Tuesday, December 8, 2009
Tuesday, December 1, 2009
Tuesday, November 17, 2009
Tuesday, November 3, 2009
Thursday, October 29, 2009
Tuesday, June 30, 2009
There is some talent in the new class
When Biff Poggi offers fatherly advice regarding football, Jim Poggi listens.
SHELDON SHEALER
Biff Poggi, who played college ball alongside Dan Marino and Hugh Green, is the head coach at Maryland power Gilman.
After all, the elder Poggi knows what the younger Poggi is going through.
Jim Poggi, an 18-year-old rising senior linebacker at Gilman School (Baltimore), is one of Maryland's top high school football prospects. He held more than 20 major college scholarship offers before committing to the University of Iowa in April.
Biff Poggi, Gilman's head coach, was a major college football prospect 30 years ago and played at the University of Pittsburgh alongside Dan Marino, Hugh Green and Mark May.
"He gave me a lot of advice and he gave me his thoughts on certain people, certain places," Jim said. "But he was very forward in saying, 'This is your career, not mine. I already played. You go wherever you want to go.'"
New age meets old-school
Biff Poggi offers a unique perspective on the recruiting process, with which he has been closely linked for more than 30 years, first as a player, then as a college coach and most recently as a high school coach, attempting to place his best student-athletes.
In a day when combine performances, Internet profiles, recruiting services and five-star recruits are all the rage, Biff remains very old-school when it comes to recruiting, especially when it came to his son.
"The only way you're going to get an offer is the old-fashioned way," Biff said. "No matter what anybody says, you are not going to get one because you can jump high or run fast, or your name is my name, or you play for a good team or a bad team, or because you have a [recruiting profile Web] page or you have a number of stars. You are only getting a scholarship on the body of work you do between the sidelines."
Such was the advice he gave Jim.
"I told him, we could do a dossier for you with height, weight, music, running times, jumping performances, and all that kind of stuff," Biff said. "Eventually college coaches are going to ask for film. And if you have film, the rest doesn't matter."
MIKE LOVEDAY
Jim Poggi will be playing for the Hawkeyes next fall.
Jim is the second in a family of five. His older brother, Sam, is a 21-year-old junior football player at Duke University. Henry is a freshman at Gilman. Mellie, the eldest daughter, is 11 and Mary is 6.
Jim said his father's advice was valuable as he made his way through the recruiting process.
"He told me the whole time what I'd have to expect when I get [to college] and not to go through it like, 'Hey, I'm getting college paid for and now I'm going to have a good time.' He reminds me that I'm going to work hard. Every cent of that scholarship will be worked for."
Changing scenery
Biff was a 1979 graduate of Gilman, and was one of four players in his senior season to receive college football scholarships. Tom Booker went to Wisconsin, Joe Carroll to Wake Forest and Ned Finney to Delaware. Biff chose Pittsburgh, which was only three years removed from a national title.
He said the recruiting process was much different 30 years ago.
"We didn't think about getting recruited. We thought about playing football," Biff said. "And we thought if we were good enough we might get a chance to go to college and play. The recruiting process was not the enormous industry that it is now.
"The recruiting process was incredibly linear back in those days," he added. "It was between the college coach, the high school coach and, if there was a high school kid who was good enough, then the kid. There was really no parent involvement in it all. And you trusted your high school coach completely."
Biff added that there were no unofficial visits, recruiting camps or combines.
"The way you got recruited back then was on film," he said. "And there was no such thing as a highlight film. Nobody wanted to see a highlight film. They wanted to see a game tape.
"It was all about playing," he added. "No one ever asked what your 40-yard dash was or your vertical leap. There was no such thing as a three-cone drill. It was completely football players playing football."
After a short career at Pittsburgh, he ended up in the college coaching ranks -- first at Brown University, followed by stints with The Citadel and one spring with Temple.
As a college coach, his focus was on film.
"We wanted to see a game film, and we knew within 10 feet of film whether or not that was a player we wanted," he said.
Today, Biff sees recruiting as an industry.
Although he has a staff member who specifically handles recruiting, Biff has dealt with it first-hand as head coach at Gilman. Gilman alumni include current NFL defensive end Victor Abiamiri and former Notre Dame defense back Ambrose Wooden.
"Somebody the other day sent me a link to a Web site that offers, for a fee, to package your child so he can get into private [high] schools. Then wants to continue that relationship with you and package the kid to get you a [college] football scholarship. It's big business with camps, combines and Web sites."
Focusing on one
Gilman has been a perennial top 20 Maryland high school program during Biff's tenure as head coach, twice finishing ranked No. 1 in the state.
It has also become a must-stop on the college coaching circuit.
But when college coaches started to court his son, Biff said it was different than dealing with it as a coach.
"It's different when it's your own child," he said. "I can say things to that child I probably can't say another kid."
"One other thing we tried to say [to Jim] was do not get caught up in all of this stuff," Biff said. "Because if you are lucky enough to get one scholarship offer anywhere, then you are lucky enough to be one-tenth of one percent. You still have to go make that team. You are just some high school kid who happens to be a decent football player in a population of hundreds of thousands of high school football players across the nation. You still gotta go make that team. The actual getting of a scholarship offer is simply the beginning. It's the foothills of the mountain."
Biff taught Jim what to look for during his college visits.
"There's fluff in the recruiting process," Jim said. "You don't get to see the real side of people very often. When I went to a school to find out about the place and the coaches and the people, the best guy to ask isn't necessarily the starting middle linebacker. It's the guy who doesn't play very much. You ask him how Coach treats him and how he likes it. If that guy says it's a great place, then it's a good place with good people."
Jim got that vibe at the University of Iowa and committed, despite holding offers from Ohio State, Texas and Nebraska, along with nearly every ACC and Big 10 school.
