Quick Burial

One loss to SUI and Maly starts throwing dirt on Rhodes' grave.

I suspect he gave KF more than two games before calling for his head. Just to jog your memory, KF endured losses of 46, 38, 35, 30, 24, 16, 7, 4 and 2 on the way to going 1-10 his first year. A 7 point loss to ISU was one of the few interesting games all season. But why brings facts into the conversation?

He also drops all the tired "ISU stinks" material he has been sitting on.

But he was always neutral when he was working. Uh huh.

Peter

Surprising

Who would have thought that the Chizik staff actually set the expectations for the 2009 SUI game too high?

Peter

Self Esteem

It's probably best that SUI won this year. WHile we Cyclones are resilient folk, and don't tie our self-esteem to the results of a football game.

Yet another loss in Ames would have really made Gobla fan question themselves, and that could have gone in bad directions.

It is nice that they care about their game with us. That was absent from the series for too long.

Peter

Reality

Our Cyclones need to realize the whole "Beat-SUI-without-scoring-a-TD" is a once in a lifetime strategy, not the game plan for every year.

Peter

Future

There is some good news on the horizon- winnable games.

This week's opponenet, Kent State, lost 34-7 at Boston College.
Army lost at home to Duke 35-19.
K-State lost on the road to LA-Lafayette.
Okie State is still good, but mortal.
CU woke up in the second half but still lost big to Toledo. They have a lot of work to do to win their predicted 10 games.

While the loss to SUI impressed nobody, there are opportunities ahead.

Peter

Trailing

After the first weekend, ISU trails in The Contest ISU Should Never Win (aka the Cy-Hawk Series) 3-2. Volleyball won as expected so the weekend wasn't a total wash.

As the team with 'Home Field" has won each of the Series, ISU will now try to win it despite losing in football.

Since they spend half as much on sports as SUI, that will be a tough trick.

Peter

Consistency

Saturday's 35-3 thumping to the Goblas was actually pretty simple: One team looked like it was installing new schemes on both sides of the ball, and the other team looked like it hadn't changed anything in a decade.

One team also looked like it spends twice what the other does.

It would have been nice to keep the game close long enough for SUI to get that case of Tight Helmet they seem to get on the road, but so it goes. Our Cyclones are not going to be a miracle turnaround, but a long term project. We're going to have to keep that in perspective.

I look forward to the day when ISU can deliver a similar payback.

Peter

Deep Thought

If SUI loses to the Cyclones and doesn't roll out a lame excuse ("We were using a new flavor of Gatorade, and it threw off our timing on screen plays") did ISU actually win?

Peter

Marketing

Can someone please give the ISU-SUI game a proper name and trophy?

This is the ugliest thing ever:



It's not very creative, but how about The Governor's Cup?

The Corn Cup? The Pork Bowl? World's Largest Kegger? Something!

Peter

Deep Thought

ISU seldom beats SUI, but SUI often loses to ISU.

Peter

Mistakes

For a guy who blogs about every typo in the DM Register, Maly should pay more attention to mistakes in his blog.

In repeating stories about ISU-SUI from George Wine, he includes several mistakes:

By the mid-1970s, however, political pressure grew and a four-year series of football games was contracted with Iowa State.

That's putting it mildly. When the Legislature is threatening the Regents, you have serious pressure at hand.

The first four games were played at Kinnick Stadium, but when Iowa State built a new stadium in the early ‘80s the series has been home-and-home.

The stadium now known as Jack Trice opened in 1974, three years before the series was renewed. Implying that ISU didn't have decent facilities is nice spin, but wrong again.

Then Ron writes:

We know Donnie Duncan, a former Iowa State coach, placed so much emphasis on the game against Iowa that his teams collapsed at midseason, and we know Ferentz has had trouble winning in Ames.

This is a convenient distortion. I've talked to a few players from the Duncan era, and the annual collapse resulted from a lack of off-season conditioning and bad team chemistry caused by coaches playing favorites- stars didn't have to practice or work out, scrubs did. The results showed up each November. The fact the ISU game was played in September helped cement the falsehood.

Watching UNI come within a point of Iowa sure beats watching the Hawkeyes have their way with the Ball States and Maines of the world.

Translation: We have to play home games against teams we don't care about. Since we didn't show up and still won, it was fun.

Peter

Wednesday Linkfest

A Humorous B12 Powerranking. The good news- we aren't 12th!

