It's Sports Illustrated's Fault!

They had a kick-ass class of battleships named after them, though.

oldebayer: They had a kick-ass class of battleships named after them, though.

There's a class of battleship named Hawkeye?

GAT_00: Honestly, the only reason Iowa lost was they lost their quarterback. If he's back for OSU, I still see the Hawkeyes beating them, and Iowa still takes the Big 10. If not, the Buckeyes win and get a Rose Bowl bid I didn't see coming.

What I've heard is that Stanzi is out for at least the next two weeks, and maybe for the Bowl game. The fact that he was on crutches on the sideline in the second half doesn't bode well for a speedy recovery. It's a damn shame, because I'd rather have Iowa at full strength.

At least the Big 10 wont have anyone in the Championship game, thank God.

Go go TCU.

Quasar: Guess the refs couldn't bail them outta this one.

They definitely did last week versus the hoosiers.

/Inconsolable.

The quarterback play wasn't the only changes at Kinnick stadium for Iowa when one compares the game they played against Indiana versus the game they played against Northwestern. Against Indiana, they got several gift calls from the refs and the ball took some mighty strange bounces in their favor. Against Northwestern, they got none of that.

But the biggest change that I noticed was from the cameramen panning the crowd. Against Indiana, it appeared that they were searching the crowd for the most butt ugly women possible. Every shot of the Iowa coeds produced women who were more than somewhat beauty impared. Then, the next week against Northwestern, the cameramen panned the crowd and seldom showed an Iowa woman who wasn't a babe. And this is what I'm thinking caused the loss, not the veteran quarterback going down and the newbie freshman not making plays. Lady Luck got jealous, and deserted Iowa because of the freaking ESPN cameramen.

fark Iowa.

They had a great run. I've never seen so much hate for a team of underdogs. I didn't quite understand it, as I thought people tended to that sort of thing. I guess they just like the same teams winning year in and year out.

TheJoe03: At least the Big 10 wont have anyone in the Championship game, thank God.

This bears repeating.

Yeah well....at least two dudes can get married here in Iowa!!

/little known fact: Ricky is not Stanzi's real first name. It's actually more like "GODDAMNIT STANZI!", or "WHO ARE YOU THROWING TO STANZI?!" The most common name however is still "farkING STANZI DID IT AGAIN!"

YonderScott: TheJoe03: At least the Big 10 wont have anyone in the Championship game, thank God.

This bears repeating.

Not inherently true, unfortunately. A two-loss team can get into the national title game, even ahead of an undefeated non-BCS team! If Iowa wins out and finishes 11-1, they still COULD get into the title game if everyone else fails hard enough. Cinci would have to lose once, and at least two of the current top 3 teams would have to lose twice (Texas, Bama, Florida).

It's incredibly unlikely, though. Texas doesn't have anyone left to challenge them this year. Alabama and Florida also have easy schedules left. To me, this is what the BCS will end up looking like:

Rose: USC vs Ohio State (Either team could easily change)
Fiesta: TCU vs Oregon (Oregon could be replaced by Pitt, Arizona, Iowa, Penn State, OK State or Miami)
Orange: Cincy vs GA Tech
Sugar: Loser of Bama/Florida vs Boise
NC: Texas vs Florida/Bama

There are a few interesting games that will sort things out from here. Iowa/OSU is one. Cincy/Pitt (Pitt only has 1 loss, and that's out of conference), GA Tech/Miami, Stanford/USC, USC/Arizona, and Arizona/Oregon. The PAC 10 and Big 10 are the really interesting conference races at this point. The SEC and Big 12 are pretty much set. The Big East and ACC, while not taken seriously, are set up to be competitive for the rest of the year.

Outside the BCS, Utah/TCU should be interesting. BYU/Utah could also be very interesting. Nevada/Boise might be worth a watch. I'm curious to see if Temple, Central Michigan, Houston and Troy can run the table the rest of the way.

