Ivan Maisel disrespects Iowa?
While looking for insight into how awesome the Big Ten performed this bowl season, I came across this wonderful nugget of information:
"No disrespect to Iowa...But I have to believe that Georgia Tech, like Oregon, struggled with its timing because of the four-week layoff."
Is it just me, or did Ivan miss the fact that Iowa had a 6 week layoff? Iowa did not seem to struggle with their timing.
Boy do those ESPN guys really grind my gears.
link:
http://espn.go.com/blog/ncfnation/post/_/id/17519/three-point-stance-st…
January 6th, 2010 at 6:38 PM ^
The only thing I can figure is that he believes Oregon and G. Tech run offenses that require precision timing and that time off hurts their ability to execute more so than deep hand-off, drop back pass teams like Iowa. Even if that's the case, I still think it's a strained argument when Iowa was off two more weeks.
January 6th, 2010 at 6:39 PM ^
Most everyone at ESPN is a moron. Although they do have the best looking female reporters.
January 6th, 2010 at 6:40 PM ^
so I'm guessing that you won't watch it they tell how much the Big Ten sucks.
btw, I'm into conspiracy theories now so just warnin ya.
January 6th, 2010 at 6:41 PM ^
I'm not saying I agree with Maisel, but I think option-oriented teams take longer to prepare because their timing needs to be absolutely precise. The A backs for Georgia Tech have to time their J-motion or C-motion perfectly in order to be in the right place for Nesbitt to get them the ball. On top of that, the FB for Georgia Tech and the superback for Oregon have to be synchronized with the quarterback in order to determine reads, when the ball will be pulled out, etc.
Running the option isn't as easy as running a pro-style offense. It's a lot more nuanced in many ways.
January 6th, 2010 at 6:54 PM ^
While I agree that it is a highly precise, high preparation offense to run, if they take longer to prepare (they had 4 weeks), how do they get ready on a week to week basis. Most of the season they have only 6 days to get ready.
To me, the layoff issue is bull. Same as it was when the B10 was using it when OSU was losing in title games. It's all about quality of preparation. Iowa showed that, by absolutely dominating GTs offensive attack.
January 6th, 2010 at 9:11 PM ^
Actually.. a west cost/pro-style offense is more timing based than any other offense out there. Route running needs to be precise, and QB ball delivery and drop back movement needs to be completely on time.. otherwise the whole play gets screwed up and the QB throws up a bunch of picks. This is specially true when the QB is throwing the ball without even looking at his receiver..
With the option.. as long as you have a hulking OL that can contain the opponent's DL you shouldn't have trouble running the ball.. for example.. what does everyone remember about those powerhouse Nebraska teams of old? GT simply got out muscled up front, and that offense doesn't work when that happens.
January 6th, 2010 at 10:23 PM ^
Actually, I was seriously regretting my Iowa pick before the game because it seems like option teams always show up well in bowl game. This year Air Force and Navy beat their opponents with superior talent pretty convincingly.
January 6th, 2010 at 6:42 PM ^
Wow a national pundit who sounds like he's from the south being biased toward the B10. They don't have to fall all over themselves over how good Iowa is but they have to give their D props for shutting down a prolific O.
January 6th, 2010 at 7:52 PM ^
You'd think Maisel was from Mobile...oh.
I didn't think he was overdoing it. One of the persistent worries about GT that I read and heard prior to the game was the feeling that their offense might suffer more than the average offense due to its "precision and timing." Maisel mentioned that prior to the game as well.
Every region/conference thinks they get no respect--even Southerners. Trust me, I work with many, many of them.
January 6th, 2010 at 6:47 PM ^
I live in Atlanta and listened to similar garbage on the AM sports radio shows down here today. For the most part they credited Iowa and the Big Ten on a good bowl season, but in the same breath they were saying how its such a long break, yada yada yada.....funny they never mention that the years they do well and rub everyone's nose in the fact.
My favorite was a guy called in saying he couldn't believe that some school from up north had out-played these southern athletes.....gotta love stereotypes.
January 6th, 2010 at 6:55 PM ^
...take note of the MSNBC headline stating that Iowa, "held off," Georgia Tech.
Yes, they posted that as the headline, in spite of the fact that the article clearly stated GT was held to 9 first downs and 155 yards, both, "season lows".
Nope, no media bias or hatred of the Big 10 and Upper Midwest to see here folks.
January 6th, 2010 at 7:09 PM ^
did you watch the game? GT's offense finally started clicking in the 4th quarter and they, at times, looked like they would follow up with multiple scores. "held off" is appropriate for a 4th quarter in which they stopped them on two consecutive downs that looked dangerous (albeit one was a pick on 2nd down(?))
January 6th, 2010 at 9:32 PM ^
It was indeed a 3 point game late, but the real story of the game was Iowa's physical domination. The headline may not be false, technically, but it's certainly misleading. Even the AJC's headline said "Iowa Manhandles Georgia Tech"
http://www.ajc.com/sports/georgia-tech/iowa-manhandles-georgia-tech-267…
Also, a Bigfoot-like rare sighting of southern newspaper props to B10 speed:
Tech's players said the Hawkeyes did what they thought they were going to do, but the difference was Iowa's size and speed. "You watch them on film and kind of get a feel for them, but it's nothing like standing next to them," linebacker Steven Sylvester said.Also, btw, Tech's 3 drives in 4th quarter totaled 8 plays, and -6 total yards. Certainly not clicking. You're thinking of the third quarter when they did go for more than 100 yards total in the quarter (missed fg on a 44 yrd drive) and the TD on the 70+ yard drive. Out of 12 total possessions, Tech only strung 2 together for more than 4 plays. Iowa's own offensive inconsistency, plus the the Stanzi pick 6, gave Tech a chance to stay in the game and keep it close.