Biff feels Jim has handled the recruiting process well.
"I think he has allowed himself to do a little more surfing the Internet and looking at blogs he's on than I would have liked him to have done," Biff said. "But I understand he's a kid. If I was to grade it as 10 being over the top and 1 being not over the top, Jim is a 4. I'd prefer him being a 1, but there's a lot of things I prefer with my children that don't happen."
Being a father
When it comes to Jim and football, Biff -- the parent -- harbors some concern. After all, his own career was cut short by a knee injury.
"I'm very proud of him to go play at the University of Iowa in the Big 10 in those national surroundings. I'm also nervous too. It's a long way from home and he's a kid. … I'm still worried, is he good enough? Will he fit in? Will he perform to the best of his ability?
"Will he look at it as a marathon and not a sprint? Will his goals be to get a redshirt, get his feet on the ground, work a couple of years and play as a junior and senior? If he has those kind of goals, that's great. I don't think those are his goals. He wants to play right away. I worry, as a dad, is he good enough to do it?"
Biff said he is extremely proud of his son, not only as a football player, but also as a person.
"Jim was born a very sensitive, kind and compassionate kid. In school, Jim is the guy who's always hanging the guys who are, maybe, not considered the cool guys. Jim's role in life is as a mediator."
"As a player, Jim is a bona fide Division I football player, but he acts like he's got to earn it every day. If you didn't know it or didn't know him, you'd never know any of that [high-stakes recruiting] happened to him. As a coach, I really appreciate that. And as a dad, I'm really proud of that."
Sunday, March 29, 2009
Year of the shoulder
Off-season recap:
-No public spring game as Kinnick is being converted to field turf. I am fine with this because the field conditions have been shitty for several games recently. (Iowa St. last year especially comes to mind.)
-Not good. It's a bad bad day when your best dlinemen gets arrested for punching a cabbie but Kirk seems to think there might be 2 sides to the story so he's in good standing*
-How easy is it to get a DUI in IC? Prater was in the mix to start at CB but cost himself a chance at that.
-Linebacker A.J. Edds(shoulder), tight end Tony Moeaki and safeties Brett Greenwood (shoulder) and Tyler Sash (shoulder) -- will be held out of contact during spring drills. The oft-injured Moeaki is battling a foot injury that could be a stress fracture. Reserve guard Andy Kuempel and reserve defensive lineman Cody Hundertmark also will be held out of contact.
-Safeties Lance Tillison and Diaunte Morrow transferred as they would never pass the 2 white boys from Iowa. It is what it is and could work out pretty well for Jack Swanson and David Cato who are starting this spring with Sash and Greenwood on the fritz.
-"I haven't heard other than he is going to school right now. He is trying to get his degree work finished up." - Kirk Ferentz in reference to Jake Christensen. Would've been nice if he could've stuck around to be a back-up this year.
Spring Two Deeps
Offense:
SE - Sandeman, Johnson-Koulianos, Chaney
LT - Bulaga, Zusevics
LG - Vandervelde, Eubanks/Haganman
C - Koeppel, Ferentz
RG - Kuempel/Doering, Gettis
RT - Calloway, Reiff
TE - Moeaki, Reisner, Herman
QB - Stanzi, Vandenberg, Wienke
WR - Stross, McNutt
RB - Hampton, O'Meara, Brinson
FB - Morse, Leppert
-DJK is not starting after missing 2 mandatory workouts. I hope Sandeman and Chaney can step-up in the slot. Marvin McNeezy is pictured above and has gotten rave reviews since the conversion from an option QB.
-Highly touted and unlucky to this point, Dace Rischardson is on his way to a miraculous recovery, here is my prediction for the OL:
LT: Bulaga,Zeus
LG: Vande,Richardson
C: Ferentz, Koeppel
RG: Doering/Kuempel, Eubanks
RL Calloway,Reiff (pronounced REEF)
-We lost Shonn Greene but I'm not concerned about the running game. That is as long as Paki O'Meara isn't involved. Get Brandon Wegher on the field for 5 touches (2-3 rush) a game and have Hampton and Brinson carrying 10 times a game each.
-The good news is we don't have to worry about a starting QB until 2011. The bad news is if Stanzi goes down this year a redshirt freshmen will take the snaps. I realize they won't be competing for a starting spot until 2011 but it is interesting to note that the Iowan Vandeberg is ahead of former Michigan commit (pre-rich rod) Wienke.
Key to the offense
The class of 2005: Trey Stross, Dan Doering, Kyle Calloway, Tony Moeaki, Andy Kuempel, Dace Richardson, and Rafael Eubanks will determine how much success we have on offense in 2009. Members of the #11 class in the country will look to justify the hype.
Defense:
DE - Clayborn, Geary
DT - Klug, Bigach
DT - Daniels, Hundertmark
DE - Ballard, Binns
OLB - Edds, Nielsen/Johnson
MLB - Angerer, Coleman
WLB - Hunter, Tarpinian
CB - Bernstine, Prater, Castillo
CB - Spievey, Lowe
SS - Sash, Cato
FS - Greenwood, Swanson
-Pictured above is the only class of 2005 player on defense, the man in the middle. He is flanked by another Sr. AJ Edds and Jeremiah Hunter. With Jacody Coleman, Tyler Nielson, Troy Johnson, and Jeff Tarpinian in the mix, I believe LB is by far the deepest position on this team.
-I am very pleased to see Claybourn and Ballard staying outside. I think Brodde Binns will help to form a tenacious trio out there.
