take them west to Tuscon to do battle with the Arizona Wildcats.  Last year the Hawks defeated the Wildcats, 27-17 and it wasn't even that close.  This will be a great measuring stick for Iowa to know where they are at.  Last year, Iowa proved that they could win big road games, and this will be one of their toughest road games of the season.  Ten things to look for on Saturday:

1.  There will be a battle in the trenches.  Arizona's offensive line boasts four seniors and a junior, while Iowa's defensive line has three seniors and a junior.  On the outside, Iowa's all everything defensive end has started the season slowly, mostly due to opposing teams running away from him and having quick pass routes, negating his ability to get sacks.  This week Arizona's strength on the offensive line is tackle, Adam Grant, who was picked as a first team Pac Ten teamer in the preseason.  Last year, Iowa's defensive line dominated the line of scrimmage and that stymied Nic Grigsby, who at the time was second in the nation in rushing.  Who wins this battle will go a long ways in the final outcome of the game.

2.  How patient will Nick Foles be?  Every Iowa fan knows that Iowa will play a cover two zone on Saturday.  The weak points in the zone are underneath the linebackers and short out patterns.  If Foles can be patient and nickle and dime his way down the field he will be successful.  On the season he has completed an astounding 83% of his passes, going 49 for 59.  He spreads the ball around as well, completing more than 5 passes to seven different receivers.

3.  Arizona's rebuilt front seven.  All that returns from Arizona's 2009 front 7 are their two defensive ends.  They have a lot of speed up front and have a formation that they call "Cheetah" where they bring in the backup defensive ends as tackles.  Against an offensive line that isn't based on mis-direction and angles won't help the Wildcat front 7 as Iowa will come out and inflict punishment on the defensive line.

4.  Will the Iowa offense stall?  Through two games, Iowa has attempted a whopping zero field goals.  Daniel Murray has been out for both of those games and Trent Mossbrucker only had to kick 20 yard extra points.  The fact that Mossbrucker redshirted last year and hasn't really kicked since the end of the 2008 season and even then he was overlooked for one of the biggest kick in Iowa history against Penn State.  If the Iowa offense stalls in the red zone, it will be interesting to see how Trent does and what kind of confidence he has.

5.  Will Ricky go Ricky?  So far this season Stanzi has shown some maturity than he did last year.  He seems to have finally put his "gun slinger" mentality behind him.  However so far this season, Iowa has not asked him to do too much.  If Iowa finds themselves behind in this game it will be interesting to see how Stanzi reacts.  If he starts forcing things, Arizona has good enough corners in, Wade and Golden, to make Stanzi pay.  Last year it was Wade who put Arizona first score on the board with a pick six.

6.  Wild Wild West.  How will the Iowa player's fare going from the central time to a pacific time zone?  The last time that Iowa went to the state of Arizona, they were embarrassed by Arizona State in 2004.  Everyone likes to point to that game saying that Iowa doesn't play well out west, but they also said that about Iowa playing in the Orange Bowl.  Kirk Ferentz learns from his mistakes and he will change things around compared to what happened in 2004, they have already had several night practices in the pre-season, so the players are used to gearing up at that time of night.

7.  Linebacker's in space.  Arizona will not line up like Iowa with double tight ends and I backs at any point of this game outside of the goal line.  They will have three or four wideouts deployed most of the game.  The key for Iowa will be their linebackers making open field tackles on running backs and wideouts.  You will see a lot of running backs on the edge and wide receiver screens, which neutralizes the dominant Iowa defensive line and puts a ton of pressure on Hunter, Tarpanian, and Nielsen to make plays.

8.  Iowa kick coverage.  If there was one thing that you could take out of the Iowa State game negatively, it would be the kick coverage.  This week it was announced that backup linebackers Bruce Davis and Troy Johnson will be on the squad, they have to make an immediate impact as well.  The Arizona Wildcats so far this season have averaged 25 yards per return in limited action.  The returners that they have back are shifty quick guys that can get the edge if allowed.

9.  No Norm.  With no Norm Parker calling defensive plays, it will be interesting to see if there is a change in the calls.  Last week you didn't see any blitzes, but you also didn't need them when you are up early.  If Arizona starts marching down the field with short passes, it will be interesting to see if Iowa goes to a nickel or dime defense or even brings some blitzes to rattle Foles.  Without Norm could also prove to be a plus as the Iowa coaches will probably stress winning it for Norm in pre-game.