Sagarin (I know, heavily weighted towards last year until October) has us #78, one ahead of #79 CU. SUI is #36.

The DM Register has scads of photos you might want to look at. Stick to the ones from before '83 and after '97. Of course, everything is for sale.

KF claims the ISU game is omportant to him. SUI fans continue to question that.

All kinds of Gobla hilarity here. Stanzi wins the Heisman in '10? 6 TDs vs. ISU Saturday?

ISU fans are worryworts in comparison.

That's enough for today.

Peter

Dog

As usual, the Goblas are favored Saturday. This year it is 6.5.

Given past history, you gotta take the underdog. You can probably get that obnoxious guy in your office to give you 10 or 14 points to boot. They can't help it- their team is infallible.

Peter

Problem

A result like this in the opener is going to make it tough for Hawkins to win his promised 10 games this year.

When you opponent gets the winning score in the first quarter, you've got problems.

Hopefully they will be playing out the string by the time the come to Ames.

Update: It gets worse. Kiszla of the Denver Post ravages Hawkins, both of them.

CU was on the short end in rushing: 168-29

Buff fans roundly booed their team at halftime, down 20-3.

CU was a 10.5 point favorite.

Money quote:

Well, after four lousy quarters, the Buffaloes are already 0-1 and down to 11 chances to meet their coach's expectations, with a rugged schedule including games against West Virginia, Texas, Kansas, Oklahoma State and Nebrask

Ouch.


Peter

Dark Side Week

It's best that UNI lost to UNI- had UNI beaten a ranked SUI team in Iowa City, the embarrassment would have caused SUI to cancel the remaining series and to refuse to play UNI for the next 40 years.

As a friend posted, UNI should be ranked #22 16/17th.

Clearly, SUI was looking ahead- to Arizona in two weeks. The first to dates on their schedules were just scrimmages, right?

I'm not sure that I have seen a program whose effort swings more than the Goblas. Drop an undefeated Penn State? Done. Lose 3 of 4 to Northwestern? Done that too. Push Ohio State as far as they can go? Always capable. Lose at home to Indiana? Got that.

Which brings us to this week. Saturday's outcome depends on whether our lowly Cyclones are worthy of a quality effort out of the Goblas. Certainly this would be a good chance for them to make a "statement" now that the national press is dogging them as pretenders. (One ESPN voice said they "slept walked" through the whole game) On the other hand, what kind of statement can they make against Iowa State? If they win by 40, so what?

I expect ISU to get a solid effort out of SUI, but it still won't be what they would deliver to a real program. In their heads, they should always beat ISU, so the effort will never be 100%. Perhaps we'll see 85%.

The mental advantage clearly swings to the home team. Whatever doubt they might have had going in has now evaporated, as they can see on tape that SUI is fallible. The questions are in the black and gold camp. How good are we? We usually struggle in our white jerseys, especially in Ames. Mentally the season has already begun to unravel. ISU only lost to UNI in the years they were terrible- now, a team that is a darkhorse for the Big 1011 title almost got beat. How can that be?

The pressure is all on the SUI sideline, too. Loose this and the fan base goes nuts- every game on the schedule is now in question. The goal becomes another second tier bowl trip, not the National Championship they deserve. That's not the kind of return a $40 Million investment is supposed to bring.

At least Gobla fans care about our game. That's something.

Peter

Wrapup

Mark has a nice wrapup of Thursday's win over NDSU.

I especially agree with his list of positives.

Let's be honest- if we are going to have to suffer through 7 or 8 losses, you at least want the offense to score some points for the entertainment value.

Peter

One

First off, we must celebrate this win, I-AA school or not. It has been way too long, dang it.

Second, I am pleased the offense converted when it got in the Red Zone. That alone would have won 3 more games last year.

Third, the defense needs to improve, but they did some good things when the Bison got in the Red Zone- a forced fumble and a hold for a field goal is nothing to sneeze at after '08.

Key stat- NDSU had 8 drives of 21 yards or less. Nice. The four NDSU drives of 25+: 2 TD, a FG and an INT. You limit teams to 3 scoring chances and you will win some games.

The radio guys were very complimentary about the Bison. Methinks they are better than 6-6 as some from up north are predicting.

Now a few extra days to prep for some team from out east. More on that later.

For now, another drink! Good job, boys!

Peter

Random Thoughts on Season Eve

- The new ISU staff has a lot of leeway against NDSU. Defensive failures can be blamed on blown assignments rather than bad schemes. Offensive mistakes will be chalked up as opening night jitters, not part of the playbook that needs review. Nice luxury to have, if only for one week.

