Just my 0.02 for all you CF'ers. Take it for what its worth!

[candg4ever]

You lost me as soon as you called fans 'spoiled children'.

Seriously, this is the best fanbase in america. It shows up, en masse, for what is probably one of the worst 5 showings of any power 5 football team over the last several decades. We've increased our ticket sales. We've increased our donations. Fact is i think everything we've done gives us the right to complain that the return on that investment has been slim to none so far.

If anyone's spoiled, its our football program. It gets support (and even has the gall to raise prices) even after 2 absolutely terrible years.

I understand both viewpoints. I am guilty of blind optimism and continued support, but I get that some want a return on their investment sooner, rather than later.

The one thing I fear the most is, if we are struggling this much on the field with the incredible attendance and donation figures compiled in the JP/CPR era, where would we end up if those numbers started to dwindle?

I know we have one of the top AD's in the country, and I still think CPR can get the job done, but we'd better show marked improvement this year, or I'm afraid the bottom is going to start to drop out...

We don't need dominance, or a conference title, but we've got to show we belong in the Big 12...

 

[Stormin]

I'm talking over all talent rather than W/L but, HEY, it's a subjective matter of opinion. We can disagree and we can live with that. At least your not being a **** about it like Mesa.

Our overall talent level was pathetic in the 1994-1997 years. Not even close to the overall talent we have today. Other than Troy Davis we literally had very few bona fide players. In the other cited years our talent level was below that of which we have today.

And even in the early Earle Bruce years we were suffering from a lack of talent in many areas. When Tom Mason is starting at QB and can only complete 32.8% of his passes, you have a real problem.

Our problem last year was injuries and player suspensions left some gaping holes that we were unable to fill.

IIRC, the 1975 team offense was terrible after Luther Blue went down to injury. Teams like Iowa State have a difficult time dealing with injuries to key players.

 

[Wesley]

This is not the worst we have ever had at Iowa State. The last years of Walden and early years of DMac were much worse. The 2003 Cyclone team was not good at all either. And the 2006-2008 football teams certainly were not definitively better than the last 2 years as well. And that is just the teams from recent memory.

All a person has to do is scan through the season records of Iowa State Football to see that we have had many, many instances of very poor teams in our history.

The four years of 1994-1997 where we won a total of 6 games during those 4 years and only averaged 1.5 wins per season is one of the worst in our history.


http://www.sports-reference.com/cfb/schools/iowa-state/

Last two years stunk up the kitchen. Need some air freshener with UNI game. Game preparation was in the toilet.

 

[Section110]

Can we just take a second to consider what is being debated here? I'm reading through these posts and I realized you're debating whether or not these past few years are equal to or worse than some of the worst years in ISU football history. Shouldn't the fact you are even having that conversation be a red flag? I mean let's not pretend like the expectations are that high. If you even have to have a discussion about where these past few years rank in terms of the worst overall at ISU then I think that should tell you a lot about the situation at hand.

 

[CYKOFAN]

This is not the worst we have ever had at Iowa State. The last years of Walden and early years of DMac were much worse. The 2003 Cyclone team was not good at all either. And the 2006-2008 football teams certainly were not definitively better than the last 2 years as well. And that is just the teams from recent memory.

All a person has to do is scan through the season records of Iowa State Football to see that we have had many, many instances of very poor teams in our history.

The four years of 1994-1997 where we won a total of 6 games during those 4 years and only averaged 1.5 wins per season is one of the worst in our history.


http://www.sports-reference.com/cfb/schools/iowa-state/

There may have been worse two year periods in ISU football history than the last two, but you would have had a hard time convincing me during the UNI and NDSU games. I think we can all agree things need to improve a lot this year.

 

[Mesaclone1]

I'm 62 and an ISU Letterman,.....the product on the field the last two years is the worst I have ever seen. No talent. Abysmal program. Your wrong and you're being a **** about it.

When you're THAT wrong, and that melodramatic....**** is what you get. This is a you problem.

There is no rational analysis of the program that leads to your absurd assertion...and yes, that may be an opinion. Einsteins "theory" of relativity is also an opinion. Some opinions are based on the vast weight of fact and reason, others are like yours.

