Last Chance

Beating a$m will serve three purposes:

1. Make it very unlikely ISU will finish last
2. Make a second conference win this season plausible
3. Ensure we won't have to wait 45 weeks until another win

I think ISU will win this one 35-31. If they don't, well, at least we'll know we are the worst team in the league. No maybes.

Go get 'em, boys. And no, that isn't the Texas State Patrol with trumpets. Ignore them.

Peterclone

Obvious

It should go without saying that part of the offinsive struggles the last two weeks are due to the fact that with only one servicable QB, a big chunk of the playbook is off limits.

That's why we didn't see Meyer run much option after being so brilliant with it in a bowl game 75 years ago (or so it seems).

Peterclone

Oh-Fur

Gotta think that whichever team loses Saturday is staring 0-8 in the face.

Solid tackling will go a long way towards ISU avoiding that.

Peterclone

Struggles

No wonder the rest of the B12 thinks wwe're a joke:

The last six seasons, ISU has opened Big 12 play 0-3. Only twice did they recover to finish 4-4.

Ouch.

Peterclone

6

Remember folks, we gave Danny Mac 6 years to deliver a winning season. The New Guy should get at least five.

Heck, Dan didn't beat a team that finished the season above .500 until that 6th year. TNG has beaten that.

When you don't accept mediocrity, all losses look the same, no?

Peterclone

Spunkily Stinky

While there were some moments that made you hopeful for the short term- forcing turnovers, a big TD run, a few 3 and outs- we're still a stinky football team.

A very mediocre Nebraska team looked like Old Time Big Red today, and that doesn't bode well for the rest of the year. It looked way too easy for the Huskers. According to the TV guys, today was on par with a home game against New Mexico State for NU. Ouch.

Until the ISU OL can run block, this program will continue to get rolled.

Peterclone

Perspective

SUI had a good day at Indiana after losing three in a row. So how does the Rag headline it?

"Happy Days Are Here Again".

Pimp much, Rag?

Peterclone

Turnarounds

Who would have thought that Minnesota would be a faster turnaround than ISU?

The Gophers are already bowl-eligible, with several winnable games to play.

I take back the snark I directed north.

Peterclone

3 of 12

To my calculations, Baylor has now won 12 games all time in the B12.

Wins over ISU represent 3 of that total. That's 25%. They've also beaten KU 3 times, and CU twice.

FWIW- ISU has 28 B12 wins, so it will take BU a few years to officially put us in last place.

Peterclone

#14

Perhaps I was harsh in writing that this group of Cyclones doesn't have the guts to end its 14 game road losing streak.

It looks like they are 100 miles from having the talent to do so. Guts, or lack thereof, don't matter at this point.

Peterclone

Streaks

My local paper negected to mention this little tidbit:

Not only is ISU on a 13 game road losing streak, Baylor has lost their last 13 B12 games.

For the record, ISU has won 3 B12 games in that span.

So, a streak is going to end tonight. Considering the last time ISU played in 2005 BU broke an 0-37 B12 road losing streak- that's oh-fur-since-the-start-of-conference-play- in Ames. The fact that ISU then finished strong, winning 4 of 6 and earning a bowl trip, was remarkable.

I still think BU wins tonight, but a Cyclone win is plausible.

Peterclone

Limited

There goes any designed QB runs until further notice.

It's ironic that Meyer was not allowed to run until Arnaud was ready to be a backup; now he won't be allowed to run until a Freshman is ready.

This pretty much guarrentees that Mr. Murphy will snap #4's ankle on the first snap from scrimmage in Waco, or some other cruel twist to ensure that ISU continues its road losing streak. That's unfortunate, because as a 5 point dog it is at least plausible that ISU will win.

I doubt they will. I just haven't seen in this bunch the mental toughness needed to push a team around for 60 minutes to get a win. The ability is there, but not the guts.

All is not lost, though. There are two winnable home games on the horizon, and K State looks to have issues.

Peterclone

Turnabout

I don't want to hear a single complaint out of Lincoln or Manhattan over big time losses.

It's less fun to be on the short end of it, isn't it?

As a Nebraska once told me: "If you can't stay within 30 of my team, that's hardly my fault."

Amen. Enjoy mediocrity.

Peterclone

Hangover, Week Three

Clearly, the hangover continues in Iowa City.

Keep this up and you will never shake the reputation for placing too much emphasis on the game against Silo Tech.

Peterclone

Consistency

I assume that all of the same characters who were bitching that support for the previous coach's frequent near-miss losses was "endorsing mediocrity" are not taking comfort in the present coach's near-miss losses.

Consistency is key to winning, no?

Peterclone

Yardsticks

I look forward to the day when our Cyclones require an opponent to play four solid quarters of football in order to win.

Right now, only two are needed.

Peterclone

#11

Funny how one can improve by not playing.

Iowa State is now #11 in the Big12 Sagarin rankings.

a$m is now last. Nice place for them.

Soon we will get a chance to keep them there.

Peterclone

Hat Tip

I owe a tip of the hat to Colorado and Nebraska for scheduling far better teams than they need to.

While both lost this past weekend (at Florida State and at home to Va Tech, respectively) CU was rewarded with a big home upset of West Virginia.

