The Aughts in Review: Still Don't Know What a Hoosier Is
by RossWB on Jan 26, 2010 11:00 AM CST
in Iowa Hawkeyes Football
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PrintContinuing our look back at the decade that was in Iowa football, celebrating the highs and the lows -- and, hopefully, distracting us from the ongoing disaster that is Iowa basketball. This series looks back at Iowa's results across the entire decade against every Big Ten foe, as well as Iowa State. According to the alphabet, next up is the red-headed stepchild of Big Ten football, Indiana.
INDIANA HOOSIERS
Iowa vs. Indiana in the 00s: 5-3
WINS
2001: Iowa 42, Indiana 28
2002: Iowa 24, Indiana 8
2005: Iowa 38, Indiana 21
2008: Iowa 45, Indiana 9
2009: Iowa 42, Indiana 24
LOSSES
2000: Indiana 45, Iowa 33
2006: Indiana 31, Iowa 28
2007: Indiana 37, Iowa 20
BEST WIN: Iowa 45, Indiana 9 (2008)
No, no... you just sit right there. I'll take care of this.
The '09 win was unquestionably the wildest and most exciting win over Indiana in the Aughts, between Sash's pinball pick-six and Stanzi improbably following up four third quarter interceptions with a pair of huge fourth quarter touchdowns, but the '08 win gets the nod because it was actually meaningful. All wins are nice, obviously, but some wins mean far more for the program than others and this was one of those (at least compared to the other Indiana wins). At the time, Iowa football was reeling a bit, having lost three straight heartbreakers and dropping the past two games against Indiana. So they needed a win -- any win -- to stop the bleeding and get some confidence back.
What they got was pure domination. Behind a punishing running attack (led by Shonn Greene and Jewel Hampton, who both racked up over 100 yards on the ground and a combined four touchdowns) and a solid passing effort from Ricky Stanzi and a defense that completely smothered the Indiana offense (though the fact the two main architects of Iowa's demise the past two years, James Hardy and Kellen Lewis, were gone or injured for much of the game certainly didn't hurt), Iowa got their most dominant conference win in almost six years. It was just one game and "just" Indiana, but it was still the most impressive win in over two years and the first sign that this team might be something different than the middling outfits from the past few years.
WORST LOSS: Indiana 31, Iowa 28 (2006)
Conversely, this was the game that really sent things on a downward spiral in 2006-2007. Some people pinpoint the much-hyped Ohio State game from two weeks earlier, but the Hawks actually rebounded to pound a decent Purdue team by 30 points the very next week after that letdown. Things really went to shit against Indiana, when a couple key turnovers (including Iowa's final play, an interception that deflected off Andy Brodell's then-stone hands) and an appalling inability to cover James fucking Hardy (8 receptions, 104 yards, 3 TDs) led to an upset loss; more losses would follow in five of the next six games (including the bowl game; the lone oasis of hope was a Jake Christensen-led win over Northern Illinois that briefly spurred a QB debate -- yes, this really happened). Iowa was ranked 15th going into this game; they fell out of the polls after the loss and wouldn't return to the polls until the end of the 2008 season.
This wasn't even a loss to the halfway-decent Indiana outfit that went 7-5 a year later and made a bowl game. This was a slightly-better-than-normal Indiana team (they went 5-7, although one of those losses was to I-AA Southern Illinois so yeah... not good), but still nothing that great. They followed up their landmark win over Iowa (their first win over a ranked opponent in almost twenty years) by... going to Columbus and getting curbstomped by Ohio State, 44-3.
INDIANA IN THE AUGHTS
It's been a rocky, um, last three decades for Hoosier football.
It's tempting to say that the Aughts represented more of the same ol' crap from Indiana football, but that's actually not true -- they were noticeably worse than they were in 80s and 90s. In those decades, Indiana's average record was 5-6; in the 00s, that dropped to 4-8 -- despite the fact that rule changes by the NCAA allowed teams to schedule a 12th game each year and count a win over I-AA opponents every season... changes which should have made it easier to pick up cheap wins. In both the 80s and the 90s, Indiana went to three bowls in each decade; in the 00s, they made one bowl (the 2007 Insight Bowl). Their high water mark in the 80s and 90s was a pair of 8-4 seasons (and an 8-3-1 season); in the 00s, they topped out at 7-6 (in that aforementioned 2007 campaign). By any measure you want to look at, Indiana football was demonstrably worse than it had been -- and it wasn't particularly good to begin with.
Yeah, I'm just as amazed as you that none of these guys was the answer at Indiana.
Not surprisingly, Indiana burned through four head coaches in search for that elusive right fit -- although one of those coaching changes was precipitated by the tragic death of Terry Hoeppner. The decade began with the end of the Cam Cameron Era, continued with the even more miserable Gerry DiNardo Experiment (his 8-27 mark at Indiana was arguably the worst coaching tenure in the BXI during the 00s; even Brewster's made a few bowls at Minnesota and Turner and Zook made a BCS bowl apiece at Illinois), started showing a glimmer of hope in the Terry Hoeppner Revival, and then began tumbling back downhill in the Bill Lynch Freakout. The only highlights of the Aughts for Indiana football were a handful of spellbinding individual talents: QB Antwaan Randle El*, WR James Hardy, and QB Kellen Lewis, all of whom should be all-too-familiar to Iowa fans. Randle El remains one of the most incredible athletes I've ever seen in Kinnick Stadium; he may have been a poor man's Mike Vick for them, but damn he was fun to watch.