- It wouldn't surprise me is H1N1 plays a role in an ISU game this fall. It would only take a few key players sitting out to change the talent dynamic of a given game. Hopefully it works in ISU's favor- we're due a break like that.

- SUI shouldn't worry about losing their starting RB. They should worry about keeping Stanzi upright and healthy; there is a much bigger drop off at QB. Besides, I suspect their OL is stout enough that it won't matter who carries the ball, they'll get 1000 yeards without much effort.

Peter

Aggressive Scheduling

Longtime readers- both of you- know that I'm a long time fan of aggressive scheduling. I would rather go after someone good a be battle hardened than blow out the lesser and not learn anything, assuming you have the horses to do it.

It appears KJ has the same philosophy in wrestling schedules.

Bravo. I hope the boys wrestle each match like they are there to win, not to get high scores from the Hungarian judge who appreciates their technical merit. There are no style points.

Peter

Dan the Villain?

I guess the 2002 game still leaves a mark.

Peter

Influence

I've always thought that a sign of a healthy wrestling program is having a few alumni around who are training for Olympic and World-level tournaments to help influence the effort and teaching of the college kids.

Having a couple of Paulsons in the room is a good thing.

Peter

Advantage

In business school the talk about something called competitive advantage. It means figuring out what your strengths are vs. your competitor's weaknesses and exploiting both.

Which brings us to the spread offense.

I agree that its a good idea, as the current Cyclone team isn't going to have much success lining up and trying to overpower anyone. Someday, maybe, but not now.

Peter

Red Crows?

Really?

That's all the better you can do?

At least Goblas took a tiny bit of thought.

A 42-10 prediction? I'm not surprised.

Peter

Back Handed Compliments

Rock M Nation has some rather nice compliments in a "for a 2-10 team they weren't that bad" kind of way.

Peter

Ranking the Games

I think that going down the schedule and assigning a w/l to each one is too much of a crapshoot, so I prefer to rank the games from most likely to be a win to the least.

North Dakota State
Army
at Kent State
Colorado
Baylor
at Kansas State (KC)
Iowa
at Kansas
at a$m
at Mizzou
at Nebraska
Okie State

I put my over/under at 4.

It seemed the biggest problem with the previous staff was game planning 'the perfect scheme' instead of the scheme your players could pull off. I've had more than one commentator use the a$m game as an example of that issue. Since the Rhodes staff seems to understand what it means to coach the underdog, we should be at least 2 games better than '08 based on that alone.

A few random thoughts about each game.

I expect NDSU to be close and sometimes heartburn-inducing. The Bison will score on at least one of the following: Pick 6 INT, totally blown pass coverage on an otherwise ordinary play, or a breakdown in special teams leading to a punt or KO return for 6. Anytime you switch to a new system there are bound to be breakdowns.

Army has moved a 6'10" lineman to tight end. Watching the chess match of that matchup will be worth the ticket. We will all remember how effective the triple option can be when run properly (i.e. Nebraska in the 90's), and what a failure it was under Walden.

If the program has improved at all the fact that this is a roadie shouldn't matter. It did matter on the last road trip to a MAC school, a choke job at Toledo.

We've matched up well against the Buffs the last two years and last two in Ames, so why not?

The effort against Baylor cannot be as bad as last year.

Too many unknowns about either ISU or KSU to have much confidence in predicting a win. Playing at Arrowhead lowers our odds.

As usual, ISU will not win this game- the question will be if Iowa loses it. The Best Program To Never Win A National Championship* has a funny knack of getting a case of tight helmet when they leave Johnson County.

KU will play the whole game this year.

a$m has way too much raw talent to lose this one at home. I think.

The most talented Mizzou team ever lost 4 games last year, and lost a bunch of talent. Exactly how much is TBA.

You don't lose 14 in a row in Lincoln by accident. ISU's chance to break that streak may have closed.

OSU could be the #3 team in the B12 South and #5 in the NCAA. Scary good.

Peter

*According to Iowa fan.

Root For and Against

To riff on this topic, the CFB teams I root for other than ISU:

Va Tech. I've been impressed with how Beamer built a program from nothing with a hard-nosed, lunch pail philosophy. Still too many programs downplay the difference good special teams can make. Serious academic school.

Washington State. Perennial underdog in-state and in-conference.

