Great weekend of college football, here's a look at some early Heisman candidates.
Zach Mettenberger QB LSU 1,398 Yards 13 Td 1 Int
Aaron Murray QB Georgia 1,338 Yards 11 Td 3 Int
Jordan Lynch QB Northern Illinois 869 Yards 10 Td 2 Int 439 Rush Yards 7 Rush Td
Tajh Boyd QB Clemson 994 Yards 9 Td 0 Int
Teddy Bridgewater QB Louisville 1,214 Yards 14 Td 1 Int
Johnny Manziel QB Texas A&M 1,489 Yards 14 Td 4 Int 314 Rush Yards 3 Rush Td
Jameis Winston QB Florida State 1,048 Yards 12 Td 2 Int
Melvin Gordon RB Wisconsin 68-698-7
It's looking like it will be a QB again this year winning the Heisman, but Gordon is having a huge year. Sad that he flipped from Iowa to Wisconsin, he's good.
New top 25 for the week
1-Alabama
2-Ohio State
3-Oregon
4-Clemson
5-Stanford
6-Florida State
7-Georgia
8-Louisville
9-Texas A&M
10-Miami
11-UCLA
12-Oklahoma
13-South Carolina
14-Michigan
15-Northwestern
16-LSU
17-Florida
18-Washington
19-Fresno State
20-Baylor
21-Northern Illinois
22-Texas Tech
23-Arizona State
24-Virginia Tech
25-Oklahoma State
As conference play is getting started up lets take a look at some contenders.
AAC: Louisville is the clear front runner here, but don't count out Houston, Rutgers or UCF. Louisville is my pick.
ACC: It's Clemson or Florida State in the Atlantic, I'm picking Clemson, they get the Noles at home. Coastal will be up for grabs, I think Miami will edge Virginia Tech. Clemson will beat Miami in the title game.
Big 12: Oklahoma State's loss to West Virginia shocked a lot of people, they had a pretty sweet schedule, but now they'll be playing from behind. I think Oklahoma takes it, but Baylor gives a good run. Possibly Texas Tech.
Big 10: The Legends division is wide open with Michigan, Northwestern, Nebraska, Iowa and Michigan State all capable of winning it. I don't think the Spartans have enough offense to compete, Nebraska might not have enough defense. I'll go with Michigan, they have more talent than the other teams. The Leaders division was won by Ohio State Saturday, they'll beat Michigan for the title.
Pac 12: The North division features Oregon and Stanford, two powerhouses, but also include Washington and Oregon State. Oregon State has been rolling since their first week upset by Eastern Washington. I think Oregon gets the nod here. The South will be up for grabs, too, with USC not being a part of that after firing Lane Kiffin. They might actually be better without him, but they're already 0-2 in conference play. UCLA, Arizona State and Arizona should be in contention, with UCLA winning. Oregon will knock them out in the title game.
SEC: I have Georgia running the table the rest of the year and meeting Alabama for the conference title, with the Bulldogs winning and going on to the BCS title game with Ohio State.
Mountain West: I think Fresno will take on Utah State with the Aggies winning the title game. Chuckie Keeton is one of my favorite QB's in the country.
Last week I was 8-2 in my predictions, I missed on Virginia Tech and UNLV. Pretty good slate of games this week.
UCLA at Utah: Utah has looked better than recent years, but UCLA is one of the better teams in the conference. UCLA 42 Utah 31
Washington at Stanford: Both teams come in undefeated, should be a slugfest. I think Stanford pulls it off at home. Stanford 38 Washington 27
Maryland at Florida State: Maryland is undefeated, but they haven't had the most brutal schedule. Florida State got off to a slow start last week, but ended up winning. Florida State 45 Maryland 21
Kansas State at Oklahoma State: Both teams desperately need a win if they want any shot at a conference championship. I think the Cowboys will bounce back. Ok State 35 Kansas State 27
TCU at Oklahoma: TCU looked sharp against SMU and Oklahoma beat up Notre Dame, I think Oklahoma rolls. Oklahoma 34 TCU 17
North Carolina at Virginia Tech: UNC was awful against East Carolina and Va Tech surprised me by winning at GT. VT 31 UNC 24
Georgia Tech at Miami: Miami is on a roll this year, GT coming off their first loss. Miami 34 GT 24
Illinois at Nebraska: Illinois has looked much improved and QB Nate Scheelhaase is putting up some huge numbers. He might be able to carve up the Husker defense. This is a tough one to predict, but I'm going Illinois on the upset. Illinois 31 Nebraska 28
Michigan State at Iowa: Both teams boast solid defenses thus far, but Michigan State's offense has been atrocious. Iowa has done well against the run, should be a defensive game, one big play could win this game. Iowa 17 Michigan State 13
Arizona State at Notre Dame: The Sun Devils blasted USC, putting up over 60 on the Trojans. Notre Dame suffered their second defeat of the season, will they lose again? Arizona State 34 Notre Dame 24
Ohio State at Northwestern: The Buckeyes are quite possibly the hottest team in the country right now. Northwestern has struggled with some weaker non-conference opponents, but are still 4-0. Ohio State 38 Northwestern 27
New Mexico State at New Mexico: The Lobos lost a heart-breaker against UNLV. They put up 500 yards rushing, but the defense was horrible. New Mexico State is one of the worst teams in college football. New Mexico 48 New Mexico State 27
Now lets recap Iowa's 23-7 win over Minnesota.
The Gophers were pretty cocky coming in at 4-0 and hosting the Hawkeyes in the first conference tilt of the year. Minnesota beat New Mexico State, UNLV, Western Illinois and San Jose State, nothing to get too riled up about. The Hawkeyes were coming off a huge win against Western Michigan 59-3, not the best competition, but to see the Hawkeyes play well in every aspect of the game was nice. They look much better than a year ago.
1st Quarter: The Hawkeyes started with the ball and were able to get into Minnesota territory, but ended up punting from the 39. The announcers were skeptical of the call, but Ferentz is all about the field position game. Minnesota started at their own nine and went three and out quickly. Iowa started their second possession with great field position starting at their 42. Thanks to a 19 yard run by Mark Weisman the Hawkeyes were able to get into Minnesota territory once again, but stalled out at the 31. Mike Meyer hit a 49 yarder to put the Hawks up 3-0. Minnesota could only come up with two yards on their ensuing drive going three and out once again. A nice punt by Minnesota put Iowa at their 33 to start their next drive. The Hawkeyes went three and out and again punted. The Gophers started at their 32 and their offense finally started coming to life with their first first down of the game. The quarter ended with Iowa up 3-0.
2nd Quarter: The Gophers started the quarter strong with Philip Nelson hitting Derrick Engel for a 15 yard gain to the Iowa 31. The Iowa defense came up huge the next three plays stuffing the run and Nate Meier came up with his first sack knocking Minnesota back. The Gophers punted into the end zone. Weisman got things rolling on first down with a nice 11 yard run out to the 31. On third and short, Jake Rudock hit rarely used fullback, Adam Cox, who rumbled 35 yards for a big first down in Minnesota territory. A pass interference call got the Hawkeyes down to the 8 and they were able to punch it in a few plays later on a Rudock scramble. His 5th rushing td of the season made it Iowa 10 Minnesota 0. The Gophers first play from scrimmage on the next drive was an interception by Christian Kirksey, who made a great catch making sure the ball didn't hit the ground. It was a huge opportunity for Iowa to turn into a blowout as they started at the Gopher 23. They only picked up two yards and Meyer's field goal attempt hit the upright. They still had a 10 point lead and were dominating. Minnesota was able to come up with another first down on their next drive with a nice 20 yard pass, but they again stalled out near midfield. Their punt pinned Iowa at the 15 with a few minutes before the end of the half. Rudock hit Tevaun Smith on a nice 11 yard gain on first down before hitting Damond Powell, who raced 74 yards for his second td of the season. Iowa 17 Minnesota 0 That was Powell's fourth catch of the year, he only has 206 yards. Over 50 yards per catch! Iowa defense held the Gophers again, with Dominic Alvis recording a sack. The Hawkeyes got the ball back at their 27, but with only :35 left they downed it. Halftime Iowa 17 Minnesota 0
3rd Quarter: Minnesota started with the ball in the second half and picked up a couple of first downs. James Morris was able to sack Nelson and forced another Gopher punt. Iowa started at their 20 and got a big third down pass from Rudock to Jake Hillyer for a 14 yard first down. Another third down conversion by Rudock pushed the Hawks near midfield. On third and nine, Rudock kept one for a 22 yard run to the Minnesota 32. Weisman picked up 25 yards on the next two runs, but penalties knocked the Hawkeyes back. Rudock hit Martin-Manley for 14 yards to get them down to the five, but the Hawkeyes settled for another field goal. Iowa 20 Minnesota 0 The Hawkeyes had the Gophers up against the wall and Minnesota needed something big, and Marcus Jones provided that play. He took the kick off 66 yards down to the Iowa 34, they were finally in business. Nelson ended up hitting Engel for a 23 yard touchdown, burning B.J. Lowery on the play. Iowa 23 Minnesota 7 The home crowd was finally starting to make some noise and it felt like a momentum shift could be coming up. Jordan Cotton had a nice 25 yard kick return, he could have been gone if not for being tripped up. Rudock hit KMM for a nice 14 yard pass pushing Iowa to the 43. Damon Bullock ripped off a 22 yard run to get Iowa into Gopher territory. The quarter ended Iowa 20 Minnesota 7
4th Quarter: Iowa has struggled to put teams away this year, but it was looking as if they were about to put the nail in the coffin. Rudock hit tight end C.J. Fiedorowicz on a 13 yarder getting into the red zone. After a three yard Weisman run, Rudock threw an interception in the end zone to Brock Vereen. Alvis came up with another sack on the next drive, but Minnesota pushed the ball up to the 43 after getting the first down on fourth down. After three straight Nelson incompletions they decided to punt. Iowa would start at their own 10. This is the point in the game where Weisman comes in handy wearing the defense down and eating some clock. He ran the first three plays and picked up gains of 15, 9, and 8 respectively as the Hawks got out to the 42. On third and nine, Rudock came up big again hitting KMM for 18. Weisman picked up 14 on the next play as the Hawks got down to the 25. After three straight plays of minus yards, Meyer kicked a 46 yarder. Iowa 23 Minnesota 7 The Gophers needed two touchdowns and a couple two point conversions, things were looking good for Iowa. With only 5:30 left it seemed to be pretty much wrapped up. Antonio Johnson took the kickoff 53 yards, but they were called for unsportsmanlike conduct, which was a huge penalty. The drive started at the 42, they had fourth and five when James Morris picked off Nelson's pass and sealing the victory for Iowa. With four minutes left the Hawkeyes used a heavy dose of Weisman and Jordan Canzeri to run the clock out. Iowa 23 Minnesota 7
Iowa dominated most of the game, but Minnesota was able to complete a few 10 yard plus pass plays. The secondary did do a nice job for a majority of the game, but had a few lapses, including Lowery getting burned on the touchdown. Jake Rudock is improving every game and makes great decisions other than the pick he threw. He has made some great runs this year, too. Weisman is a bull and is among the rushing leaders in the country. Bullock provides as a decent number two back so Weisman can get some rest. KMM is the most consistent WR, as the they're still looking for a solid second guy. Smith, Hillyer and Powell seem to be guys they can depend on. There is plenty of talent at TE, but they're not getting the ball much. The OL dominated the Gophers, once again Rudock went untouched. If the line continues playing this well, the Hawkeyes could have a chance to contend for the division title. Minnesota DL Ra'Shede Hageman wasn't much of a factor in the game at all. The DL was impressive holding Minnesota to 30 rushing yards. They were able to get a few sacks as well, two for Alvis and one for Meier. Morris added a sack and a huge interception. Kirskey and Hitchens were making plays, too, the LB group played a great game. A lot of people were down on the secondary, but they were able to put together good coverage which allowed the DL to get to Nelson. They were out of place on some plays, but overall they weren't bad.
