Go Iowa Awesome: Game Preview

Submitted by ScruffyTheJanitor on

The 2nd-best Big Ten blogger, Adam Jacobi, has posted his game preview on Go Iowa Awesome.  It's definitely worth a read for lines like this:

 

On the other hand, MICHIGAN WILL RISE FROM HELL AND OBLITERATE EVERYTHING WE HOLD DEAR AS IOWA FANS. WILTON SPEIGHT IS A GOD. JAKE BUTT IS A GOD. AMARA DARBOH IS A GOD. KARAN HIGDON IS A GOD. WE ARE ALL GOING TO DIE.

boliver46

November 11th, 2016 at 10:35 AM ^

of their fans still hold onto blind optimism:

I am a Hawkeye. Always have been. Always will be. I grew up listening to games on the AM radio with my dad out in the yard "working." I suspect that he made us kids go out and "dig holes, pick up sticks, plant marijuana" whatever...just so he could listen with joy to the Hawkeye wonder that was the mid to late 1980s. I refuse to believe that I live in a world where someone named Jim Harbaugh will beat us. He couldn't in 1985 and I"ll be diggity damned if he can in 2016. #redemption

Sleepy

November 11th, 2016 at 9:50 AM ^

There are no other changes to the depth chart, despite Iowa being fresh off a truly ugly loss where multiple players performed poorly and while Iowa is in the midst of a truly awful season on offense (and an increasingly terrible one on defense as well).  You could argue that Iowa doesn't want to list some potential changes in the depth chart in order to maintain the element of surprise, but this is a stupid argument because 1) it implies that this Iowa team has secrets worth keeping (it does not) and 2) it suggests that Jim Harbaugh and Michigan give a shit about anything Iowa does in that game (they do not).

Iowa will play the same guys in the same positions while running the same plays from the same formation because that is what they do.  They will try to "work harder" and "execute better" and hope that after beating their heads against a wall for 99 times without success that it will work on the 100th try.  Even Andy Dufresne needed a goddamn rock hammer. They will try to squeeze blood from a stone because that is what Iowa does.  Jim Harbaugh will take that stone and beat Iowa to death (metaphorically speaking... I think) with it because that is what he does.  And then we will do this same thing next because that is what we do.

LINK

1974

November 11th, 2016 at 10:50 AM ^

"Iowa will play the same guys in the same positions while running the same plays from the same formation because that is what they do. They will try to "work harder" and "execute better" and hope that after beating their heads against a wall for 99 times without success that it will work on the 100th try."

That was S.O.P. for Michigan in the 21st century (excepting the years '08 to '10, which were a different -- and unpleasant -- flavor) under Carr and Hoke. I'm glad we have Harbaugh.

LSAClassOf2000

November 11th, 2016 at 10:08 AM ^

If you are worried about special teams you have not heeded my warning. Godspeed to you, future Big Ten-leading punter Ron Coluzzi. You will have to kick to Jabrill Peppers, and then you will have to try to chase him down because your 10 faster teammates could not do it.

I laughed through the whole thing, but especially hard here - the idea of an Iowa punter ever catching up with Jabrill Peppers is a great sign of how this game may potentially go for us really. 

The funny thing is, it seems to me like we tried to take out foot off the gas a bit against Rutgers, but they are in fact just that bad and who knew our second and third string were that good, relatively speaking. I think that said a lot about what planes of competitiveness each team was on.

Perkis-Size Me

November 11th, 2016 at 10:33 AM ^

I don't think the game will be a nailbiter, but I don't think it'll be a blowout either. Iowa knows winning this game saves their entire season, and they get the #3 team on their turf, at night, in front of their fans. And those are toughies for sure.

Harbaugh is a better coach. We have a better team in every aspect of the game. But this game is almost as much about intangibles as it is tangibles.

I'd say we leave winning by 2-3 TDs, but there will likely be some hand-wringing at some point tomorrow night.




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reshp1

November 11th, 2016 at 11:15 AM ^

Really glad they ditched SBNation and started their own thing. I've always enjoyed Jacobi's stuff it was pretty clear it really didn't fit into the SBNation mold they forced on BHGP.

Pepto Bismol

November 11th, 2016 at 1:07 PM ^

I really believe the reason Michigan gets so much crap about their schedule is BECAUSE they are murdering everyone. Casual observers and scoreboard watchers can't imagine they are as good as they are, so it must be due to crap competition.

If they smoke Iowa, the Hawkeyes will simply be lumped in with the rest of the "nobody" opponents in the rear view - road game or not.

Perkis-Size Me

November 11th, 2016 at 12:36 PM ^

Peppers is going to need to win the OSU game by himself to have a chance. Not because he's been slacking, but because I think the media has already crowned Lamar Jackson as the winner. In addition to finishing strong against Iowa and Indiana, Peppers will need to have a stat line against OSU somewhat similar to this:

-10 tackles

-3.5 for loss

-1 sack

-1 INT (the game-clincher)

-Either one punt returned for a TD or a kickoff returned for a TD

-Either a wildcat score, or some ridiculous flea flicker where he fools the whole OSU defense and throws a thing of beauty to Chesson/Darboh for the go-ahead TD. A literal Heisman moment. 

He will need to be all over the field, and be a threat everywhere he goes. And even if he does all of this, I'm not sure he wins. Lamar Jackson would either need to lose or have an AWFUL day against one of their three remaining opponents. I would've said a month ago that was possible against Houston, but those guys have nothing left to play for, and they know their coach is gone. And Louisville is not tripping up against Wake Forest or Kentucky.

Durham Blue

November 11th, 2016 at 3:54 PM ^

The comments on the article are comedic.  Every Iowa fan thinks they gon' die.  Can't say I disagree.  But Iowa, like Wisconsin, is just one of those teams I can't bring myself to hate.  Nebraska is sort of in the same boat.  The fans are respectful, polite and nice.  So maybe win by "only" 28 and cover the spread at least.  Save the Hellfire missiles for OSU.

BrewHawk

November 11th, 2016 at 5:09 PM ^

So 68-6 it is.  Iowa is not good this year.  No detailed summary needed.  Michigan would have to play their worst game of the year for Iowa to keep it close.