Arizona State. Great mascot and colors. Warm weather. Another little brother.

Okie State (seeing a trend?) will always play in a Sooner Shadow.

Wisconsin. Love the crowd enthusiasm and The Fifth Quarter. Takes their Marching Band seriously.

Against:

Texas- like the Yankees I get a laugh every time The Team With The Most Talent fails.

Notre Dame- I get a laugh every time the school with it's own TV network fails, which is often lately.

Florida State- can't stand the tomahawk chop song. Ugh.

Oregon- for crimes against football fashion.

Kansas- In my universe, a school can be good in either hoops or football, not both. Choose.

Peter

Random Bits

Summary from CR Gazette. Money quote: "This is an underdog offense."

Also from the Gazette: notes about the depth chart.

ESPN compares ISU to a$m for being worse off after firing long-time coaches.

ISU might be an upset victim at Kent State.

Strong points from ESPN.

The Jack is not very popular.

The fate of SUI's season may be sealed in September.

A nice look at the B12 North.

That's enough for tonight.

Peter

This Explains A Lot

Anyone who wonders why ISU struggles in sports only has to look at this list.

Revenue equals winning, which equals revenue. It's that simple.

Peter

Big Surprise

For the third year in a row, ISU has been picked to finish last in the North.

Only one way to change perceptions like that: Win some games.

Peter

Something New

ISU Volleyball begins the season ranked #11.

Mentally, I'm not used to the thought of good volleyball. But like the idea of good WBB, I'll get used to it.

Peter

Media Days

Beaton has a nice won/loss for the league,

....and he puts a wrap on Big 12 Media Days.  The win over/under is pretty fair.

Go read both.

Peter

Big Surprise

ESPN thinks the visit by the Goblas will be tough for ISU to win.

Everybody thought the same two years ago. And four years ago.

It's not our fault that Kirk's boys get a case of Tight Helmet when they go on the road.

Peter

Low Bar

If we manage to win in College Station, maybe we get Sherm fired.

I suspect hanging a loss on any B12 opponent will give the other fan base heartburn this year. That's part of the fun of being the perennial underdog.

Peter

Fashion

Why must teams try to mimic the fashion style of the 70's Pirates?

The fashion trend in football is to have enough combinations of helmets, pants and jerseys to only wear the same combo once or twice a season has struck Baylor.

While pretty tame, long time readers know that I hate schools that have two colors in their usual combo (say, cardinal and gold) who use a bunch of white instead (CU, we're looking at you.) Too bad Baylor is drifting in the same direction.

The all gold number- helmet, jersey, pants- now that's fugly.

I hope our Cyclones can stick with what they have- it's the best uniform they've had in years, if ever.

Hat tip: Wizard of Odds.

Peter

No-Shows

SUI fans are so confident they will beat ISU this year they returned 1200 tickets from their allotment to the game.

Now that's confidence in the outcome.

Those 1200 tickets are being used as the anchor for a 3 game mini- pack.

Peterclone

Brother, Do You Need A Wrestling Writer?

The Des Moines Register has laid off Dan McCool. Idiots.

For most sports writers the wrestling beat would be the equivalent to the sports page dog house. Dan really liked covering wrestling, and now can probably do so full-time as a freelancer.

It's reassuring that doing top-shelf work means little when the "variable costs" need trimming.

Peter

Priorities

As a fan of college football, this situation really misses the point.

Just come right out and say it: we want a pro atmosphere, not a college one.

The point about Thomas is spot on, too. Nice call, Mike.

Peter

Coaching

CC has a nice writeup of Brackin's trip to the World University Games, and I think one part of this trip can't be overlooked.

The team is coached by Bo Ryan, whose style of play Craig should be somewhat familiar with. Hopefully he picks up some skills that will improve his game this winter.

Go Craig!

Peter

confidence

Bill must have some confidence there isn't a talent drop off if he's scheduling the likes of Duke. (cue applause)

Peter


update: So it appears it's the laddies who get Duke, not the ladies.

Good thing there are some other winnable games in that trip.

Peter

Extension

JP got an extension- and the local press is hoping for controversy.

It was a 2 year extension, enough time to see if Rhodes can get things going.

nothing to see here, folks. Move along.

Peter

Rhodes Keeps Saying The Right Things

Coach Rhodes just can't stop saying good stuff.

The focus on every high school in Iowa can't be understated. That's where the core of the program has been and always will be.