Iowa takes on Michigan State this week, homecoming at Kinnick Stadium. The Spartans really have no offense to speak of, but they have one of the better defenses in the Big Ten. Should be similar to last year's game which was won by Iowa 19-16 in double overtime. I could see both teams struggling to get to 20 points.
Monday, September 30, 2013
Wednesday, September 25, 2013
College Football 9/25
Another weekend of college football is over and there were some great games. I was 7-4 on my predictions, putting me at 27-13 overall for the season.
Here's my new top 25, not many changes this week
1-Alabama
2-Ohio State
3-Oregon
4-Clemson
5-Stanford
6-Florida State
7-LSU
8-Louisville
9-Georgia
10-Texas A&M
11-Oklahoma State
12-Miami
13-UCLA
14-Oklahoma
15-Michgan
16-South Carolina
17-Northwestern
18-Florida
19-Washington
20-Fresno State
21-Baylor
22-Northern Illinois
23-Notre Dame
24-Wisconsin
25-Ole Miss
Games of the week
Thursday-Virginia Tech at Georgia Tech: I thought Va Tech might be in the upper half of the ACC this year, but they haven't had the best performances yet. GT has looked pretty solid and have a pretty potent offense. This should be a tough match for both teams, but I think GT pulls it off at home. Georgia Tech 27 Virginia Tech 21
Friday-Utah State at San Jose State: Utah State has one of my favorite players, QB Chuckie Keeton. I wish they would have knocked off USC last week. I was also hoping San Jose State would put up a better effort against Minnesota. This will be both teams first conference game since joining the Mountain West, both teams won 10 games last year and lost their coaches. Utah State 38 San Jose State 34
Saturday-Ole Miss at Alabama: Ole Miss is ranked, but won't be after this week, Alabama is too good and they're at home. Alabama 38 Ole Miss 21
LSU at Georgia: LSU has looked better than I thought they would, and Georgia is still my pick for the national title game. Georgia 28 LSU 21
South Carolina at UCF: UCF has looked pretty good this year, but will have a big test against the Gamecocks. South Carolina 31 UCF 17
USC at Arizona State: USC hasn't looked very good yet this year, even with all the talent they have on the roster. I really don't like them either, so it's not a bad thing. Arizona State 31 USC 21
Arizona at Washington: A battle of two undefeated teams go head-to-head in Pac 12 play. Washington has a couple nice wins over Boise State and Illinois, Arizona has an amazing running back. I'm giving the nod to Washington since they're at home. Washington 38 Arizona 34 Pac 12 looks pretty tough this year
Oklahoma at Notre Dame: Notre Dame wasn't very sharp in close victories over Michigan State and Purdue, or in their loss to Michigan. Maybe they were overlooking Purdue a bit heading into a big game against Oklahoma. Oklahoma 27 Notre Dame 17
Iowa at Minnesota: I will recap the Iowa-Western Michigan game in a post below. Minnesota is 4-0 after non-conference play with a pretty light schedule: New Mexico State, UNLV, Western Illinois, and San Jose State, not exactly seizure-worthy opponents, but their fans think they're on their way to the Rose Bowl. Iowa 34 Minnesota 21
Wisconsin at Ohio State: This is a huge game, still shocked that Wisconsin lost to Arizona State. The Badgers have a great RB trio of Melvin Gordon, James White and Corey Clement. Ohio State has been nothing short of amazing thus far with a fairly weak schedule. This should be a slugfest. Ohio State 38 Wisconsin 31
UNLV at New Mexico: I always like to predict the UNM game since I follow the Lobos pretty close. I can see the brand new video screen at the stadium from my front window. The Lobos had a week off to get rested up and work on some things. They're looking to avenge a loss from last year against UNLV. New Mexico 28 UNLV 24
The Iowa Hawkeyes played Western Michigan last week in a game that a lot of fans weren't sure about. The Hawkeyes already lost to a MAC opponent, and haven't beaten Western Michigan in two tries previously. The game started with a Bronco three-and-out and the Iowa offense looked good on the first drive, but stalled out and settled for a field goal. I was thinking it was going to be a long day, but the Hawkeyes dominated from that point on. The score at halftime was 38-3! Kevonte Martin-Manley ran two consecutive punts back for touchdowns, and B.J. Lowery ran two interceptions back for touchdowns as Iowa won 59-3. I was pretty shocked at the outcome, I had a good feeling Iowa would win by a few touchdowns, but not by eight.
QB: Jake Rudock did a great job starting for the Hawkeyes, winning his third straight game. He looks great in the pocket, never seems to hurry the play, just sits back and waits for someone to get open, or he's not afraid to run. He's not the quickest, but knows when and where to run to pick up yards. Freshmen, C.J. Beathard, got in the game in the second half and got to showcase some skills. I missed his first throw, apparently they had the second string camera guys in at that point. He did hit Damond Powell on a beautiful 54 yard toss, and had a nicely thrown pass dropped by Adam Haluska. He showed some fancy footwork as well, rushing for over 30 yards. I believe they had six players with 30+ rushing yards. C.J. seems to be a worthy backup.
RB: Mark Weisman had a nice break today as he only carried 10 times, and still manages to lead the country in rushing attempts. He picked up over 40. Damon Bullock got a few more carries today and showed some promise. Jordan Canzeri had a great touchdown run and a couple others where he showed some flash, he did fumble once, but with some more reps could be a game changer. Quite possibly my favorite of the group is LeShun Daniels, the true freshmen. He had a tough fumble, but I like the way he runs and think he's going to be a star. Overall, this group has been pretty impressive.
WR: Still quite a few question marks for this unit, but different guys are stepping up. KMM didn't have a big game catching the ball, but didn't have to with his great punt returns. Jacob Hillyer had a touchdown catch for the second consecutive week, and Damond Powell had a touchdown catch from Rudock to go along with the 54 yarder from Beathard. Tevaun Smith started for the first time and only had one catch that I can recall.
TE: C.J. Fiedorowicz had another drop in the game, he's had way too many of those. Ray Hamilton has stepped up nicely this year and appears to be Iowa's best pass catching tight end. There are many valuable weapons at the TE spot this year, a very deep group.
OL: This group has been pretty amazing this year making sure Rudock doesn't get hit. I can't remember too many times where Jake has been hit or even pressured at all. That will change with the conference season coming up, but I really like the OL. Scherff is one of the better tackles in the country, Boffeli has been great for a first year starter, Blythe is a talented guy, Walsh is still taking some lumps, but has been good, and Van Sloten has been solid. The backups have impressed as well, MacMillan and Donnal both looked good in the times they have played. Pretty amazing group.
DL: They're still having a hard time getting sacks, but they're putting a lot of pressure, especially against WMU. They're QB was pretty awful, but the DL had a lot to do with that. Dominic Alvis looked pretty good Saturday, he was using quickness to get by the OL and almost came up with a couple sacks. Jaleel Johnson looked pretty good in his first real action and seems to have a nice career ahead of him. LTP, Davis and Cooper are all looking good at the DT spot. Nate Meier looks like Rudy when he plays DE, I think he's a bit undersized, but could use his quickness like Alvis did and maybe cause some disruption. Faith Ekakitie didn't do much in his time in the game. Overall, the unit is playing well, really stopping the run. Iowa hasn't allowed a rushing touchdown this season.
LB: Morris, Kirksey and Hitchens are all playing well. This group will definitely be missed next year, but we got to see a glimpse of the future with Quinton Alston, Marcus Collins, Travis Perry and true freshmen, Reggie Spearman. Collins and Alston have looked good on special teams play and both seemed to play with a lot of aggression when they got into the game. Spearman looks so fast out there, and again, they were playing WMU, but he's someone to keep an eye on down the road. I like that the coaches are calling more blitzes this year, too. Morris has had two blitzes that forced bad throws and interceptions for Lowery, one against Iowa State, and one that he took back for a touchdowns against WMU.
DB: The secondary really played well against WMU. Lowery, of course, had the two interceptions for touchdowns, and Tanner Miller added another interception as well. Desmond King has looked pretty good filling in for injured started Jordan Lomax, too. It was nice to see Maurice Fleming play for the first time, that kid is fast. Watch him on both of KMM's punt return touchdowns, the kid was hauling! Miller and Johnny Lowdermilk still need to work on some things at the safety spots, but Lowdermilk is really making strides and has turned into a pretty good tackler. Nico Law and Anthony Gair got some time, too, which was good to see. Overall this unit is playing pretty well, but will need to take it to another level in B1G play.
K/P: Mike Meyer has been very accurate and continues to not miss XP's, which is nice! Connor Kornbrath had one of his better games punting the football, too, hopefully that trend will continue. The return game looked great, not just on KMM's touchdowns, but Jordan Cotton had a nice kick return, too.
I know that Iowa just played Western Michigan, but it's exciting to watch this team improve. I think they definitely have a shot at a bowl game this year, especially with the way some other teams have been playing.
Michigan beat Notre Dame, but had heart attack victories at home against Akron and at UCONN. Both pretty bad teams, so Michigan is beatable this year. Devin Gardner has been making a lot of mistakes.
Nebraska's defense is pretty awful this year, too. Wyoming put up 35 on them, and UCLA put up 38. The offense has weapons to keep up, but they have a lot of work to do.
Northwestern really hasn't been that impressive either, although, they are undefeated. They struggled with Western Michigan for the first half until they ran away with that game, and didn't look overly impressive against Maine.
Michigan State's offense is really bad. The defense is amazing.
Minnesota's offense doesn't look too bad, but the defense could certainly use some work. Ra'Shede Hageman is a beast though on the DL.
It seems like the teams in this division have either a great offense and no defense or vice versa, which could be good for Iowa, they seem to be pretty balanced. As much as I would love to see Iowa in the Rose Bowl, I don't think it will happen with this schedule, but you never know, the conference season is just starting.