*-- It's a travesty that Randle El played before the heyday of YouTube. (Well, and also that Indiana football fandom is way too apathetic to make highlight videos of anyone, even a once-in-a-generation talent like Randle El.)
PLAYER OF THE RIVALRY: Iowa running backs
Yeah, it's a bit of a copout, but in each of Iowa's five wins in the series this decade, they had at least one running back go nuts. Look at the stats and tell me who you'd pick to single out:
- 2001 Ladell Betts -- 22 carries, 172 yards, 1 touchdown
- 2002 Fred Russell -- 19 carries, 100 yards, 2 touchdowns
- 2005 Albert Young -- 26 carries, 125 yards, 2 touchdowns
- 2008 Shonn Greene -- 23 carries, 115 yards, 1 touchdown
- 2008 Jewel Hampton -- 22 carries, 114 yards, 3 touchdowns
- 2009 Brandon Wegher -- 25 carries, 118 yards, 3 touchdowns
Iowa running backs made a good living pounding the hell out of Indiana's run defense in the Aughts.
RANDOM REMINISCES
- The fact that Iowa's best offense of the decade (2002) scored the least points of any Iowa team to play Indiana in the Aughts is downright baffling. They roared out to a 17-0 lead in the first quarter and then just... lost interest? Started prepping for the next week's game against Michigan? Thankfully Grant Steen didn't stop playing hard -- he tied an Iowa record by grabbing three interceptions in the game, all in the red zone.
- My most vivid memory from the 2001 shootout is still the sight of Antwaan Randle-El, their do-everything QB, lining up to return punts. It remains the one and only time I've ever seen a team's starting QB also return punts. Granted, he was far and away their best offensive threat and a guy they wanted to have touch the ball as much as humanly possible, but still: a QB returning punts? Pretty fucking weird.
- Kellen Lewis is still a massive douchebag.
- Whatcha got?
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I'd say the 2009 game was at least on par with 2008
if not better. Yes, the 08 game was nice coming off of three straight losses, but without that amazing comeback in 09, who knows what would have happened the rest of the season. They may have spiraled downward and lost a couple more games.
At the very least, they certainly would not be sporting a BCS win this year…
by HeroPatriotStanzi on Jan 26, 2010 11:07 AM CST reply actions
Even if they had lost to Indiana, still lost to jNW, and still lost to Ohio State, I don’t think they would’ve lost to Minnesota this year. (After all, the defense shut them out.) So worst case, we probably would’ve been looking at 9-3 in the regular season with an Outback Bowl win instead of an Orange Bowl win.
True
but doesn’t that one extra win (and subsequent BCS victory) make that game all the more important? Orange Bowl >>>>>>Outback Bowl
by HeroPatriotStanzi on Jan 26, 2010 2:20 PM CST up reply actions
Actually, I guess it would've been the Capital One Bowl... it's hard to keep all those Florida bowls vs. the SEC straight
You could make the same argument for last year. One more loss, and maybe Northwestern goes to the Outback bowl and Iowa ends up at the Alamo bowl. The difference between BC and non-BCS is bigger than the difference between a (non-BCS) January bowl and a December bowl, but the point is that of course every win is important. A loss this year would’ve been terrible, but there wasn’t really a whole lot of the season left for it to have a major impact on the program. (Already 8 wins going into that game.) Ross lays out a pretty good case for how the win in ‘08 helped turn the corner from the disappointing seasons of ’06 and ’07 (’05 was disappointing, too, because of what we expected going into the season, but ’06 and ’07 was when the team bottomed out) and return to prominence at the end of ’08 and into 2009.
I do not blame the 2006 loss on Brodell's stone-hands
although that was pretty bad.
That loss was largely thanks to one Mr. Adam Shada, who had about as effective of coverage skills as using a Band-Aid to cover a gunshot wound.
by HeroPatriotStanzi on Jan 26, 2010 11:10 AM CST reply actions
I've considered naming my first born son Adam Shada...
as in first name Adam, middle name Shada. That way, I would have no fucking problem screaming at him when I’m angry.
"I am in blood stepped in so far that should I wade no more, Returning were as tedious as go o’er." - Adrian Clayborn
by Smokin Herb Grigsby on Jan 26, 2010 12:48 PM CST up reply actions
THAT'S NOT A FUNNY JOKE SMART GUY!!!
(get it?)
by imadirtyoldman on Jan 26, 2010 1:50 PM CST up reply actions
Wow
Apparently, the (get it?) wasn’t clear enough that MY POST WAS A JOKE MAKING FUN OF MY PREVIOUSLY STUPID OVERREACTION. Damn sarcastic font broke again. We’ll get there.
by imadirtyoldman on Jan 26, 2010 3:13 PM CST up reply actions
Dude, I know, chill
It wasn’t exactly a hard code to crack. My post was also a joke.
Except kinda not. Because fuck Adam Shada
TYPE IN ALL CAPS
I feel bad for Shada, personally. Clearly, the kid wasn’t good enough to cover Hardy. Clearly, he was the best option on the roster in KF’s eyes (really? Were we really THAT thin?). This resulted in a kid getting abused over and over and over again.