Considering they could have backed out of a challenging game and scheduled a cupcake instead, (we're talking about you, K State) CU and NU did the right thing.

I look forward to the year that ISU is good enough to schedule more agressively to the point that SUI isn't viewed as "the tough non con game".

Peterclone

Fouls

Personally, I think our program needs more personal fouls. A little more nastiness can go a long way.

Let's wait until we're cranking out 10 win seasons before we start worrying about anti-social behavior.

Peterclone

Hangover Week Two

Clearly, the Hawkeye Hangover continues.

After staking the validity of their entire season on beating Silo Tech, SUI loses to another inferior opponent.

BTW- thanks for tanking our SOS. Losing to a good team is better than losing to a bad team.

That's what you get for putting too much emphasis on one game in September.

Peterclone

Confirmed

Sagarin confirms my suspicion:

We're teh worst in the B12 right now.

href="http://www.big12sports.com/ViewContent.dbml?&DB_OEM_ID=10410&CONTENT_ID=477">The
stats prove it. Except for TO margin, we're bad. I don't
think being infirst for FG attempts is the sign of a good team.

At least we have the week off.

The only way to gain some respect from both computers and humans is to beat someone decent, and do it regularly.

Peterclone

Confirmed

Despite their nice little second half rally to force OT, our Cyclones are officially the worst team in the B12. The second half rally can't make up for the gross incompetence of the first.

Good thing they have two weeks to prepare for KU.

I'd put the opening line at KU +30.

Peterclone

Hangover

Clearly, SUI placed too much emphasis on winning their Super Bowl last week. The hangover resulted in a slow start against Pitt, and overcoming that start cost them in the end.

Their coaching staff really needs to teach them not to place everything on one game. While Big1011 games count more with a conference title on the line, every win gets you a better bowl bid, every loss a lousier one, or no trip at all.

If KF is ever going to bring the National Championship to Iowa City, a title the campus and fan base so richly deserves, he needs to figure out how to win even the seemingly unimportant games against teams like Pitt, Western Michigan and Iowa State.

Note; the above was written with the highest degree of sarcasm. Read at your own risk.

Peterclone

Luck in Vegas?

(I spent a whole 10 minutes thinking up that clever headline!)

Will our Clonies end their road losing streak in the Desert Saturday night?

They could. I think the defense will keep them in it. If special teams can hold their own, and the offense get on track in the Red Zone, sure, they can win.

But they won't. You don't lose 13 roadies in a row by accident.

Vegas will be the first to tell you, never bet against a streak.

Until our team displays the intestinal and mental fortitude to break though and beat somebody outside the 515, I'll keep assuming they won't.

Sorry. It's my nature. I should be in risk management- I only see the bad outcomes.

Vegas 17, ISU 10.

Peterclone

Deoderant

Winning has a funny way of hiding problems.

My morning paper gushed about the stout, gritty SUI defense, but had nary a word about the SUI offense that managed only 10 points against a team that gave up 28 to Kent State last week.

SUI had two solid drives (69 and 66 yards), and a whole bunch of nothing (17,47,9,0,11,5,0,7), a full-blown QB controversy (Which one will get booed next?), and all we read about is Greene's nice 122 yard day, the bulk which came on the aforementioned two drives.

Time will tell if ISU has a decent D, SUI a lousy O, neither, both, or some of the above.

Winners write the histories.

Peterclone

Perspective

UNLV had 345 yards and 3 offensive TDs against ASU last night.
WSU had 340 yards against Baylor and scored 17 points Friday.
USC had 340 yards on tOSU, yet managed 28 offensive points- 21 on drives over 60 yards.

ISU had 340 yards, and 3 points, on 6 trips into the Red Zone.

CBS told me last night that the NCAA average for TDs/Red Zone visit is 58%. Below average would have meant 21 points, which would have won going away.

Peterclone

Uh-Oh

UNLV beat #15 Arizona State 23-20 in OT last night. In Tempe.

So much for a casual trip to Vegas this week, and please refer to the below post if ISU does lose to the Rebels- it won't be due to a hangover.

Peterclone

Records

The Rag tries to stir the pot by bringing up the fact that ISU is 4-6 in their next game after losing to SUI, which takes you back to '91.

Small detail: The season ending record of the teams in those 6 losses?

46-14-1, and one to UNI, who didn't stink.

The record of the teams they beat? 14-31.

Small detail.

I consider the "SUI Hangover" a myth officially busted.

'02 excepted, SUI takes a much bigger dive in years they lose to Iowa State, than the inverse. But that will never get mentioned in the press- that brings down the narrative of Valiant Hawkeyes they work so hard to perpetrate.

Peterclone

10

ISU has now gone 10 quarters without scoring a TD against SUI.

Let's put that at the top of our To-Do list for '09, OK?

Peterclone

Wasted

Our Cyclones outplayed the athletes from Iowa City, yet came away looking like they weren't even close.

Clearly, ISU has the same Red Zone issues that has plagued them since Seneca left for Seattle. New unis, same old ghosts. SUI only had three trips into the Red Zone, and they got points on all three. ISU? 6 trips, one FG. Each failure had less to do with what SUI did, and more in how ISU failed.

The good news is that our defense has arrived, and will keep us in most games. When you hold a team to 52 offensive plays, and 4.7 YPP, you are doing something right.