Here's my new top 25, not many changes this week
1-Alabama
2-Ohio State
3-Oregon
4-Clemson
5-Stanford
6-Florida State
7-LSU
8-Louisville
9-Georgia
10-Texas A&M
11-Oklahoma State
12-Miami
13-UCLA
14-Oklahoma
15-Michgan
16-South Carolina
17-Northwestern
18-Florida
19-Washington
20-Fresno State
21-Baylor
22-Northern Illinois
23-Notre Dame
24-Wisconsin
25-Ole Miss
Games of the week
Thursday-Virginia Tech at Georgia Tech: I thought Va Tech might be in the upper half of the ACC this year, but they haven't had the best performances yet. GT has looked pretty solid and have a pretty potent offense. This should be a tough match for both teams, but I think GT pulls it off at home. Georgia Tech 27 Virginia Tech 21
Friday-Utah State at San Jose State: Utah State has one of my favorite players, QB Chuckie Keeton. I wish they would have knocked off USC last week. I was also hoping San Jose State would put up a better effort against Minnesota. This will be both teams first conference game since joining the Mountain West, both teams won 10 games last year and lost their coaches. Utah State 38 San Jose State 34
Saturday-Ole Miss at Alabama: Ole Miss is ranked, but won't be after this week, Alabama is too good and they're at home. Alabama 38 Ole Miss 21
LSU at Georgia: LSU has looked better than I thought they would, and Georgia is still my pick for the national title game. Georgia 28 LSU 21
South Carolina at UCF: UCF has looked pretty good this year, but will have a big test against the Gamecocks. South Carolina 31 UCF 17
USC at Arizona State: USC hasn't looked very good yet this year, even with all the talent they have on the roster. I really don't like them either, so it's not a bad thing. Arizona State 31 USC 21
Arizona at Washington: A battle of two undefeated teams go head-to-head in Pac 12 play. Washington has a couple nice wins over Boise State and Illinois, Arizona has an amazing running back. I'm giving the nod to Washington since they're at home. Washington 38 Arizona 34 Pac 12 looks pretty tough this year
Oklahoma at Notre Dame: Notre Dame wasn't very sharp in close victories over Michigan State and Purdue, or in their loss to Michigan. Maybe they were overlooking Purdue a bit heading into a big game against Oklahoma. Oklahoma 27 Notre Dame 17
Iowa at Minnesota: I will recap the Iowa-Western Michigan game in a post below. Minnesota is 4-0 after non-conference play with a pretty light schedule: New Mexico State, UNLV, Western Illinois, and San Jose State, not exactly seizure-worthy opponents, but their fans think they're on their way to the Rose Bowl. Iowa 34 Minnesota 21
Wisconsin at Ohio State: This is a huge game, still shocked that Wisconsin lost to Arizona State. The Badgers have a great RB trio of Melvin Gordon, James White and Corey Clement. Ohio State has been nothing short of amazing thus far with a fairly weak schedule. This should be a slugfest. Ohio State 38 Wisconsin 31
UNLV at New Mexico: I always like to predict the UNM game since I follow the Lobos pretty close. I can see the brand new video screen at the stadium from my front window. The Lobos had a week off to get rested up and work on some things. They're looking to avenge a loss from last year against UNLV. New Mexico 28 UNLV 24
The Iowa Hawkeyes played Western Michigan last week in a game that a lot of fans weren't sure about. The Hawkeyes already lost to a MAC opponent, and haven't beaten Western Michigan in two tries previously. The game started with a Bronco three-and-out and the Iowa offense looked good on the first drive, but stalled out and settled for a field goal. I was thinking it was going to be a long day, but the Hawkeyes dominated from that point on. The score at halftime was 38-3! Kevonte Martin-Manley ran two consecutive punts back for touchdowns, and B.J. Lowery ran two interceptions back for touchdowns as Iowa won 59-3. I was pretty shocked at the outcome, I had a good feeling Iowa would win by a few touchdowns, but not by eight.
QB: Jake Rudock did a great job starting for the Hawkeyes, winning his third straight game. He looks great in the pocket, never seems to hurry the play, just sits back and waits for someone to get open, or he's not afraid to run. He's not the quickest, but knows when and where to run to pick up yards. Freshmen, C.J. Beathard, got in the game in the second half and got to showcase some skills. I missed his first throw, apparently they had the second string camera guys in at that point. He did hit Damond Powell on a beautiful 54 yard toss, and had a nicely thrown pass dropped by Adam Haluska. He showed some fancy footwork as well, rushing for over 30 yards. I believe they had six players with 30+ rushing yards. C.J. seems to be a worthy backup.
RB: Mark Weisman had a nice break today as he only carried 10 times, and still manages to lead the country in rushing attempts. He picked up over 40. Damon Bullock got a few more carries today and showed some promise. Jordan Canzeri had a great touchdown run and a couple others where he showed some flash, he did fumble once, but with some more reps could be a game changer. Quite possibly my favorite of the group is LeShun Daniels, the true freshmen. He had a tough fumble, but I like the way he runs and think he's going to be a star. Overall, this group has been pretty impressive.
WR: Still quite a few question marks for this unit, but different guys are stepping up. KMM didn't have a big game catching the ball, but didn't have to with his great punt returns. Jacob Hillyer had a touchdown catch for the second consecutive week, and Damond Powell had a touchdown catch from Rudock to go along with the 54 yarder from Beathard. Tevaun Smith started for the first time and only had one catch that I can recall.
TE: C.J. Fiedorowicz had another drop in the game, he's had way too many of those. Ray Hamilton has stepped up nicely this year and appears to be Iowa's best pass catching tight end. There are many valuable weapons at the TE spot this year, a very deep group.
OL: This group has been pretty amazing this year making sure Rudock doesn't get hit. I can't remember too many times where Jake has been hit or even pressured at all. That will change with the conference season coming up, but I really like the OL. Scherff is one of the better tackles in the country, Boffeli has been great for a first year starter, Blythe is a talented guy, Walsh is still taking some lumps, but has been good, and Van Sloten has been solid. The backups have impressed as well, MacMillan and Donnal both looked good in the times they have played. Pretty amazing group.
DL: They're still having a hard time getting sacks, but they're putting a lot of pressure, especially against WMU. They're QB was pretty awful, but the DL had a lot to do with that. Dominic Alvis looked pretty good Saturday, he was using quickness to get by the OL and almost came up with a couple sacks. Jaleel Johnson looked pretty good in his first real action and seems to have a nice career ahead of him. LTP, Davis and Cooper are all looking good at the DT spot. Nate Meier looks like Rudy when he plays DE, I think he's a bit undersized, but could use his quickness like Alvis did and maybe cause some disruption. Faith Ekakitie didn't do much in his time in the game. Overall, the unit is playing well, really stopping the run. Iowa hasn't allowed a rushing touchdown this season.
LB: Morris, Kirksey and Hitchens are all playing well. This group will definitely be missed next year, but we got to see a glimpse of the future with Quinton Alston, Marcus Collins, Travis Perry and true freshmen, Reggie Spearman. Collins and Alston have looked good on special teams play and both seemed to play with a lot of aggression when they got into the game. Spearman looks so fast out there, and again, they were playing WMU, but he's someone to keep an eye on down the road. I like that the coaches are calling more blitzes this year, too. Morris has had two blitzes that forced bad throws and interceptions for Lowery, one against Iowa State, and one that he took back for a touchdowns against WMU.
DB: The secondary really played well against WMU. Lowery, of course, had the two interceptions for touchdowns, and Tanner Miller added another interception as well. Desmond King has looked pretty good filling in for injured started Jordan Lomax, too. It was nice to see Maurice Fleming play for the first time, that kid is fast. Watch him on both of KMM's punt return touchdowns, the kid was hauling! Miller and Johnny Lowdermilk still need to work on some things at the safety spots, but Lowdermilk is really making strides and has turned into a pretty good tackler. Nico Law and Anthony Gair got some time, too, which was good to see. Overall this unit is playing pretty well, but will need to take it to another level in B1G play.
K/P: Mike Meyer has been very accurate and continues to not miss XP's, which is nice! Connor Kornbrath had one of his better games punting the football, too, hopefully that trend will continue. The return game looked great, not just on KMM's touchdowns, but Jordan Cotton had a nice kick return, too.
I know that Iowa just played Western Michigan, but it's exciting to watch this team improve. I think they definitely have a shot at a bowl game this year, especially with the way some other teams have been playing.
Michigan beat Notre Dame, but had heart attack victories at home against Akron and at UCONN. Both pretty bad teams, so Michigan is beatable this year. Devin Gardner has been making a lot of mistakes.
Nebraska's defense is pretty awful this year, too. Wyoming put up 35 on them, and UCLA put up 38. The offense has weapons to keep up, but they have a lot of work to do.
Northwestern really hasn't been that impressive either, although, they are undefeated. They struggled with Western Michigan for the first half until they ran away with that game, and didn't look overly impressive against Maine.
Michigan State's offense is really bad. The defense is amazing.
Minnesota's offense doesn't look too bad, but the defense could certainly use some work. Ra'Shede Hageman is a beast though on the DL.
It seems like the teams in this division have either a great offense and no defense or vice versa, which could be good for Iowa, they seem to be pretty balanced. As much as I would love to see Iowa in the Rose Bowl, I don't think it will happen with this schedule, but you never know, the conference season is just starting.
Tuesday, September 17, 2013
College Football 9/17
A lot of great games this past weekend, including Iowa-Iowa State, which the Hawkeyes won, more on that in a bit. Alabama was able to knock off Johnny Football, and Michigan got a bit of a scare from Akron, as my friend, Chris Winslow, said, "Michigan must have been up all night, cuz they just got lucky." The ending of the Arizona State-Wisconsin game was a bizarre one that didn't go in favor of Wisconsin. And the Cornhuskers got smoked by UCLA!
Back to Iowa at Iowa State, the only game I watched from start to finish. The Hawkeyes once again had a shut out heading into half, up 13-0, and looked like they were in control. They had held the Cyclones to about 70 yards in the first half, defense was sharp, offense wasn't making mistakes. The Hawkeyes really need to work on their fourth quarter defense if they want to win some games this year. They were up 27-7, ended up winning 27-21. The score should not have been that close. Mark Weisman was the man once again for the Iowa offense, carrying the ball 34 times for over 140 yards. B.J. Lowery came up with a HUGE interception in the fourth quarter, it really was beautiful. Watch it right here.
I watched part of the New Mexico at Pittsburgh game, it was pretty brutal. Pitt got out to a 42-6 lead before the Lobos came alive, unfortunately, it was way too late. The Lobos were able to force some turnovers, but couldn't capitalize. The defense wasn't making any stops int he first half, either. I think the Lobos will bounce back nicely, they next two games after their bye week are home against UNLV and New Mexico State, both winnable.
Here's my new top 25 for the week
1-Alabama
2-Ohio State
3-Clemson
4-Oregon
5-Stanford
6-Florida State
7-LSU
8-Louisville
9-Georgia
10-Texas A&M
11-Michigan
12-Oklahoma State
13-Miami
14-UCLA
15-Oklahoma
16-Northwestern
17-South Carolina
18-Florida
19-Washington
20-Arizona State
21-Fresno State
22-Baylor
23-Northern Illinois
24-Notre Dame
25-Wisconsin
Last weeks games I went 8-4 on my predictions, I thought Texas would bounce back, I thought A&M would pull the upset, too. I can't remember which other ones I missed, but here are my predictions for some of the games this week. I am 20-9 on the season.