For me, it turned from frustration into fury, and then to pity. He was only doing his job, albeit poorly, but at least at the direction of the coaching staff. I wish him well now. I hated him then.
by imadirtyoldman on Jan 26, 2010 3:24 PM CST up reply actions 1 recs
Completely Agree
Dont hate the player, hate the game.
by LikerLovedEm on Jan 26, 2010 3:32 PM CST up reply actions
I can think of maybe one safety under Ferentz who could have covered Hardy
and even Sanders would have had difficulty due to the size disparity. Hardy was one excellent receiver with extraordinary height and Iowa does not get many cover safeties. We tend to get smart kids who maintain good field position and can get up to run protect. Shada was far from the worst at that position for Iowa and he finished his tenure as an above average defender.
"I was late for some things as a kid, but I was never late for Iowa public television broadcasts of Iowa wrestling." Tom Brands
If I have to see Adam Shada chasing James Hardy into the endzone one more time...
Jesus, that was probably the most brutal thing I ever had to watch. (Shada just falling to his knees) Looking back, 2006 game was clearly the turning point for the program. But I also remember being in the student section for the 2007 game.
From a distance, it appeared as if there was an option to the weak side of the field. It was gobbled up by the Iowa defense, scrum ensued. Suddenly, I see Kellen Lewis running towards our endzone with the football. It was probably one of the biggest WTF moments of my career as a student. Most likely only surpassed by me watching hopelessly as Anthony Gonzalez ran across the entire field.
Fortunately, Kellen enjoyed cocaine a little bit more than he enjoyed diving into our endzone. That’s what you call karma.
I watched that game at Old Chicago in Coralville
And contemplated walking out onto Hwy 6 to end the misery. I don’t think I watched the end of the game, despite a friend convincing me that it would all be okay.
by The Mexican't on Jan 26, 2010 11:45 AM CST up reply actions
Listened to the game from the parking lot outside of the stadium
My friends and I refused to pay more than $5 for a ticket to that game, and that ended with us chugging beers in the parking lot to try and cope with the pain of the loss. I believe there were several things we broke throughout that game. I also vividly recall my buddy and I spiking full beers at the end of the game in frustration. Thank God we had someone sober to drive us back to Iowa City that night.
They took the bar, the whole fucking bar!
by recoveringfratguy on Jan 26, 2010 11:48 AM CST up reply actions
I was there, too
I remember yelling at my friends because they stopped drinking beer and started drinking coffee. They did the switch the series before Indiana started their comeback. I remind them every year to not screw with the alcohol gods during a Hawkeye games.
I was in that same endzone for Lewis' fumble return TD.
Just disgusting. I can only imagine what would have happened to him after that stunt if Roth had still been on the team then (hint: he would have gotten his money’s worth for the personal foul penalty).
I let my dog chew up the Iowa shirt I was wearing after the game because I was convinced it was cursed.
"I want to be a cowboy. I don't want to be a panda. Pandas are boring, stupid and boring. Bad panda!"
That game may or may not have been...
The death of my Drew Tate jersey. It was either that or the Western Michigan game. Probably the Indiana game, as it would seem illogical to take out my frustrations on Drew for the sins of Jake. Then again, that whole year was illogical…
While leaving the stadium for the Indiana game I shouted “I’m embarrassed” at the field.
It would have been very fanlike and manly had my voice not cracked due to the severe emotional damage I sustained during that game. I think I then drank so much that I pissed the bed and cried myself to sleep that night. Yep…that was a low point. But I’m not ashamed!
But still no reason to boo Shada
on Senior day…
by LikerLovedEm on Jan 26, 2010 1:27 PM CST up reply actions
What’s my favorite Amendment? THE FIF.
I’ll go ahead and plead the FIF on whether or not there was booing from me or individuals in my immediate vicinity…
However, I will point out the fact that Drew Tate was boo’d that day. Heavily. Yet, that is never remembered. He was boo’d just as heavy, if not heavier than Shada, it just so happened that plenty of people cheered for him at the same time (I DID!), which drowned out the noise. It’s just interesting to compare Shada, who had a reputation for being an outstanding student and a nice guy, but was a bit "frustrating" on the field of play (and who everyone felt bad for after the Indiana game…if you didn’t you’re a god damn liar) with Drew Tate. Of course, by the end, people only remember the cockiness of Tate, his spike at the Shoe, and his slapping of Herb Grigsby. Everyone forgets him ripping his helmet off running towards Holloway…
Just interesting to think about the fact that no one cared that Tate got boo’d because he was an asshole on and off the field, but we’ll shun everyone who boo’d Shada because he was a "nice guy" who tried really hard.
On the other hand fuck people who boo'd Drew Tate
Drew Tate was fucking awesome, you assholes.
I have nothing against Shada as a person
I had a couple classes with him and he was a good guy (pretty funny too). But let’s just say he was not destined to be a great Big 10 cornerback…
by HeroPatriotStanzi on Jan 26, 2010 3:36 PM CST up reply actions
Slapping Grigsby?
When did this happen? And why did it not happen more often?
I ate the blue ones ... they taste like burning.
I remember that pretty vividly.
"I am in blood stepped in so far that should I wade no more, Returning were as tedious as go o’er." - Adrian Clayborn
by Smokin Herb Grigsby on Jan 27, 2010 1:06 AM CST up reply actions
I was screaming "FUCK" so often and so loudly in 2006 that the neighbors came over to check on me.