At least the safety covered the spread. I could hear thousands of fat, drunk, degenerate SUI fans screaming "NOOOOOOOOOOO!" at their TV. Today wasn't a total waste- SUI fan lost the rent.

But since this was a game that SUI is always supposed to win, it doesn't matter much, no?

Get in the end zone in Vegas, and we're 3-1 to start the B12 slate.

Peterclone

+14

ISU enters Saturday's tilt with the Buzzards a 14 point underdog.

Given the forecast of a wet track, and ISU's lack of either a running game or a run defense, a spread of 24 wouldn't have surprised me.

Frankly, it seems that regardless of how good either team is, ISU is always a 14 point underdog. Yet ISU somehow has been coming out on top as of late. Funny how that happens.

As usual, ISU won't win the game, but the Buzzards might lose it.

My guess: The good guys fall 28-21.

See you after the game.

Peterclone

Goals

How about this for measuring progress this season: W/L compared to teams from last year.

ISU has the following common opponents from '07:

Kent State
SUI
Kansas
Kansas State
Nebraska
Colorado
Mizzou

Last year's record versus the above: 3-4

Right now we're 1-0.

KU and Mizzou are probable losses, even in Ames.

KSU and CU will be challenges on the road.

It's still too early to judge the Cornhuskers.

Of course, we can never hope to compete with the On-The-Cusp-Of-A-National-Title Hawkeyes, so that's an L.

Even 4-3 will be a success in my book.

We will update as we move along.

Peterclone

Yardsticks

I wrote a year ago that Kent State's return to Ames would be a yardstick for the program.

By John and Eric's call, Kent's offense has nice weapons that ISU struggled to control.

The good news is that the offense has grown and matured, and has broken out of the Red Zone doldrums it had in '07. The opportunistic scores are a refreshing change.

Time will tell is the scheme to control the scrambling QB resulted in the soft run D, or if the run defense really is that lousy. I suspect the folks in Iowa City will have no qualms about handing the ball off to find out.

The good news is that ISU is 2-0 with more winable games on the horizon. Now we learn if they can win in their new white jerseys.

I'm sure there will be something to write about this week.

Peterclone

They Care! They Really Care!

Has the SUI football program really fallen so far they have to break out the gimmicks when our lowly CyClowns come to town?

Things have changed a bit in 10 years, no?

Peterclone

Kicking

It's good to hear we have a punter that knows what he's doing.

I was wondering if we were going to see him before we got to Kinnick.

Peterclone

NeuWeasal

Anyone who knows me knows how much I despise "Slick Rick" Neuheisel.

Ricky made his mark with me in his rookie season at CU by going for 2 with two minutes left in a 50-28 win in Ames. What's the big deal?

CU was a 21 point favorite.

I was shocked- shocked- when Ricky lost his job at Washington over recreational betting. I was equally shocked that both CU and uDub went on probation after he departed.

With UCLA's upset win over Tennessee giving Rick's tenure momentum, there are only two questions:

1. Has Rick committed the rule violation that will ultimately put UCLA on probation yet?

2. What date will UCLA go on probation?

Cats don't change their stripes.

It's funny the things you'll do to keep up with the neighbors: Trophy wives, sub-prime mortgages, hiring crooked coaches.

Peterclone

#72

The first Sagarin ranking of the season puts ISU at #72, which I can't argue with one game in.

The
Sag is skewed towards last year the first few weeks, so we'll see how
this evolves as more current data gets added to the formulas. Winning a few will help, too.

Upcoming opponents:

Kent State #134 (ISU -16 at home)
UNLV #121 (ISU -7 on the road)
Baylor #120 (ISU -6 on the road)
a$m #70 (ISU -2 at home)
KSU #44 (ISU +10 on the road)
Colorado #43 (ISU +10 on the road)
Kansas #36 (ISU +6 at home)
SUI #34 (ISU +12 on the road)
Nebraska #32 (ISU +6 at home)
Mizzou #24 (ISU +10 at home)
OSU #16 (ISU +17 on the road)

Since my football bar is low, all I ask for is to beat the teams that finish with a losing record, and then try to "upset" someone who thinks ISU is a sure win (that doesn't narrow it down much.)

If we can complete step one, step two and 6 wins doesn't seem too crazy.

Peterclone

Upgrade

Just for fun, let's move a$m into the "Toss Up" category from the "Probable Loss" group.

Peterclone

Positive Sign

If I'm reading the drive charts correctly, Kent State only passed the BC 40 once, on their last possesion of the game, and were picked off.

While the ISU defense is a long way from BC's, I'll take tonight's result as a positive sign for next week.

Peterclone

Easy

From what I've seen this weekend, there's no excuse for SUI to not be 5-0 when they head to East Lansing.

Quality teams don't lose home games to MAC opponents, right? Right?

Peterclone

Same Old

Granted, Wake Forest is a wee bit better than SDSU, but Baylor didn't have the opener they hoped for.

Baylor is still eyeing ISU as their best chance for a B12 win. Until ISU shows me it can play competitive football on the road, I concur.

The Bears are also going to dumb down their schedule beginning in 2010. Unless you can get huge guarrentees to play on the road, load up on cream puffs. Just make sure they are cream puffs you can beat.