 

[GWad]

When you're THAT wrong, and that melodramatic....**** is what you get. This is a you problem.

There is no rational analysis of the program that leads to your absurd assertion...and yes, that may be an opinion. Einsteins "theory" of relativity is also an opinion. Some opinions are based on the vast weight of fact and reason, others are like yours.

There you go being a **** again. Keep this up and you'll be famous Mesa,... FAMOUS!!!

 

[BWRhasnoAC]

Can we just take a second to consider what is being debated here? I'm reading through these posts and I realized you're debating whether or not these past few years are equal to or worse than some of the worst years in ISU football history. Shouldn't the fact you are even having that conversation be a red flag? I mean let's not pretend like the expectations are that high. If you even have to have a discussion about where these past few years rank in terms of the worst overall at ISU then I think that should tell you a lot about the situation at hand.

Why haven't I muted you yet?

 

[Mesaclone1]

There you go being a **** again. Keep this up and you'll be famous Mesa,... FAMOUS!!!

Dude, I've been famous since you were in diapers. That doesn't change your argument.

 

[Stormin]

Can we just take a second to consider what is being debated here? I'm reading through these posts and I realized you're debating whether or not these past few years are equal to or worse than some of the worst years in ISU football history. Shouldn't the fact you are even having that conversation be a red flag? I mean let's not pretend like the expectations are that high. If you even have to have a discussion about where these past few years rank in terms of the worst overall at ISU then I think that should tell you a lot about the situation at hand.

LOL. Listen Mr. Hawkeye. We beat you last year. And you have bigger things to worry about. Have you seen your depth chart?

Hawkeye Depth Chart March 2015

SE - Tevaun Smith, Jacob Hillyer
LT - Boone Myers, Cole Croston
LG - Sean Welsh, Ross Reynolds
C - Austin Blythe, Eric Simmons
RG - Jordan Walsh, Mitch Keppy
RT - Ike Boettger, Keegan Render
TE - Henry Krieger-Coble/Jake Duzey
WR - Matt VandeBerg, Andrew Stone
RB - Jordan Canzeri/LeShun Daniels Jr.
FB - Macon Plewa, Adam Cox
QB - C.J. Beathard, Tyler Wiegers

DE - Nate Meier, Matt Nelson
DT - Jaleel Johnson, Faith Ekakitie
DT - Nathan Bazata, Kyle Terlouw
DE - Drew Ott, Parker Hesse
OLB - Ben Niemann, Cole Fisher
MLB - Josey Jewell, Travis Perry
WLB - Bo Bower, Cole Fisher, Aaron Mends
CB - Greg Mabin, Maurice Fleming
CB - Desmond King, Sean Draper
FS - Jordan Lomax, Anthony Gair
SS - Miles Taylor, Brandon Snyder

P - Connor Kornbrath, Dillon Kidd
K - Marshall Koehn, Mick Ellis

Do you expect to win or lose against Iowa State?

 

[Mesaclone1]

LOL. Listen Mr. Hawkeye. We beat you last year. And you have bigger things to worry about. Have you seen your depth chart?

Hawkeye Depth Chart March 2015

SE - Tevaun Smith, Jacob Hillyer
LT - Boone Myers, Cole Croston
LG - Sean Welsh, Ross Reynolds
C - Austin Blythe, Eric Simmons
RG - Jordan Walsh, Mitch Keppy
RT - Ike Boettger, Keegan Render
TE - Henry Krieger-Coble/Jake Duzey
WR - Matt VandeBerg, Andrew Stone
RB - Jordan Canzeri/LeShun Daniels Jr.
FB - Macon Plewa, Adam Cox
QB - C.J. Beathard, Tyler Wiegers

DE - Nate Meier, Matt Nelson
DT - Jaleel Johnson, Faith Ekakitie
DT - Nathan Bazata, Kyle Terlouw
DE - Drew Ott, Parker Hesse
OLB - Ben Niemann, Cole Fisher
MLB - Josey Jewell, Travis Perry
WLB - Bo Bower, Cole Fisher, Aaron Mends
CB - Greg Mabin, Maurice Fleming
CB - Desmond King, Sean Draper
FS - Jordan Lomax, Anthony Gair
SS - Miles Taylor, Brandon Snyder

P - Connor Kornbrath, Dillon Kidd
K - Marshall Koehn, Mick Ellis

Do you expect to win or lose against Iowa State?