My favorite quote:

"In recruiting it's not the players that you don't get that hurt you. I can lose five guys to Nebraska and it doesn't matter as long as I get five guys that are as good or can replace those guys," he said. "It's those five guys that I beat Missouri or Kansas on who can't play that destroy a program."

Find guys who can play. Period.

Peter

Penalties

In light of what has gone down at 'Bama, why would a school not cheat?

Oh, wait. That's from the "It's-OK-If-You-Are-A-Traditional-Power" page of the NCAA manual.

A school like ISU pulls something like that, and they lose 10 schollies or similar.


hat tip- Wiz of Odds

Peter

Courage In Scheduling

Bravo to KU for adding some meat in 2010.

The Fighting Manginos must think they can sustain this winning thing.

Here's hoping more schools follow suit.

Peter

Floyd Days

Ron Maly actually has some nice things to say about ISU's past, and has a few interesting bits from that time period.

Peter

Cost Of Entry

So- the cost of steering a 4 Star stud to your team is only $1000?

By not printing press guides we should be able to 'recruit' about 12 studs.

Get busy, folks!

Peter

Chizik Cheating?

I'm glad Gene "Super Genius" didn't pull anything like this on his stopover in Ames.

Peter

Steal This Idea

I've got to like this kind of outside the box thinking.

Now, if one is willing to go on the road for a big payday, why not play somebody you don't normally see?

Regardless, I wonder if Texas or OU would bite at writing a big check to ISU for an extra home game some year they don't appear on the schedule?

Peter

Fan Maps

Fun mapping project.

Sign up, put in your data, give our Cyclones some love.

Peter

Hoops Coaches Rankings

Can't argue with this, except I would have mentioned the talent that has transferred out.

Getting kids to come hasn't been the problem.



Peter

Players

Players first.

People often fall in love with the raw data of a player- 40 time, bench press, arm strength of QB's- and they discount whether the kid can play football and make plays.

Sage Rosenfels's raw data was so bad that his only DI schollie was from ISU, who took the time to look at the tape and see a kid who managed the game well. Funny, he did the same thing in Ames and the NFL. Amazing.

VA Tech made the jump to the Top 10 with blue collar, lunchpail players who weren't good enough for other schools, yet excelled for the Hokies because they could play the game.

That's a good model to follow.

Peter

The Homecoming Metric

We will know ISU football has escaped doormat status when schools stop scheduling our Cyclones for Homecoming.

KU has ISU for HC this fall.

We'll see if Nebraska and a$m choose the Cyclones, too.

Peter

Money Troubles In Manhattan

I didn't realize how expensive athletics at K State had become.

Jamie looks like a miser in comparison. Given the return on KSU's "investment", I'll take the miser.

Peter

Playoff

A college football playoff that would work, which ensures the Presidents will never agree to it.

Hat Tip: Wiz of Odds

Peter

Big 12 Network?

It's being discussed.

While anything would be better than the B12's current TV deal, is the TV universe ready for the ISU-Nebraska-Mizzou track triangular?

It's all about the Benjamins. The Big Ten Network reports stunning income for a network with hardly any ads outside of football braodcasts. Even MBB broadcasts were half promos for the league, the network and the schools.

Hat Tip: Wiz of Odds

Peter

Sunshine?

Hlas sees sunshine in the ISU men's program. That would be a nice change.

Chuck sees Lucca as helping Brackins, but not as much as Brackins helps Lucca. I concur.

Barring horrendous injuries, they've got to be better. Perhaps even good enough to beat the Goblas.

Peter

Another Paul Profile

The more I read things like this, the more I think we got the right guy for the moment.

Peter

We're #112!

I suppose this ranking is no surprise, but it still hurts to be ranked 38 slots lower than this time last year.

The good news is that it won't take many wins to climb back up 40 or 50 spots to being merely lousy.

I appreciate the effort taken in the profile, as it would be easy to write a couple of token paragraphs and move on, but the Times gives us a fair shake. The only obvious errors I found was in the caption of the photo at the top: that game at Kansas was in '07, not Ames in '08. Darn interns.

I did enjoy the digs at Chizik for both their accuracy and pointedness.

Peter

The Return of Lucca

I have to agree with Keeler that another season is probably the best plan for Lucca, just as another season in Ames is probably the best plan for Craig.

Their abilities aside, just having essentially the same team roll out in October that finished up in March will be a huge step forward, and will hopefully will pay dividends. Experience matters.