After the game, though it was unseasonably hot outside, I had to strap on running shoes and go about 6 miles around the lake before I was calmed down enough to even consider hanging out with other humans that evening. I then got massively drunk.
by YouCanPutYourEddsInIt on Jan 26, 2010 11:31 AM CST reply actions
The calories you consumed drinking
Probably offset what you burned running.
My blog: http://www.gretainthebox.com
by Leftcoast Hawk on Jan 26, 2010 8:51 PM CST up reply actions
Worst loss ever
Not just the worst loss to Indiana, probably the worst loss of the decade for me. Not even the Western Michigan debacle a year later had me as upset. I remember after the game announcing the season was over and that it wasn’t even worth watching the rest of the games that year (sadly kind of true). And Adam Shada…as much as I dislike disliking Hawkeyes, he was the most frustrating player ever.
He was terrible
I did feel bad for him when he got booed on Senior Day, though,
by salparadise23 on Jan 26, 2010 12:44 PM CST up reply actions
Not me.
I laughed my ass off and screamed “don’t let the door hit you in the ass”.
"I am in blood stepped in so far that should I wade no more, Returning were as tedious as go o’er." - Adrian Clayborn
by Smokin Herb Grigsby on Jan 26, 2010 12:51 PM CST up reply actions
Fuck you.
I got more rhymes than Wade Lookingbill's got dunks
by Adam Jacobi on Jan 26, 2010 1:15 PM CST up reply actions 1 recs
You don't DOWNGRADE him because he does everything right and may not play as well on Saturday!
I got more rhymes than Wade Lookingbill's got dunks
The backstory of the Gundy tirade is far more interesting (see: depressing) than the tirade itself.
"I am in blood stepped in so far that should I wade no more, Returning were as tedious as go o’er." - Adrian Clayborn
by Smokin Herb Grigsby on Jan 26, 2010 1:46 PM CST up reply actions
I sincerely hope that Shada found a lovely girl at Iowa
Married her and have lovely kids together. Because I would be willing to bet that, other than his teammates and the probable friends everyone meets at college, he fucking hates Iowa with every fiber in his body.
Look, I thought the kid was not up to Iowa standards, but he has gotten way too much shit for his play when the majority of his teammates sucked as much as he did.
"I know you're from Middle America, and sometimes you feel like you're representing more than just a school or a conference, maybe an entire group of American citizens out there."
by Twin Cities Hawk on Jan 26, 2010 2:30 PM CST up reply actions
He was on some underwhelming teams
to be sure. But Shada’s real problem was that his failures (which were legion) were just so blantant and obvious that even a blind man could see him. Which isn’t exactly fair since when a LB blows a play it isn’t necessarily as obvious, but seeing WR after WR just absolutely abuse Shada got to be painful. Espcially galling since early in his career he seemed to have a knack for a well-timed INT. The guy was the very definition of feast or famine.
I ate the blue ones ... they taste like burning.
Shada would have been a great nickle or dime back...
…just not the #1 or #2 corner. If we had a complete team those years he would have been a completely different player. He had the horizontal skills and quickness that he rarely got beat that way, and he could cover over/under the middle. It was when he was 1 on 1 on the edge that his nickname was Toast.
Here’s the obligatory: You don’t ever boo a Hawkeye (unless they throw a game, in which case it’s treason: not naming names here, just speaking hypothetically).
Also, I’m pretty sure I saw Shada scored a beautiful young lady, and I believe they did get married indeed.
by Eyeheartfreedumb on Jan 26, 2010 10:59 PM CST up reply actions
Hey, I never claimed to be a nice person.
To my defense I was piss-poor drunk, so I was living without shame at that moment.
"I am in blood stepped in so far that should I wade no more, Returning were as tedious as go o’er." - Adrian Clayborn
by Smokin Herb Grigsby on Jan 26, 2010 1:28 PM CST up reply actions
Shada
Was awful. There’s no doubting that. Short of him murdering Herky at the 50 and then screwing your mom, there’s no good cause to boo a senior on Senior Day when he’s introduced. During the game, sure, boo like hell. But not when he’s introduced.
I hope they invite him back for an alumni day
So I can boo him again. As far as I am concerned, there are not nearly enough situations in which I get the opportunity to boo Adam Shada.
"there’s no good cause to boo a senior on Senior Day when he’s introduced"
Actually, I booed Jess Settles, but only because it was his eighth Senior Day and I just felt he was abusing the occasion at that point.
Less memorable than Sam Okey's Hawkeye career.
by Kyle McCann't on Jan 26, 2010 10:30 PM CST up reply actions
Hence my screen name
I have absolutely no ties to him, and I hated watching him massively screw the pooch game after game. But the kid did give everything he had to the program. I felt really bad that he got booed.
by shada's revenge on Jan 26, 2010 4:50 PM CST up reply actions
OK, you've all succesfully made me feel like a jerk now.
I was in attendance, and very drunk, at the Senior Day Western Michigan game. I, like many people when they’re liquored up, was at my lowest state of shame and social acceptability when the seniors were being introduced. Shada’s name gets called and he walks out on crutches (he was hurt for that game), and we all know what happened next. I was not one of the people that booed. I did laugh and yell what I mentioned above. While I still look back on the Shada moments as some of the worst in my fandom, it was a dick move. I am now atoning for that.