Peterclone

It's Been A While

October '05 was the last time ISU stuck it to someone like that.

a$m 42-14
ksu 45-17

Granted, they were conference wins against Big Time Football schools, but after getting pushed around by a very good UNI team in last year's opener, taking the wood to someone is a good start.

I'm glad I was able to listen to John and Eric, as I haven't memorized the depth chart and I need to be told if a guy is first, second or third team. Lots of #2's and #3's got to play, and that's the point.

A big yardstick game next week, boys. No shortage of motivation.

Peterclone

Is He or Isn't He?

Put him in coach!

Schaub has overcome offseason surgery to his non-throwing shoulder to return to his starting role at quarterback. The Texans are hopeful with a healthy Andre Johnson in the mix, Schaub can play at the level they hoped when they traded two second-round picks to Atlanta for his services. If Schaub struggles early, there could be trouble in the fan base. Sage Rosenfels went 3-1 in the final stretch of last season, and there was a growing concern in Houston that he should have at least been able to compete for the starting job this year. Coach Gary Kubiak refers to Rosenfels as a starter and says the team is lucky to have him and Schaub. But Schaub is the Texans’ No. 1 guy, and he has proven when he is on that he can make good decisions and get rid of the ball with ease. The main problem is simply keeping him healthy and keeping him on the field.

Sage won games in a tough spot, and he's cheap by NFL standards. He will never wow you in drills, and doesn't have "upside", but he knows how to manage a dang game. The point isn't to show potential, but to win.

Sometimes the best guy doesn't get to play. It's good to know there are politics in every job.

Peterclone

Arrowhead

I may have read the news reports incorrectly, and ISU's deal with Arrowhead is for $1.8M + gate for two games.

That's less of a deal than I first wrote, and if ISU goes 0-2, not worth doing, IMHO.

Peterclone

SDSU

In light of how '07 started, it would be foolhardy to get greedy with projection for this year. We should really try to walk before we run.

That said, I would really like a nice, boring, workmanlike win over SDSU Thursday. No flash, no blitzes, no double-reverse baloney. Basic schemes. The same 10 plays run 7 times each. Lots of reps for the second team. An unispiring but white-knuckle free 24-10 win.

My over/under for the season is 5 wins. 6-6 and I'm probably giddy. There will be a crazy "upset" in Ames. We'll find a way to lose in Waco. It will be that kind of year.

Peterclone

Odds and Ends

Ron Maly reminices about hoops in the Armory.

Rick Brown plays golf with LE. (Sorry about the delay on posting that.)

If Men's Hoops can't hit .500 this year, we can't blame the schedule.

CU has a problem with their neutral site game with CSU.

Bret Bielema is a chicken after all.

A fun diversion: Bring back the SWC. Cheating optional.

ISU appears on the list of Best and Worst B12 hires and fires. I'm again reminded how low the our bar is in the eyes of the league.

Major Hat Tip to the Wizard.

It's good to have full-time football back.

Peterclone

When The Bandwagon Empties...

...get out of the way, or you might get hurt.

It appears that one of the most insufferable SUI fans may have jumped ship.

Oh the humanity. Who will we make fun of now?

Peterclone

Dollars

So the Newspaper Kohl's Depends On is reporting that Iowa State has agreed to play KSU twice in KC for $1.8 M plus 40% of what should be a sold-out gate.

From a financial standpoint, ISU cleans up. My back-of-the-napkin figures are that ISU grosses $2M or so per home game, so even a lousy KC crowd breaks even. I'm sure the cash from what would have been a trip to KSU is ten fold what they normally get for a B12 roadie, so its as if ISU picked up an extra home game in 2010 from a financial standpoint.

Too bad the game is in a town that ISU fan hates driving to, and ISU fan refuses to drink a touch of the fire water in that city, either. It might be tough to turn out both ISU alumni who live there, too.

Really, if a promoter can get that kind of money for a B12 game, ISU should move all of their games against KU, KSU and Mizzou to Arrowhead. It would be like the Packer's schedule back in the day when they played a couple "home" games in Milwaukee each year.

Then again, if ISU loses the 2009 game in what could have been a win in Ames, the cash might not be such a good idea.

It's all about the Benjamins.

Peterclone

ed note- I fixed an incorrect year above.

Bad Math

There has to be a mountain of jokes about this promotion, along the lines of "lottery players and Iowa State fans both have a poor grasp of how long their odds of winning are."

If you can't make fun of your own....

Peterclone

Near Miss

Not a good recruiting start for Minny's Brewster.

Then again, he didn't want the ISU job.

ISU wearing a similar gold/gold monstrosity would have been worse than his hiring.

Peterclone

Inverse Correlation

There's a logic to winning football teams having an easier time http://www.blogger.com/img/gl.link.gifattracting kids to play in their band.

But ISU has been marching 300 kids in their band for most of this decade, without the winning football to back it up.

You could say the band is holding up their end of the equation. Now it's the football team's turn.

Peterclone

Next In Line?

Has it really gotten so bad in IC that articles like this actually seem rational? And a sidebar titled "Next In Line" has quality names in it?

I don't think it's that bad on Melrose Ave., but then I haven't had any dreams of a national championship lately, either. For what the black and gold folks are spending on football, they have a right to expect at least nine wins each year, and especially no losses to a half-assed football program like our beloved Silo Tech.