Boise State at Fresno State: This is going to be a shootout! Should be a fun one Friday night. Fresno 48 Boise 42
Arizona State at Stanford: Stanford hasn't looked like a national championship caliber team, but they're solid. Arizona State knocked off a tough Wisconsin team last week, but will they have what it takes to win at Stanford? Stanford 31 Arizona State 27
Auburn at LSU: Both teams come into the game undefeated, is Auburn a decent team? We'll see, but I don't think this one will be close. LSU 31 Auburn 10
Kansas State at Texas: Both of these teams are really needing a win here, Texas has lost two in a row and they need to bounce back. They screwed me on my predictions, so Kansas State 31 Texas 30
Utah State at USC: I really like Utah State and their QB, Chuckie Keeton, I've liked him since I saw him play in his first game where they almost knocked off defending champ, Auburn. I really hate USC and don't think they're looking very good. Utah State 34 USC24
North Carolina at Georgia Tech: I like both of these teams, should be a great game. Georgia Tech 34 North Carolina 27
Arkansas at Rutgers: Arkansas is undefeated and will have Iowa-boy, A.J. Derby, starting at QB, gotta cheer for him. Rutgers is going to be some tough competition though. Arkansas 24 Rutgers 21
Utah at BYU: BYU had a week off after dismantling Texas, Utah lost an overtime conference game to Oregon State. BYU 38 Utah 28
Michigan State at Notre Dame: The Spartans have to be one of the worst undefeated teams in the country, their offense is awful, I know they put up points against Youngstown State, but come on? Notre Dame looked horrendous against Purdue, will they show up in this one? Notre Dame 17 Michigan State 10
Missouri at Indiana: Indiana is putting together a pretty good looking offense, and knocked off a decent Bowling Green team pretty handily. I haven't seen Missouri play this year, but they've usually got some fire power on offense. This one could get wild. Missouri 49 Indiana 38
Western Michigan at Iowa: Iowa has won two straight now, and seem to be gaining confidence. QB Jake Rudock has looked pretty good in his first three starts and will continue getting better, especially if the WR's can hold on to the ball. Western Michigan is still winless, but put up a good fight for awhile against Northwestern. Iowa 31 Western Michigan 14
Back to Iowa at Iowa State, the only game I watched from start to finish. The Hawkeyes once again had a shut out heading into half, up 13-0, and looked like they were in control. They had held the Cyclones to about 70 yards in the first half, defense was sharp, offense wasn't making mistakes. The Hawkeyes really need to work on their fourth quarter defense if they want to win some games this year. They were up 27-7, ended up winning 27-21. The score should not have been that close. Mark Weisman was the man once again for the Iowa offense, carrying the ball 34 times for over 140 yards. B.J. Lowery came up with a HUGE interception in the fourth quarter, it really was beautiful. Watch it right here.
I watched part of the New Mexico at Pittsburgh game, it was pretty brutal. Pitt got out to a 42-6 lead before the Lobos came alive, unfortunately, it was way too late. The Lobos were able to force some turnovers, but couldn't capitalize. The defense wasn't making any stops int he first half, either. I think the Lobos will bounce back nicely, they next two games after their bye week are home against UNLV and New Mexico State, both winnable.
Here's my new top 25 for the week
1-Alabama
2-Ohio State
3-Clemson
4-Oregon
5-Stanford
6-Florida State
7-LSU
8-Louisville
9-Georgia
10-Texas A&M
11-Michigan
12-Oklahoma State
13-Miami
14-UCLA
15-Oklahoma
16-Northwestern
17-South Carolina
18-Florida
19-Washington
20-Arizona State
21-Fresno State
22-Baylor
23-Northern Illinois
24-Notre Dame
25-Wisconsin
Last weeks games I went 8-4 on my predictions, I thought Texas would bounce back, I thought A&M would pull the upset, too. I can't remember which other ones I missed, but here are my predictions for some of the games this week. I am 20-9 on the season.
Boise State at Fresno State: This is going to be a shootout! Should be a fun one Friday night. Fresno 48 Boise 42
Arizona State at Stanford: Stanford hasn't looked like a national championship caliber team, but they're solid. Arizona State knocked off a tough Wisconsin team last week, but will they have what it takes to win at Stanford? Stanford 31 Arizona State 27
Auburn at LSU: Both teams come into the game undefeated, is Auburn a decent team? We'll see, but I don't think this one will be close. LSU 31 Auburn 10
Kansas State at Texas: Both of these teams are really needing a win here, Texas has lost two in a row and they need to bounce back. They screwed me on my predictions, so Kansas State 31 Texas 30
Utah State at USC: I really like Utah State and their QB, Chuckie Keeton, I've liked him since I saw him play in his first game where they almost knocked off defending champ, Auburn. I really hate USC and don't think they're looking very good. Utah State 34 USC24
North Carolina at Georgia Tech: I like both of these teams, should be a great game. Georgia Tech 34 North Carolina 27
Arkansas at Rutgers: Arkansas is undefeated and will have Iowa-boy, A.J. Derby, starting at QB, gotta cheer for him. Rutgers is going to be some tough competition though. Arkansas 24 Rutgers 21
Utah at BYU: BYU had a week off after dismantling Texas, Utah lost an overtime conference game to Oregon State. BYU 38 Utah 28
Michigan State at Notre Dame: The Spartans have to be one of the worst undefeated teams in the country, their offense is awful, I know they put up points against Youngstown State, but come on? Notre Dame looked horrendous against Purdue, will they show up in this one? Notre Dame 17 Michigan State 10
Missouri at Indiana: Indiana is putting together a pretty good looking offense, and knocked off a decent Bowling Green team pretty handily. I haven't seen Missouri play this year, but they've usually got some fire power on offense. This one could get wild. Missouri 49 Indiana 38
Western Michigan at Iowa: Iowa has won two straight now, and seem to be gaining confidence. QB Jake Rudock has looked pretty good in his first three starts and will continue getting better, especially if the WR's can hold on to the ball. Western Michigan is still winless, but put up a good fight for awhile against Northwestern. Iowa 31 Western Michigan 14
Sunday, September 8, 2013
Iowa Hawkeyes Football Recruiting
2014 Verbals
Jay Scheel 6'1" 170 La Porte City, Iowa QB/WR
RIVALS: 4 STAR #14 ATH
ESPN: 4 STAR #35 ATH, #277 OVERALL
SCOUT: 3 STAR #70 WR
247: 4 STAR #28 ATH
COMPOSITE: 3 STAR #30 ATH, #3 STATE, #351 OVERALL
RECRUITED BY: REESE MORGAN
OFFERS: IOWA, IOWA STATE, MINNESOTA, NEBRASKA
C.J. Hilliard 5'11" 185 Cincinnati, Ohio RB
RIVALS: 3 STAR RB
ESPN: 3 STAR #111 RB
SCOUT: 3 STAR #31 RB
247: 3 STAR #72 RB, #59 STATE
COMPOSITE: 3 STAR #61 RB, #57 STATE, #877 OVERALL
RECRUITED BY: CHRIS WHITE, BRIAN FERENTZ
OFFERS: IOWA, AKRON, BOSTON COLLEGE, BOWLING GREEN, INDIANA, OHIO
Lucas LeGrand 6'5" 260 Dubuque, Iowa OL
RIVALS: 3 STAR T
ESPN: 3 STAR #54 T
SCOUT: 3 STAR #36 G
247: 3 STAR #71 T, #5 STATE
COMPOSITE: 3 STAR #70 T, #5 STATE, #826 OVERALL
RECRUITED BY: REESE MORGAN
OFFERS: IOWA
Keegan Render 6'3" 310 Indianola, Iowa OL
RIVALS: 3 STAR G
ESPN: 3 STAR #50 G
SCOUT: 3 STAR #35 G
247: 2 STAR #89 G, #6 STATE
COMPOSITE: 3 STAR #64 G, #6 STATE
RECRUITED BY: REESE MORGAN
OFFERS: IOWA, IOWA STATE