Freak: Go go TCU.

If they win out, TCU and Boise St. should both definitely be in a BCS Bowl...playing each other.

That's too bad. I liked Iowa.

KiwDaWabbit: They had a great run. I've never seen so much hate for a team of underdogs. I didn't quite understand it, as I thought people tended to that sort of thing. I guess they just like the same teams winning year in and year out.

It's really more of an animosity for the Big 10 generally than it is for Iowa specifically. If they were Vandy, or Stanford, or Syracuse for instance, they would be getting a lot more favorable attention.

/You can blame Ohio State, Michigan, and Penn State for consistently flopping in BCS bowls recently
//Washington, Miami, Oklahoma, and Texas have all won Rose Bowls more recently than any Big 10 team too
///At least you essentially have a semi-final to get to the Rose Bowl this year

PolarBoy: /Inconsolable.

Huh?

studleystudstutterson: It's really more of an animosity for the Big 10 generally than it is for Iowa specifically. If they were Vandy, or Stanford, or Syracuse for instance, they would be getting a lot more favorable attention.

/You can blame Ohio State, Michigan, and Penn State for consistently flopping in BCS bowls recently
//Washington, Miami, Oklahoma, and Texas have all won Rose Bowls more recently than any Big 10 team too
///At least you essentially have a semi-final to get to the Rose Bowl this year

Part of the problem is that Big Ten teams usually wind up playing USC. They've lost one bowl game ever under Pete Carroll, right? So, they tend to make everyone look bad. Iowa's worst bowl loss under Ferentz was to USC. However, they have beaten Florida, LSU, and South Carolina in bowl games this decade, so, sure, they're not lights out, but they are better bowl performers than people may give them credit for. Sometimes when the Big Ten goes 1-6, 2-4, etc., in Bowls, one of those wins is from Iowa.

That all being said, the silver lining of Iowa losing is that they might go to a bowl that they could reasonably win. I suppose that's part of what fueled the haters. Well, as it turns out, everyone got what they wished for, so they can find some other team to rail on from here on out. The only really crappy thing is that Stanzi might be out for the rest of the season, so this is the time when we get to see what this team is really made of.

studleystudstutterson: /You can blame Ohio State, Michigan, and Penn State for consistently flopping in BCS bowls recently

Yep. As a Michigan fan, it has been painful to watch the B10 flops in BCS games. With the exceptions of OSU earlier this decade and PSU in the Orange Bowl a while back, it has been Michigan losing three Rose Bowls in four years, OSU losing three straight BCS games, and the last two debacles in the Rose Bowl (including the one that Illinois had no business being in).

The only MILD success the conference has had is winning six of the last ten Capital One Bowls.

KiwDaWabbit: They had a great run. I've never seen so much hate for a team of underdogs. I didn't quite understand it, as I thought people tended to that sort of thing. I guess they just like the same teams winning year in and year out.

As a TCU fan I had a hate for them for selfish reasons, but I think the majority of the nation had underdog hate for them because of:

1) VERY questionable calls that went their way to save their game
2) The quality of the wins they did get vs. unranked teams
3) The number of times they had to win it in the last quarter of the game
4) They're not TCU.

/ok maybe not so much the fourth.

KiwDaWabbit: They had a great run. I've never seen so much hate for a team of underdogs. I didn't quite understand it, as I thought people tended to that sort of thing. I guess they just like the same teams winning year in and year out.

I firmly believe it's not the hate of the team, but the hate of the rabid Hawk fans. I know every team has rabid fans, but I think Iowa has a thicker population of them as compared to other teams.

Well, one thing I'm sick of hearing about is the Indiana call. Yes, it was a bad call, but what everyone seems to forget is that Indiana allowed 28 points in a quarter (Indiana had a 10-point lead to start). If anything should be blamed for that Indiana loss, it should have been God, because the wind was awful and no one seemed to understand that. Of course, I don't expect a lot of people here to have a clue what they're talking about, just in general.