Wow, that offensive group is just anemic. I think the OL is likely OK, but the skill players....ouch. Matt Vandeberg backed up by Andrew Stone at WR... that's just icky.

Iowa generally seems to be able to field a solid defense but a quick look at that defensive group is not encouraging if you're a Hawkeye fan, especially in terms of athleticism and team speed. Unlike most Hawk fans, I do think Ferentz is a solid game day coach and will make Iowa competitive in most games...but he's REALLY got his work cut out for him this season.

 

[Stormin]

Wow, that offensive group is just anemic. I think the OL is likely OK, but the skill players....ouch. Matt Vandeberg backed up by Andrew Stone at WR... that's just icky.

Iowa generally seems to be able to field a solid defense but a quick look at that defensive group is not encouraging if you're a Hawkeye fan, especially in terms of athleticism and team speed. Unlike most Hawk fans, I do think Ferentz is a solid game day coach and will make Iowa competitive in most games...but he's REALLY got his work cut out for him this season.

Their LB's are worse than ours. Bo Bower and Josey Jewell and Ben Niemann. All lightly recruited. None look that good. They graduated their top DT's. Jaleel Johnson was a highly rated recruit but these are his career stats. Impressive huh?

JALEEL JOHNSON STATS	Defense
Statistics	Tack	Ast	Total	Sack	Int	Yds	IntTD	PassDef	FumRec
2014	0	0	0	0.0	0	0	0	0	0
2013	0	1	1	0.0	0	0	0	0	0
Career	0	1	1	0.0	0	0	0	0	0
Nate Bazata the other scheduled starter at DT committed to Iowa over his other offer from South Dakota State. These are his career stats. NATHAN BAZATA STATS Defense Statistics Tack Ast Total Sack Int Yds IntTD PassDef FumRec 2014 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 Career 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 Looking forward to next year's game with the Hawkeyes.

 

[Section110]

LOL. Listen Mr. Hawkeye. We beat you last year. And you have bigger things to worry about. Have you seen your depth chart?

Hawkeye Depth Chart March 2015

SE - Tevaun Smith, Jacob Hillyer
LT - Boone Myers, Cole Croston
LG - Sean Welsh, Ross Reynolds
C - Austin Blythe, Eric Simmons
RG - Jordan Walsh, Mitch Keppy
RT - Ike Boettger, Keegan Render
TE - Henry Krieger-Coble/Jake Duzey
WR - Matt VandeBerg, Andrew Stone
RB - Jordan Canzeri/LeShun Daniels Jr.
FB - Macon Plewa, Adam Cox
QB - C.J. Beathard, Tyler Wiegers

DE - Nate Meier, Matt Nelson
DT - Jaleel Johnson, Faith Ekakitie
DT - Nathan Bazata, Kyle Terlouw
DE - Drew Ott, Parker Hesse
OLB - Ben Niemann, Cole Fisher
MLB - Josey Jewell, Travis Perry
WLB - Bo Bower, Cole Fisher, Aaron Mends
CB - Greg Mabin, Maurice Fleming
CB - Desmond King, Sean Draper
FS - Jordan Lomax, Anthony Gair
SS - Miles Taylor, Brandon Snyder

P - Connor Kornbrath, Dillon Kidd
K - Marshall Koehn, Mick Ellis

Do you expect to win or lose against Iowa State?

You keep wanting to bring Iowa into an ISU discussion... I'll oblige you this time.

You know what the difference between you, mesa, and I is tho? I'm pretty realistic. I don't expect much from Iowa this year. I'd be surprised if they get to 6 wins. Which is pretty terrible considering their schedule. I do like the fact that CJ is more willing to make things happen. He'll take shots down the field. He's got a live arm. He won't check down constantly and he'll use his legs to make things happen. I'm sure he'll make more mistakes as well, but that comes with the territory. We'll see if he can keep the mistakes to a minimum. If not it could be a big problem. Tevaun Smith is a legit threat. I loved Weisman's attitude and work ethic, but it will be nice to see if more of a threat emerges in the backfield. The offensive line will certainly have to prove something to me. They have some big shoes to fill.

