ISU vs. Texas

If your blood isn't pumpting for this one, you're not alive.

http://www.youtube.com/user/isuvideo#p/u/0/8hccPKDvG2c

ISU will walk into Jack Trice +9.5 dogs to Texas, after starting 3-0 in come from behind wins this season.

I do not think ISU can win this game if the 'Clones don't win or tie the turnover margin.

If I'm Wally Burnham, I'd load 8 men in the box and make a young McCoy in his inaugural season beat me through the air.  Do NOT let TU run all over the field.

Line play is important, but it will be critical to the offensive success if the O Line can push the TU dline off the ball.  I'm nervous here, due to the injuries so far this year, but I think we have "revenge" on the mind.

Jack Trice is officially sold out of anything but a few hundred "singles" throughout the stadium, so expect 56K raucus fans making it possibly louder and bigger than Iowa.

Oh, and if ISU wins, expect a top 25 ranking by Tuesday!

Conference Realignment Must Read

http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2011/09/21/sports/ncaafootball/AP-FBC-Big-12-Texas.html?_r=2&ref=sports

Keys to beating UConn

1) Win the trenches, especially against a good UConn front 7. If ISU's backs aren't running for their lives or Steele is forced to throw before he's ready, ISU should have a decent offense. I'm looking to the O Line to continue pushing their considerable weight around.. I do not care if we pass to open up the run, might be a good strategy out of the gate, but ISU must establish a run game.


2) And not to talk out of both sides of my mouth, but if ISU can have over 200 yards passing, ISU will roll in this game. I'm hoping ISU puts this game "away" early, as ISU has struggled winning outside of Jack Trice. Getting that monkey off of ISU's back is possible this week, with a win on national tv!


3)This week, again, don't give up the football. ISU needs to start WINNING the turnover battle. Take care of the damned ball! 3 turnovers was too many against Iowa and we had to have home field heroics to win.

Watch the offensive line play, and if ISU can win the field position battle through special teams. If ISU gets traction on offense, ISU will win handily against UConn's lethargic Offense.

Geeking out on Iowa State Football and Basketball - current and past: The Preview: UConn

Geeking out on Iowa State Football and Basketball - current and past: The Preview: UConn: I have waited until the 11 th hour to put my final thoughts on paper for this game against UConn. The win over Iowa in one of the most ...

Good break down I found this morning

ISU Looms Large on UCONN Radar

Comments from UConn Fans
http://the-boneyard.com/threads/cmon-huskies-official-iowa-state-vs-uconn-prediction-thread.1216/

Found this tidbit on espn

Season Leaders
ISU
PASS:Jantz 43-77, 466 yds, 5 tds
RUSH:Johnson 27 car, 135 yds, 0 tds
REC:Horne 11 rec, 163 yds, 0 tds

UCONN
PASS:McEntee 18-39, 212 yds, 0 tds
RUSH:McCombs 51 car, 259 yds, 4 tds
REC:Griffin 7 rec, 144 yds, 1 td


So UConn runs the ball more than we do and their QB has no passing TD's on the season with 3 int's. Think this is the game where the D gets some big takeaways? Can ISU take away the run to force McEntee to throw? I think this is a key to the game!

Rest of the stats here:
Connecticut Huskies 2011 Statistics - Team and Player Stats - College Football - ESPN

ISU WINS THRILLER!

1) ISU won the trenches, which is why ISU outgained the Hawks with a massive 479 yards of offense.  The O line played the game of their lives to this point, and if they can maintain, ISU will win a number of football games here.
2) As I said before the game, if ISU can keep the turnovers to +2, they have a shot.  If ISU didn't give up that weird bad QB Center exchange on the first drive (in the red zone), ISU would have won this game outright.

ISU played their tails off, and it showed.  The coaches had prepared the boys for a dog fight and they wanted it more.  Tom Herman may have called the game of his life!  ISU's offense was exciting and powerful, hopefully they can maintain against UConn next week!

http://www.cyclones.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_LANG=C&ATCLID=205269670&DB_OEM_ID=10700

http://www.cyclones.com/pdf8/783925.pdf?DB_OEM_ID=10700

Keys to winning the ISU vs. Uof I Matchup

1) Win the trenches, or even stalemate in the trenches.  If ISU's backs aren't running for their lives or forced to throw before they're ready, ISU could have a decent offense.  I'm looking to Kelechi and Hayworth to shore up the left side of the line this week.  I'd love to see a chart of how many plays go left of center this week....
2) Rhetoric, but still true, don't give up the football.  If ISU has less than 2 turnovers total for the game, ISU has at least even odds.

Sounds simple, but gosh darn it, we haven't done it in the last 2 head to head contests!

Watch the line play, and all else will settle in.  If ISU gets beat off the line, it'll be a long day in Ames.