/Was there

But...as for TCU, I'm rooting for them, if that helps. I'd love to see a TCU-Cincinnati national championship, but that won't happen. Even if Texas goes down, I could see Florida and Alabama just playing again.

Juxtaposed Concepts: I firmly believe it's not the hate of the team, but the hate of the rabid Hawk fans. I know every team has rabid fans, but I think Iowa has a thicker population of them as compared to other teams.

I've heard a lot about this, but I haven't seen it. Maybe it's because I live on the other side of the state. But, yeah, the worst groups of fans are generally those who aren't used to winning. Say what you want, but Iowa hasn't really won much of anything in their entire existence, winning streak or not, so, unfortunately, there are going to be large groups of people who have no idea how to act.

DFWTCU: KiwDaWabbit: They had a great run. I've never seen so much hate for a team of underdogs. I didn't quite understand it, as I thought people tended to that sort of thing. I guess they just like the same teams winning year in and year out.

As a TCU fan I had a hate for them for selfish reasons, but I think the majority of the nation had underdog hate for them because of:

1) VERY questionable calls that went their way to save their game
2) The quality of the wins they did get vs. unranked teams
3) The number of times they had to win it in the last quarter of the game
4) They're not TCU.

/ok maybe not so much the fourth.

1) but when Florida or Alabama gets those questionable calls, it's ok? (hint: hypocrisy = FAIL)
2) Iowa had wins over 3 top 25 teams. Only Oregon could match that.
3) Last I checked, the game was 60 minutes long. It takes a lot more testicular fortitude to keep an even keel, not get flustered and come from behind to win a game, than it does to beat up on Podunk Tech A & M for 3 quarters before putting your 2nd stringers in and still winning 85-3 (ahem, Florida?).
4) who has TCU played to get their ranking? I'd like to see TCU play a grueling Big Ten schedule (especially after losing 8 starters)

As a Hawkeye fan, I reveled in the hate that was directed at Iowa. You could see the entire college football world was afraid that Iowa would spoil the party, trying to get in with the $$ programs. True, we aren't flashy, we aren't 'sexy', but we do more with less than those $$ programs. I'd rather take a 2-3 star recruit and build them up than get a primadonna 5 star. Hell, we have walk-ons (Dallas Clark for one) in the NFL.

And Iowa going undefeated would have helped ruin the BCS, so I don't know why you all are happy that Iowa lost.

/Hawkeye til the day I die.
//Fark you, we're Iowa.

Close, Lacydog, but Oregon still has the lead in the Pac 10 and controls their destiny. I see them going to the Rose. Also, there is no way the Sugar is going to take a non-AQ school two years in a row. If Cincy goes undefeated but doesn't get into the NC game, the Sugar would snap them up in a second to create a de facto 3rd place game against the loser of the SEC title game.

/TCU in and Boise out, too.

I think most of the hate for Iowa came from their computer ranking. EVERYONE knew they were a weaker team (and on the edge) compared to what the computer was giving them. A win IS NOT just a win. I'm sorry a lot more goes into it. The two wins by 3 points Iowa had against two horrible teams shows they never should have been ranked this high in the first place. The voters showed that by having the Hawkeyes at 8 last week. If they had been voted at 3-5 the computers would have bounced them to 1 or 2 based on SOS.

/Hook 'Em.
//Hope we can play a first half when it really matters this year.

Also, not to burst your bubble, Furinkazan, but...

1) This is the worst year of officiating ever in college football for everyone.
2) Alabama has 3 wins over top 25 teams at the time of the game, including two over top 10 teams.
3) At least Florida beat their podunk techs by 60 points instead of needing to block two field goals at the end of the game to hold on, never mind struggling against a Sun Belt also ran.
4) TCU has beat two ACC teams on the road as well as preseason darling BYU. And they beat them all by a lot.