The LB's have another year under their belt so at worst they should be as good as last year. Spearman and Alston were both pretty bad. To the point that Spearman lost his position and Alston was being rotated out quite a bit at the end of the season. They will still be relatively inexperienced, but I liked what I saw from Bower and Jewell at times. They had a spark. I'm actually not that concerned about the defensive front. Drew Ott was the best defensive lineman on the team a year ago and he's back. Carl Davis will certainly be missed, but Jaleel and Bazata are capable. They won't have the impact that Davis had, but they aren't exactly pushovers either. I think they'll be pretty solid up front, but both safety positions have me worried. At CB Desmond King is an NFL player and Mabin has some potential.

Overall, there is some pretty serious question marks and with the conservative coaching of Kirk it's hard for me to be optimistic. I would be more positive if I thought Ferentz would cut the reigns off of CJ and let him ball, but I just don't see that happening. He's too damn conservative and Greg Davis' play calling has been borderline atrocious in his tenure at Iowa. I think we may be looking at the end of the Ferentz era in the next couple years, and sadly I've reached the point that I'd welcome it.

 

[Stormin]

You keep wanting to bring Iowa into an ISU discussion... I'll oblige you this time.

You know what the difference between you, mesa, and I is tho? I'm pretty realistic. I don't expect much from Iowa this year. I'd be surprised if they get to 6 wins. Which is pretty terrible considering their schedule. I do like the fact that CJ is more willing to make things happen. He'll take shots down the field. He's got a live arm. He won't check down constantly and he'll use his legs to make things happen. I'm sure he'll make more mistakes as well, but that comes with the territory. We'll see if he can keep the mistakes to a minimum. If not it could be a big problem. Tevaun Smith is a legit threat. I loved Weisman's attitude and work ethic, but it will be nice to see if more of a threat emerges in the backfield. The offensive line will certainly have to prove something to me. They have some big shoes to fill.

The LB's have another year under their belt so at worst they should be as good as last year. Spearman and Alston were both pretty bad. To the point that Spearman lost his position and Alston was being rotated out quite a bit at the end of the season. They will still be relatively inexperienced, but I liked what I saw from Bower and Jewell at times. They had a spark. I'm actually not that concerned about the defensive front. Drew Ott was the best defensive lineman on the team a year ago and he's back. Carl Davis will certainly be missed, but Jaleel and Bazata are capable. They won't have the impact that Davis had, but they aren't exactly pushovers either. I think they'll be pretty solid up front, but both safety positions have me worried. At CB Desmond King is an NFL player and Mabin has some potential.

Overall, there is some pretty serious question marks and with the conservative coaching of Kirk it's hard for me to be optimistic. I would be more positive if I thought Ferentz would cut the reigns off of CJ and let him ball, but I just don't see that happening. He's too damn conservative and Greg Davis' play calling has been borderline atrocious in his tenure at Iowa. I think we may be looking at the end of the Ferentz era in the next couple years, and sadly I've reached the point that I'd welcome it.

Didn't realize that Jaleel and Bazata's one combined assisted tackle last year gave you that much hope. Your linebackers are not good. And you are relying on a RS Freshman to start.

Not sure what spark you saw from your linebackers. They were not good. I have memories of you telling me last year that the Iowa LB's would not miss a beat. LOL.

 

[Section110]

Didn't realize that Jaleel and Bazata's one combined assisted tackle last year gave you that much hope. Your linebackers are not good. And you are relying on a RS Freshman to start.

Not sure what spark you saw from your linebackers. They were not good. I have memories of you telling me last year that the Iowa LB's would not miss a beat. LOL.

I never said they wouldn't miss a beat. I said I expected them to have some growing pains early in the year, but to be playing solid football by mid-season. That didn't happen. I was wrong. Gasp! I thought the fact Alston was a senior who waited his turn behind some very good linebackers meant there wouldn't be a significant drop off with him. That was my biggest mistake. He and Spearman both significantly underperformed compared to what I thought. However, once Bower and Jewell got into the mix they absolutely showed flashes of fitting the mold of the traditionally solid Iowa LB. They just need to get more consistent.

I remember you saying a whole bunch of things a year ago that didn't even come close to being true so please spare me the lecture.