Peter

Tisdale

The news of the passing of Wayman Tisdale is sad because Wayman was not only young- 44- but a genuinely decent man.

I met Tisdale while working on a video project for a jazz music website, back when web video was very cutting edge. Wayman was at the end of his NBA career and was ramping up his music career full-time. We did an interview in his modest but top-shelf home recording studio in his nice but not over-the-top home in the Phoenix suburbs.

I haven't seen the tape since '96, but I recall him being humble, gracious, friendly, and saying repeatedly that he was just having fun, whether on the basketball court or in the recording studio. He let us invade his home for far too long, and played along with whatever we asked. He didn't have to- and that was the point.

Follow the link above- it is a nice summary of his career.

So it goes.

Peter

Gene: Chicken

He allegedly wouldn't start his Auburn career against UCLA in Atlanta.

At least he talks a good game.

Peter

Recruiting

Recruiting rankings are poor indicators of NFL potential.

hat tip: Wiz of Odds

Peter

Schedule Embarrassment

The Wiz of Odds brings up some embarrassing scheduling stats.

If anyone should be given a pass its our Cyclones. We gotta walk against North Dakota State before we can run with the likes Ohio State.

But UT and a$m gotta schedule BCS teams. At least ISU plays SUI every year.

Peter

Money

I hope the bowl trip was worth it.

I wonder which sport BSU will cut to finance their football "success"?

hat tip: Wiz of Odds

Peter

Half Full

I would take this.

A break or two and a healthy OL and a bowl isn't ridiculous.

Peter

Chuck on KJ

It's nice to read the thoughts of someone who has been around more than 5 minutes.

That sounds like is was quite the scene. I haven't been able to find it online.

Peter

Jackson

The school of coaching hires says you alternate personalities with each new coach, and ISU has with the hiring of Kevin Jackson. KJ is the outgoing rah-rah type that Cael wasn't, and for a team that has the resume to win a NC next year, it may be what is needed to push ISU over the top.

In one of the articles I read there was a small crack into criticisms of the Cael regime. One of KJ's points of emphasis would be to introduce himself to every wrestling program int he state of Iowa. Translation: The impression among state coaches was that Cael favored out-of-state over in-state, and KJ should try to change that.

Gene had open disdain for local talent, assuming there were only one or two DI players per year, so why bother. We saw how that worked out.

Hopefully KJ can build enough relationships to slow the flow of wrestling talent to IC.

Jackson is also taking the right tone with the press. It would have been easy to throw down the gauntlet on day one, but he knows that the Brands boys don't need any firing up. They are overcranked as it is.

Peter

Lucca Going?

The opinion in Germany is no.

Like Brackins, I hope he stays, but I don't blame him for leaving. I understand finding oneself ina situation that's different than what was sold to you.

Peter

He Cares So Little He Devoted An Entire Blog To It

For a guy who doesn't care about Lucca Steiger, he sure devotes a lot of electrons to him.

The "Brackins will take all of the shots" dig was a nice backhand job- it will be agony watching a first team B12 player score 25+ a night. How will we bear it?

That was right up there with Hayden Fry's dig on an ISU QB back in the 80's: "He's a great player. We thought so much of him coming out of HS we asked him to walk-on."

Pardon, Ron, your bias is showing.

Peter

Brackins Review

Hlas finds some nice NBA quotes about Craig.

Peter

Nutty Attendance

I guess I'm not a true fan as I've never attended a Sprig Game. Since I don't memorize the three deeps or look at grainy youTube video of offensive guards who are sophomores at Waving Grain High in west somewhere, I just don't get the value of a scrimmage other than it's kinda like football that counts.

Anyway, Hlas has a nice roundup of various Spring Football bits, including the attendance at various schools.

The snarky would note that more folks showed up for Auburn's spring scrimmage than often show up for games that count in Ames, but it's also fair to assume that a 5-19 start will be greeting by something other than the slight grumblings Gene might have heard in Ames, too. So it goes in the bigtime.

BTW- Hat tip to any DI school willing to schedule quality noncon opponents. If ISU had a revenue stream other than football I would be the first to applaud taking an "Anyone, Anywhere, Anytime" attitude to road games. Play a power on the road every year, and once you start beating a few you will know you have arrived as a program. That's how Bowden did it at FSU.

Peter

Discount?

Tickets to the bi-annual Gobla choke job will only be $60, $5 less than last year.