-Jordan Bernstine has been "my boy" since he committed to Iowa in December of 2006, during his debut at Sodlier Field where he hit the NIU Huskie before he caught the ball on the opening kickoff, and when he pushed a Golden Gopher into his own teammate after an Iowa punt allowing Iowa to recover and continue the Massacre at the Metrodome. He, Amari Spievey, Greenwood, and Sash will have 2 years starting together and I expect to see a lot of picks back there. Don't forget about Shaun Prater as a nickleback once his suspension is up conveniently for B10 season.
Key to the defense
Klug/Geary, Daniels/Hundertmark and Biagch will be asked to step-up inside. My sense is that K&K will be sorely missed.
Special Teams:
PK - Murray, Mossbrucker
P - Donahue, Guthrie
LS - Schulze, Murphy
H - Donahue
PR - Sandeman
KR - Hampton, Johnson-Koulianos
-Mossbrucker should probably RS because Murray will most likely start the next 2 years allowing him to start the 2 years after that.
Yards per punt return: 10.07 1 td
Yards per kick return: 20.46 0 tds
-Those are the 2008 numbers that I think can be improved on in 2009. Wegher better be returning both and Paul Chaney is a track star and should be on the kick return.
-Donahue is a badass.
Saturday, March 28, 2009
Help Wanted:
The current state of Iowa basketball leaves many Hawkeye fans longing for the Lute Olson or Tom Davis eras. The program has been on a down word spiral since a 1st round NCAA tournament loss to Northwestern State in 2006. The Hawks haven’t made a sweet sixteen appearance since 1999 where they lost to the eventual national champion UCON Huskies. Tom Davis was told to hit the road after that season. This basically implied that sweet 16 appearances weren’t good enough. Not good enough to make up for the loss of instate talent like Kirk Heinrich, Nick Collison, and Raef Lafrentz.
2000 ushered in the Steve Alford era, or as many of us remember it the Al-fraud era. This excessive hair gel wearing, ex Indiana legend brought with him the promise of great Indiana recruiting, and a sweet 16 appearance in his prior season. I will have to admit I fell for it. I watched him speak at a basketball camp in Iowa City in 2001. He told a group of High School kids, “You should never miss a jump shot left or right only long or short.” He then proceeded to make 10 straight 3 pointers. That was the most impressive thing Alford did at Iowa, aside from a few Big Ten tournament runs. He had the talent ; Reggie Evans, Luke Recker , Jeff Horner, Greg Brunner , Tyler Smith and Pierre Pierce. A lot of his good recruiting classes never paid dividends, or parking meters in the case of Sean Sonderliter. We don’t need to even talk about, let’s just say “P Squared”, also known as the man who had the entire Illini student section chanting, no means no. With that Alford was gone, just another guy from Indiana who thinks he should get free cars for a being a basketball coach.
We decided to get practical. We needed to get back to blue collar Iowa basketball. This involves developing players. So we found a man from the cradle of hoops. Todd Lickliter was coming off a sweet 16 run with a great Butler team. He coached in legendary Hinkle Field House. I mean Hoosiers was filmed in that building. If a man who has coached in that building can’t develop talent then who can?
The Lickliter era just finished season two and it’s not looking good. Attendance is down at Carver Hawkeye and the departure of Jake Kelley, and Jeff Petersen will leave us scrambling to find guards for Lickliter’s guard oriented offense. His overall record is 28-36 and 11-27 in Big Ten play. These aren’t pretty numbers, and next season doesn’t look bright. He doesn’t have the talent to get it done next year. We are in serious need of a Junior College transfer at point guard and a post presence. I think that Gatens, Fuller and Tucker could all develop into quality Big Ten players. Bawinkle will no longer be a role player but will most likely be forced into the starting lineup. Jarryd Cole will be our only post player with any experience. The University needs to put more money into recruiting. We can’t win without talent and depth. We currently have neither. Lickliter is a better coach than Alford, but we haven’t seen better results. Alford took over a team coming off of a sweet 16 season. Lickliter took over a program in shambles. The recruiting efforts must improve, but we need to give Lickliter at least three more years to try and establish some recruiting relationships. The program has a long way to go. We just extended a scholarship offer to Marcus Jordan. This could be the catalyst we need to get positive attention back in Carver. I mean come on, who wouldn’t want to be in line for a giant pretzel at Carver and run into Michael Jordan?
2000 ushered in the Steve Alford era, or as many of us remember it the Al-fraud era. This excessive hair gel wearing, ex Indiana legend brought with him the promise of great Indiana recruiting, and a sweet 16 appearance in his prior season. I will have to admit I fell for it. I watched him speak at a basketball camp in Iowa City in 2001. He told a group of High School kids, “You should never miss a jump shot left or right only long or short.” He then proceeded to make 10 straight 3 pointers. That was the most impressive thing Alford did at Iowa, aside from a few Big Ten tournament runs. He had the talent ; Reggie Evans, Luke Recker , Jeff Horner, Greg Brunner , Tyler Smith and Pierre Pierce. A lot of his good recruiting classes never paid dividends, or parking meters in the case of Sean Sonderliter. We don’t need to even talk about, let’s just say “P Squared”, also known as the man who had the entire Illini student section chanting, no means no. With that Alford was gone, just another guy from Indiana who thinks he should get free cars for a being a basketball coach.
We decided to get practical. We needed to get back to blue collar Iowa basketball. This involves developing players. So we found a man from the cradle of hoops. Todd Lickliter was coming off a sweet 16 run with a great Butler team. He coached in legendary Hinkle Field House. I mean Hoosiers was filmed in that building. If a man who has coached in that building can’t develop talent then who can?