10.  Heat  How will the Iowa players react to the serious heat that will be on the field on Saturday night.  The forecast calls for a high of 103, now at 7:30 local time, it won't be that hot, but it will still be hotter than normal.  Will there be some leg cramps on the Iowa squad?  One would think that the trainers will have them loaded with potassium and liquids prior to the game to try and combat that.  On the other hand, with the heat and continuous pounding of the offensive line, will the Wildcat defense wear down?

Penn State Game

Word coming from the University of Iowa is that the Penn State game will be a "Spirit Game"  see the below picture to know what color you are supposed to wear.  IF they pull this off, it will look pretty cool, but that is a big IF.

New Big Ten West Division

A couple weeks ago we learned what the divisions will be in the Big Ten starting next year.  In taking a look at the last eight years, the west division has been very balanced.  Here is who would have won the division each year:

(Regular season totals only)
2009 - Iowa and Nebraska with 10 wins
2008 - Nebraska, MSU, and NW with 9 wins (MSU beat NW)
2007 - Michigan with 8 wins
2006 - Michigan with 11 wins
2005 - Nebraska with 8 wins
2004 - Michigan and Iowa with 9 wins (Michigan beat Iowa)
2003 - Michigan and Nebraska with 10 wins
2002- Iowa with 11 wins

Overall wins:
Iowa 66
Neb 63
Michigan 62
Northwestern 49
Minnesota 49
Michigan St. 48

Imaginary titles:
Iowa 1 outright 1 tie
Nebraska 1 outright 3 ties
Michigan 2 outright 2 ties
Northwestern 1 tie
Minnesota 0
MSU 1 tie

Before I did this, I had no idea that Iowa had the most wins over the last eight seasons.

What we learned - Iowa State

1.  The Iowa defense is living up to the hype.  Going into the season there were a lot of pundits gushing over the Hawkeye defense.  Through two games, Iowa has lived up to all the expectations.  The front four, while not piling up sack numbers, has been dominating.  They only have 4 total sacks, but if college kept QB hits and QB pressures like the NFL does, Iowa would be filling the stat book.  You saw a different quarterback in Austin Arnaud after the first series, he gets the happy feet and just didn't look comfortable in the pocket at all.  The linebackers have filled in nicely, if Tyler Nielsen wore a number 49 jersey with Edds on the back, you couldn't tell the difference.  Bruce Davis and Jeff Tarpanian have combined to tally 16 tackles in two games, helping to ease the loss of Pat Angerer.  The defensive backs have been lock down, allowing opposing quarterbacks to complete only 51% of their passes for a measly 289 yards.

2.  Iowa will not miss Brandon Wegher at all.  Barring injury Adam Robinson and Jewel Hampton will be just fine as the primary ball carriers for the Hawkeyes.  Robinson has taken the starting tailback spot by the horns and looks to be refusing to let it go.  On the season, he is averaging seven yards every time he touches the ball with 4 touchdowns.  Jewel, in his first real action in about 18 months, carried the ball for 84 yards on Saturday and showed an ability to inflict punishment on anyone coming to tackle him.

3.  Ricky Stanzi has put 2009 firmly behind him.  This season, he looks more comfortable in the pocket and his decision making is light years ahead of last year.  He has yet to make one of the passes that makes you wonder what he saw.  He is making is reads, progressing through his receivers and not forcing passes if they aren't there.

4.  The offensive line is just fine with an injury.  The five "hogs" up front have opened holes to the tune of over 5 yards per carry and kept Ricky Stanzi upright.  On Saturday, Ricky Stanzi, could have pitched a tent in the pocket, he wasn't bothered at all and that has a lot to do with his success.  So far, talent wise Iowa has been better than the opposing defense, but this weekend should be a good test of how good they really are.

5.  The receivers have given Stanzi options.  In the past, Iowa quarterbacks have been in love with throwing the ball to the tight end.  This year, 11 different players have caught passes with 6 of them catching multiple passes.  Opposing defenses are realizing that no longer can you just bracket the tight end and be able to cover the wide outs one on one.  You try and do this now and the receivers will burn you.