SUI fan expects a National Championship, and they should start cycling through coaches until they find the one who can bring them the title they so richly deserve. They should get what they're paying for.

KF, you're on the clock.

Peterclone

More of the Same

Hey- I'm back on the grid only to find that Nebraska fan thinks that only one year removed from The Great Callahan Meltdown things will return to their version of normal.

No chance your team will neeed a year or two to adjust, eh?

Peterclone

Going Offline

I will be off the grid, literally, for the next couple of weeks.

Some of my time will be spent feeding my Cyclone agnst by watching my video collection of all of our most painful moments- Sam Hill's phantom travel, Mizzou '04, Hampton, the Missed FG against 'Bama, Michigan State '00, etc, etc, etc.

Wallowing in the suffering helps me appreciate every tiny success. More fans should do it. Humility is in short supply.

Chat amongst yourselves. See you on the other side.

Peterclone

Random Bits

They like us! They really like us! Or at least they don't hate us. Our low ratio of idiots to the fanbase as a whole certainly helps.

Sage Rosenfels has a shot at starting in Houston. Nice backgrounder here.

Barney Cotton lands on his feet. I'm sure his experience working with 2-star talent in Ames will help him appreciate the 4-star talent he is working with now.

Alvin Bowen gets hurt at Bills camp. He may be out for the season. Great shot of Alvin here.

Peterclone

Stick to The Basics

Keeler trots out a number of football chestnuts, but he does go to the trouble of having a few stats to back things up.

The interesting one is turnover differential. The last five years ISU has been on the plus side of turnovers, they've gone bowling. 8 of 9 B12 schools did the same last year.

I've always suspected turnover margin was a sign of good or bad football, but those numbers really back it up.

Walk before running, boys.

Peterclone

Best. Unis. Ever.

No white. No blue. Old School shoulder stripes. A nod to the Earle Bruce years in color and design.

Now if we can win enough games to keep this look around.

Peterclone

Clever

It looks like the only way to make Iowa fan (and, presumably, the football team) care about "ISU's Super Bowl" is to play the gimmick card.

At least ISU saves its gimmick games for B12 opponents that might have more talent than ISU.

I guess ISU should be flattered. "We're worthy of a gimmick! We're worthy! We're worthy!"

h/t Clone Chronicles et al.

Peterclone

Game Rankings

Every game on the Big 12 composite schedule is ranked by the Daily Oklahoman.

The good news? ISU is not involved in either the worst NonCon game (that distinction is reserved for Chattanoga at OU) or B12 game (Baylor at Tech).

The Bad News? ISU's highest ranked game is #35 at Baylor. (Huh?) Four more games are ranked in the 40's.

Perception is reality.

Hat tip: Wizard of Odds

Peterclone

Gur-Run-Teed

This new rule will somehow screw ISU this season.

Somehow it will magically help keep a Have from losing to a Have Not.

BTW- In the lineup of helmets on the top of the page, ISU's helmet is the toughest to read. Not enough contrast. But I'm just some blogger in his pajamas, right?

Peterclone

Dream Matchups

ESPN has a fun article of Dream Football Matchups for every school in the Big 12. Most of them are spot-on. While I don't think our Clonies are ready to take on Florida, the Gophers would be a great home-home to renew.

I love the digs that Griffen gets in, too: Dogging KSU for canceling a game against Fresno and Mizzou for dodging Iowa (in hindsight, Iowa may have gotten the better of that deal).

An annual Texas-USC game would be epic. It's a good read.

Peterclone

Exception

It has been noted that the ISU-OU "rivalry" is one of the most lopsided in college football.

I bring this up only to gloat for a moment.

I was in Norman in '90 for the one ISU win over OU since '61. I have witnesses too. I may still be carrying a touch of the hangover from the night after.

Here's hoping we can bring an end to that streak the next time we meet OU.

Peterclone

Madness

We have officially entered the End Times.

While Vegas has the ISU win total Over/Under at 3, our own Ron Maly, the man who never misses a chance to take a cheap shot at ISU, sees ISU finishing with 4 wins.

Something ain't right. I think I'm going to go lie down with a stiff drink until the world rights itself.

Peterclone

Make Or Break?

Is this year really Make Or Break for KF? Are you kidding me?

The Black and Gold crowd must have gotten more spoiled by that crazy 31-7 run they put together a few years back than I thought. KF has earned the right to go Joe Paterno on them if he wants.

Sure, a string of .500 season is no fun, but ISU fan has a few 2, 3 and 4 win seasons they would happily trade.

No deal? Didn't think so.

Peterclone

Money Talks

The Wizard has an interesting chart of SEC ticket prices with all the extra donation costs figured in.

All I can say is that skyboxes and seats between the 30s must require a HUGE donation at Florida.

Perhaps someoone with better knowledge of the ISU ticket policies can estimate the ISU average. I suspect it is pretty cheap in the global perspective, which is both a reflection of ISU football's lousy track record, and an indicator that it might not get much better soon.

Peterclone

Preview Overload

Everything you ever wanted to know about everybody.

Hat tip to the Wizard of Odds.

Peterclone

Turning Points

It's funny how a win here or a loss there can have a huge impact on a program long tern.