Matt Nelson 6'7" 249 Cedar Rapids, Iowa DE
RIVALS: 3 STAR SSDE
ESPN: 3 STAR #61 DE
SCOUT: 3 STAR #35 DE
247: 3 STAR #15 TE, #4 STATE
COMPOSITE: 3 STAR #23 TE, #4 STATE, #578 OVERALL
RECRUITED BY: REESE MORGAN
OFFERS: IOWA, ARKANSAS, IOWA STATE, NEBRASKA, NOTRE DAME, SAN DIEGO STATE, STANFORD, WISCONSIN, YALE
Terrance Harris 6'2" 240 Peramus, New Jersey DE
RIVALS: 2 STAR DE
ESPN: 3 STAR #103 DE
SCOUT: 3 STAR #99 DE
247: 2 STAR #76 SSDE, #48 STATE
COMPOSITE: 2 STAR #79 DE, #49 STATE
RECRUITED BY: CHRIS WHITE
OFFERS: IOWA, FLORIDA ATLANTIC, UMASS, W. MICHIGAN
Aaron Mends 6'1" 204 Kansas City, Missouri LB
RIVALS: 3 STAR OLB
ESPN: 3 STAR #35 ILB
SCOUT: 2 STAR #136 OLB
247: 3 STAR #43 ILB, #21 STATE
COMPOSITE: 3 STAR #57 ILB, #22 STATE
RECRUITED BY: LEVAR WOODS
OFFERS: IOWA, IOWA STATE, NORTH DAKOTA STATE
Jameer Outsey 6'3" 210 Somerset, New Jersey LB
RIVALS: 3 STAR OLB
ESPN: 3 STAR #83 OLB
SCOUT: 3 STAR #76 OLB
247: 3 STAR #69 WSDE, #40 STATE
COMPOSITE: 3 STAR #63 WSDE, #35 STATE
RECRUITED BY: CHRIS WHITE
OFFERS: IOWA, AKRON, BUFFALO, PITTSBURGH, TEMPLE
Ben Niemann 6'3" 185 Sycamore, Illinois LB
RIVALS: 2 STAR ATH
ESPN: 3 STAR #95 ATH
SCOUT: 2 STAR #137 OLB
247: 2 STAR #137 OLB, #54 STATE
COMPOSITE: 2 STAR #172 OLB, #63 STATE
RECRUITED BY: JIM REID
OFFERS: IOWA, NORTHERN ILLINOIS
Omar Truitt 5'11" 185 Washington, DC DB
RIVALS: 3 STAR
ESPN: 3 STAR #76 ATH
SCOUT: 3 STAR #42 CB
247: 3 STAR #77 CB, #7 STATE
COMPOSITE: 3 STAR #63 CB, #7 STATE, #830 OVERALL
RECRUITED BY: CHRIS WHITE
OFFERS: IOWA, MARYLAND, RICHMOND, SYRACUSE, TENNESSEE
Marcel Joly 5'11" 180 Forestville, MD CB
RIVALS: 3 STAR CB
ESPN: 3 STAR #145 ATH
SCOUT: 2 STAR #153 CB
247: 3 STAR #69 CB
COMPOSITE: 3 STAR #55 CB #734 OVERALL
RECRUITED BY: CHRIS WHITE
OFFERS: IOWA, MARYLAND, OLD DOMINION, TEMPLE, VANDERBILT
Jalen Embry 5'11" 176 Detroit, MI CB
RIVALS: 3 STAR #37 ATH
ESPN: 3 STAR #175 ATH
SCOUT: 3 STAR #59 CB
247: 3 STAR #88 CB
COMPOSITE: 3 STAR #74 CB #998 OVERALL
RECRUITED BY: PHIL PARKER
OFFERS: IOWA, BALL STATE, CENTRAL MICHIGAN, CINCINNATI, EASTERN MICHIGAN, ILLLINOIS, NORTHERN ILLINOIS, OHIO, TOLEDO, WESTERN MICHIGAN, WISCONSIN
Josh Jackson 6'1" 175 Corinth, Texas CB
RIVALS: 2 STAR CB
ESPN: 3 STAR #49 CB
SCOUT: 2 STAR CB
247: 2 STAR #141 CB, #278 STATE
COMPOSITE: 3 STAR #149 CB, #275 STATE
RECRUITED BY: BOBBY KENNEDY
OFFERS: IOWA, COLORADO STATE, NEVADA, NEW MEXICO STATE
Jyaz Jones 6'1" 180 Dallas, Texas DB
RIVALS: 2 STAR S
ESPN: NR S
SCOUT: 3 STAR #59 S
247: 4 STAR #28 S, #36 STATE
COMPOSITE: 3 STAR #86 S, #122 STATE, #983 OVERALL
RECRUITED BY: LEVAR WOODS
OFFERS: IOWA, BAYLOR, COLORADO STATE, NEBRASKA, NEW MEXICO STATE, TEXAS TECH
Mick Ellis 5'10" 182 Lucas, Texas K
RIVALS: 2 STAR K
ESPN: 3 STAR #28 K
SCOUT: 3 STAR K
247: 2 STAR #15 K, #339 STATE
COMPOSITE: 3 STAR #12 K, #226 STATE
RECRUITED BY: BOBBY KENNEDY, CHRIS WHITE
OFFERS: IOWA, YALE
2014 Offers
Markel Smith 5'11" 210 St. Louis, Missouri RB
COMPOSITE: 3 STAR #26 RB, #8 STATE, #411 OVERALL
TOP 2 IOWA/MIZZOU
Treyvon Hughes 5'11" 208 Carrollton, Texas RB
COMPOSITE: 3 STAR #67 RB, #117 STATE, #933 OVERALL
TOP 2 IOWA/TEXAS (NO OFFER)
Brian Wallace 6'6" 305 St. Louis, Missouri OT
COMPOSITE: 4 STAR #16 T, #3 STATE, #234 OVERALL
TOP 5 ALABAMA/ARKANSAS/IOWA/NEBRASKA/OHIO STATE
Torey Hendrick 6'4" 230 Brooklyn, New York DE
COMPOSITE: 3 STAR #4 DE, #4 STATE, #29 OVERALL JUCO
TOP 5 ARIZONA STATE/IOWA/KANSAS/KANSAS STATE/NCSTATE
Raymond Wingo 5'10" 174 St. Louis, Missouri CB
COMPOSITE: 3 STAR #35 CB, #7 STATE, #394 OVERALL
TOP 5 ARKANSAS/INDIANA/IOWA/MICHIGAN STATE/NEBRASKA
Craig James 5'10" 170 Edwardsville, Illinois CB
COMPOSITE: 3 STAR #74 CB, #33 STATE, #986 OVERALL
IOWA LEADS
Andrew Jones 6'0" 174 Mesquite, Texas CB
IOWA LEADS
Payton Hendrix 6'3" 190 Dallas, Texas S
COMPOSITE: 3 STAR #47 S, #71 STATE, #565 OVERALL
TOP 5 NOTRE DAME/ARKANSAS/BAYLOR/IOWA/STANFORD
Iowa is in on a lot of defensive backs this year, with 13 verbals, not sure how many more players they will take. I'm interested to see if any in-state guys will get offers, some guys to watch are Anthony Holmes, Rico Gafford and A.J. Allen.
2015 Verbals
Jacob Newborg 6'2" 271 Indwood, Iowa OL
RIVALS:
ESPN: 3 STAR G
SCOUT:
247:
COMPOSITE: 3 STAR #26 G, #3 STATE, #485 OVERALL
RECRUITED BY: REESE MORGAN
OFFERS: IOWA
2015 Offers
Jack Beneventi 6'6" 185 Lisle, Illinois QB
COMPOSITE: 4 STAR #16 QB, #4 STATE, #238 OVERALL
Damarkus Lodge 6'3" 190 Cedar Hill, Texas WR
COMPOSITE: 4 STAR #13 WR, #18 STATE, #127 OVERALL
Jaelan Austin 6'3" 190 Grand Prairie, Texas WR
COMPOSITE: 4 STAR #51 WR, #45 STATE, #391 OVERALL
Hale Hentges 6'4" 230 Jefferson City, Missouri TE
COMPOSITE: 4 STAR #10 TE, #4 STATE, #230 OVERALL
Kyle Markway 6'4" 225 St. Louis, Missouri TE
Sam Madden6'7" 305 Barnegat, New Jersey OT
COMPOSITE: 4 STAR #12 T, #5 STATE, #135 OVERALL
Levi Paulsen 6'5" 260 Moville, Iowa OT
COMPOSITE: 4 STAR #25 T, #1 STATE, #206 OVERALL
Landan Paulsen 6'5" 270 Moville, Iowa G
COMPOSITE: 4 STAR #12 G, #2 STATE, #251 OVERALL
James Daniels 6'4" 270 Warren, Ohio C
COMPOSITE: 3 STAR #3 C, #23 STATE, #473 OVERALL
Jashon Cornell 6'4" 245 St. Paul, Minnesota DE
COMPOSITE: 5 STAR #1 DE, #1 STATE, #17 OVERALL
Clelin Ferrell 6'5" 225 Richmond, Virginia DE
COMPOSITE: 4 STAR #6 DE, #6 STATE, #79 OVERALL
James Lockhart 6'3" 245 Ennis, Texas DE
COMPOSITE: 4 STAR #7 DE, #15 STATE, #107 OVERALL
Adam McLean 6'2" 260 Gaithersburg, Maryland DE
COMPOSITE: 4 STAR #8 DE, #2 STATE, #134 OVERALL
Tim Settle 6'3" 305 Manassas, Virginia DT
COMPOSITE: 5 STAR #1 DT, #1 STATE, #2 OVERALL
Jacob Daniel 6'4" 298 Clovis, California DT
COMPOSITE: 5 STAR #5 DT, #3 STATE, #20 OVERALL
Christian Wilkins 6'4" 290 Suffield, Connecticut DT
COMPOSITE: 4 STAR #11 DT, #1 STATE, #66 OVERALL
Justin Hilliard 6'2" 225 Cincinnati, Ohio OLB
COMPOSITE: 4 STAR #5 OLB, #3 STATE, #73 OVERALL
Ricky DeBerry 6'2" 240 Richmond, Virginia OLB
COMPOSITE: 4 STAR #4 OLB, #2 STATE, #53 OVERALL
Juantez McRae 6'0" 170 Towson, Maryland S
COMPOSITE: 4 STAR #22 S, #7 STATE, #324 OVERALL
Jack Hockaday 6'1" 205 Maroa, Illinois S
Jerome Baker 6'1" 205 Cleveland, Ohio ATH
COMPOSITE: 4 STAR #8 ATH, #4 STATE, #83 OVERALL
Garrett Taylor6'1" 186 Richmond, Virginia ATH
COMPOSITE: 4 STAR #14 ATH, #12 STATE, #173 OVERALL
Jay Scheel 6'1" 170 La Porte City, Iowa QB/WR
RIVALS: 4 STAR #14 ATH
ESPN: 4 STAR #35 ATH, #277 OVERALL
SCOUT: 3 STAR #70 WR
247: 4 STAR #28 ATH
COMPOSITE: 3 STAR #30 ATH, #3 STATE, #351 OVERALL
RECRUITED BY: REESE MORGAN
OFFERS: IOWA, IOWA STATE, MINNESOTA, NEBRASKA
C.J. Hilliard 5'11" 185 Cincinnati, Ohio RB
RIVALS: 3 STAR RB
ESPN: 3 STAR #111 RB
SCOUT: 3 STAR #31 RB
247: 3 STAR #72 RB, #59 STATE
COMPOSITE: 3 STAR #61 RB, #57 STATE, #877 OVERALL
RECRUITED BY: CHRIS WHITE, BRIAN FERENTZ
OFFERS: IOWA, AKRON, BOSTON COLLEGE, BOWLING GREEN, INDIANA, OHIO
Lucas LeGrand 6'5" 260 Dubuque, Iowa OL
RIVALS: 3 STAR T
ESPN: 3 STAR #54 T
SCOUT: 3 STAR #36 G
247: 3 STAR #71 T, #5 STATE
COMPOSITE: 3 STAR #70 T, #5 STATE, #826 OVERALL
RECRUITED BY: REESE MORGAN
OFFERS: IOWA
Keegan Render 6'3" 310 Indianola, Iowa OL
RIVALS: 3 STAR G
ESPN: 3 STAR #50 G
SCOUT: 3 STAR #35 G
247: 2 STAR #89 G, #6 STATE
COMPOSITE: 3 STAR #64 G, #6 STATE
RECRUITED BY: REESE MORGAN
OFFERS: IOWA, IOWA STATE
Matt Nelson 6'7" 249 Cedar Rapids, Iowa DE
RIVALS: 3 STAR SSDE
ESPN: 3 STAR #61 DE
SCOUT: 3 STAR #35 DE
247: 3 STAR #15 TE, #4 STATE
COMPOSITE: 3 STAR #23 TE, #4 STATE, #578 OVERALL
RECRUITED BY: REESE MORGAN
OFFERS: IOWA, ARKANSAS, IOWA STATE, NEBRASKA, NOTRE DAME, SAN DIEGO STATE, STANFORD, WISCONSIN, YALE