The Lickliter era just finished season two and it’s not looking good. Attendance is down at Carver Hawkeye and the departure of Jake Kelley, and Jeff Petersen will leave us scrambling to find guards for Lickliter’s guard oriented offense. His overall record is 28-36 and 11-27 in Big Ten play. These aren’t pretty numbers, and next season doesn’t look bright. He doesn’t have the talent to get it done next year. We are in serious need of a Junior College transfer at point guard and a post presence. I think that Gatens, Fuller and Tucker could all develop into quality Big Ten players. Bawinkle will no longer be a role player but will most likely be forced into the starting lineup. Jarryd Cole will be our only post player with any experience. The University needs to put more money into recruiting. We can’t win without talent and depth. We currently have neither. Lickliter is a better coach than Alford, but we haven’t seen better results. Alford took over a team coming off of a sweet 16 season. Lickliter took over a program in shambles. The recruiting efforts must improve, but we need to give Lickliter at least three more years to try and establish some recruiting relationships. The program has a long way to go. We just extended a scholarship offer to Marcus Jordan. This could be the catalyst we need to get positive attention back in Carver. I mean come on, who wouldn’t want to be in line for a giant pretzel at Carver and run into Michael Jordan?
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
Thursday, March 12, 2009
Week 6 starters. When the heat is on look for these guys to Bring it
Offense Starting line up week 6. I think Hampton and Brinson will be a one, two punch. I think that Brandon Weigher would make a great safety. I also look for Jordan Cotton to play a roll on offense. I think he could be our next "jail break screen guy" Yes, "Jail break screen guy" is a new position invented by Ken O'keefe.
OT- Kyle Callaway
OT- Bryan Bulaga
G - Julian Vandevelde
G - Dan Doering
C - James Ferentz
TE- Tony Moeaki
QB- Ricky Stanzi
FB- Wade leppert
RB- Jewel Hampton
WR- DJK
WR- Keenan Davis
Starting Line up Week 6 Defense
I really think that Jeff Taripinian will get some PT as long as he can stay healthy. I think Coleman should come in on Goal line situations and other obvious run-situation. Brett Greenwood hasn't proven to me that he can tackle against the top competition in the big ten, but I love his upside. I would like to see David Cato challenge for this position. We need Prater to come back and fight Bernstein for the corner spot. This will allow Norm to play a little nickle. I think Norm liked it haha.
I like to see Adrian and Binns on the same side. I think that Adrian will draw a double team from a lot of Big Ten teams and this will allow the speedy Binns to be alone on an island.
DE- Broderick Binns
DT- Adrian C.
DT- Karl Klug
DE- Christian Ballard
LB- Jeremiah Hunter
LB- Pat Angerer
LB- A.J. Edds
C- Amari Spivey
C- Jordan Bernstein
S- Tyler Sash
S- Brett Greenwood
OT- Kyle Callaway
OT- Bryan Bulaga
G - Julian Vandevelde
G - Dan Doering
C - James Ferentz
TE- Tony Moeaki
QB- Ricky Stanzi
FB- Wade leppert
RB- Jewel Hampton
WR- DJK
WR- Keenan Davis
Starting Line up Week 6 Defense
I really think that Jeff Taripinian will get some PT as long as he can stay healthy. I think Coleman should come in on Goal line situations and other obvious run-situation. Brett Greenwood hasn't proven to me that he can tackle against the top competition in the big ten, but I love his upside. I would like to see David Cato challenge for this position. We need Prater to come back and fight Bernstein for the corner spot. This will allow Norm to play a little nickle. I think Norm liked it haha.
I like to see Adrian and Binns on the same side. I think that Adrian will draw a double team from a lot of Big Ten teams and this will allow the speedy Binns to be alone on an island.
DE- Broderick Binns
DT- Adrian C.
DT- Karl Klug
DE- Christian Ballard
LB- Jeremiah Hunter
LB- Pat Angerer
LB- A.J. Edds
C- Amari Spivey
C- Jordan Bernstein
S- Tyler Sash
S- Brett Greenwood
Thursday, February 12, 2009
In Kirk We Trust
Did you get a 7 year deal????
Didn't think so.
Kirk is here for another 7 years and I for one am pretty happy about that. The contract will run through the 2015 season on the same terms he has been on under this contract. Last year, Ferentz's average annual salary was $2.84 million.
Kirk is a great leader and an even better man. I love what he does for the program and for the school in general. I would want no one else as the face of my university on one of the biggest stages we have, Big Ten Football. With a respectable record at Iowa of 70-53 I think that keeping this man around was the right thing to do. I look forward to many more winning seasons under this mans tutelage.
Kirk is a great leader and an even better man. I love what he does for the program and for the school in general. I would want no one else as the face of my university on one of the biggest stages we have, Big Ten Football. With a respectable record at Iowa of 70-53 I think that keeping this man around was the right thing to do. I look forward to many more winning seasons under this mans tutelage.
Go Hawks.
Saturday, January 31, 2009
Erin Andrews is Hot
As an update to my previous wishlist:
1. *** OL Nolan MacMillan
Iowa Commit
2. See below
3. **** WR Justin Brown
Will decide between Rutgers and PSU on Tuesday.
4. ** DB Micah Hyde
5. ** DB Troy Smith
Never offered by Iowa
Signing day is 3 days away and the Hawks have two more potential commitments:
1. Chris Watt, a **** of Glen Ellyn, IL ranked as the #2 guard in the country made a visit to Iowa City last weekend. The only problem is that he verbally gave his commitment to Fat Charlie on 7/13/08. He has been silent only saying that he is still committed to ND...
2. "On Monday, every single defensive coach from Louisville and Coach Kragthorpe came in. On Tuesday, it was Rutgers. On Wednesday, first Coach Lockwood and Coach Casteel from West Virginia came in and then Coach Friedgen and the whole defensive staff from Maryland were here. Then today Coach Wilson from Iowa stopped by."
That's the quote from the *** LB from NJ Ka'lial Glad who was ranked 2nd on my wishlist 3 weeks ago.
Where he's going is anyone's guess.