While down from the $90 ISU charged for the stunning TD-Free win over the 20 point favorite Goblas in 2007, it will still be a steep price to pay for the black and gold crowd. Charging visiting fans more that $25 to watch their 27-point-favorites lose to a glorified community college is just rubbing it in.

It's hardly our fault that Kirk's boys get a case of tight helmet at Trice. It's not like ISU has ever beaten SUI- the Goblas just find a way to lose.

Peter

Perspective

Ron "I'm Not An Iowa Fan" Maly takes a few more swipes at ISU at the end of a surprisingly interesting wrestling post.

10 arrests for drunk and disorderly in Ames means it's VEISHEA. 10 arrests for D&D in Iowa City means it's Thursday. Pot, meet kettle.

Plus, the police called Walden, not Majors, in '88.

Pretty sloppy for a guy who posts about every grammatical error in the daily paper.

Peter

Berkley, Again

It's another trip to Berkley for our Clones, this time the men.

I assume they will use the same travel arrangements, right down to the same room service orders, that BF's crew used so successfully a month ago.

Cal comes to Ames in 2010, making this a home-and-home.

Peter

Sage Bio

A nice background piece on Sage.

Not bad for a kid with only one DI scholarship offer. Legend has it he wasn't on ISU's radar until a season ticket holder called up Dan and pitched him. Nice work out of that guy.

Peter

Rivalry

Hlas explores the blooming Sanderson-Brands rivalry.

I fully expect Brands to try to crush Cael's boys just as he did each year against ISU. His team seemed ready to go in December, where Cael and crew started slow and came on as the season progressed.

I hope he does well, and I think he will. In three years he pushed ISU up a couple of notches.

An interesting nugget: 12 2009 All-Americans were PA natives. 2 were IA natives. That's how deep the HS talent is. Lock up the borders and things will get interesting.

Peter

Advice

The Fauxhawk is gone, but the rest of Craig Brackins is staying.

The odds of Greg's group being worth watching next winter just went way, way up.

It sounds like conversations with Mike Taylor opened Craig's eyes to what life in the NBA is like. If he improves as much as he did from Freshman to Sophmore again this summer, watch out. Any scoring help from the other 11 and things could get interesting.

Peter

Bitter

Ever wonder why Cyclone Nation is sometimes a bitter, when-will-the-other-shoe-drop crowd?

This should answer some questions.

Its a wonder we haven't all gone shower rod. That's a lifetime of disappointment in a single decade. I hope a review of the next decade will be better.

The next time Iowa fan whines about their tough lot in life, slap then with this URL.

Also- the idea of using local radio talent that people like and are decent human beings has taken far too long to take hold.

Peter

Dollars

I knew Cael was making a fair dollar more than Douglas, but I didn't realize he was the highest paid wrestling coach in the nation.

And he just got a big raise. Wow.

The biggest thing I learned following Cael around in '01 and '02 was that the wrestling community is really small. Everyone knows everyone, and all are connected somehow.

ISU is still viewed as a good job, if not a great one. JP won't have to reach out much- others will reach out to him.

Peter

Best Case

A run like this would make Cyclone Nation happy, and put JP on better footing.

At the end of the day, football drives the bus. Losing football make for tough going.

Peter

Gibbons

Sean Keeler had an odd exchange with Jim Gibbons.

Interesting.

Peter

Trends

Why is Penn State upgrading their wrestling program at a time that most schools are spinning theirs down?

Why would PSU make a run at a top 5 coach without thinking they had a chance at getting him?

Why would Cael view a program with no history as a better candidate for a NC than one that has finished in the top 5 the last three years?

Was Cael frustrated that three Big 5 titles earned a collective shrug?

Was the weight of being The Next Gable too heavy a crown to wear?

Would wouldn't turn down a 50% pay raise?

How many more changes before JP fixes his HR issues?

JP's got some 'splainin to do. If Rhodes can't turn the corner.....

Peter

Method

Gone: An offensive system that didn't fit the talent.

In: Schemes that fit the talent you have, not the talent you wish you had.

Gone: Hoping the offense would learn the plays as the season went along.

In: Learning one play at a time, left and right, and not moving on until you know it.

Gone: Complex read blocks.

In: Zone blocking; Step out and hit somebody.

Gone: Gene (Super Genius) Chizik and his HOF 5-win career.

In: Someone who wants to prove himself.

I like the changes so far.

Peter

Shakedown

Clearly every other business using the word "Hawkeye" or a black and gold color scheme in IC needs has been put on notice.