I shake my head at a program that would consider firing a coach after losing a bowl game, win or lose.

Then again, I don't know what it's like to cheer for a winner, so I guess I just don't understand.

peterclone

You Get What You Pay For

Should we really be surprised with what happens on the field when this is the competition?

We're a stepping stone at best. But the only way to fix that is to win consistently, which will bring in more money, but winning is hard without lots of money.

Peterclone

Marketing Opportunity

There's gotta be a way to tap into this.

It's better to look good than be good, I suppose.

Peterclone

Make The Facts Fit The Narrative

The Register pulled off a Reverse one and a half somersaults with three and a half twists in a pair of stories over the weekend. (Sorry, no link; anything more than 36 minutes old gets scrubbed from their website it appears.)

In a big front section story they blame high gas prices on a slight decline in football season ticket sales in both Ames and Iowa City, but then list gas as the primary reason for an increase of ticket sales in Cedar Falls.

Here's the interesting bit of gymnastics: while last season's success at UNI is listed as a possible reason for an increase, nowhere in a loooong article is lousy football listed as a reason for declining sales for the big schools. Nope, not a chance. Move along- nothing to see here.

Never mind that ISU is 14-22 over the last three years, and KF's crew a slightly better 19-18 over the same span. Dropping $50 to watch lousy football is becoming a tougher and tougher sell every day.

But it's easier to blame the cost of gas.

Peterclone

Generous

I often forget how generous the Hawkeye fans around us are.

I see that two games on their home schedule sold out before single game tickets even went on sale: Wisconsin and Iowa State.

Since no serious SUI fan puts the ISU game ahead of any Big 1011 game, and there are tickets available for the Purdue, Northwestern and Penn State games, this can mean only one thing:

SUI fans purchased all of the single game tickets for the ISU game so that ISU fans can use them.

Wow.

That is unbelievably generous. No ISU fan would ever return that favor.

It is appropriate that SUI fans would gladly provide tickets to Cyclones fans since Iowa State builds it's season around the game with the Hawkeyes (or so Hawkeye fan tells us). How big of them. It's downright giant.

So- where's mine? Something between the 30's would be nice.

Peterclone

Once JV, Always JV

So Billy Packer was let go. That call was only 20-odd years too late.

Packer was always a shill for the power teams from power conferences, and unlike most of the sports press seemed to hate the underdog.

Somewhere I have a VHS of the '86 ISU upset of Meeeshigan where Billy dropped his infamous "It's the Varsity vs. the JV" when ISU fell behind in the first half. He sounds downright mad when ISU wins in the end.

I'm sure Billy won't stay out of work for long, there's a lot of hoops on the Telly each winter. He would be a nice hire for ESPN or Fox Sports.

I hope the next game I witness him call he acts as if that job is in a tiny way fun. It should be.

Peterclone

Memories

A UK fan remembers a win over a scrappy ISU team in the '92 tourney.

It's always interesting to get the outsider's perspective.

I was there, and Jamal Mashburn was clearly a man among boys. The crazy part of that all-offense game was that I walked out feeling that Orr's boys did a nice job holding Mash to "only" 27 points.

I now feel very old seeing Mash doing studio analysis for ESPN.

Peterclone

Larceny? Ouch.

Love or hate Danny Mac, nobody ever accused him of grand larceny.

I've read complaints of KF's salary, but putting it in that context is really startling. More than Tressel? Tressel need KF's agent.

Don't get me wrong, KF is a solid coach, but paying a guy $500K per win each year is pretty steep, especially when few of those wins come against Silo Tech.

Here's hoping Gene goes 31-7 so we can then have the honor of overpaying him, too. It looks like fun.

Peterclone

Stepping Up

This will be cool once built, but I find it a bit odd that it's way the heck out on the edge of town.

The cynic in me says it is a perfect location. Plenty of cheap apartments around for the players to live in, as part of a "mixed use" plan they will will have shopping and food options close by, and an easy trip to Hilton for games.

And given that they facility is closer to Ankeny than campus, it will be that much easier for players to ignore their studies. Just what a hoops program with a perfect 0% graduation rate needs- further academic isolation.

If your program is going to be an academic embarrassment, at least win some dang games.

There is study hall space in this new gym, I hope. A couple hundred square feet should do, especially if it lacks windows.

Peterclone

Streaks

Wow- Does ISU really have an 11 game road losing streak? Feels like 30. Anyway, even playing ISU at home and a road game at Pitt, SUI gets the schedule punked by ESPN. I heard some on the radio state that SUI has the easiest B1011 schedule overall, and anything less than 8 wins would be a disappointment. Here's hoping for disappointment.

Really, though, ISU will have plenty of chances to end that oh-fur: in Iowa City (you know the drill- ISU's Super Bowl, SUI doesn't care), at UNLV, at Baylor (won the last trip to Waco), at CU (which Buffalo team will show up?), at KSU (Prince is on the hot seat already? Patience, folks, patience).

The crazy thing is that you can make a decent case for ISU winning more games in their white jersey's than their red ones this year. How very odd.

Peterclone

No Surprise

So the big ISU-SUI clash will be on the Big 1011 Network. It is a big drag that most people will have to scramble to see it on TV, since Mediacom still doesn't carry the thing, but I'm not surprised.