What it means to play AMERICAN FOOTBALL

"We are being held hostage right now," Texas A&M president R. Bowen Loftin told the Associated Press. "Essentially, we're being told that you must stay here against your will, and we think that really flies in the face of what makes us Americans for example and makes us free people."

A contract is a legally enforceable agreement between two or more parties with mutual obligations, which may or may not have elements in writing. The remedy at law for breach of contract is usually "damages" or monetary compensation. In equity, the remedy can be specific performance of the contract or an injunction. Both remedies award the damaged party the "benefit of the bargain" or expectation damages, which are greater than mere reliance damages, as in promissory estoppel. (wikipedia, not perfect but what blog citations are?)

Free Americans, using the terminology Presiden Loftin uses above, having a free market economy, have the ability to enter into agreements or "contracts" with vendors of services, goods, for delivery at a "free" price. Free in this case means free from governmental interference or regulation of the price. So, as "free" American Universities, the Big XII member schools all signed a contract to provide a good (college athletics) for a price (that TV contracts buy rights to and fans buy tickets for).




Now, this "good" is threatened to have lesser supply and arguably lower quality, due to no fault of any of the member institutions that would remain in the Big XII (at least for a week or two). Thusly, the "harm" to institutions like Baylor or Iowa State, is established. The negotiated TV rights and athletic schedules are diminished due to Texas A&M's (aTm hereafter) attempt to join the South Eastern Conference.




So I have to ask what President Loftin really means by "free Americans" above. aTm signed a contract to provide a good and that good has value to the Big XII member institutions. Baylor has reserved it's right to litigation, to protect the value of that good. That's one of the great things about this country, the ability to protect one's interests through an impartial judiciary system.




We all know that aTm wants out, but the most offensive part of their argument is that they want to leave a signed, legal, binding contract, without suffering any of the protective penalties the contract had wrapped into it. Have you ever heard the phrase "no such thing as a free lunch"? Why does aTm think they're able to walk away from a contract that they signed, of sound mind and body without any undue pressure or coercion? This speaks to the whole problem with NCAA football. This is NOT about football, competition, academics, research dollars, or the "right" to associate with anyone you wish to.




This is about the almighty dollar. As you're reading articles about the conference realignments, look for the money. That's where the truth is today. It's about bigger and better contracts, it's about the payday and how to expand your athletic's budget. I'm not about to argue if this is good or bad, that's another day, but aTm is all about it.




The most surprising thing to me, is that aTm doesn't understand the remaining Big XII schools wanting to maintain that massive TV contract and the attached payday. After all, the remaining Big XII schools are just trying to maximize their income....just like aTm.

ISU Wins Ugly

I'm so mad right now, I can barely put a list together, let alone paragraphs of blog journalism

1. I am beginning to hate UNI.  For real.  They played dirty football tonight with late hits and cheap shots.  How #4 for UNI stayed in the game is beyond me.  Varmah Sonie is a thug and has no place on any football field.  Northern Iowa was flagged for 10 penalties in the first half, twice drawing three penalties on the same play, and had 16 for the game.
2. ISU's offensive line play is god awful.  And I mean lower case g god, because "God awful", would be an improvement.  This has to improve, end of story.
3. Having the large number of players out on "displinary" actions is intolerable.  I hope every time their replacement fouled up tonight, during film tomorrow, the starter has to do pushups.
4. Stop hating on Steele Jantz, his legs are a thing of beauty, and his passes in the 4th quarter showed me that he was the right man for the job.  Yes, he threw 3 interceptions and 1 TD pass.  That 1 TD was while running for his life in the corner of the end zone when we needed it the most.  This kid can play ball.  He's not the second coming of Seneca Wallace, but deep down I knew that.
5. Someone please find ISU's running game.  Our QB had 80 yards rushing, the rest of the running backs combined didn't get that.
6. Turnovers hurt worse when its a Div 1-AA team that has 4 takeaways.
7. Overall, the Cyclones gutted out a victory and had a "game winning drive" for the first time in my recent memory.  They deserved this win, and need to make drastic improvements before next week
8. I love the new scoreboard, the new team entrance series of sirens and "weather service warnings" :-)
9. I don't envy the Cyclones this week, their butts are about to get worked over, before the Hawkeyes come calling on the 10th.
10. When singing the alma mater before the game, I almost made it to the end of the song before choking up, I got to "true and loyal, like the bells of Iowaaaaaa......snifff"

Good night and good luck.


Drew out

It's GAME DAY

My personal Top 3 of today

1) Cannot wait to see our offense in action
2) Cannot wait to hear the fight song about 6-10 times today
3) Cannot wait to celebrate the Cyclones staring 1-0 on their road for a bowl berth!

Week 1 predictions from ESPN

http://espn.go.com/blog/big12/post/_/id/32531/page/picks/big-12-predictions-week-1

I think Steele Jantz makes a statement in this game