Iowa vs Iowa State prediction review

I'm not the kind of guy who likes to toot his own horn much, but my predictions for the game were eerily close to spot-on. 
When Iowa State has the ball, I said the following: 
If Iowa's defensive front seven can handle the run and force Austin Arnaud into third and long passing situations, it spells trouble for the senior quarterback.
Iowa's defensive front controlled the line of scrimmage and kept pressure on Arnaud, never allowing him to get comfortable in the pocket.

When Iowa has the ball, I said the following:
Look for Iowa to establish the short pass game to soften up the Cyclone defense and come back with runs and play action deep balls.
From what I saw on Saturday, that is basically what happened, Stanzi game out and threw some quick outs to DJK and then came back later with a couple deep play-action passes to McNutt and Reisner.

What will happen, I said the following:
Look for the Hawkeyes to dominate the first half and take the wind out of the Iowa State sails with a ball control offense that eats up the clock.
Iowa State only running six plays in the first quarter and half would constitute taking the wind out of the sales.
If Iowa can get a 10 or 14 point lead, it could spell game over for Iowa State.
Did anyone think that Iowa State had a chance once Iowa went up 14-0?


Prediction:
Iowa - 34    35
ISU - 6        7

Arnaud will throw another three interceptions (Three total interceptions)
Jewel Hampton returns with 125 and a score (84 yards 1 TD)
The Hawkeye defense holds Alexander Robinson to less than 60 yards (48 yards)
The Streak will be extended to 18 quarters (17 quarters)
Iowa will tally 5+ sacks (2 sacks)
Colin Sandeman grabs a TD and 100+ yards receiving (Way off with Sandeman not grabbing a pass)
McNutt and DJK both have 5 catches (DJK had 5 but McNutt only had 2)
Mahoney misses 2+ field goals (Didn't attempt any)
Stanzi throws for 275 and three scores (204 with 2 td's and 1 rushing TD)

Iowa vs Iowa State - Predictions

When Iowa State has the ball:
The Cyclones will use the tempo to try and wear down the Hawkeyes, they will try to go fast pace to not allow the Iowa defense to substitute and try to create mis-matches that way.  They will be in shotgun most of the game and probably deploy three wide sets most of the game.  That means that most of the game, Iowa will only have 6 men in the box.  Iowa State has several talented receivers, however, most of them struggle with consistency.  They have a very talented tight end in Collin Franklin who had five catches last week.  Alexander Robinson last week showed why he is on the Doak Walker watch list with his 63 yard touchdown run last week, but only got 34 yards on his other 18 carries.  If Iowa's defensive front seven can handle the run and force Austin Arnaud into third and long passing situations, it spells trouble for the senior quarterback.  If the Clones can stay in third and manageable situations, it will cause the defensive front four to honor the run or pass and slow them down. 

When Iowa has the ball:
Iowa has to control the line of scrimmage.  If they can create seams for the running backs to get through, it will cause the Iowa State safeties and linebackers to come downhill on the run harder and create opportunities in the play-action pass game.  Iowa's receivers have a distinct advantage against Iowa State's secondary, David Sims didn't play last week and this week they will be without Ter'Ran Benton, one of their starting cornerbacks.  Look for Iowa to establish the short pass game to soften up the Cyclone defense and come back with runs and play action deep balls.

What will happen:
Iowa will undoubtedly take the ball on the opening kickoff and if they score right away, it puts a lot of pressure on the Iowa State offense right away.  Iowa's defense is one that you do not want to be trying to mount a comeback against.  If Iowa can get a 10 or 14 point lead, it could spell game over for Iowa State.  Austin Arnaud was harassed last week by a Northern Illinois defense that wouldn't even be backups on the Iowa squad.  Look for the Hawkeyes to dominate the first half and take the wind out of the Iowa State sails with a ball control offense that eats up the clock. 