Terrance Harris 6'2" 240 Peramus, New Jersey DE
RIVALS: 2 STAR DE
ESPN: 3 STAR #103 DE
SCOUT: 3 STAR #99 DE
247: 2 STAR #76 SSDE, #48 STATE
COMPOSITE: 2 STAR #79 DE, #49 STATE
RECRUITED BY: CHRIS WHITE
OFFERS: IOWA, FLORIDA ATLANTIC, UMASS, W. MICHIGAN
Aaron Mends 6'1" 204 Kansas City, Missouri LB
RIVALS: 3 STAR OLB
ESPN: 3 STAR #35 ILB
SCOUT: 2 STAR #136 OLB
247: 3 STAR #43 ILB, #21 STATE
COMPOSITE: 3 STAR #57 ILB, #22 STATE
RECRUITED BY: LEVAR WOODS
OFFERS: IOWA, IOWA STATE, NORTH DAKOTA STATE
Jameer Outsey 6'3" 210 Somerset, New Jersey LB
RIVALS: 3 STAR OLB
ESPN: 3 STAR #83 OLB
SCOUT: 3 STAR #76 OLB
247: 3 STAR #69 WSDE, #40 STATE
COMPOSITE: 3 STAR #63 WSDE, #35 STATE
RECRUITED BY: CHRIS WHITE
OFFERS: IOWA, AKRON, BUFFALO, PITTSBURGH, TEMPLE
Ben Niemann 6'3" 185 Sycamore, Illinois LB
RIVALS: 2 STAR ATH
ESPN: 3 STAR #95 ATH
SCOUT: 2 STAR #137 OLB
247: 2 STAR #137 OLB, #54 STATE
COMPOSITE: 2 STAR #172 OLB, #63 STATE
RECRUITED BY: JIM REID
OFFERS: IOWA, NORTHERN ILLINOIS
Omar Truitt 5'11" 185 Washington, DC DB
RIVALS: 3 STAR
ESPN: 3 STAR #76 ATH
SCOUT: 3 STAR #42 CB
247: 3 STAR #77 CB, #7 STATE
COMPOSITE: 3 STAR #63 CB, #7 STATE, #830 OVERALL
RECRUITED BY: CHRIS WHITE
OFFERS: IOWA, MARYLAND, RICHMOND, SYRACUSE, TENNESSEE
Marcel Joly 5'11" 180 Forestville, MD CB
RIVALS: 3 STAR CB
ESPN: 3 STAR #145 ATH
SCOUT: 2 STAR #153 CB
247: 3 STAR #69 CB
COMPOSITE: 3 STAR #55 CB #734 OVERALL
RECRUITED BY: CHRIS WHITE
OFFERS: IOWA, MARYLAND, OLD DOMINION, TEMPLE, VANDERBILT
Jalen Embry 5'11" 176 Detroit, MI CB
RIVALS: 3 STAR #37 ATH
ESPN: 3 STAR #175 ATH
SCOUT: 3 STAR #59 CB
247: 3 STAR #88 CB
COMPOSITE: 3 STAR #74 CB #998 OVERALL
RECRUITED BY: PHIL PARKER
OFFERS: IOWA, BALL STATE, CENTRAL MICHIGAN, CINCINNATI, EASTERN MICHIGAN, ILLLINOIS, NORTHERN ILLINOIS, OHIO, TOLEDO, WESTERN MICHIGAN, WISCONSIN
Josh Jackson 6'1" 175 Corinth, Texas CB
RIVALS: 2 STAR CB
ESPN: 3 STAR #49 CB
SCOUT: 2 STAR CB
247: 2 STAR #141 CB, #278 STATE
COMPOSITE: 3 STAR #149 CB, #275 STATE
RECRUITED BY: BOBBY KENNEDY
OFFERS: IOWA, COLORADO STATE, NEVADA, NEW MEXICO STATE
Jyaz Jones 6'1" 180 Dallas, Texas DB
RIVALS: 2 STAR S
ESPN: NR S
SCOUT: 3 STAR #59 S
247: 4 STAR #28 S, #36 STATE
COMPOSITE: 3 STAR #86 S, #122 STATE, #983 OVERALL
RECRUITED BY: LEVAR WOODS
OFFERS: IOWA, BAYLOR, COLORADO STATE, NEBRASKA, NEW MEXICO STATE, TEXAS TECH
Mick Ellis 5'10" 182 Lucas, Texas K
RIVALS: 2 STAR K
ESPN: 3 STAR #28 K
SCOUT: 3 STAR K
247: 2 STAR #15 K, #339 STATE
COMPOSITE: 3 STAR #12 K, #226 STATE
RECRUITED BY: BOBBY KENNEDY, CHRIS WHITE
OFFERS: IOWA, YALE
2014 Offers
Markel Smith 5'11" 210 St. Louis, Missouri RB
COMPOSITE: 3 STAR #26 RB, #8 STATE, #411 OVERALL
TOP 2 IOWA/MIZZOU
Treyvon Hughes 5'11" 208 Carrollton, Texas RB
COMPOSITE: 3 STAR #67 RB, #117 STATE, #933 OVERALL
TOP 2 IOWA/TEXAS (NO OFFER)
Brian Wallace 6'6" 305 St. Louis, Missouri OT
COMPOSITE: 4 STAR #16 T, #3 STATE, #234 OVERALL
TOP 5 ALABAMA/ARKANSAS/IOWA/NEBRASKA/OHIO STATE
Torey Hendrick 6'4" 230 Brooklyn, New York DE
COMPOSITE: 3 STAR #4 DE, #4 STATE, #29 OVERALL JUCO
TOP 5 ARIZONA STATE/IOWA/KANSAS/KANSAS STATE/NCSTATE
Raymond Wingo 5'10" 174 St. Louis, Missouri CB
COMPOSITE: 3 STAR #35 CB, #7 STATE, #394 OVERALL
TOP 5 ARKANSAS/INDIANA/IOWA/MICHIGAN STATE/NEBRASKA
Craig James 5'10" 170 Edwardsville, Illinois CB
COMPOSITE: 3 STAR #74 CB, #33 STATE, #986 OVERALL
IOWA LEADS
Andrew Jones 6'0" 174 Mesquite, Texas CB
IOWA LEADS
Payton Hendrix 6'3" 190 Dallas, Texas S
COMPOSITE: 3 STAR #47 S, #71 STATE, #565 OVERALL
TOP 5 NOTRE DAME/ARKANSAS/BAYLOR/IOWA/STANFORD
Iowa is in on a lot of defensive backs this year, with 13 verbals, not sure how many more players they will take. I'm interested to see if any in-state guys will get offers, some guys to watch are Anthony Holmes, Rico Gafford and A.J. Allen.
2015 Verbals
Jacob Newborg 6'2" 271 Indwood, Iowa OL
RIVALS:
ESPN: 3 STAR G
SCOUT:
247:
COMPOSITE: 3 STAR #26 G, #3 STATE, #485 OVERALL
RECRUITED BY: REESE MORGAN
OFFERS: IOWA
2015 Offers
Jack Beneventi 6'6" 185 Lisle, Illinois QB
COMPOSITE: 4 STAR #16 QB, #4 STATE, #238 OVERALL
Damarkus Lodge 6'3" 190 Cedar Hill, Texas WR
COMPOSITE: 4 STAR #13 WR, #18 STATE, #127 OVERALL
Jaelan Austin 6'3" 190 Grand Prairie, Texas WR
COMPOSITE: 4 STAR #51 WR, #45 STATE, #391 OVERALL
Hale Hentges 6'4" 230 Jefferson City, Missouri TE
COMPOSITE: 4 STAR #10 TE, #4 STATE, #230 OVERALL
Kyle Markway 6'4" 225 St. Louis, Missouri TE
Sam Madden6'7" 305 Barnegat, New Jersey OT
COMPOSITE: 4 STAR #12 T, #5 STATE, #135 OVERALL
Levi Paulsen 6'5" 260 Moville, Iowa OT
COMPOSITE: 4 STAR #25 T, #1 STATE, #206 OVERALL
Landan Paulsen 6'5" 270 Moville, Iowa G
COMPOSITE: 4 STAR #12 G, #2 STATE, #251 OVERALL
James Daniels 6'4" 270 Warren, Ohio C
COMPOSITE: 3 STAR #3 C, #23 STATE, #473 OVERALL
Jashon Cornell 6'4" 245 St. Paul, Minnesota DE
COMPOSITE: 5 STAR #1 DE, #1 STATE, #17 OVERALL
Clelin Ferrell 6'5" 225 Richmond, Virginia DE
COMPOSITE: 4 STAR #6 DE, #6 STATE, #79 OVERALL
James Lockhart 6'3" 245 Ennis, Texas DE
COMPOSITE: 4 STAR #7 DE, #15 STATE, #107 OVERALL
Adam McLean 6'2" 260 Gaithersburg, Maryland DE
COMPOSITE: 4 STAR #8 DE, #2 STATE, #134 OVERALL
Tim Settle 6'3" 305 Manassas, Virginia DT
COMPOSITE: 5 STAR #1 DT, #1 STATE, #2 OVERALL
Jacob Daniel 6'4" 298 Clovis, California DT
COMPOSITE: 5 STAR #5 DT, #3 STATE, #20 OVERALL
Christian Wilkins 6'4" 290 Suffield, Connecticut DT
COMPOSITE: 4 STAR #11 DT, #1 STATE, #66 OVERALL
Justin Hilliard 6'2" 225 Cincinnati, Ohio OLB
COMPOSITE: 4 STAR #5 OLB, #3 STATE, #73 OVERALL
Ricky DeBerry 6'2" 240 Richmond, Virginia OLB
COMPOSITE: 4 STAR #4 OLB, #2 STATE, #53 OVERALL
Juantez McRae 6'0" 170 Towson, Maryland S
COMPOSITE: 4 STAR #22 S, #7 STATE, #324 OVERALL
Jack Hockaday 6'1" 205 Maroa, Illinois S
Jerome Baker 6'1" 205 Cleveland, Ohio ATH
COMPOSITE: 4 STAR #8 ATH, #4 STATE, #83 OVERALL
Garrett Taylor6'1" 186 Richmond, Virginia ATH
COMPOSITE: 4 STAR #14 ATH, #12 STATE, #173 OVERALL
College Football 9/8
It ended up being a nice Saturday of college football yesterday, not only did Iowa and New Mexico snap their losing streaks, USC got upset by Washington State! Iowa had trouble putting away Missouri State, but still came out with the win, and the Lobos stopped UTEP in overtime for their first victory of the season.
The Hawkeyes were favored to beat Missouri State by 24 and were well on their way up 21-0 late until the Bears gave them a bit of a scare. Missouri State scored on a touchdown pass and seconds later Iowa QB, Jake Rudock threw a pick six to put the score at 21-14. The Hawkeyes were able to cross the goal line once more and held on to win 28-14. Iowa racked up a ton of yards, but had trouble scoring. The defense held Missouri State under 200 yards for the game, and only 67 in the first half. Mark Weisman rumbled for 180 yards on 30 carries and a couple of scores. Rudock added two more running touchdowns.
New Mexico was led by running back Kasey Carrier and backup QB Clayton Mitchem. Carrier ran for 291 yards and four touchdowns, including one in overtime that put the score at 42-35. The Lobo defense stopped UTEP short on fourth down to seal the victory.
My Top 25
1-Alabama
2-Ohio State
3-Clemson
4-Oregon
5-Texas A&M
6-Stanford
7-Florida State
8-LSU
9-Michigan
10-Louisville
11-Georgia
12-Oklahoma State
13-Miami
14-Oklahoma
15-Northwestern
16-UCLA
17-South Carolina
18-Florida
19-Wisconsin
20-Washington
21-Nebraska
22-Fresno State
23-Northern Illinois
24-Notre Dame
25-Baylor
Top Games of the Week
Last week I was 6 of 7 on predictions, which makes me 12-5 for the season.