To make me feel even worse, and atone even more… Shada was an academic all-american and graduated from Iowa with a 4.0. If I’m not mistaken that also makes him Suma Cum Laude. So, when he wasn’t getting out ran by every receiver known to mankind and blowing assignments like he was paid to do so, he was representing the team extremely well in the classroom.
I apologize, Adam. I hated watching you play, but the fact that you were awful on the field doesn’t justify a dick move during a commemoration event.
"I am in blood stepped in so far that should I wade no more, Returning were as tedious as go o’er." - Adrian Clayborn
by Smokin Herb Grigsby on Jan 27, 2010 12:42 AM CST up reply actions
Don't worry
the asshole in me wants to point out that Shada being on crutches only slightly hindered his coverage ability. But not enough to be noticable.
I guess, at the end of the day, what frustrates a lot of fans was the sense of hopelessness that the Iowa teams of 2006 and 2007 represented. It is COMPLETELY unfair to Shada that he bears the brunt of the fans’ disappointment, but he is representative of the sense that I (and I assume many fans) had that screamed “Is this really the best we have/can do?” It’s not Shada’s fault, he was merely the convenient scapegoat for a lot of angst and anger in the lowpoint of the Ferentz regime. Those were dark days for Iowa football, but he deserved better at our hands.
I ate the blue ones ... they taste like burning.
The Shada Struggle
I have tried to live by the ideal that is only acceptable to boo (particular college kids) when the player puts his interests before the team, such as hot dogging or not trying, or if there is some other moral reason, such as the guy is just a prick (Beutjer). But, sweet lord, this guy drove me nuts. Watching him continually get bitchmade was, simply put, a horrible exercise in futility. It was not just that he was out-classed athletically, it was the fact he never really seemed to improve. It felt like his entire career was spent under the delusional hope that, one day, he would learn that turning his head before the ball got there would allow him either to (1) avoid a pass inference call; and (2) actually try and make a play on the ball.
However, have never heard anything to suggest that Shada was anything but a good teammate or failed because of lack of effort. so, though I tried my best not to boo, I can’t say I was always successful (though I was not there for Senior Day). In hindsight it was simply wrong. Shada got to live a dream that many of us would have killed for. That his dream got crapped on by some short, slow, drunks is just plain wrong.
Ankles! We don't need no stinking ankles!
by three and out the kok story on Jan 26, 2010 2:46 PM CST up reply actions
I might have booed from home
I cursed and shouted incomprehensible things at Shada from my couch, but booing on Senior Day is just wrong.
The word is Fight, Fight, Fight for Iowa
by fightforiowa on Jan 26, 2010 9:13 PM CST up reply actions
I agree
Don’t boo ANY kid that’s played his guts out for the Hawks on the field – or has been part of the Meat Squad and has had his guts ripped out by the Hawks that got to play on the field.
I remember Hayden talking about a guy that was basically a walk-on practice player that finally got to play in a game as a senior in a blowout. He was a Holloway type guy – always gave 110% and didn’t complain – but wasn’t good enough to see the field with the guys in front of him. Hayden was proud of the player and said he deserved to have that PT with what he’d done for the team as a practice player.
All of the guys want PT, and it always amazes me how there are players that will stay on a squad even if they’re not on scholarship just to be practice meat. That says something about dedication.
My blog: http://www.gretainthebox.com
by Leftcoast Hawk on Jan 26, 2010 9:28 PM CST up reply actions
FUCK ADAM SHADA
Phew, I feel better.
Anyway, agreed on Randal El. One of the best college players I’ve ever seen. I still think he was the best player in the country his senior year and should have won the Heisman, considering the mess he had to work with and the numbers he was able to put up.
That 2007 IU game was the last game I saw at Kinnick.
Ugh.
This picture is entitled, “That Game Was Like a Fart.”
MORE ZAZZ! I DEMAND MORE ZAZZ!
by Bucketochicken on Jan 26, 2010 12:41 PM CST reply actions 1 recs
I was there also
Lost on fucking Homecoming…
by salparadise23 on Jan 26, 2010 12:45 PM CST up reply actions
You should really tell us exactly how you felt
That picture doesn’t say much.
My blog: http://www.gretainthebox.com
by Leftcoast Hawk on Jan 26, 2010 12:58 PM CST up reply actions
Similarly, I have a picture entitled:
That Fart Was Like A Game but I am forbidden to post it on this site.
Less memorable than Sam Okey's Hawkeye career.
by Kyle McCann't on Jan 26, 2010 11:01 PM CST up reply actions
Ross, keep these coming
Really well written. Thank you.
My blog: http://www.gretainthebox.com
by Leftcoast Hawk on Jan 26, 2010 12:58 PM CST reply actions
They will keep on a-coming.
Assuming I don’t kill myself first. (Writing the jNWU one is going to be brutal.)
"I want to be a cowboy. I don't want to be a panda. Pandas are boring, stupid and boring. Bad panda!"
More like entertaining!
I can’t wait to see the 26 fans that jNW has come on here to tell us how they own us.
"I know you're from Middle America, and sometimes you feel like you're representing more than just a school or a conference, maybe an entire group of American citizens out there."
by Twin Cities Hawk on Jan 26, 2010 2:32 PM CST up reply actions
Oh come on.