Prediction:
Iowa - 34
ISU - 6

Arnaud will throw another three interceptions
Jewel Hampton returns with 125 and a score
The Hawkeye defense holds Alexander Robinson to less than 60 yards
The Streak will be extended to 18 quarters
Iowa will tally 5+ sacks
Colin Sandeman grabs a TD and 100+ yards receiving
McNutt and DJK both have 5 catches
Mahoney misses 2+ field goals
Stanzi throws for 275 and three scores

Ten Things to Watch for - Iowa State

1.  Will the streak continue?  If you have picked up the newspaper, turned on the Internet, listened to the radio, or watched the news this week, chances are you have heard about the streak.  Iowa State hasn't scored a touchdown on Iowa in 14 quarters of game play.  The streak would seem a lot better if the Cyclones hadn't squeaked out a victory with 5 field goals in 2007.  Let's take a closer look at some things that have happened during the streak, Iowa State has had three coaches, two color changes, and and logo change.  The total amount of game time in the streak is 210 minutes and in terms of days it will have been 1456 days since the Cyclones crossed the goal line against the Hawkeyes.  You would think that there would be a broken coverage, a special teams play, or something like that in three games.  It really is a testament to how great Norm Parker's defense has been.

2.  Did the Iowa State coaches give Austin Arnaud a box of crayons to practice?  The last two years against Iowa he has thrown for 303 yards and 6 interceptions.  More remarkable when you know that Iowa State was outscored 52-8 in those games and needed to pass to try and come back.  If he cannot connect with players wearing the same jersey as him, it will spell doom for Iowa State on Saturday.  The biggest problem he has had is getting too greedy.  Everyone in the stadium knows that Iowa will run a cover 2 zone defense 90% of the game.  The way that you beat a zone like that is by utilizing the sidelines and the tight end.  Where Austin has run into trouble is when he gets greedy and tries to go deep, where the Iowa safeties are lurking and waiting for the ball.

3.  The streak of kickers continues at Iowa State.  For years the Iowa State program has been plagued by poor kickers and punters.  The sample size is small, but ISU's punter, Daniel Kuehl, has one punt for 18 yards.  This week he will be playing a team that blocked a punt last week, combining with a hostile crowd to create a less than ideal situation for the punter.  For your information, his backup is listed as true freshman, Kirby Van Der Kamp from West Des Moines Valley, see above for not a good spot for your first college punt.  As far as kickers go, Iowa State has had a run of guys that cracked under pressure, their current one, Grant Mahoney has his own personal house of horrors, going 1-4 two years ago in Kinnick Stadium.  If Iowa State has a chance at all, they have to get great performances out of their kicking game.

4.  Turnovers are crucial in this game.  The last two years, Iowa is +5 in turnover margin, coincidentally, Iowa is 2-0 in those games.  If Iowa is positive in the turnover margin, they win the game hands down.  Iowa State created 3 turnovers in their first game, but gave it away three times as well. 

5.  Jewel returns.  After a year away from football nursing a knee injury and missing the first game this season for a suspension, Jewel Hampton returns to carry the ball for the Hawks.  It remains to be seen how Iowa will divide up the running back carries this season, last year, they went series for series with the two primary ball carriers.  In my opinion that was a bad move, each back runs different and to switch out as much as they did last year hurt the running game more than it helped it.  Adam Robinson played well enough in week 1 to get the start, but how many carries each will get will be interesting to see.

6.  The Iowa offensive line.  Last week they didn't get much of a test, but they gave Ricky Stanzi plenty of time to throw the ball and created nice running lanes for Robinson to go through.  This week they play against a front 7 that is much better than Eastern Illinois.  The key to Iowa's offensive line success will be the running game, if they can get the running game working, it opens up the playbook for the play-action that Iowa runs so well.  With all signs pointing to Josh Koeppel and Adam Gettis being healthy enough to play, it will be interesting to see if they get reps right away or if Reece Morgan sticks with James Ferentz and Nolan MacMillon.

7.  The back four of Iowa's defense will be tested.  Last week the lone touchdown Iowa gave up came on a fake punt run and long pass play.  This week Iowa's defensive backs will see four and five wide sets and be challenged to cover the bigger Iowa State receivers.  If Iowa State is successful in the passing game and gets Iowa to go to a nickel or dime set regularly, it will open up ISU's zone read running plays.

8.  If last week was a glimpse into how Ricky Stanzi will play this season, Iowa fans can breath a little bit easier.  He made good decisions last week, checking down and even running instead of forcing passes into coverage.  If he can minimize his mistakes, he could have a field day with the suspect at best Cyclone defensive backfield.  If Iowa gets the run game working, it will cause the Iowa State defense to fast flow and open up bootlegs where Ricky will find his talented receivers in single coverage against the secondary. 

