Do you think Iowa plays like a Top 5 team in the nation?

Do you think Iowa plays like a Top 5 team in the nation?

  • Hell no.

    Votes: 61 77.2%

  • yes

    Votes: 18 22.8%
  • Total voters
    79
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Did you guys all miss them rolling up 270 on the ground and 500 total yards?

If you don't think they're a very good team then you must have a very low opinion of the gophers. They dominated the gophers defense more than Ohio state and Michigan did. Their defense was not as good as Ohio state but not that much worse than Michigan's.
 

WHO (outside of the B1G) is better than them?

I struggle to find a team other than Alabama and a couple teams from the East Division that I'm sure would beat them. I don't think their schedule has been any easier than Clemson's.

They are better than Notre Dame, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Baylor or TCU. So they have to be in the Top 5.
 

Instead of insulting Iowa lets give. Credit to a great Minnesota game plan. Iowa doesn't have a great edge rusher but they have gotten solid pressure on the qb. The dline is great at gap control and getting pressure from the dts to crumple the pocket. Your interior oline played out of their minds and Leidner played confidently and composed and took advantage. Your OC had some great playcalls and took advantage. That's a very good defense that had a letdown performance at the worst time and the gophers made the best of it. Let's not get carried away with Iowa not deserving where they are though. Iowa has as many ranked wins alone as the top 3 big ten eas schools combined and if you look at the metrics Iowa is real good.
 


Definitely not. The best team they've played all season is Northwestern

They will get likely get smashed in the B1G title game, and if they make the playoffs they will get embarrassed. They are not a top 5 team. They are a good team, but they have been the beneficiaries of a ridiculously easy schedule.
 

cjbfbp said:
For what reason? I'm not claiming they'll beat OSU. And, as far as debating, I could out debate you every day of the week and twice on Sundays.
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You're doing a bang up job. Golf clap.

Look, it's amazing the guff I'm taking for arguing Iowa is a fringe top 20 team. I'm not stating your team is bad. They are overrated based on schedule and a fluky win at Wisconsin.

I'm accused of sour grapes for pointing out the above, after a guy comes over to gloat. So be it.

Didn't you mention awhile back you have some ties to Iowa? Birth, school, or residence? Do you have split loyalties? Serious question, I'm just curious about your fandom and your teams.
 

Goldmember said:
WHO (outside of the B1G) is better than them?

I struggle to find a team other than Alabama and a couple teams from the East Division that I'm sure would beat them. I don't think their schedule has been any easier than Clemson's.

They are better than Notre Dame, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Baylor or TCU. So they have to be in the Top 5.
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Better based on what?

Iowa is 28 in the latest S&P+ ratings.
 

Goldmember said:
WHO (outside of the B1G) is better than them?

I struggle to find a team other than Alabama and a couple teams from the East Division that I'm sure would beat them. I don't think their schedule has been any easier than Clemson's.

They are better than Notre Dame, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Baylor or TCU. So they have to be in the Top 5.
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Every team you listed is about 20 places higher than Iowa, except TCU. They are 29.

And I'm the delusional one.

http://www.footballoutsiders.com/stats/ncaa

It's arguable that a MN team not missing 6 key contributors on defense and several offensive linemen defeats Iowa last night.
 



The good news for Iowa in this debate is they'll get a chance to prove it. I get that people won't be convinced even if they run the table against Purdue and Nebraska (nor should they), but then they most likely meet Ohio State. If that meeting happens, I'll go out on a limb predict they keep it closer than 59-0.
 

Crickets. Still no takers. Are you going to debate my posts Cfbfgp? Objective rankings vs biased human rankings. Why the discrepancy? Do you have a theory?

Ok GoUGopher, forget the money but let's make it interesting. The loser of the Iowa/OSU has to return to post "I am a worse football mind than Matt Millen". A truly humiliating statement.

If they are this year's Wisconsin doesn't that imply 59-0 Old Goph? I am kidding, I don't think we will witness a beat down as total as that for a long time. The dominating was total.
 

Pompous Elitist said:
Crickets. Still no takers. Are you going to debate my posts Cfbfgp? Objective rankings vs biased human rankings. Why the discrepancy? Do you have a theory?