January 6th, 2010 at 7:04 PM ^
... Let's all calm down a little. Big 10 did well. Enjoy it. One does not need the approval of others to feel vindicated.
January 6th, 2010 at 11:12 PM ^
It's not like you're going to change the "Southern football" loyalists.
January 6th, 2010 at 7:11 PM ^
Well, I guess the media is somewhat consistent because they've always said the Big Ten is hurt by their long layoff.
But then again, they say the Big Ten lacks speed and playmakers.
And then they don't notice that Georgia Tech's season went two weeks longer than Iowa's--and that the Yellow Jackets MUST have practiced during that time (at least I think they did, even though I don't have my own TV show).
It's soooooooo funny: Big Ten poop. Will lose. Oregon am good. Georgia Tech am have offense no can stop.
OOPS! Big Ten win. Pretty good. But Oregon and Georgia Tech am hurt by long layoff. It unfair Big Ten not have long layoff and play'um basic offense not hard for am to understand. I mad Georgai Tech and Oregon am not show up for game. Coach forget to what he do. I shoot my head on national TV. BOOM.
January 6th, 2010 at 7:38 PM ^
I think you're lapsing into wishful thinking. But don't give up the dream.
January 6th, 2010 at 8:43 PM ^
The Big Ten's lack of speed and playmakers was evidenced by Terrelle Pryor and Ohio State's defense in general (ugh), Wisconsin's TE who repeatedly beat Miami's back seven (and Tolzien for that matter) plus Clay, Iowa's front seven, Northwestern's offense, and MSU's MMA fighters/players.
Plus, simple offense works sometimes. Wisconsin, Penn State, Ohio State and Iowa looked good on offense. MSU wasn't terrible.
MSM types are prejudiced and revisionist. Logic is lost on them.
You should work for ESPN.
January 6th, 2010 at 7:49 PM ^
Are southern people still mad about losing the civil war and having to give up slavery?
January 6th, 2010 at 9:20 PM ^
I'll never forget a bumper sticker I saw in panhandle Florida depicting the White House with a Confederate battle flag flying over it, all under the words "I have a Dream."
January 7th, 2010 at 10:38 AM ^
Thanks. I visit my family down there, and based on my experiences with locals, various media, and picking my family's brain, I would say that many of them are still upset.
January 6th, 2010 at 7:52 PM ^
Ivan Maisel is routinely disrespectful towards the Big Ten; one prime example is when they went through stadiums and gameday scenes that you have to see at some point during your life and he completely neglected the Big Ten outside of Penn State.
Fortunately, his biased OPINIONS mean little because results and evidence support ideas/opinions contrary to his.
January 6th, 2010 at 8:04 PM ^
They are now in full rationalization mode.
Iowa didn't just look good against Big Ten opponets.
The fact is Iowa played three non-conference opponets this year that made it to a bowl;
The Big-12's Iowa State: Iowa won 35-3
The PAC-10's Arizona: Iowa won 27-17
ACC Champion Georgia Tech: Iowa won 24-14
So, double didgit wins against all of them.
The doomsayers of the Big Ten got a dose of reality this bowl season. Can't blame them too much for trying to do some damage control, but next time...they might wanna check there Big Ten hate at the door.
January 6th, 2010 at 9:05 PM ^
When someone precludes a statement with "no disrespect to ____" they usually say something that is disrespectful and will be taken as such. This is just like Charlie Weis precluding a statement with "I'm not going to complain but," and goes off on a diatribe complaining about the referees.
January 6th, 2010 at 10:08 PM ^
I think you're going for "When someone precedes a statement with..."
January 6th, 2010 at 10:26 PM ^
Oops.
January 6th, 2010 at 9:07 PM ^
RE: the game
What hurt GT was that their offense can be hard to gameplan for in a week, but give a good defense a month and it is pretty easy to stop. Iowa had one of the better defensive lines in the Big 10 (and the country) this season, and their linebackers are disciplined and more athletic than people think. Given a month to prepare for the triple option, they were able to practice keeping their assignments, attacking the option, and generally swallowing up all runs either at the line or in the backfield. Plus, GT cannot throw the ball to save their lives, so Iowa's extremely good pass defense wasn't tested much and could play closer to the line. As for offense, Iowa was able to dominate the line and consistently exploited the gaps in GT's defense.
This has been the problem alluded to in a Diary post about why RR didn't experience the same success as Johnson did at GT. The reason the run-heavy option becomes progressively less common the higher up you go in the football food chain is because good, athletic defenses can chew it up. Outside of Nebraska in the mid-90s, I can't think of a run-heavy option team that competed nationally. Sure, GT wasn't bad this year, but at no point did they look like one of the top 4-5 teams in the country, and I'm not sure that they would have the same success in a conference other than the ACC. Iowa won because they were the better team on both sides of the ball, and they were able to expose the fact that if GT cannot stay in 2nd-and-6, 3rd-and-3 situations, they are toast. This maybe be the ceiling for GT - dominant against average teams, struggle against good teams, and a decent New Years Bowl most seasons but rarely much else.
As for Maisel, the guy has knocked the Big 10 for years. I'm not surprised that he gave Iowa little credit, and I doubt that will change any time soon.
January 6th, 2010 at 11:07 PM ^
Yeah Claiborne will really throw off your timing. Much like playing a real defense tends to throw off Pac 10 teams. Maisel never has many interesting things to say regardless.
January 6th, 2010 at 11:15 PM ^
A quick review of Maisel's career indicates a Bachelor's degree in "American Studies" from Stanford. Perhaps he doth protest too much against the Big 10...