Check out the Big 1011's composite schedule for that week, and let's eliminate the TV optionis for ISU-SUI:

OSU at USC- that has ABC Prime Time written all over it. One of the best games of the year from here.
Michigan at Notre Dame- NBC, of course.
Oregon at Purdue- nice game, probably an ESPN
Wisconsin at Fresno State- ditto

I'm assuming that ABC/ESPN gets first pick most weeks, so ISU-SUI is the only decent game left of the remaining choices. The BTN probably had to make lemonade out of what they had to choose from.

The one positive- the game will be produced in full HD for those who have BTN in their HD package. A picture so clear you'll be able to smell the Hawkeye indifference!

Peterclone

Early Bad News

This probably isn't coming as a shock, but according to Keeler the
football mags are
a little down on our Cyclones.

Everybody pictures ISU in some flavor of 6th in the North. Big shock.

Then
there's the ESPN
2008 Bowl Projection:

Short version:

*Nebraska: Insight
*Mizzou: Holiday
*CU: Texas
*KU: Alamo

OU: Fiesta
Tech: Sugar
Texas: Cotton
*a$m: Sun
*OSU: Indy


*Kent State: Congressional
*SUI: Motor City

That's 8 projected bowl teams on the schedule. At least we miss the best three in the league.

My
baseline is beating all of the non-bowl teams and building from there.
(I prefer to beat every team that finishes below .500, which in the
present bowl universe is the same thing.)

SDSU, at UNLV, at Baylor and at KSU become must wins. Pick off one or two of the others and we've moved forward.

Is it August yet?

Peterclone

Early Good News

ISU is +8 against SDSU.

It's a start.

Peterclone

Big Shock

Jason just couldn't keep his nose clean.

And now he's done.

Big shock, and what a waste. Who in his life failed to instill the importance of just following the rules?

Peterclone

You're Always Hardest On Those You Love

Ron drops a good one.

Scroll past the Hawkeye Marching Band photo at the top of the page.

Nice one, Ron. That's why I read you.

Peterclone

Doldrums

What does a college football fan do during the summer? Besides loading in the actual names of every player on every team into your copy of NCAA '09 (get a life- really) you can look ahead to the great potential matchups- and the those that look like dogs in June.

ISU has a couple in the dog category, unfortunately.

We begin with The Sporting News, which puts ISU ninth in the B12 in difficulty of noncon schedule. Given ISU's football struggles, anything above middle of the pack would be stupid. I consider two BCS road games equals out the home game against SD State. I'll be pleased if we leave September at 3-1, which will be a big step up from '07 in itself.

On the flip side, SUI's noncon is ranked #8 in the 1011. I wonder if our trip to Iowa City or SUI's trip to Pitt is considered the tougher test?

Finally, a random shot from a Georgia fan. While the ISU-SUI tilt is the 8th best noncon game on the B12 slate, the rest of our early games are derided as cupcakes, especially the SDSU game.

My only reply would be that you gotta walk before you can run, especially in football.

I would have to agree with the writer's guess that the 12th game has resulted in more cupcake games than interesting inter-regional matchups. Nice paydays for the mid-majors and D-AA teams, and some nice memories too. Right UNI? Right Appilachian State?

Peterclone

Not A Fan? Hardly

There are two constants in Ron Maly's blog: Digs at Iowa State, especially football (written from a condescending "Football was invented in Iowa City" altitude), and claiming not to be a fan of SUI.

But
when you read a nugget
like this:

"I was more than excited when I packed up my ‘67 Chevy and headed to Iowa City in August of 1974 to be a Hawkeye football manager.

I started following Iowa football since 1963 when I was in fourth grade, and from that time on wanted to be a Hawkeye."

Hard to claim journalistic integrity after an upbringing like that. Considering how many game Ron watches for free from the pressbox as a kind of Lifetime Achievement Award, his "I was impartial towards ISU" shtick has all the validity of Barry Bonds' "Doesn't every one's shoe size jump four sizes in their 30's?" act.

The whole post wallows in classic "Valient Hawks Fight The Good Fight" dreck. Grab a stiff drink before wading in.

Peterclone

Gotta Fix This

Only two games this year between href="http://blogs.columbiatribune.com/football/2008/05/big_12_summer_countdown_redux.html">the
B12 and the Big1011:

Mizzou-Illinois
ISU-SUI

I thought the 12 game schedule was going to increase the number of games between Big Time Football Schools, not decrease it.

Peterclone

Agreement

This writer agrees with us: CU bothced the end of the game.

Video to prove it, and a nice shout of to John and Eric's play calling.

Cheaters.

Peterclone

#86

That's where the NY Times thinks
we start the year at.

I can't argue with that. Lots to prove, like being worthy of uni's that mimic USC.

Those are big black shoes to fill.

Peterclone

Damned If They Do...

You know SUI didn't want to renew the series with ISU, but the fallout of not renewing would be worse than the fallout from each of their upset losses to Silo Tech.

Damn Legislators sticking their nose into football! They should stick to things they know, like declaring Official Bellevue Fried Carp Day and things like that.

See you in September, boys. I know you won't take ISU seriously this year, either, but a bowl trip could be riding on it.

Peterclone

Odd Coaching Poll

I'm not sure what to make of this.