Superbowl XLIII Prediction: Steelers 30 Cardinals 23 (2 cheap Rackers fgs in the the 4th qtr)
Disappointed no one has commented on the questionable Pie and Cedeno for Heileman result.
Sunday, January 18, 2009
Yeah, you
Felix Pie traded to Baltimore for LHP Garrett Olson and RHP Henry Williamson.
Olson is a player the Padres were interested in...
Friday, January 16, 2009
Wrapping Up The Class of 2009
With 21 days until Signing Day, (2/6) Kirk Ferentz and Co. have some work to do with 5 unfilled scholarships at this point.
Before I announce my top 5 wish list at this point, I'd like to comment on the recent performance of 4* WR commit out of Cedar Rapids' Washington High School, Keenan Davis. I was down in Austin this summer when the text message came bearing the news that Keenan Davis had in fact committed to Iowa. Several months later, he participated in the Underarmour All-Star game and practiced all week under the tutelage of Cris Carter.
The following is a summary of KDeezy's performance I stole from a scout's blog:
-Looked fluid running routes.
-Had him playing in the slot says a lot I think...you don't usually have your 6'3 guy in the slot, typically its a smaller quicker route runner to get the hard earned separation in the middle, and out of all these all-stars they thought Keenan was the best option for that role.
-Everyone has been saying he has been going up and getting it better than anyone in practice.
Keenan appears to have a lot of upside and should see considerable playing time in 2009 for the Big Ten Championship Contending Iowa Hawkeyes.
Moving on to my top 5 targets. If we can seal the deal with these guys, the 2009 class will end up very solid.
1. Nolan MacMillan OT 6-6 284 lbs. Princeton,NJ ***
Nasty and quick are words I would use to describe this kid. Although we already have 2 pretty good O-Line commits, both from the state of Iowa, Nolan would project out as the best among them. Kirk recently had an in-home visit and the Hawks are putting the full-court press on this prospect. The main competition comes from Georgia Tech, the only other school he has visited to this point. However the following schools have offered as well:
Boston College,Syracuse,Virginia,Connecticut,Louisville, Michigan State, Rutgers, South Florida
Odds he becomes a hawk: 50%
2. Ka'liad Glaud OLB 6-2 217 lbs. Atco,NJ ***
With no current commits from the linebacker position, the acquisition of Ka'liad would provide balance among the classes. Credit the hype surrounding Shonn Greene for Ka'liads interest in the Hawks. He has visited Iowa, Rutgers, West Virginia, Maryland, and North Carolina. Other offers include: Lousiville, Pittsburgh, and Tennesee.
Odds he becomes a hawk: 50%
3. Justin Brown WR 6-3 209 lbs. Wilmington,DE ****
Rivals #30 WR in the nation
The only reason this kid isn't #1 is that I would be shocked if he committed to Iowa. He had planned to visit BC this weekend but has decided against it after the recent coaching change there. He has already visited Rutgers and Penn St. and has offers from BC, Virginia, Virginia Tech, NC State, Purdue, and Oregon among others. If we aren't able to land Justin, hopefully 3* WR Shawney Kersey takes his place.
EDIT:Kersey committed to PSU shortly after this entry.
Odds he becomes a hawk: 20%
4. Micah Hyde DB 6-1 170lbs. Fostoria,OH **
He's pictured on the left and this is the only picture I could find of him.
Micah is coming to Iowa next Friday (1/23) for his official visit where it is expected that Kirk Ferentz will present him with an offer letter. His only visit to this point is to Miami (OH) but he has offers from Ball St., Bowling Green, Ohio, and Toledo. I know you're thinking why are we competing with Mac schools? Well, this kid is a dual threat QB in HS, and judging from the pic, has a ways to go in the physical development area. After watching the higlight videos, he is a legit athlete, and should fit in on special teams down the road.
Odds he becomes a hawk: 60%
5. Troy Smith DB 5-10 175 lbs. Indianapolis, IN **
No relation to the former O$U QB. He is the definition of a "late-bloomer" as Division I offers did not come pouring in until late in his Senior year. He has already visited Iowa and plans to visit Ball St. and Toledo (the only 2 schools that have offered to this point.) I expect this kid to receive an offer from the Hawks. Unfortunately, due to his late rise, there are no highlights available. Lousiville, NIU, Indiana, and Purdue are all in the mix, but have not offered yet.
Odds he becomes a hawk: 50%
Note: This is only at 50% because Iowa has not offered yet.
I will have a full evaluation of the 2009 recruiting class the week of signing day.
One other note I'd like to bring up is the recruitment of 2010 prospect Nile Knapp. His father and coach, Rock, named the Georgia RB after Nile Kinnick. Rock has joined the Hakweye Report message boards and is openly campaigning for the Hawks to give his kid an offer. Kirk Ferentz is a smart man and will not offer until he feels he has to, which may come late in the game. Here's a highlight video that makes it seem like this kid is a legitimate D1 prosect
In other Hawkeye news....
The guy on the left is transferring to Western or Eastern Illinois. His dad told ESPN that Ken O'Keefe wanted Stanzi as the starter from day 1 in 2009 but Kirk stuck with JC due to loyalty. Here are my final thoughts on JC and I would prefer to never discuss him again, at least in terms of his tenure at Iowa:
-Not a BCS level QB, terrible pocket awareness and little to no accuracy
-Took the demotion like a man, supported Stanzi and the team all year and deserves a ton of credit for doing so
-Has a former NFL QB for a dad that is trying to live vicariously through him
-Deserves credit for the signings of Dan Doering, Tony Moeaki, Dace Richardson, and Ryan Bain.