There can’t be that many…
MORE ZAZZ! I DEMAND MORE ZAZZ!
by Bucketochicken on Jan 26, 2010 2:50 PM CST up reply actions
My bad
I was counting away fans too:
"I know you're from Middle America, and sometimes you feel like you're representing more than just a school or a conference, maybe an entire group of American citizens out there."
by Twin Cities Hawk on Jan 26, 2010 2:55 PM CST up reply actions
It's sad
But the jNWU “fans” that frequent the internets (all 12 of them), especially Lake the Posts, have really made me hate Northwestern where I had previously felt bemused indifference. Losing to jNWU sucks (hard), but it keeps things in perspective – I know how a PSU fan feels about the Iowa game. But the jNWU fans make so much worse; we get it, you hate us, I’m sorry we don’t validate your feelings and reciprocate.
I ate the blue ones ... they taste like burning.
Do it quick like a band-aid
Ankles! We don't need no stinking ankles!
by three and out the kok story on Jan 26, 2010 3:24 PM CST up reply actions
Nice of you to crib
from my fanpost before the 2008 game! I DEMAND CREDIT AND/OR ATTRIBUTION!!! I keed, I keed. Love these posts, even when I hate them because they remind me of the bad times, and you’re a true mensch for writing them and getting them up so regularly.
Still torn on which was worse, the 2006 or 2007 loss. The 2006 was inexplicable, the 2007 game just made us look bad. Either way, I got REALLY drunk after both of them. Unfortunately, during the 2007 game I was at a wedding, needless to say I was not in as much of a celebratory mood as I should have been. A quick trip to a Charlotte, NCstrip club before the reception really helped clear that up though.
I ate the blue ones ... they taste like burning.
2007.
Much worse.
MORE ZAZZ! I DEMAND MORE ZAZZ!
by Bucketochicken on Jan 26, 2010 3:59 PM CST up reply actions
I rate the 07 one behind the 06 one because the 07 team sucked.
It was the second worst team of the decade (after the ‘00 squad). I look at the way a healthy, motivated 06 team played Texas in the Alamo Bowl or, hell, the way they hung with a good Wisco team… I just can’t see the 07 team even coming close to that. The only time the 07 team ever looked good was when they beat the piss out of a shit-terrible Syracuse team.
It was humiliating to get smoked in Kinnick like that — but even that wasn’t a novel experience, sadly. OSU (understandable) and jNWU (appalling) had done that the year before.
"I want to be a cowboy. I don't want to be a panda. Pandas are boring, stupid and boring. Bad panda!"
Agreed, but since I was at the 07 (ahem) game...
Plus it was my b-day weekend, and going to Iowa games has been a real rarity for me, so… yeah. Fuck.
It was even boring and kinda shitty downtown that night. First time my wife had been to IC, too. Sucked. I talked it up so much, and then it turned out to be kinda… lame.
Plus I didn’t go to school there (tavernhawk alert!), so I admittedly don’t know it as intimately as if I had.
Ugh. Both losses were vomitous.
MORE ZAZZ! I DEMAND MORE ZAZZ!
by Bucketochicken on Jan 26, 2010 4:30 PM CST up reply actions
Yeah, I was at that game too, so I can certainly sympathize.
Personal experience definitely makes the wounds more painful.
AI experienced the 06 game through the wonders of TV; after the game, my dog and I played a lot of fetch outside and I spent a long time ranting to anyone who would answer my phone calls.
"I want to be a cowboy. I don't want to be a panda. Pandas are boring, stupid and boring. Bad panda!"
Coulndn't agree more
that personal experience is the trump card. That’s why the ’98 loss to ISU will always be my worst moment. I was 18 at the time and literally had no memory of Iowa ever losing to the Cyclones. And to see them on OUR FUCKING FIELD! I ooze hate over that game…
Less memorable than Sam Okey's Hawkeye career.
by Kyle McCann't on Jan 26, 2010 11:19 PM CST up reply actions
Yeah I don't envy you there
I saw four of the contests in person, one in Evanston. They are the only team in the Big Ten that I did not see Iowa beat in person this decade… or ever.
by shada's revenge on Jan 26, 2010 4:53 PM CST up reply actions
If you need a critique before you put it up... or some help fleshing it out
Email me off of my blog (in the sig). My Iowa BA is in English – I did almost 20 credit hours in creative, expository and business writing. (the MA is in Urban Planning – the drafting room is still in the same building where I went 85-87 on the Pentacrest (shit, I’m old, I can’t even remember the damn building name LOL).
My blog: http://www.gretainthebox.com
by Leftcoast Hawk on Jan 26, 2010 9:31 PM CST up reply actions
If you can't remember the building
just ask Flannery O’Connor. You two went to school together, right?
Less memorable than Sam Okey's Hawkeye career.
by Kyle McCann't on Jan 26, 2010 10:34 PM CST up reply actions
They were playing Randle El at WR a lot that year, too.
I think they were being good to him and getting him exposure at other spots on the field since everyone knew he wasn’t likely to be a full-time QB in the NFL. They knew they sucked and wanted to help their guy the most. At least, that was what I remember from it.
In the past 10 years, just four team owners have not paid a luxury tax and are not on pace to pay one this year: Donald Sterling, Jerry Reinsdorf, Chris Cohen (Golden State), Bob Johnson (Charlotte).
Two owners’ teams averaged an operating income of over +$10 million per year while their teams have lost over 60% of their games: Donald Sterling and Jerry Reinsdorf.
Not really. IU played Randle-El at WR for only one game, a Thursday night debacle at NC State. Cam Cameron quickly decided to abandon that experiment, although there may have been the occasional trick play. Ultimately, turning ARE into a WR/Wildcat QB simply didn’t get the ball in his hands enough.