Alabama at Texas A&M: Alabama looks to avenge their only loss from a year ago, but will have a hard time on the road. A&M has looked good in their last six quarters of play and will bring their A game. Texas A&M 31 Alabama 28
UCLA at Nebraska: Nebraska didn't look very sharp against Wyoming, their defense could use some work. I think UCLA pulls the upset. UCLA 27 Nebraska 21
Wisconsin at Arizona State: Wisconsin outscored their first two opponents 93-0, but against a pretty weak schedule. They have three running backs averaging 125 yards/game. Wisconsin 34 Arizona State 28
Tennessee at Oregon: Tennessee hasn't quite turned the corner yet and shouldn't be too much of a challenge for the Ducks. Oregon 48 Tennessee 21
Washington at Illinois: Two of the most surprising teams so far this season. Washington dominated Boise State and Illinois destroyed Cincinnati. Washington 38 Illinois 28
Ole Miss at Texas: BYU shredded Texas' defense yesterday. This should be a good game, I think Texas will bounce back. Texas 27 Ole Miss 24
UCF at Penn State: Both teams come in at 2-0. Penn State 27 UCF 21
TCU at Texas Tech: Good game to kick off the conference slate for both teams. Kliff Kingsbury has a solid walk-on FR QB. Tech 42 TCU 28
Fresno State at Colorado: Colorado is at 2-0 right now, looks like the might be heading in the right direction. Fresno could be a BCS-buster this year. Fresno 42 Colorado 31
Georgia Tech at Duke: Duke looked pretty good last year, and started off 2-0 this season. GT's offense looks sharp. GT 38 Duke 27
Virginia Tech at East Carolina: Va Tech 27 E. Carolina 14
Iowa at Iowa State: Iowa's sloppy win against Missouri State didn't convince anyone that they are better than they were last year, but Iowa State's loss to Northern Iowa made them look a lot worse than last year. Iowa 27 Iowa State 17
New Mexico at Pittsburgh: The Lobos snapped their losing streak behind record-breaking running back Kasey Carrier's 291 yards and four touchdowns. They travel to take on Pittsburgh this week. Pittsburgh 38 New Mexico 27
The Hawkeyes were favored to beat Missouri State by 24 and were well on their way up 21-0 late until the Bears gave them a bit of a scare. Missouri State scored on a touchdown pass and seconds later Iowa QB, Jake Rudock threw a pick six to put the score at 21-14. The Hawkeyes were able to cross the goal line once more and held on to win 28-14. Iowa racked up a ton of yards, but had trouble scoring. The defense held Missouri State under 200 yards for the game, and only 67 in the first half. Mark Weisman rumbled for 180 yards on 30 carries and a couple of scores. Rudock added two more running touchdowns.
New Mexico was led by running back Kasey Carrier and backup QB Clayton Mitchem. Carrier ran for 291 yards and four touchdowns, including one in overtime that put the score at 42-35. The Lobo defense stopped UTEP short on fourth down to seal the victory.
My Top 25
1-Alabama
2-Ohio State
3-Clemson
4-Oregon
5-Texas A&M
6-Stanford
7-Florida State
8-LSU
9-Michigan
10-Louisville
11-Georgia
12-Oklahoma State
13-Miami
14-Oklahoma
15-Northwestern
16-UCLA
17-South Carolina
18-Florida
19-Wisconsin
20-Washington
21-Nebraska
22-Fresno State
23-Northern Illinois
24-Notre Dame
25-Baylor
Top Games of the Week
Last week I was 6 of 7 on predictions, which makes me 12-5 for the season.
Alabama at Texas A&M: Alabama looks to avenge their only loss from a year ago, but will have a hard time on the road. A&M has looked good in their last six quarters of play and will bring their A game. Texas A&M 31 Alabama 28
UCLA at Nebraska: Nebraska didn't look very sharp against Wyoming, their defense could use some work. I think UCLA pulls the upset. UCLA 27 Nebraska 21
Wisconsin at Arizona State: Wisconsin outscored their first two opponents 93-0, but against a pretty weak schedule. They have three running backs averaging 125 yards/game. Wisconsin 34 Arizona State 28
Tennessee at Oregon: Tennessee hasn't quite turned the corner yet and shouldn't be too much of a challenge for the Ducks. Oregon 48 Tennessee 21
Washington at Illinois: Two of the most surprising teams so far this season. Washington dominated Boise State and Illinois destroyed Cincinnati. Washington 38 Illinois 28
Ole Miss at Texas: BYU shredded Texas' defense yesterday. This should be a good game, I think Texas will bounce back. Texas 27 Ole Miss 24
UCF at Penn State: Both teams come in at 2-0. Penn State 27 UCF 21
TCU at Texas Tech: Good game to kick off the conference slate for both teams. Kliff Kingsbury has a solid walk-on FR QB. Tech 42 TCU 28
Fresno State at Colorado: Colorado is at 2-0 right now, looks like the might be heading in the right direction. Fresno could be a BCS-buster this year. Fresno 42 Colorado 31
Georgia Tech at Duke: Duke looked pretty good last year, and started off 2-0 this season. GT's offense looks sharp. GT 38 Duke 27
Virginia Tech at East Carolina: Va Tech 27 E. Carolina 14
Iowa at Iowa State: Iowa's sloppy win against Missouri State didn't convince anyone that they are better than they were last year, but Iowa State's loss to Northern Iowa made them look a lot worse than last year. Iowa 27 Iowa State 17
New Mexico at Pittsburgh: The Lobos snapped their losing streak behind record-breaking running back Kasey Carrier's 291 yards and four touchdowns. They travel to take on Pittsburgh this week. Pittsburgh 38 New Mexico 27
Sunday, September 1, 2013
College Football 9/1
It was an interesting weekend of college football on opening weekend. I was able to watch the Iowa-Northern Illinois game and the second half of the New Mexico-UTSA game. Both were pretty disappointing.
I went to Spectators here in Albuquerque, they play all of the Iowa football games. It was my first time there, it was a lot of fun, it was cool seeing so many Iowa fans together in Albuquerque. The outcome wasn't what we had hoped for, but I thought there were some signs of improvement for Iowa compared to last year.
The Hawkeyes found themselves down 10-0 late in the first quarter and Northern Illinois and Jordan Lynch had the ball, looking to add to the lead. Senior linebacker, Christian Kirksey, forced a fumble and rumbled in from 52 yards for Iowa's first touchdown of the season. The Hawkeyes offense started clicking in the second quarter and they took a 24-17 lead into halftime. Things were looking up, Jake Rudock had nearly 200 yards and they racked up 302 total yards.
The second half the Hawkeyes offense wasn't able to get anything going, Rudock struggled a bit and the defense just couldn't hold on. Rudock threw a costly pick with about a minute left and the Huskies capitalized with a late second field goal to seal the win 30-27.
Here's my breakdown on positions.
QB: Jake Rudock looked pretty sharp for his first game, he kind of has a weird delivery, doesn't look that smooth, but made some great passes. He hit Damond Powell on a nice toss for 49 yards, and also hit Jordan Cotton on a flea-flicker for a nice gain. It was to see some throws downfield. I was happy they took a shot on 3rd and 1 with a long throw, they didn't connect, but it was nice to see them give it a shot. Overall, I was pretty pleased with Rudock's game besides the interception at the end. He was nearly picked on similar plays throughout the game.
RB: Mark Weisman and Damon Bullock both looked pretty good and provide a decent 1-2 punch. I would have liked to see Canzeri in there a little more, he ran twice and the lanes closed pretty quickly on both runs. I think he should have got a couple more carries to see what he could do. Bullock had a huge drop late in the game that could have been a nice gain and a first down.
WR: Kevonte Martin-Manley was fantastic in the game, seemed like he was everywhere. He ended up with nine grabs. Damond Powell made a nice adjustment on an underthrown ball for a huge gain, but mis-judged a nice toss later in the game. Don Shumpert had at least one more drop that I can remember. He probably has more drops than catches in his career. I think he would have been better off in the secondary, athletic guy with good size, could have been a good safety possibly. It was good to see some of the younger guys, Riley McCarron, Jacob Hillyer, Tevaun Smith. None of them were amazing, but they each had a catch. Jordan Cotton had a nice game, too.
TE: The tight ends weren't targeted much in the game, but I did see at least four of them play. C.J. Fiedorowicz was the only one with a catch, he had yeo, one for a td.
OL: The OL looked pretty sharp in the first half, I don't remember Rudock getting hit at all until later in the game. It was scary to see Scherff go down, luckily he was back in during the next drive. I think the line did a solid job as the Hawks averaged around 5 yards per carry, which is very respectable. The pass protection looked pretty solid, but seemed to wear down later in the game. The guard play will need to step up though as the season goes on.
DL: The DL is still very young with DE Dominic Alvis being the only senior. The line didn't get much pressure on the Lynch, but they did a very nice job against the run and held Lynch in check on the ground. I was really hoping to see Carl Davis make some big plays, but he was fairly quiet all day. Also saw him limping a bit, he's a huge guy. I saw Nate Meier in there quite a bit, and Drew Ott did a nice job at DE.
LB: The LB crew I thought played very well. Kirksey and Hitchens combined for nearly 30 tackles, Hitchens seemed like he was all over the place. Morris made some nice tfl and Kirksey had a huge td that gained the Hawkeyes momentum. Saw Quinton Alston and Travis Perry in the game at times, too.
DB: The secondary has a long way to go. The two safeties, Tanner Miller and Johnny Lowdermilk weren't really too impressive. B.J. Lowery had a couple rough plays, but he appeared to be dinged up a bit. Jordan Lomax needs to improve, saw true freshmen, Desmond King in the game and he didn't do too bad from what I saw. Took me a few plays to realize who it was out there.
Special Teams: Mike Meyer is a great kicker, didn't miss at all, he's been very consistent. Punter, Connor Kornbrath, didn't look very good. Had a terrible shank in the first half. The coverage teams looked pretty good, saw Cotton and Gavin Smith make some nice tackles on punt coverage and true freshmen, Jonathan Parker downed a punt pinning the Huskies deep in their onw territory. Cotton didn't seem to accelerate on his kick returns and didn't do anything flashy. KMM looked pretty good as the PR.
Overall, I think the Hawkeyes could be a decent team this year and could bounce back and make a bowl game. It's going to be tough, but I think they can do it. And Iowa State lost to Northern Iowa, so that made life a little easier after Iowa's loss.
I was driving home and drove by University Stadium here in Albuquerque right at halftime of the New Mexico-UTSA game. Lobos were up 13-7 and I noticed a lot of people leaving. It's disappointing to not see the support for the football team, I think Bob Davie is a great coach and is going to turn New Mexico around. I watched the second half on tv and their offense looked awful. QB Cole Gautsche has a long way to go in the passing game, he did have a sharp td pass to Marquis Bundy though. He also ran for 118 yards, but RB Kasey Carrier struggled, only picking up 54 yards on 20 carries. I thought the OL would be a strong point for UNM, but they struggled. The defense looked pretty good throughout the game, but still have a lot of work. It's hard to say where the Lobos will end up in the conference.