The basketball team is not doing very well this year. Sure, the loss of leading scorer Anthony Tucker for several games and the devastating injury to senior captain and only legit big man Cyrus Tate hurts, but Hawkeye fans want better. If you've had a chance to watch any of the home games this year, you would know that nobody cares about this program. However, this week Gary Barta held a press conference during which he offered unconditional support to Todd Lickliter. On a positive note, Gary said that the long overdue practice facility for the basketball program will break ground in the fall. I personally am not ready to fire Lickliter and will continue to support the team hoping for a breakthrough.
Before I announce my top 5 wish list at this point, I'd like to comment on the recent performance of 4* WR commit out of Cedar Rapids' Washington High School, Keenan Davis. I was down in Austin this summer when the text message came bearing the news that Keenan Davis had in fact committed to Iowa. Several months later, he participated in the Underarmour All-Star game and practiced all week under the tutelage of Cris Carter.
The following is a summary of KDeezy's performance I stole from a scout's blog:
-Looked fluid running routes.
-Had him playing in the slot says a lot I think...you don't usually have your 6'3 guy in the slot, typically its a smaller quicker route runner to get the hard earned separation in the middle, and out of all these all-stars they thought Keenan was the best option for that role.
-Everyone has been saying he has been going up and getting it better than anyone in practice.
Keenan appears to have a lot of upside and should see considerable playing time in 2009 for the Big Ten Championship Contending Iowa Hawkeyes.
Moving on to my top 5 targets. If we can seal the deal with these guys, the 2009 class will end up very solid.
1. Nolan MacMillan OT 6-6 284 lbs. Princeton,NJ ***
Nasty and quick are words I would use to describe this kid. Although we already have 2 pretty good O-Line commits, both from the state of Iowa, Nolan would project out as the best among them. Kirk recently had an in-home visit and the Hawks are putting the full-court press on this prospect. The main competition comes from Georgia Tech, the only other school he has visited to this point. However the following schools have offered as well:
Boston College,Syracuse,Virginia,Connecticut,Louisville, Michigan State, Rutgers, South Florida
Odds he becomes a hawk: 50%
2. Ka'liad Glaud OLB 6-2 217 lbs. Atco,NJ ***
With no current commits from the linebacker position, the acquisition of Ka'liad would provide balance among the classes. Credit the hype surrounding Shonn Greene for Ka'liads interest in the Hawks. He has visited Iowa, Rutgers, West Virginia, Maryland, and North Carolina. Other offers include: Lousiville, Pittsburgh, and Tennesee.
Odds he becomes a hawk: 50%
3. Justin Brown WR 6-3 209 lbs. Wilmington,DE ****
Rivals #30 WR in the nation
The only reason this kid isn't #1 is that I would be shocked if he committed to Iowa. He had planned to visit BC this weekend but has decided against it after the recent coaching change there. He has already visited Rutgers and Penn St. and has offers from BC, Virginia, Virginia Tech, NC State, Purdue, and Oregon among others. If we aren't able to land Justin, hopefully 3* WR Shawney Kersey takes his place.
EDIT:Kersey committed to PSU shortly after this entry.
Odds he becomes a hawk: 20%
4. Micah Hyde DB 6-1 170lbs. Fostoria,OH **
He's pictured on the left and this is the only picture I could find of him.
Micah is coming to Iowa next Friday (1/23) for his official visit where it is expected that Kirk Ferentz will present him with an offer letter. His only visit to this point is to Miami (OH) but he has offers from Ball St., Bowling Green, Ohio, and Toledo. I know you're thinking why are we competing with Mac schools? Well, this kid is a dual threat QB in HS, and judging from the pic, has a ways to go in the physical development area. After watching the higlight videos, he is a legit athlete, and should fit in on special teams down the road.
Odds he becomes a hawk: 60%
5. Troy Smith DB 5-10 175 lbs. Indianapolis, IN **
No relation to the former O$U QB. He is the definition of a "late-bloomer" as Division I offers did not come pouring in until late in his Senior year. He has already visited Iowa and plans to visit Ball St. and Toledo (the only 2 schools that have offered to this point.) I expect this kid to receive an offer from the Hawks. Unfortunately, due to his late rise, there are no highlights available. Lousiville, NIU, Indiana, and Purdue are all in the mix, but have not offered yet.
Odds he becomes a hawk: 50%
Note: This is only at 50% because Iowa has not offered yet.
I will have a full evaluation of the 2009 recruiting class the week of signing day.
One other note I'd like to bring up is the recruitment of 2010 prospect Nile Knapp. His father and coach, Rock, named the Georgia RB after Nile Kinnick. Rock has joined the Hakweye Report message boards and is openly campaigning for the Hawks to give his kid an offer. Kirk Ferentz is a smart man and will not offer until he feels he has to, which may come late in the game. Here's a highlight video that makes it seem like this kid is a legitimate D1 prosect
In other Hawkeye news....
The guy on the left is transferring to Western or Eastern Illinois. His dad told ESPN that Ken O'Keefe wanted Stanzi as the starter from day 1 in 2009 but Kirk stuck with JC due to loyalty. Here are my final thoughts on JC and I would prefer to never discuss him again, at least in terms of his tenure at Iowa:
-Not a BCS level QB, terrible pocket awareness and little to no accuracy
-Took the demotion like a man, supported Stanzi and the team all year and deserves a ton of credit for doing so
-Has a former NFL QB for a dad that is trying to live vicariously through him
-Deserves credit for the signings of Dan Doering, Tony Moeaki, Dace Richardson, and Ryan Bain.
The basketball team is not doing very well this year. Sure, the loss of leading scorer Anthony Tucker for several games and the devastating injury to senior captain and only legit big man Cyrus Tate hurts, but Hawkeye fans want better. If you've had a chance to watch any of the home games this year, you would know that nobody cares about this program. However, this week Gary Barta held a press conference during which he offered unconditional support to Todd Lickliter. On a positive note, Gary said that the long overdue practice facility for the basketball program will break ground in the fall. I personally am not ready to fire Lickliter and will continue to support the team hoping for a breakthrough.