The reason IU did it was not because “they knew they sucked.” That actually was a decent team that finished 4-4 in the Big Ten, beat wisconsin by 30+ at Camp Randall, and won at MSU. Absent the chance to work at WR, Randle El was going to enter the 2001 draft. After the NC State debacle, Cameron prevailed upon him to reconsider and return to QB. Cam was in what he knew was a decisive season, so I don’t think he was mailing it in. Ultimately, a missed extra point against Utah that year cost IU a bowl bid and Cam his job.
The Crimson Quarry, SB Nation's Indiana Hoosiers blog
by John M (The Crimson Quarry) on Jan 26, 2010 3:14 PM CST up reply actions
Someone remind me again
Why Cam Cameron keeps getting head coaching jobs? He seems to be the quintessential example of a good coordinator, terrible head coach.
I ate the blue ones ... they taste like burning.
I think ADs & Sports Info Depts just like the name.
Makes for easy marketing and such.
MORE ZAZZ! I DEMAND MORE ZAZZ!
by Bucketochicken on Jan 26, 2010 4:00 PM CST up reply actions
Fern Gully was really good.
But then, so was Avatar.
MORE ZAZZ! I DEMAND MORE ZAZZ!
by Bucketochicken on Jan 26, 2010 5:30 PM CST up reply actions
I didn't say either of them weren't
I’m just saying they’re the same movie, just different age group targets
Absosmurfly.
MORE ZAZZ! I DEMAND MORE ZAZZ!
by Bucketochicken on Jan 26, 2010 6:59 PM CST up reply actions
I thought the subtitle was "Dancing With Smurfs".
My blog: http://www.gretainthebox.com
by Leftcoast Hawk on Jan 26, 2010 8:55 PM CST up reply actions
Funny
I thought I was the only one who still watched SNL.
Less memorable than Sam Okey's Hawkeye career.
by Kyle McCann't on Jan 26, 2010 10:35 PM CST up reply actions
Then why isn't
Jacob Jaacks our basketball coach yet?
Less memorable than Sam Okey's Hawkeye career.
by Kyle McCann't on Jan 26, 2010 11:22 PM CST up reply actions
Well, he’s only had two so far. I think it was easy to dismiss his IU record because “it’s impossible to win at Indiana,” even though his tenure was only a couple of years removed from a run of 7 winning seasons in 9 years. Anyone who watched his IU teams closely can’t be surprised by his subsequent failure with the Dolphins. I’ll be surprised if he gets another shot after the debacle in Miami.
The Crimson Quarry, SB Nation's Indiana Hoosiers blog
by John M (The Crimson Quarry) on Jan 26, 2010 4:15 PM CST up reply actions
Better question
He has nothing to do with this thread, but can anyone tell my why Greg Robinson keeps getting any jobs? He seems to be a terrible coordinator, and even worse head coach.
RichRod saw he got fired at Syracuse, remembered his WVU offenses destroying Syracuse..
And thought “Damn, I gotta get this guy out here!”
by ReadingRambler on Jan 26, 2010 5:25 PM CST up reply actions
James fucking Hardy
That 2006 game was just nauseating. Not only did Iowa lose to Indiana (which makes for a bad enough weekend by itself), but James Hardy was the biggest reason. That was extra painful for me, because some friends and I do a college fantasy football league every year, and I had just dropped James Hardy before that game. I had hopes for him coming into the season, but through the first six games, he had missed two games completely, and only totaled 187 yards and 1 TD in the other four games. So I drop him, and he gets offended and kicks the shit out of the Hawkeyes to get back at me.
Another Indiana game spurs another college fantasy football memory, though. In 2008, I took Shonn Greene with the last pick of the draft. (I always pick at least one Iowa player each year. Sometimes it’s just homerism and he’ll end up on my bench most of the season, but in this case I had good feelings about the pick. The juco transfer whose name escapes me had just decided to leave right before we held our draft, so it was basically set in stone that Greene would be the starter. I remembered from his freshman year—specifically his mop-up duty against Ball State in ‘05—thinking that he had a big future ahead of him. But since he was out of football the year before, I knew I didn’t need to worry about anyone else drafting him. Turned out to be probably my best pick ever.) Anyway, after the Indiana game, one of the other guys in the league asked me if I was worried about the fact that Iowa seemed to have found a short-yardage back (looking at Hampton’s 3 TD in the stat line). I knew that I still had plenty to look forward to with Greene, though (one of Hampton’s TDs came early in the game because Iowa always uses two RB by the end of the third possession; the other two were in the 4th quarter when there was no reason for Greene to risk an injury). It was fun to laugh the guy off, and continue to roll through the league on the back on Greene’s 100 yards every week and 11 TDs in the last 5 games. (Although I lost in the championship game because my opponent got monster days from Zach Robinson, Beanie Wells, Jeremy Maclin, and Golden Tate.)
Rembember Dave Barry?
He said it could be a Native American word for “has sex with caribou”
http://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1310&dat=20030112&id=S3gVAAAAIBAJ&sjid=v-sDAAAAIBAJ&pg=6892,2888051
The more you find out about the world, the more opportunities there are to laugh at it. Bill Nye (yeah, the science guy)
The old "I didn't say your State was shitty, I said your NICKNAME was shitty" defense.
by YouCanPutYourEddsInIt on Jan 26, 2010 4:48 PM CST up reply actions
Everything in this state is shitty...
so why shouldn’t the name for the residents be as well?