Ok GoUGopher, forget the money but let's make it interesting. The loser of the Iowa/OSU has to return to post "I am a worse football mind than Matt Millen". A truly humiliating statement.

If they are this year's Wisconsin doesn't that imply 59-0 Old Goph? I am kidding, I don't think we will witness a beat down as total as that for a long time. The dominating was total.
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You are basing your argument off one computer ranking. I'll let you think about how dumb that is. For the record, I could probably find you a couple different computer rankings that have Iowa ranked number one.
 

IAHawk2011 said:
You are basing your argument off one computer ranking. I'll let you think about how dumb that is. For the record, I could probably find you a couple different computer rankings that have Iowa ranked number one.
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Ok....find me one. You guys are beyond delusional, it's white coat time.

I'm basing my assessment off the overall talent level of Iowa, their weak schedule, the eye test, and poor advanced stats metrics.

Top 20, I can get on board. Top 5, there are no great arguments.
 



Here's one

http://www.maasranking.nl/CollFoot/cfrank.htm

If you want to base everything off talent, let's just have Aabama and Ohio State play in the national championship game every year. There's no need to even play the regular season out. Of course, talent is only one factor in determining how good a team is. I'm not sure your eye test accounts for much- unless you have experience coaching or scouting at the Divison One level, your "eye test" is good for jack squat.

Furthermore, Iowa's advanced stats (in terms of offensive and defensive efficiency) aren't going to look as good because there is literally not a single coach in college football who is more conservative than Kirk Ferentz with a lead. If Iowa is leading in the 2nd half, they will continue to run the ball into 9 man fronts and play a base 4-3 defense that gives up a ton of yards.

You can cry and complain all you want, but there is more support for Iowa being a top 5 team than being outside the top 15.
 

I don't know where he comes up with the rankings but when he has Wheaton and Johns Hopkins in his top 40 or so I'd say its a suspect model.

Football Outsiders are well-respected within the football community.

Good luck with the rest of your season.
 

Wow, that is a cool poll. Interesting to see the Gophers (along with many other FBS teams) rated WAY below both St. Thomas and St. John's. Must be a great year for the MIAC.
 


Regardless of how they have looked in individual games, it takes a really good team to go 10-0 with 8 of those wins coming against power 5 teams. They may have been fortunate with their crossover games, but they also drew the 2nd and 3rd place teams in the division on the road, won both of those games, and blew out one of them.
 

Pompous Elitist said:
You havent told me who Iowa has played. A beaten up Wisconsin? Northwestern? Are they the really the only impressive win? The eye test says you're not that talented except in spots. I will give props to your QB and your line. Look for about 15 teams listed behin Iowa in the rankings for the better teams.

Like i said, i suspect I'm going to enjoy this postseason.
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Claiming injuries as some reason for a loss is stupid. Everyone has injuries. Iowa has played most of the season without their 2 starting offensive tackles (Myers and Boettger). Our #1 TE has missed the entire season (Duzey). Our best WR (T. Smith) and our best DL (Ott) have missed half of the season. Our QB has been playing for a month With a pulled groin. Our 1st and 2nd string RBs have bother missed 3 or 4 games of the season. Our offense has been a season long MASH unit and it's still the 2nd highest scoring offense in the conference!
Give it a rest. Everyone has to overcome injuries.
 

lightning1 said:
Claiming injuries as some reason for a loss is stupid. Everyone has injuries. Iowa has played most of the season without their 2 starting offensive tackles (Myers and Boettger). Our #1 TE has missed the entire season (Duzey). Our best WR (T. Smith) and our best DL (Ott) have missed half of the season. Our QB has been playing for a month With a pulled groin. Our 1st and 2nd string RBs have bother missed 3 or 4 games of the season. Our offense has been a season long MASH unit and it's still the 2nd highest scoring offense in the conference!
Give it a rest. Everyone has to overcome injuries.
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I don't blame the injuries alone for the loss but there is no doubt we have been affected by injuries more than most teams. And the injuries have come in bunches at certain positions. For example, 4 of our top 7 DBs are done for the year. A walk-on has been starting at safety all season. Most Gopher fans didn't even know who he was coming into the season. Iowa was able to take advantage of that on Saturday (which is what good teams do).