 

[Stormin]

I never said they wouldn't miss a beat. I said I expected them to have some growing pains early in the year, but to be playing solid football by mid-season. That didn't happen. I was wrong. Gasp! I thought the fact Alston was a senior who waited his turn behind some very good linebackers meant there wouldn't be a significant drop off with him. That was my biggest mistake. He and Spearman both significantly underperformed compared to what I thought. However, once Bower and Jewell got into the mix they absolutely showed flashes of fitting the mold of the traditionally solid Iowa LB. They just need to get more consistent.

I remember you saying a whole bunch of things a year ago that didn't even come close to being true so please spare me the lecture.

LOL. You need to take your own advice when it comes to the Hawkeyes. They suck. And you should just concede that they suck and constantly think negative. Players that played behind players that sucked shouldn't give you any hope.

who wins the game between the Cyclones and the Hawkeyes?

 

[CYKOFAN]

You keep wanting to bring Iowa into an ISU discussion... I'll oblige you this time.

You know what the difference between you, mesa, and I is tho? I'm pretty realistic. I don't expect much from Iowa this year. I'd be surprised if they get to 6 wins. Which is pretty terrible considering their schedule. I do like the fact that CJ is more willing to make things happen. He'll take shots down the field. He's got a live arm. He won't check down constantly and he'll use his legs to make things happen. I'm sure he'll make more mistakes as well, but that comes with the territory. We'll see if he can keep the mistakes to a minimum. If not it could be a big problem. Tevaun Smith is a legit threat. I loved Weisman's attitude and work ethic, but it will be nice to see if more of a threat emerges in the backfield. The offensive line will certainly have to prove something to me. They have some big shoes to fill.

The LB's have another year under their belt so at worst they should be as good as last year. Spearman and Alston were both pretty bad. To the point that Spearman lost his position and Alston was being rotated out quite a bit at the end of the season. They will still be relatively inexperienced, but I liked what I saw from Bower and Jewell at times. They had a spark. I'm actually not that concerned about the defensive front. Drew Ott was the best defensive lineman on the team a year ago and he's back. Carl Davis will certainly be missed, but Jaleel and Bazata are capable. They won't have the impact that Davis had, but they aren't exactly pushovers either. I think they'll be pretty solid up front, but both safety positions have me worried. At CB Desmond King is an NFL player and Mabin has some potential.

Overall, there is some pretty serious question marks and with the conservative coaching of Kirk it's hard for me to be optimistic. I would be more positive if I thought Ferentz would cut the reigns off of CJ and let him ball, but I just don't see that happening. He's too damn conservative and Greg Davis' play calling has been borderline atrocious in his tenure at Iowa. I think we may be looking at the end of the Ferentz era in the next couple years, and sadly I've reached the point that I'd welcome it.

I'll give you credit for being realistic about your Hawkeyes imo. I'm far from an expert but do watch some of your games, and agree that I think Jewell could be a good one. He was a great high school athlete that probably should have got a few more offers, and did pretty good for a rs freshman. I think you really got a good one in Boyle and assuming he'll red shirt, but I'm not going to be shocked if he gets there and is too good to redshirt, especially if there's an injury ahead of him. For Boyle's sake it's probably best if Ferentz is gone in the next couple of years, but of course as a Clone fan I hope he stays. Let's just say both of our coaches are justifiably on the hotseat.

 

[CycloneErik]

LOL. You need to take your own advice when it comes to the Hawkeyes. They suck. And you should just concede that they suck and constantly think negative. Players that played behind players that sucked shouldn't give you any hope.

who wins the game between the Cyclones and the Hawkeyes?

I've heard that it's not productive for fans of a team to think negatively about their team, even if performance on the field says that they aren't very good.

 

[Mesaclone1]

I've heard that it's not productive for fans of a team to think negatively about their team, even if performance on the field says that they aren't very good.

Which is why we encourage Hawkeye fans to do so.

 

[Stormin]

Which is why we encourage Hawkeye fans to do so.

Exactly. And yet guys like Cyclone Erik want us to talk negative about the Cyclones and then come quickly to the defense of the Hawkeye Trolls on this board. Maybe a name switch to Hawkeye Erik should be considered.