Let me go ahead and disagree with you. The Iowa game shouldn't have been close. Our own mistakes kept them in the game with us.
Kansas State is a game that we were in, and had a chance to win. I'm pretty sure there weren't very many turnovers in that game.
Oklahoma has beaten us into the dirt in the last decade. Last year's game was the first time I can honestly say that we deserved to be on the same field as them. We competed with Oklahoma, a team that was considered a national championship contender.
We didn't expect to beat Oklahoma State, but we definitely deserved to be on the field with them.
The Missouri game was the game last year that made no sense. It's like the team wasn't the same. I'd love to hear some details on what was going on in the locker room at halftime, on the sidelines during the game, and on the trip down to Columbia. Those guys in the ISU uniforms were imposters.
I agree with this post. We looked the part of a Big 12 team last year, more than any year since 2005. Had this staff been in place then, that team would have won the 10 games they should have, but that is another story.
The things that we need to see this year is the continued maturation of our lines. I am not going to lie, I am a little nervous about the O-Line this year.
And your last paragraph is really interesting. It has happened each year CPR has been here. This team gets off the rails a bit, and it spirals down to where they have to bottom out. A couple years ago, it was at OU, this year it was definitely the Mizzu game. I don't know why this happens, but it has definitely been one mark against the staff.
CPR said at the Waterloo tailgate that if you are Iowa State, you don't beat Okie St, and go to two bowls, and start recruiting four and five star players. And he is absolutely right about that. We need to do the best job of probably anyone in the conference of having to identify the right players.
I think there is something to the staff trying to move to a higher level of targets on the recruiting front. And I am ok with that. Back in the mac the mediocre days, especially after Alvarez laughed his *** off at him wanting to coach Wisconsin, too many times, he took the path of least resistance when recruiting.
At this point, and probably forever, we are never going to out recruit the rest of the conference. That is why evaluation and development is THE most important thing that we have to successfully accomplish.