9.  Can Clayborn and company rebound from a poor performance last year in Ames.  To a man the defensive line will tell you that they were pushed around last year by the offensive line of the Cyclones.  This year, they should have a chip on their shoulder and if they cannot own the line of scrimmage, it spells trouble for the Hawkeyes.  It also remains to be seen if they will get too much pressure.  If they begin to get up field with ease, it opens up creases for Alexander Robinson to run through.  Look for Iowa State to control the defensive pressure with screens and draws.

10.  Will Norm Parker be in attendance?  No football fan can deny the fact that Norm Parker is one of the better defensive coordinators in the nation.  He has a knack for being able to take away what the other team wants to do offensively.  He is able to do this without setting his team up for failure with blitzes and risky man coverages.  He was in the hospital today and his absence from the stadium tomorrow would be felt.

What we learned - Eastern Illinois

Unlike last year, Iowa took care of business in a convincing fashion in their season opener.  Here are ten things that we learned in Week 1 about the 2010 Iowa Hawkeyes:

1.  Barring injury Iowa will be fine without Brandon Wegher in the backfield.  Adam Robinson showed a burst that he didn't display at any point of last season.  He ran with a purpose and did not allow the first defender to bring him down and was consistently gaining yards after contact.  He did a great job on the zone runs making one cut and then getting up field, which is crucial in Iowa's offense.  Coming into the season it was widely thought that Jewel was the #1, if that remains true, than Robinson might be the best #2 back in the Big Ten and gives Iowa one of the best running back duo's in the league.

2.  Iowa will not be out performed on special teams this season.  Everyone knows that Ryan Donahue is good, he didn't get much work on Saturday, but his one punt went for 43 yards and was downed inside the five yard line.  Paki O'Meara blocked, scooped, and scored a punt and is a valuable special teams weapon.  Eastern Illinois' average starting position on kickoffs was the 20.5 yard line, while Iowa's average starting position was the 37 yard line.  We didn't get to see and field goals, so that will remain to be seen.

3.  It won't be easy to run on this defense.  We all knew this coming into the season, but the defense works so well together, there is no "I" in the front seven, they all know their responsibilities and know that if they take care of theirs that someone else will make the play.  On the day, if you take out the fake punt run that was on the special teams, not the defense, Eastern Illinois only amassed 29 yards on 23 carries.

4.  James Vandenberg is more ready this season to step in than he was last year.  In my ten things to watch for, I said that Iowa needed to come out of the game relatively injury free, and the entire Hawkeye Nation held its breath when Ricky Stanzi went down awkwardly.  He was fine and James stepped in and the offense didn't seem to miss a beat.

5.  Ricky Stanzi may have finally had the "it" click.  Several times on Saturday you saw Stanzi progress through his reads and not try to force passes into receivers that may not have been open.  His best play of the day in my opinion came then Iowa was in the red zone and ran double slants and he pumped, pumped again, and then tucked and scrambled for a half a yard gain.  Last season that would have been a pass the Stanzi forced into coverage.

6.  Stanzi doesn't play favorites with his receivers.  He has two great ones in DJK and Marvin McNutt, but combined they only caught three passes.  Overall ten different Hawkeyes caught passes on Saturday, 8 by the wide receivers, 8 by the tight ends, and surprisingly 5 by the running backs.  This makes Iowa tougher to defend as they don't have a single go-to guy on the team.

Ten things to watch for - Eastern Illinois

It will have been 242 days since Iowa’s convincing Orange Bowl victory and the Iowa fans have yet to come down from cloud nine. Add to that the preseason magazines picks for Iowa and the fans are in frenzy about the season to start. Here are ten things to look for this weekend in Iowa City:


1. Who will be the backup running back
In the preseason Jewel Hampton solidified his position as the #1 running back for the Iowa squad, unfortunately his brush with the law this summer will cause him to miss the game this weekend. Brandon Wegher split carries last fall, but in fall camp he left for personal reasons and has yet to return. That leaves last years leading rusher, Adam Robinson, as the primary ball carrier this weekend. Last season Adam proved he could be a quality Big Ten running back, however he didn’t have to be the workhorse last year, so nobody know how he will do getting the bulk of the carries. Backing up Adam will be Paki O’Meara, who last year was the starter week 1, but didn’t see much action after that. If Paki gets meaningful carries outside of week 1 this year, the Hawks are in trouble. Jason White will probably get the carries as the third back this week, but don’t look for him to get many carries this season without someone getting hurt. De’Andre Johnson and Marcus Coker are true freshman that the Iowa staff would love to red-shirt this season, but if the injury bug hits the running back corps, look for one or both of them to play. Coker almost assured himself of a red-shirt getting injured in camp, but if Johnson plays on Saturday, it could be the Iowa coaches tipping their hand that Wegher is not going to be back this season and they want Johnson to get experience in case of an injury.