The more you find out about the world, the more opportunities there are to laugh at it. Bill Nye (yeah, the science guy)
I look forward to the PSU edition
We may be 1-7 in the aughts, but HAHAHAHA YOU LOST TO MORELLI.
Twitter: @scrappled
scrappled.com
"When it’s third-and-10, you can take the milk drinkers and I’ll take the whiskey drinkers every time" - Max McGee
by Run Up The Score on Jan 26, 2010 7:08 PM CST reply actions
Here's a preview:
I.
II.
III.
IV.
"I want to be a cowboy. I don't want to be a panda. Pandas are boring, stupid and boring. Bad panda!"
I knee slided all over your mom last night.
sigh
Oh, man, I just can’t take this anymore.
by ReadingRambler on Jan 26, 2010 11:33 PM CST up reply actions
Did you get rug burns in the process?
My blog: http://www.gretainthebox.com
by Leftcoast Hawk on Jan 27, 2010 3:04 AM CST up reply actions
Yes...
…and that was on a hardwood floor.
Hey-oooooooooo!
by Eyeheartfreedumb on Jan 27, 2010 9:51 AM CST up reply actions
I love how the knee slide is basically the theme of Iowa-PSU games now
I was at the game in Happy Valley this year, and after the final gun, some of the male cheerleaders were doing the knee slide in the end zone.
But my favorite part was probably when the section of Iowa fans took ownership of the “We ARE… Penn State!” chant and modified it to become “We OWN… Penn State.” Good natured taunting always has a place in sports, no matter what Chargers fans say about Shonn Greene.
You just had to post that, didn't you?
I’ve spent so much time telling people that Iowa is better than Michigan because Iowa fans never said “We Own Penn State” like those douchebags did last night in a BASKETBALL GAME against MICHIGAN STATE after they’ve gotten killed by Penn State for two years in a row.
Whatever, thought. If we can only beat you when a Morelli-type is our QB, fine. I guess Iowa fans will learn to hate Matt McGloin.
But seriously, don’t copy Michigan fans. That makes you lowest of the low.
by ReadingRambler on Jan 27, 2010 7:41 PM CST up reply actions
Well, that makes me feel bad
Although the few Michigan fans I know personally are okay, being compared to Michigan fans en masse hurts.
He's right...
We did lose to Morelli.
Damn, you just can’t say more than that. I remember getting in a verbal argument with this guy from Penn State who just insisted (in 2006) that Morelli was the best QB that PSU had started in years. Morelli was just “too young”.
Wonder whatever happened to that guy…
I want to go back in time and punch that guy.
2006? The year after Michael Robinson led us to the conference title and a BCS win whilst demonstrating exceptional leadership.
I get angry thinking about this.
by ReadingRambler on Jan 26, 2010 11:35 PM CST up reply actions
I just remember
a bunch of PSU fans on another message board talking NON-STOP before the 2006 season (and 2007) about how Morelli was going to be such a world-beater and that if Michael Robinson could win a share of a title, then we might as well reserved teh Ron Powlus multiple-Heisman award for all the titles Morelli would win. Such simpler times…
I ate the blue ones ... they taste like burning.
Only 2007 Iowa
Could make Morelli look like the 5-star talent he was alleged to be.
I ate the blue ones ... they taste like burning.
I was in the endzone for the 2007 game at PSU
Which is an interesting angle. You could actually see Morelli look at the receiver he was going to throw to prior to the snap and stare him down the entire route. Even I could tell this wasn’t good, from 40 yards away. Of course watching JC6 stare at the turf, again keeping his eyes focused on who he was going to throw the ball, was much worse.
If I remember correctly Shada had a pick close, if not in the endzone that game.
"Well of course, there's nothing better than being American!!!" - Ricky Americanzi, Jan. 5th, 2010
by The Bacon Explosion on Jan 27, 2010 8:07 AM CST up reply actions
You could actually see Morelli look at the receiver he was going to throw to prior to the snap and stare him down the entire route.
This accurately describes every game he played for two years.
by ReadingRambler on Jan 27, 2010 12:05 PM CST up reply actions
The Morelli loss was actually required
as the University of Iowa football team has a very progressive affirmative action program wherein they have to loose to QB’s from a set list of ethnicites,religions and lifestyles before a decade expires.
Morelli: Italian
Pryor: African American
Kafka: Czech
Kittner: German
Randle-El: Muslim
McCoy: Irish
Rosenfels: Voodoo/retarded/NAMBLA-member
Less memorable than Sam Okey's Hawkeye career.
Oh! You're right!
I forgot to add “racist” to the Rosenfels dossier.
Less memorable than Sam Okey's Hawkeye career.
by Kyle McCann't on Jan 27, 2010 5:47 AM CST up reply actions
Hoosier Love
By Mu330 – explains a lot.
http://popup.lala.com/popup/360569449478360618
"Well of course, there's nothing better than being American!!!" - Ricky Americanzi, Jan. 5th, 2010
by The Bacon Explosion on Jan 27, 2010 9:59 AM CST reply actions
Saw them at Gabe's quite a few times.
Hit me with the horn section!
by Eyeheartfreedumb on Jan 27, 2010 11:37 AM CST up reply actions
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