I don't hate Iowa, I've always kind of liked them, but I'm just defending TCU here

Oh, and Auburn going undefeated didn't ruin the BCS. Iowa wouldn't have ruined it either.

Furinkazan:

Yeah, it's true they lost a lot of starters, including being down to the fourth string running back. From all I've heard, next year was supposed to be "the year", so we'll see. What scares me is that Iowa teams seem to underperform when expectations are injected into the equation.

Still, I never imagined that they'd be 9-1 at this point of the year.

sunspotter: A win IS NOT just a win.

If it's not, it should be. Style points are for figure skating.

Furinkazan:
1) but when Florida or Alabama gets those questionable calls, it's ok? (hint: hypocrisy = FAIL)
2) Iowa had wins over 3 top 25 teams. Only Oregon could match that.
3) Last I checked, the game was 60 minutes long. It takes a lot more testicular fortitude to keep an even keel, not get flustered and come from behind to win a game, than it does to beat up on Podunk Tech A & M for 3 quarters before putting your 2nd stringers in and still winning 85-3 (ahem, Florida?).
4) who has TCU played to get their ranking? I'd like to see TCU play a grueling Big Ten schedule (especially after losing 8 starters)

As a Hawkeye fan, I reveled in the hate that was directed at Iowa. You could see the entire college football world was afraid that Iowa would spoil the party, trying to get in with the $$ programs. True, we aren't flashy, we aren't 'sexy', but we do more with less than those $$ programs. I'd rather take a 2-3 star recruit and build them up than get a primadonna 5 star. Hell, we have walk-ons (Dallas Clark for one) in the NFL.

And Iowa going undefeated would have helped ruin the BCS, so I don't know why you all are happy that Iowa lost.

/Hawkeye til the day I die.
//Fark you, we're Iowa.

Because the Iowa fans became more arrogant and blind to their team's flaws after every win.

KiwDaWabbit: If it's not, it should be. Style points are for figure skating.

BS. The computer ratings had margin of victory in their calculations before the BCS. They forced them to take it out in fear of coaches driving up the score.

They system didnt really encourage that, it gave bumps for margins (1-5, 5-10, etc.)and I think it capped at +30, so running up the score wantonly wouldn't affect your rating, but barely winning to a bad team would definitely impact it negatively.

The process is politicized and the computers are not really doing what they were intended to do originally. If they were Iowa wouldn't get the bounce that they did. They should have been around 8th in the computer polls roughly as well, if not lower.

And I'm not saying it's all style points either. How you win a game does matter. A team that wins by 20 is doing better than a team that beats the same team by 3 the next week (in general obviously.) That doesn't mean there are style points being scored, it just means you beat a team by 20 points and the next guy didn't.

If a WIN IS A WIN how do you have any undefeated teams ever ranked below teams with losses? How you win matters and that should be reflected in poorly crafted and manipulated computer rankings.

I'm actually glad that we made a statement on Saturday against Penn State. Ohio State/Iowa game is going to be for all the marbles on who is going to win the head to head matchup and it's happen on our field with Ohio State coming out on top. Then the week after we can pound Michigan into next year. Pasadena or bust. We control our destiny and we can beat the PAC 10 Champion we are better than USC now.

The_Y2P_Problem: Because the Iowa fans became more arrogant and blind to their team's flaws after every win.

Well, congratulations on officially being able to unbunch your panties.

sunspotter:

Or, everything could just play out on the field like in approximately every other sport known to humanity.

If the NFL had the BCS for it's 2007 post season, the New England Patriots would have played the Dallas Cowboys in the championship game and the New York Giants would have played in the Outback Bowl.

The English Major:

Nice. I'd console her.

Ayatollah of Rock-n-Rolla: Close, Lacydog, but Oregon still has the lead in the Pac 10 and controls their destiny. I see them going to the Rose. Also, there is no way the Sugar is going to take a non-AQ school two years in a row. If Cincy goes undefeated but doesn't get into the NC game, the Sugar would snap them up in a second to create a de facto 3rd place game against the loser of the SEC title game.