It's not an excuse, but it is the reality.
 

lightning1 said:
Claiming injuries as some reason for a loss is stupid. Everyone has injuries. Iowa has played most of the season without their 2 starting offensive tackles (Myers and Boettger). Our #1 TE has missed the entire season (Duzey). Our best WR (T. Smith) and our best DL (Ott) have missed half of the season. Our QB has been playing for a month With a pulled groin. Our 1st and 2nd string RBs have bother missed 3 or 4 games of the season. Our offense has been a season long MASH unit and it's still the 2nd highest scoring offense in the conference!
Give it a rest. Everyone has to overcome injuries.
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Yes, but we have had every injury you listed, plus another 5 starters and heavy contributors on defense out, not just limited. It's been a "special season" all right and the remaining guys are playing their hearts out. Really proud of the guys for not giving up through it all.

If it's "stupid" to point this out as a factor then it can't be "stupid" to point out you've played a lightweight schedule. Kudos for winning the games you should. Good luck.
 

Seriously, if you're looking for validation; to tell you Iowa has 3 NFL caliber RBs, are the best defense or offense we've seen this year, etc, its not going to happen. Seek your validation elsewhere. Check out the Wisconsin boards. I'm sure they have nice things to say. Coming here after a tough and controversial loss isn't the classiest move in the world.

You're going to get a chance to prove how good you are the next 3 weeks.
 

Pompous Elitist said:
Seriously, if you're looking for validation; to tell you Iowa has 3 NFL caliber RBs, are the best defense or offense we've seen this year, etc, its not going to happen. Seek your validation elsewhere. Check out the Wisconsin boards. I'm sure they have nice things to say. Coming here after a tough and controversial loss isn't the classiest move in the world.

You're going to get a chance to prove how good you are the next 3 weeks.
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"Iowa was victorious. But that's not enough. Now I must scour the Internet for anyone who dares badmouth my beloved Hawkeyes. I must defend their honor!"

I'm relatively certain most posters weren't on this board last year and the Gophers mopped the floor with their squad.
 

The line between winning and losing in college football is often razor thin, and the sample size (season) is pretty small. So I think it can be consistent to say both that Iowa deserves its current #5 ranking and Iowa is not a really good team.

On the latter point, the clincher for me is that I'm convinced this Gopher team, even in its depleted state, would beat Iowa at TCF. Maybe not 52-14 this year, but we'd beat them.

On the other hand I can name probably 7 or 8 teams that would kill us right now, even at home.
 

Doesn't matter what I think, they are 10-0 and ranked that high, if they keep winning they have a shot to get in the playoff. They are not the best team the Gophers played this year but they got the W. Personally I don't think they have a enough defense to hang with one of the top four teams. Doesn't take anything away from them, they are having the year I had hoped for the Gophers.
 

Pompous Elitist said:
Every team you listed is about 20 places higher than Iowa, except TCU. They are 29.
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That's a very interesting index. However, I don't have much faith in it determining who wins head-to-head, and neither should you.

Indiana (60-something in your index) BEAT Western Kentucky (#22). Indiana is clearly the better team.

The index is possibly compelling evidence that Iowa is does not "play like a legitimate Top 5 team". But if you really think there are 27 teams that could beat them, yes, you are dillusional. :)
Keep in mind: Iowa already beat Wisconsin (ranked 10 spots ahead of them here).
 

Pompous Elitist said:
You're doing a bang up job. Golf clap.

Look, it's amazing the guff I'm taking for arguing Iowa is a fringe top 20 team. I'm not stating your team is bad. They are overrated based on schedule and a fluky win at Wisconsin.

I'm accused of sour grapes for pointing out the above, after a guy comes over to gloat. So be it.

Didn't you mention awhile back you have some ties to Iowa? Birth, school, or residence? Do you have split loyalties? Serious question, I'm just curious about your fandom and your teams.
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Well, if you must know...I am an easterner born and bred...an alumnus of Iowa (only for undergrad)...have lived in Minnesota for some time now...and very definitely a Gopher fan. Some people are capable of changing their preferences.

The guy you mentioned may have been irritating, but Iowa is not a fringe top 20 team. I will say that we outplayed Michigan despite the loss but we did not outplay Iowa. They are not as good as OSU but they might be the second best (or third at worst) Big Ten team.
 

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