Monday, January 12, 2009
101 Years...
I guess it's about time that I contributed to this thing. Hendry has been quite busy since the end of the season and although there hasn't been anything that flashy I agree with Bill that this team might or might not have improved.
My opinion is it has. I did have beef with the trading of Derosa - yes his defense is not that good but he had one of the better bats in the NL. Aaron Miles was on the Score last week and needless to say I was impressed. He basically said that he'll do anything for the team - he'll even come in and toss an inning if he needs to. He also said that he goes all out and that is all I can ask for, that's what I love in a player- he's a grinder - an Aaron Rowand type of guy who plays his heart out, punch and judy's a .300 average and plays deace defense - he will quickly become one of the favorites on this team for me. Fontenot is awesome as well. I think it will be a merry go round of 3 guys at SS and 2B and that is fine with me.
Kevin Gregg (a.k.a. - the Gay Rick "Wild Thing" Vaughn with those hilarious glasses) is an upgrade over Wood. Woody will always have a place in my heart as one of my favorite Cubs but I'm done with the injuries - it will be shocking if he stays healthy all year. And sorry to Legs and the Diehards but the White Sox have slipped from my 3rd favorite team to the 4th. Incase you were wondering...
1)Cubs
2)Blue Jays
3)Indians
4)Diehards
Don't ask me why - maybe its because one of my first memories was watching the Joe Carter WS with my father - plus they're my Canadian team. Woody and Dero, not to mention really liking VMart, Hafner and Sizemore make the Indians #3.
Gathright - just an upgrade over Pie - simple as that. Fuck Pie - just a worse Corey Patterson - if he goes to another team he might have 1 really good year and somebody will overpay for him (see Gary Mathews Jr.).
Bradley - love the passion - hate the injuries. It's a risk that we might have another Wood/Prior situation on our hands. I personally would've rather had Abreu - yes his power has dropped but think about this - he's played in 150 games and stolen 20sb's the past 10yrs - he's consistent. He would still hit about 20HR's in Wrigley a year too and he has a decent arm. I'm waiting to see what Milty can do just like I'm waiting for the Cubs - I will watch the games but will not be impressed until they get to at least the National League Division Series - anything else and this season is another bust.
The window is closing - this team is getting older but I have a solution. I like Sean Marshall - yes I love Jake Peavy and if he is signed then that combo of Peavy, Zambrano, Harden, Dempster, Lilly becomes one of the best rotations I have seen put together in the MLB - period. We need the guy we should've gotten last year - BRIAN ROBERTS.... Bill there is no way I can deal with the RIOT leading off - just not a good situation for anybody. Lee and Aramis need to step up their game and I think they will. (What I would like to see as an opening day lineup but will not be...)
LF - Alfonso Soriano - R
2B - Brian Roberts - S
1B - Derrek Lee - R
RF - Milton Bradley - S
3B - Aramis Ramirez - R
CF - Kosuke Fukudome - L
C - Geovany Soto - R
SS - Mike Fontenot - L
Now the downfall with this lineup is we would probably have one of the worst fielding teams in the NL but... Soriano has a great arm, Lee is still a gold glover, Bradley and Aramis are underrated, Fukudome is still a question mark after a year and I'm curious to see Fontenot play SS this Spring - I believe 9 games are being televised and I will watch them. Keep in mind that this lineup is what I would like to see what will the opening day lineup be...
LF - Alfonso Soriano - R
2B - Mike Fontenot - L
1B - Derrek Lee - R
3B - Aramis Ramirez - R
RF - Milton Bradley - S
C - Geovany Soto - R
CF - Kosuke Fukdome - L
SS - Ryan Theriot - R
Either way - I don't care but I would like another reliever if we are putting that Notre Damne WR back in the minors so he can start (can't spell that last name) and another hitter off the bench - SAMMY! No but seriously, a guy that can hit a dong or two off the bench.
Many more updates to come but just venting - very curious to see how the next 31 days shake up.
Friday, January 9, 2009
Welcome To Chicago, Gameboard
"I don't believe in luck. I believe in blessings, and I consider myself the most blessed man on the face of the earth today. Through trials and tribulations and adversity I stand here today completely humbled and just honored to have an opportunity to take the stage in the city of Chicago, Wrigley Field, with all the history. I know its been a lot of years, a lot of pain for a lot of fans out there. I know every fiber in my being, all I wanna do is win. The Cubs have been on my radar for a while now that reason being the history of falling short. I'm a guy that I believe can take it to the next level. That's my only motivation."
Cub fans are willing to give the 2008 AL On Base % leader a clean slate. Since the last #21 to play right field left, Jeromy Burnitz, Jacque Jones, Cliff Floyd and Kosuke Fukudome have failed to solidify the position. Here's hoping the new #21 will be an upgrade over those scrubs.
Is this Cubs team better than the team that walked out of Dodger Stadium after being swept in October? Maybe. However, you can't fault Jim Hendry for shaking things up after back-to-back postseason debacles:
-Trading Mark DeRosa for pitching prospects
The beloved DeRo was in the last year of his contract and will never replicate the numbers he produced in 2008 ever again. This deal opens the door for more playing time for Mike "The Pocket Rocket" Fontenot, my personal favorite player on the team. Some would say that the acquisition of the pitching prospects leaves the door open for the much discussed Jake Peavy trade.
-Signing Aaron Miles
Miles has decent speed and is a defensive upgrade over DeRo. I do not expect Miles to start many games but should be used to give The Riot much-needed days off throughout the grueling season. The last two Septembers Ryan Theriot has shown clear signs of fatigue and giving him rest throughout the season should pay dividends down the stretch.