I didn't get to watch any games really besides those two, but saw a lot of highlights. I was 6-4 on my predictions, I did miss the Iowa-N. Ill game and UNM-UTSA. I also thought Georgia would knock off Clemson, what a great game.
Here's my new top 25 after the first week of games.
1-Alabama
2-Ohio State
3-Clemson
4-Oregon
5-South Carolina
6-Texas A&M
7-Stanford
8-Florida State
9-Florida
10-LSU
11-Michigan
12-Oklahoma
13-Georgia
14-Louisville
15-Notre Dame
16-Texas
17-Northwestern
18-Oklahoma State
19-UCLA
20-Wisconsin
21-USC
22-Nebraska
23-Washington
24-Fresno State
25-Northern Illinois
Surprise teams of the week
Louisville: I wasn't sure why many people had them in the top 10, but they dominated a pretty good Ohio team. Teddy Bridgewater will be a legit Heisman candidate.
Oklahoma State: They did a great job dominating Mississippi State. They could make a nice run this year with their schedule.
Nebraska: They almost lost to Wyoming, (I wish they had, I really don't like them) but they held on to win by three. I predicted them to win the Legends division, but they'll need to step up or they might end up third.
Washington: I predicted them to beat Boise, but not that bad. They destroyed the Broncos! Look out Pac-12, Washington could be the real deal.
San Diego State: They made me look stupid, I had them winning 10 games this year, but they ended up getting smacked around by Eastern Illinois. I love Rocky Long, hope they can bounce back.
Top games of this week
Not a lot of big marquee matchups, but there are some good games.
Florida State at Pittsburgh: Florida State should be a solid team this year and will compete with Clemson for the division title. Pittsburg is the new guy in town in the ACC and could be decent. Florida State 31 Pittsburgh 21
Florida at Miami: I think this will be a great game, Miami is looking pretty good, possibly a top 25 team. Florida has a lot of talent, too. I think Miami will just fall short. Florida 24 Miami 21
Oregon at Virginia: Virginia knocked off BYU, which was surprising to me, and Oregon was Oregon. Oregon 45 Virginia 14
South Carolina at Georgia: Both teams looked good week one, but Clowney is going to have to step up this week. Aaron Murray didn't throw any td's in a close loss to Clemson. Georgia needs a win to avoid going 0-2 and I think they will. Georgia 27 S. Carolina 17
Notre Dame at Michigan: This should be a good one! Both teams were sharp in their tune up games heading into this week. Gotta go with Michigan with the homefield advantage. Michigan 31 Notre Dame 28
San Jose State at Stanford: I really like San Jose State and I think they could hit double digit wins, but this game will be too tough. Stanford 34 San Jose State 17
Not a big game, but Missouri State at Iowa: I think Iowa will roll and we'll get to see a backup QB finally get a snap. Iowa 45 Missouri State 10
I went to Spectators here in Albuquerque, they play all of the Iowa football games. It was my first time there, it was a lot of fun, it was cool seeing so many Iowa fans together in Albuquerque. The outcome wasn't what we had hoped for, but I thought there were some signs of improvement for Iowa compared to last year.
The Hawkeyes found themselves down 10-0 late in the first quarter and Northern Illinois and Jordan Lynch had the ball, looking to add to the lead. Senior linebacker, Christian Kirksey, forced a fumble and rumbled in from 52 yards for Iowa's first touchdown of the season. The Hawkeyes offense started clicking in the second quarter and they took a 24-17 lead into halftime. Things were looking up, Jake Rudock had nearly 200 yards and they racked up 302 total yards.
The second half the Hawkeyes offense wasn't able to get anything going, Rudock struggled a bit and the defense just couldn't hold on. Rudock threw a costly pick with about a minute left and the Huskies capitalized with a late second field goal to seal the win 30-27.
Here's my breakdown on positions.
QB: Jake Rudock looked pretty sharp for his first game, he kind of has a weird delivery, doesn't look that smooth, but made some great passes. He hit Damond Powell on a nice toss for 49 yards, and also hit Jordan Cotton on a flea-flicker for a nice gain. It was to see some throws downfield. I was happy they took a shot on 3rd and 1 with a long throw, they didn't connect, but it was nice to see them give it a shot. Overall, I was pretty pleased with Rudock's game besides the interception at the end. He was nearly picked on similar plays throughout the game.
RB: Mark Weisman and Damon Bullock both looked pretty good and provide a decent 1-2 punch. I would have liked to see Canzeri in there a little more, he ran twice and the lanes closed pretty quickly on both runs. I think he should have got a couple more carries to see what he could do. Bullock had a huge drop late in the game that could have been a nice gain and a first down.
WR: Kevonte Martin-Manley was fantastic in the game, seemed like he was everywhere. He ended up with nine grabs. Damond Powell made a nice adjustment on an underthrown ball for a huge gain, but mis-judged a nice toss later in the game. Don Shumpert had at least one more drop that I can remember. He probably has more drops than catches in his career. I think he would have been better off in the secondary, athletic guy with good size, could have been a good safety possibly. It was good to see some of the younger guys, Riley McCarron, Jacob Hillyer, Tevaun Smith. None of them were amazing, but they each had a catch. Jordan Cotton had a nice game, too.
TE: The tight ends weren't targeted much in the game, but I did see at least four of them play. C.J. Fiedorowicz was the only one with a catch, he had yeo, one for a td.
OL: The OL looked pretty sharp in the first half, I don't remember Rudock getting hit at all until later in the game. It was scary to see Scherff go down, luckily he was back in during the next drive. I think the line did a solid job as the Hawks averaged around 5 yards per carry, which is very respectable. The pass protection looked pretty solid, but seemed to wear down later in the game. The guard play will need to step up though as the season goes on.
DL: The DL is still very young with DE Dominic Alvis being the only senior. The line didn't get much pressure on the Lynch, but they did a very nice job against the run and held Lynch in check on the ground. I was really hoping to see Carl Davis make some big plays, but he was fairly quiet all day. Also saw him limping a bit, he's a huge guy. I saw Nate Meier in there quite a bit, and Drew Ott did a nice job at DE.
LB: The LB crew I thought played very well. Kirksey and Hitchens combined for nearly 30 tackles, Hitchens seemed like he was all over the place. Morris made some nice tfl and Kirksey had a huge td that gained the Hawkeyes momentum. Saw Quinton Alston and Travis Perry in the game at times, too.
DB: The secondary has a long way to go. The two safeties, Tanner Miller and Johnny Lowdermilk weren't really too impressive. B.J. Lowery had a couple rough plays, but he appeared to be dinged up a bit. Jordan Lomax needs to improve, saw true freshmen, Desmond King in the game and he didn't do too bad from what I saw. Took me a few plays to realize who it was out there.
Special Teams: Mike Meyer is a great kicker, didn't miss at all, he's been very consistent. Punter, Connor Kornbrath, didn't look very good. Had a terrible shank in the first half. The coverage teams looked pretty good, saw Cotton and Gavin Smith make some nice tackles on punt coverage and true freshmen, Jonathan Parker downed a punt pinning the Huskies deep in their onw territory. Cotton didn't seem to accelerate on his kick returns and didn't do anything flashy. KMM looked pretty good as the PR.
Overall, I think the Hawkeyes could be a decent team this year and could bounce back and make a bowl game. It's going to be tough, but I think they can do it. And Iowa State lost to Northern Iowa, so that made life a little easier after Iowa's loss.
I was driving home and drove by University Stadium here in Albuquerque right at halftime of the New Mexico-UTSA game. Lobos were up 13-7 and I noticed a lot of people leaving. It's disappointing to not see the support for the football team, I think Bob Davie is a great coach and is going to turn New Mexico around. I watched the second half on tv and their offense looked awful. QB Cole Gautsche has a long way to go in the passing game, he did have a sharp td pass to Marquis Bundy though. He also ran for 118 yards, but RB Kasey Carrier struggled, only picking up 54 yards on 20 carries. I thought the OL would be a strong point for UNM, but they struggled. The defense looked pretty good throughout the game, but still have a lot of work. It's hard to say where the Lobos will end up in the conference.
I didn't get to watch any games really besides those two, but saw a lot of highlights. I was 6-4 on my predictions, I did miss the Iowa-N. Ill game and UNM-UTSA. I also thought Georgia would knock off Clemson, what a great game.
Here's my new top 25 after the first week of games.
1-Alabama
2-Ohio State
3-Clemson
4-Oregon
5-South Carolina
6-Texas A&M
7-Stanford
8-Florida State
9-Florida
10-LSU
11-Michigan
12-Oklahoma
13-Georgia
14-Louisville
15-Notre Dame
16-Texas
17-Northwestern
18-Oklahoma State
19-UCLA
20-Wisconsin
21-USC
22-Nebraska
23-Washington
24-Fresno State
25-Northern Illinois
Surprise teams of the week
Louisville: I wasn't sure why many people had them in the top 10, but they dominated a pretty good Ohio team. Teddy Bridgewater will be a legit Heisman candidate.
Oklahoma State: They did a great job dominating Mississippi State. They could make a nice run this year with their schedule.
Nebraska: They almost lost to Wyoming, (I wish they had, I really don't like them) but they held on to win by three. I predicted them to win the Legends division, but they'll need to step up or they might end up third.
Washington: I predicted them to beat Boise, but not that bad. They destroyed the Broncos! Look out Pac-12, Washington could be the real deal.
San Diego State: They made me look stupid, I had them winning 10 games this year, but they ended up getting smacked around by Eastern Illinois. I love Rocky Long, hope they can bounce back.
Top games of this week
Not a lot of big marquee matchups, but there are some good games.
Florida State at Pittsburgh: Florida State should be a solid team this year and will compete with Clemson for the division title. Pittsburg is the new guy in town in the ACC and could be decent. Florida State 31 Pittsburgh 21
Florida at Miami: I think this will be a great game, Miami is looking pretty good, possibly a top 25 team. Florida has a lot of talent, too. I think Miami will just fall short. Florida 24 Miami 21
Oregon at Virginia: Virginia knocked off BYU, which was surprising to me, and Oregon was Oregon. Oregon 45 Virginia 14
South Carolina at Georgia: Both teams looked good week one, but Clowney is going to have to step up this week. Aaron Murray didn't throw any td's in a close loss to Clemson. Georgia needs a win to avoid going 0-2 and I think they will. Georgia 27 S. Carolina 17
Notre Dame at Michigan: This should be a good one! Both teams were sharp in their tune up games heading into this week. Gotta go with Michigan with the homefield advantage. Michigan 31 Notre Dame 28
San Jose State at Stanford: I really like San Jose State and I think they could hit double digit wins, but this game will be too tough. Stanford 34 San Jose State 17
Not a big game, but Missouri State at Iowa: I think Iowa will roll and we'll get to see a backup QB finally get a snap. Iowa 45 Missouri State 10
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