/TCU in and Boise out, too.

If Cincy runs the table and doesn't go the NC, they go to the Orange Bowl to play the ACC Champ, as the Big East champion is contractually obligated to do.

So the Sugar's other options are teams like Oklahoma State, or the #2 team from the ACC, Big East, Big 10 or PAC10. And one of those teams will likely be in the Fiesta Bowl as Texas' replacement. This would be a two-loss team, getting in over an undefeated Boise. I tend to think that won't happen, even though it happened last year with Boise being shut out for a two-loss Ohio State in the Fiesta Bowl.

I said it in the discussion thread, but I'd like to gloat one more time because we don't have that many chances to do it.

GO U! NU!

Thank you.

As a side note -- my father went to Iowa. I went to NU. Thanksgiving dinner table bragging rights go to me this year. Having to eat Tofurkey at the kids' table will be totally worth it.

TheOther: Freak: Go go TCU.

If they win out, TCU and Boise St. should both definitely be in a BCS Bowl...playing each other.

No.

No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No.

No.

They did this last year. We don't need to see TCU and Boise. They're both great teams, they'd play a good game. What we need is to see how TCU and Boise measure up against the other big conference teams.

Maybe when TCU crushes 'Bama or something people will finally shut up about how small conferences suck.

/Oh wait. Utah did that last year. No shutting up. Just excuses about how Alabama didn't "care" about the game.

TheJoe03: At least the Big 10 wont have anyone in the Championship game, thank God.

This is a good thing, but it is a shame that we will have to watch a Big 12 team get destroyed.

lacydog:
If Cincy runs the table and doesn't go the NC, they go to the Orange Bowl to play the ACC Champ, as the Big East champion is contractually obligated to do.



That is a very common misconception, but the Big East Champion is actually free to go to any bowl game within the BCS (the only conference champ with that distinction.) The ACC champ is connected to the Orange. Read all about it here (new window)

kiwdawabbit:

Or, everything could just play out on the field like in approximately every other sport known to humanity.

If the NFL had the BCS for it's 2007 post season, the New England Patriots would have played the Dallas Cowboys in the championship game and the New York Giants would have played in the Outback Bowl.


I'm not defending the system, I'm for a playoff system. I hate the BCS. I'm a Horns fan, we got dicked by the system last year and someone will this year.

What I am saying is that the computers, within the current system, are flawed for not accounting for margin of victory. What you call "style points."

Iowa was getting graded positively on poor outings by the computers. It was dumb to remove margin of victory from the computer stats in the first place. It made a flawed BCS system MORE flawed.

I'd really like to see an EPL style relegation system. Take the top 48 teams, at the end of the season you have a +1 or +2 playoff, you only play within the other 47 teams in your division. The bottom 18 go to the next level down and the top IIA teams come up.

With this many teams it's hard to not have some kind of relegation or voting system to handle the load.

This is payback for them leapfrogging us for the Outback Bowl last year.

Stanzi or No Stanzi, Kinnick Stadium is Ryan Field West.

/Go U NU!

TheCity: This is payback for them leapfrogging us for the Outback Bowl last year.

Stanzi or No Stanzi, Kinnick Stadium is Ryan Field West.

/Go U NU!

Ryan Field West? No, we actually FILL our stadium. NU fans hope and dream of filling their stadium, but it doesn't happen. Sorry excuse for a fanbase.

Ryan Field on Gameday.


Payback? Iowa fans travel better (again, fill your stadium and you might not get jumped). We also won our bowl game. How did you do?

NU gameplan vs Iowa (past 2 years): injure star player, then hold all day long.

I blame it on the queers and what they are doing to the soil.

/Take a look at the soil around Des Moines, Stuart!

I just wanted everyone to know, if they didn't already, that Iowa fans travel well.

/ That is all.