-Letting Kerry Wood go and replacing him with Kevin Gregg
Questionable. Wood could've came back for 1 more year at around $8-$10 million after arbitration. Hendry is gambling that Marmol will settle in as an effective closer because Gregg is a middle reliever, at best.
-Trading Jarson Marquis for Luis Vizcaino
Marquis is not the greatest pitcher. That said, he did what he was supposed to in his 2 seasons as a Cub, eat innings. He also provided a decent bat and was more than willing to pinch run on occasion. His trade opens up a spot in the rotation barring a Peavy trade. Luis Vizcaino is a middle reliever, at best.
-Signing the gameboard
Jim Hendry has done a fine job since the end of 2006, putting together good teams that are cohesive and win, and Lou Piniella is a good leader of men. I hope he will be someone who can help channel Milton Bradley's considerable passions into winning baseball. If Lou can do that for Milton -- and if Milton can stay healthy for a full season, the Cubs should win a 3rd straight NL Central Crown.
Alright here's my opening day 25 man roster (assuming no Peavy deal, no re-signing of Hank White)
Starting Lineup:
SS - Ryan Theriot
2B - Mike Fontenot
LF - Alfonso Soriano
3B - Aramis Ramirez
RF - Milton Bradley
1B - Derrek Lee
C - Geovany Soto
CF - Kosuke Fukudome
Bench: Reed Johnson (OF), Aaron Miles (IF), Micah Hoffpauir (1B), Joey Gathright (OF), Koyie Hill (C)
Starting Rotation:
RHP - Carlos Zambrno
RHP - Ryan Dempster
LHP - Ted Lilly
RHP - Rich Harden
LHP - Sean Marshall
Bullpen:
RHP - Carlos Marmol
RHP - Jeff Samardzjia
RHP - Kevin Gregg
RHP - Chad Gaudin
LHP - Neal Cotts
RHP - Luis Vizcaino
RHP - Kevin Hart
Trading Felix Fie, Ronny Cedeno, the 3 pitchers acquired from Cleveland for DeRo, and Josh Vitters to get Peavy is a deal that makes a lot of sense for the 2009 Chicago Cubs.
Get it done Hendry, you always do.
Tuesday, January 6, 2009
The Big 10, Ouch!
So Iowa was the lone bright spot of the Big Ten's foray into bowl games. There were a few bright spots and many not so bright spots (Wisconsin, I'm looking at you.). The Iowa game: We looked great. Not that having the Gamecocks gives us the ball on their first three possessions hurts but hey, our guys made the plays when they were there and that is what good teams do. We took advantage of those turnovers and basically had the game in hand after the first couple of possessions.
Greene looked good, as he has all year. He looked especially good as he choo-choo'd through the endzone on that second touchdown. Good luck on Sundays big guy.
B-Meyers had some big plays. I'm sure he was just as surprised as I was that he could be left open on the same play on big third downs early so many times. But hey, I'll take it.
Basically South Carolina was just out matched. The Ole' Ball Coach spent more time looking confused with his hands on his head than he did coaching.
Northwestern looked better than I thought they would. Even though what they did was give a Mizzou team that though they deserved better and were not into the game a good run.
Wisconsin, look buddy, I know Florida State is good, all the Florida teams seem good now a days, but really? Really? 42-13? Wait to represent. But hey, you only gave up 14 points in 3 out of 4 of the quarters, not bad!
Minnesota i can understand. Nobody suffers the kind of defeat that Iowa laid on a team and recovers within the next three years. Look for the Golden Goofers to win a game sometime in 2011.
The Michigan State game I did not see. 12 points to Georgia, I'm not impressed by either team.
Penn State, I guess this means Iowa is as good as USC huh. So much for the hype around the Nitny Lions. They did play fast though, they managed to be down by 24 points in just one half of a football game, that's pretty fast. Sorry Joe-Pa, you do need a real quarterback to play spread football as it turns out. Anyone in the organization will tell you Clark is accurate, until they look at his numbers. Completing about 55% of your passes in college will not cut it, that, I can tell you, IS accurate.
Then there is Ohio State. The best line I heard about this game was "Expecting the Buckeyes to show up in a big non-conference game is like expecting a bridge made out of meringue to hold up underneath a couple SUVs. It's just not something a sensible person would ever do." They were able to run the ball and stay in the game, but Texas was the better team.
Some of the numbers show that Ohio State was never in control of this game. First downs -Texas has 33, Ohio State 21. Pryor, who according to Buckeye fans is the best things since stupid mascots, had 5, count them 5 completions for 66 yards. Yes they were in it, and yes he did not throw any picks, and he got them to a good bowl but he can't win the big one (hey, is that a black Kyle Orton out there??).
All in all we are in for another year of Big Ten bashing, but at least we can say that Iowa did its part. Better luck next year Big Ten.
Sunday, January 4, 2009
2009 Outback Bowl Champions
Ferentz accepts the trophy.
Senior Captains Mitch King and Matt Kroul applying pressure.
Tyler Sash with one of his two picks on the day.
Future NFL Draftees Shonn Greene and Brandon Myers.
Shonn Greene TD.
Shonn Greene TD.
Senior Bradley Fletcher with the pick.
Tony Moeaki looked good.
Iowa senior Rob Bruggeman dumps Gatorade on head coach Kirk Ferentz in the closing minute of their victory over South Carolina in the Outback Bowl, Jan. 1, 2009, at Raymond James Stadium, in Tampa, Fla. Iowa won 31-10.
Seniors Andy Brodell, Mitch King, and Seth Olsen.
Mitch King.
DJK.
AJ Edds will be back for one more rodeo.
Seniors Matt Kroul and Drew Gardner.
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