2. Offensive line
Last year’s starting offensive line essentially lost four starters, Riley Reiff and Julian Vandervelde being the only two back with significant experience. That is the bad news, the good news is that the second string has worked together most of last season and now those guys are the starters. In Iowa’s zone blocking scheme, cohesiveness is very valuable and having worked together, this offensive line does have that.

3. Other offense play calling
You would have had to have been living under a rock to not know that Iowa’s defensive line is very good. In college football today, it is almost like a backyard football game with 4 and 5 receivers very commonly used. I don’t see any teams running that many receivers into routes this year, because it would leave their offensive line to use five guys to block Iowa’s four lineman, which means four guys would be getting blocked man on man, Iowa’s line wins that scenario 90% of the time. You will see a lot of max protects and chip blocks to try and slow down the Iowa pass rush.

4. An act of Stanzi
Last year opposing teams returned four of Ricky Stanzi’s interceptions for touchdowns and collected 15 total interceptions. Coming into the season Ricky has said that he needs to make better decisions and that the pick 6’s were all the same route. In the fall you saw Stanzi make a point to check down to the backs in the flat, something that you didn’t see much of last year. With the stable of receivers at his disposal, the only person that can stop Stanzi is himself.

5. The island
Iowa has ranked 5th and 4th nationally the last two years in interceptions. They sent Amari Spievey to the NFL off of last season’s squad. The other starting corner back last season, Shaun Prater, injured his leg this fall and may or may not play on Saturday. That leaves Greg Castillo and Micah Hyde as the starters. Both are very skilled defenders, but both are very young and lack game reps. They will be helped by the Iowa defensive line, which should cause most opposing quarterbacks to throw passes before they want to and with pressure on them.

6. Linebacker depth
Any time that you get two of your three linebackers drafted into the NFL you will have a drop-off in experience. However there may not be much of a drop-off in talent. Jeff Tarpanian takes over in the middle and has played special teams for the last three years and spot duty at linebacker. He will be great in pass coverage, however his size is a concern in the run game. Tyler Nielsen will take over at Leo linebacker and has had very little game experience, but was the understudy of one of the better Leo’s at Iowa in A.J. Edds. Just like the corner backs, both of these linebackers will benefit from the defensive line drawing a lot of attention.

7. Injury bug
Iowa fans need to hope that the only time they see the green gator tractor is when it leaves the field with supplies, not carrying a player. A game that the outcome should not be in question, you have to leave without major injury. However, at most positions this is the deepest Iowa squad in recent memory, but there are some positions that are thin, running back being one of them.

8. True freshman to play
In his press conference this week, Kirk Ferentz alluded to the fact that we could see as many as seven true freshman on the field this weekend. My best guess is: Carl Davis (DT), Christian Kirksey (LB), James Morris (LB), C.J. Fiedorowicz (TE), Kevonte Martin-Manley (WR), Jim Poggi (LB), and one defensive back of the following Tanner Miller, B.J. Lowery, and Anthony Hitchens.

9. Who kicks
Last year, Iowa had the luxury of Trent Mossbrucker using his red-shirt, so there was never a kicking controversy. This season both players will play and neither one has grabbed the starting spot yet. What you will probably see is them alternating kicks this weekend and through the non-conference until one of them starts to out-perform the other and becomes the starter.

10. Offensive sets
As a fan of Iowa you are accustomed to two wide receivers, one tight end, and two running backs as the basic set. Last year we saw more three wide receiver sets than most can remember in the Kirk Ferentz era at Iowa. This season the stable of receivers is the deepest at Iowa in the last several decades. Each one has the ability, along with being able to catch passes, to be a good down the field blocker. Will Iowa deploy more three wide sets to spread out defenses to run or possibly even four wide receiver sets? They certainly have the players to do that, but the question remains, will they?