Hello football fans!!!
This is Part One of a special double-posting of JTG. Why?
BECAUSE IT’S CLOWN WEEK – THAT’S WHY!!!
So what I’m going to do with this first post is talk about last week (FIU). Then I’ll get more into the ISU break-down (and the OSU/USC game, and the NFL, etc) on Thursday night/Friday morning like I usually do.
The Big Talking Points:
#1 – The QB Debate
First off, if you’re reading this and you were one of the people that boo’d Jake Christensen: BOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!! to YOU. I was not there, but I heard it on TV and also heard it from friends/family that were in Kinnick. It was classless, and totally not the Hawkeye fan way. Obviously Jake Christensen struggled last year; the whole TEAM struggled last year. But it’s not like the kid – KID – committed a felony on the off-season and gave the fans the double-middle-finger salute as he walking onto the field. He’s a good kid and he’s trying his best to be a good QB. Have you ever tried to do your best and things just don’t seem to work out? Perhaps at work or in a relationship? I would say that “Yes” most of us have been through that before and can relate. Give the kid a break.
Enough on that.
But football is football… and I DO think Rick Stanzi is the best QB for this team right now. I said it last week and he proved it again against FIU – he’s a smoother QB and looks more confident/relaxed while he’s out there. And his stats are showing it to: in the first half he was something like 9-12 for 150+ yards and 3 TD’s.
And then there was the sideline report on the BTN by Ashley Russell…
(BBBRRRRING!!! BBBRRRRING!!! BBBRRRRING!!! Hot-as Chick Alert!!! Hot-ass Chick Alert!!! For those of you who watched the game on TV and/or watched it on replay: How about Ashley Russell?!?!?? WOW. I’ve seen her on rivals.com since last year, and was always impressed. But you don’t get much from a little 2″ x 2″ box on your computer screen. However, seeing her on my big screen TV up close and personal giving sideline reports was amazing.
As my buddy Kal would say: “I’d eat a mile of her shit just to see where it came from.”)
…who reported on how the QB’s looked different on the sideline. She reported that Stanzi looked loose and was walking around talking to his teammates. Christensen, however, was very focused and by the coaches side not talking to anybody.
Doesn’t that pretty much sum up their play on the field? If it walks like a duck, and quacks like a duck, you better call it Donald. I think Jake Christensen is an engineer in the making. He can diagram the offensive play and where his receivers are supposed to be, tell you what the defense should do in that situation, and all the while think about the proper mechanics of throwing the football. BUT YOU HAVE TO BE A QUARTERBACK. Sometimes (shoot – often times) things don’t go as they were drawn up and you have to trust your instincts and let her fly. I don’t dis-like Jake, but I think he’s lacking in this department.
Part of being a QB is being a personality. I saw this when I was at Iowa because Sherman was button-upped and didn’t win over his teammates…even though he was a great guy. But Randy Reiners could walk into any room full of his teammates and join right in. I don’t pretend to have any knowledge of what really happens in the locker room in relation to Christensen and Stanzi and their teammates…but that’s what I’m seeing right now from my own observation and reading info (non-posts) on the web.
I think Stanzi should be our QB this Saturday against…against…uuuhhhh…can’t say it yet.
#2 – The Play-Calling
I honestly don’t even know what to say. Watching the Iowa offense right now is like watching that “Bizarro World” episode of “Seinfeld” when everything is different. I touched on some of this last week but I believe it bears repeating; things that I’m seeing so far this year on offense:
- Throwing the ball deep downfield.
- Screens, reverses, and somewhat “gadget” plays that are working.
- 8 yard routes on 3rd and 7.
I’m so amazed by this “Bizarro World” offense that I don’t know what to expect next.
- Will Republicans and Democrats start working together?
- Will prices (on anything) start dropping?
- Will I start exclusively dating flat-chested girls?
As Kevin Garnet would say: Anything’s possible!!! (Instead of the correct Adidas tagline that he was supposed to say: “Impossible is Nothing”.)
The cool thing about these crazy wrinkles that we’re showing? ISU (and other teams) will actually have to PREPARE for it. Wow!
#3 – A.J. Edds (and the rest of the defense)
AJ Edds is a BEAST. He kinda looks like the Cro-Magnum Man, which is fitting because I swear he brings a club to the field every Saturday. He is just ALL OVER THE FIELD. Tacking, INT’s, whatever he needs to do to help his team.
And what about Adrian Clayborn?!?!!! He’s a BEAST too! He and Christian Ballard don’t just LOOK LIKE an LSU D-Lineman – they play like it too!
And of course Mitch King and Kroul. The d-backs look OK; they still haven’t been tested but I have faith that Spivey and Fletcher will be just fine. Bernstine needs to keep coming along. Greenwood, Dalton, and the safety’s are not game-changers in either a good way or a bad way.
#4 – The Running Backs
They have been GREAT. Although Shonn Greene is the definite #1 RB, I love option #2 and #3 in Paki O’Meara and Jewell Hampton. And call me crazy, but I was ecstatic to see Shonn Greene fumble a meaningless fumble against FIU. Why? Because a good running back will NOT do that two weeks in a row after he gets coached up this week; Shonn Greene is a good running back.
#5 – But All of This Good Stuff IS Against Crappy Competition
OK – we haven’t motored through Virginia Tech and West Virginia like East Carolina has. I get it. So we’re supposed to look good? We have. We’re supposed to kill these teams? We did. The Hawks have done what they’re supposed to do. And we DIDN’T look good against Northern Illinois the first game of the year in 2007. And NIU wound up winning 3 games and we wound up sucking pond water. At least we’ve looked good.
One more example of why this isn’t necessarily a BAD thing? The 2007 Kansas Jayhawks. They used their first five or SIX games to spring themselves into a BCS bowl. Look around – every win is a valuable win; even against two 0-2 teams.
We needed a few confidence boosters:
- Shonn Greene being able to get his legs under him.
- Our O-Line to have the chance to find their best five.
- Get our DE’s, LB’s and Corners some added experience.
I think these two wins could be worth Seth Olsen’s weight in gold. Especially if we beat the…the…if we beat the…the…
Still can’t say it.
HAVE A GREAT WEEK – see you on Thursday/Friday!!!
GO HAWKS!
-Jeffrey the Greek!
Posted by Jeff Buch 