I assume Hawkeye Family Dental is next on the cease-and-desist list.

Peter

We're #2!

ISU is ranked #2, but I'd thought we'd be #1 for no being located in the state of Texas.

Nice yellow helmet/uni change dig, BTW.

A sober analysis of NU, too.

Peter

Gone Fishin'

Looks like whatever fishing Tim finds in LA is better than trying to fish in the dessert.

I just assume coaches have clauses that they can't jump to another league school. Apparently not.

(Shhhh- USC might be the better gig. Nobody notices when you lose, unless you are G. Raveling.)

Peter

Final WBB Thoughts

I noticed last fall that BF had rolled out a pretty aggressive schedule (at Stanford, Vandy at home), and took it as a sign that he thought his ladies might have some game in them, and they should be tested.

Looks like he was right.

I now very curious what next season's schedule will look like.

Nice run. Nobody, and I mean nobody, does more with less than Bill.

Peter

Tempered Enthusiasm

While I love what the Twister sisters have pulled off, their toughest test is next: Stanford.

The Cardinal beat ISU by 38 in December, and just beat Ohio State, the 1011 champ, by 18. They're good in a how-were-they-not-a-#1-seed kind of way. They haven't lost a game in 9 weeks- but it came on the court in Berkley, so there is good karma for us there.

If ISU earns its first trip to the Final Four, nobody can say it is a fluke.

Peter

Heart

Words fail to describe.

Peter

Bass

I wonder how Floyd finds the bass fishing in LA.

Peter

Friends

I don't think ISU fans will have much trouble cheering for a former ISU coach, with a team dressed in familiar colors, against Michigan state in the NCAA tourney.

Peter

Memories

Didn't Minnesota fire their MBB coach after an NCAA loss to ISU?

Hasn't Minney made a return visit first? Correct me if I'm wrong. I want to be wrong.

Peter

One

If the men had figured out how to win one more game along the way (Lincoln? Drake? Boulder? Austin? K-State? South Freaking Dakota State?) they would still be playing, all be it in a second-tier tournament.

I know many mock those tourneys, but when your program is struggling, every additional practice and game helps.

Just sayin'.

Peter

Confused

You average about 65 fans at your home games.

You are an 8 seed.

Yet you get to be a host site for the NCAA tourney.

Odd.

As long as the WBB tourney has crazy scheduling like that, they will always be a little bush league. I thought your team had to be a #4 or better to play on your home floor. Apparrently not.

If GT doesn't roll them like they did last season, I hope OU smacks them around a bit.

Perhaps more than 110 tickets will be sold. Maybe.

Peter

Plausible

The Twister Sisters could, plausibly, get to the Sweet 16, and then it's anybody's guess.

I have big concerns about Tennessee, though. Even in a down year they play the style of basketball that usually trips up BF's crew.

Peter

Memories

I miss Quinn Snyder.

Peter

Hilton Magic Creeping Back?

In light of how well Tech and Baylor have played in the B12 tourney, and yet lost in Ames (badly in the case of Baylor), one has to acknowledge that there is some degree of Hilton Magic still bouncing around the gym.

Teams don't play that badly by accident. Maybe it's the water.

A few more athletic bodies and I think things get interesting again.

Peter

Mizzou

The Tigers are my favorite B12 team to watch right now from a pure entertainment standpoint. About as close to the Grinnell System as you will see in DI.

Push it, push it, push it.

Peter

Peppers All Around

Baylor fans get all the Dr. Pepper they want tonight.

If I was KU fan, I would be real nervous of their first round game this week, regardless of who it is. We all know what happened the last time the #1 seed lost in the first round of the B12 tourney.

Peter

Better Math

Funny what happens when players not named Brackins and Steiger score 57 points.

But giving Tech two clean looks at the game winning shot means you aren't very good. Tech missing both means Tech isn't very good. Hilton Magic at work.

I'd make ISU a 3:1 against OSU. They gave them a good half in Stillwater. Interior D and outside shooting would mean a win.

Peter

Pledges

I'll be shocked if UNI finds 1.2 million in pledges for its baseball program because that's a lot of cash and its baseball, which only friends and family go to watch.

On the flip side, I'm surprised more schools don't do this on some level. My fuzzy memory tells me that a couple of the WBB scholarships are endowed, and I wouldn't be surprised if JP isn't working on more.

Given the ups and downs of ticket sales, a stable income (flaky stock market not withstanding) would help stabilize the budget.

Peter