I can't rank Gene very high after one year, just because it's too early. Behind Sherman at a$m is fine, too- Sherm's got about 90 or so more games under his belt than Gene, and they were in the NFL.

He does come in ahead of Price at KSU, though. Ouch!

A grade of C- isn't too out of line considering how the year started, either. The wisdom of crowds.

The real slap? Whoever is coach at Michigan State, at 24-22 in his career, came in ahead of Ferentz. Double Ouch!

I guess those 6-6 finishes are taking some of the shine off his rep.

Peterclone

Advice

This comes straight from the "Hypocritical Do-As-I-Say-Not-As-I-Did Pieces Of Advice" File, but Lucca should stay out of the bars for a few years.

This coming from someone who wasted too much of his college carrer at Cy's Roost, both before and after his 21st birthday (I think the statute of limitatioins ran out a while ago on that crime), but then again I wasn't on a D1 basketball scholarship, and thousands of my fellow students weren't chanting my name at games, either.

I know it's a drag, and it makes hooking up a bit more of a challenge, but drink at home until you are legal. It will be worth it in the long run.

Peterclone

Hoop Talk

I went and heard Paul Shirley talk at the Des Moines library last week, and what you read on the printed page is exactly what you get in person: dark, sarcastic, self-depricating, and slightly offensive in a too-honest-kind-of-way. Paul noted at the start that looking out at the room he could tell half the crowd of 200 were avid readers, and the other half were avid sports fans. Each group got something worth coming for.

Paul certainly knows which of his bits will get the big laughs, and he sets those lines up like a seasoned pro, but he is humorous throughout his talks. He just points out the absurdity that seems to permeate his basketball life.

The most surprising thing is his dissolutionment with what most of us civlians build up: Sports, Fame, Money, Success. He has been behind the cutain too much, has seen too many of the inner workings of professional basketball, and it has turned hoops into a job. A very lucrative job, Paul admits, but he has no interest in returning to the NBA, for instance. I suppose he is the type who prefers to play every day in Europe than ride the bench for a bigger paycheck in the NBA.

Buy the book. It is an entertaining an illuminating read.

End of commercial.

Peterclone

A Great Cheap Shot

Marty Tirell:

"The University of Iowa is having trouble finding a TV network willing to air the Iowa/Iowa State game. Given their legal troubles, perhaps Court TV would be interested."

Ka-Zow.

If you are going to make a cheap shot, go all the way, baby.

Peterclone

The Smell Of A Winner

Cyclone Football will never be taken seriously until it mixes in a little of this.

The cause and effect is direct, isn't it? OU wins, it gets in trouble, it wins some more, it gets in trouble again, lather, rinse, repeat.

I mean, the only school I can recall losing AND getting in trouble for cheating is, uhm, well, never mind.

Peterclone

Coach Hornacek?

Does Jeff Hornacek have a future as an NBA coach?

His resume suggests potential. He admits that he didn't spend 12 years in the NBA because of atheltic prowess, but by understanding the game. That is exactly the kind of player who makes a good coach- someone who had to think his way to success, not just be the best guy on the floor.

Longer article here.

Not bad for a walk-on.

Peterclone

Thoughts On Wes

-Keith Murphy has many thoughts on the situation, all of them valid.

-Rick Brown has two different posts with similar themes: Shooting holes in Wes' story. One here, the other here.

-Ron Maly thinks Wes' AAU coach is involved.

Me? I hope Wes doesn't regret this six months from now. The greener grass is often just an optical illusion.

Peterclone

Quad Countdown-Kent

I had no idea how historically bad Kent State is- even worse than our beloved Cyclones.

The NY Times countdown has them at #99.

The most painful nugget: KSU's win in Ames was their first over a BCS team since '87. Ouch, ouch, ouch.

On the plus side, we'll be able to use the Golden Flashes return to Ames as a yardstick to see if our team has improved at all over the last 12 months.

Peterclone

Clarification

Note to Greg and staff:

The goal of running players off is to
rid yourself of players you don't think can contribute to your team.

Just checking.

Peterclone

FB forecast Pt. 2

A looong writeup at the KSU rivals site.

Big suprise: it's downbeat.

Peterclone

FB forecast Pt. 1

The NY Times Sports Blog "The Quad" is counting up (?) their ranking of every BCS team from bottom to top.

Baylor is #112.

Here's hoping, despite being listed as Baylor's best shot at a B12 win this year, we don't see ISU in this poll for several weeks.

Peterclone

Dreams

Somebody thinks we're going to have a spike in interest in football tickets one of these days.

Of course, only Nebraska and SUI fans will be buying them, right?

Peterclone

Front Page

How this wasn't front page, above the fold of the Sunday DSM Rag, I'll never know:

A member of the Iowa State University football coaching staff was arrested after allegedly breaking into a car impound lot and trying to drive his car out through the steel gate.

Floyd Howard White, 30, of 3709 Tripp St., was arrested Friday morning and charged with OWI first offense and criminal trespassing causing damage of over $200, both serious misdemeanors.

I sometimes joke that if football players were smart, they wouldn't be football players. I see the joke can also apply to football coaches.

I expect a full-blown media circus to spin up any moment now. It beats doing hard journalism, especially on a Sunday.

Peterclone