Share your thoughts on the Iowa game

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MGGopher

MGGopher

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A week ago I felt really good about this game and was thinking of attending. Expectations obviously way, WAY down after Illinois, but I still think MN can win. Here's my thoughts:
  • If the MN offense is balanced, throws a lot on 1st down, and takes what Iowa is giving, they should move the ball fine. NW got over 350 yards on Iowa with with pretty bad QB play. This was obviously a week after getting totally stifled my MN. Don't turn the ball over and I can easily see MN scoring 20 - 27 points.
  • If MN turns the ball over, gives up pressures on long-developing passing plays, and continually tries running it into negative boxes on running down and distances, I could easily see scoring 6 - 13 points.
  • Every trend for both teams the past few weeks says the MN defense should control Iowa. They give up a lot of QB pressures and MN has really picked up the pash rush the past few weeks. They're breaking in a new QB, and despite looking better than Petras last week, Iowa still struggled to put up points and hasn't moved the ball consistently all year.
  • If Iowa scores more than 17 it will likely be due to short fields caused by turnovers and/or big plays on STs. Problem is they're VERY good at doing those things and I could easily see it happening.
I can't begin to predict what will ACTUALLY happen, but I do think if MN plays mistake free on O and finds some success early they'll win something like 23 - 14. If not, Iowa will use their STs and a turnover or two to win something like 20 - 10.
 

A week ago I felt really good about this game and was thinking of attending. Expectations obviously way, WAY down after Illinois, but I still think MN can win.

That pretty much perfectly summarizes how I'm feeling.

If they had beaten Illinois like they'd beaten Maryland, our group probably would've thought much harder about going down.


Sure, they have a chance. There's always a chance in a rivalry.


Fleck is 0-4, and Gophs haven't won there since 1999.

I mean, he was 0-17 when trailing at halftime, too. Eventually ... one day ... it has to end. Can't go on forever.
 

MplsGopher said:
A week ago I felt really good about this game and was thinking of attending. Expectations obviously way, WAY down after Illinois, but I still think MN can win.

That pretty much perfectly summarizes how I'm feeling.

If they had beaten Illinois like they'd beaten Maryland, our group probably would've thought much harder about going down.


Sure, they have a chance. There's always a chance in a rivalry.


Fleck is 0-4, and Gophs haven't won there since 1999.

I mean, he was 0-17 when trailing at halftime, too. Eventually ... one day ... it has to end. Can't go on forever.
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Trailed at the half Saturday and...
 

In spite of what some fans are posting after the Illinois game I still think it is worth making the trip and trying to beat Iowa.

If the Defense keeps playing the way they have been playing all year we should be able to limit Iowa's offensive point total. Then it just comes down to our offense and which version of it shows up. Hopefully it is the good version that can move the ball and score some points. Guess we will have to wait till Saturday to find out.
 

A win at Iowa changes the narrative again for the Gophers and importantly gets a critically important Iowa win for Fleck. Injuries, drama, inconsistency, etc., none of that matters. We need to beat Iowa. Fleck needs to beat Ferentz.

It's time.

Go Gophers!!
 


MGGopher said:
I can't begin to predict what will ACTUALLY happen, but I do think if MN plays mistake free on O and finds some success early they'll win something like 23 - 14. If not, Iowa will use their STs and a turnover or two to win something like 20 - 10.
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It would be nice if the Gopher offense played "mistake free" but we can't really expect that. If we had one turnover, that might be fine depending upon where and when it occurs. We had two turnovers against zero for Nebraska and still won the game.

"Some success early" appears to be critical for this team. Give up an early turnover that gives Iowa a 10-0 lead and then we have worries. As well as our defense played on the whole against Illinois, it took them awhile to get going and, unfortunately, Illinois did all of their damage and had 47% of their yards in the 1st quarter.

We've had three games this season where we underperformed our betting line and we did so significantly: Miami (OH), Bowling Green, and Illinois. All three were at home. After the previous two of those games, we went on the road, played much stronger, and significantly outperformed our betting line. I'm betting we do it again. I like our chances in this game.
 

If the gophers don’t turn the ball over they will have a chance to win. Kind of the same as every week. If Minnesota doesn’t turn the ball over on the opening drive against Illinois it’s a totally different game. If Illinois starts their first possession on their own 20 it’s a totally different first drive.

I wouldn’t bet on the gophers but I think it is pretty much a 50/50 game. As do my Iowa friends that I know. Both teams are pretty good at times and pretty bad at other times.
 


Some guy said:
If the gophers don’t turn the ball over they will have a chance to win. Kind of the same as every week. If Minnesota doesn’t turn the ball over on the opening drive against Illinois it’s a totally different game. If Illinois starts their first possession on their own 20 it’s a totally different first drive.

I wouldn’t bet on the gophers but I think it is pretty much a 50/50 game. As do my Iowa friends that I know. Both teams are pretty good at times and pretty bad at other times.
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About the only thing that is consistent in the West this year is that every team is really inconsistent. A few weeks ago Iowa looked untouchable, now Wisconsin looks great, and in the middle of all this is the Gophers who look really good sometimes and really bad at others.
 



BleedGopher said:
A win at Iowa changes the narrative again for the Gophers and importantly gets a critically important Iowa win for Fleck. Injuries, drama, inconsistency, etc., none of that matters. We need to beat Iowa. Fleck needs to beat Ferentz.

It's time.

Go Gophers!!
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Yup. Who knows with this team...Anything can happen.

This pretty much sums up our season so far, and probably through to the end of the season...

3R0c.gif
 


MNVCGUY said:
In spite of what some fans are posting after the Illinois game I still think it is worth making the trip and trying to beat Iowa.

If the Defense keeps playing the way they have been playing all year we should be able to limit Iowa's offensive point total. Then it just comes down to our offense and which version of it shows up. Hopefully it is the good version that can move the ball and score some points. Guess we will have to wait till Saturday to find out.
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Spot on as is Some guy. You need to have a high level of competitiveness to find your way on to a D1 team. Our squad let the Illinois game go on the way out of the locker room. Its all about the next opportunity to compete. I predict we play at a higher level offensively and give ourselves a chance to win in the end. Turnovers can be the difference this week. Iowa will have as much trouble if not more moving the ball.
 

Some guy said:
I wouldn’t bet on the gophers but I think it is pretty much a 50/50 game. As do my Iowa friends that I know. Both teams are pretty good at times and pretty bad at other times.
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Well, if you want to bet on someone in that game, you have only two choices. If it really is a 50/50 game, then why not go with the preferred team?
 



cjbfbp said:
Well, if you want to bet on someone in that game, you have only two choices. If it really is a 50/50 game, then why not go with the preferred team?
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Because I lean the gophers straight up to win the game but I don’t trust them

AND

I don’t bet on games I’m not very confident in


here are some games I’d bet on this week:
Rutgers +6.5 over indiana
Michigan +1 over Penn state
Miami -2.5 over Florida State
 
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cjbfbp said:
Well, if you want to bet on someone in that game, you have only two choices. If it really is a 50/50 game, then why not go with the preferred team?
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Definitely. I don't think it's 50/50. I'd say 40/60.
 

It feels like a close win or get completely blown out at this point in the week.
 

MaxyJR1 said:
It feels like a close win or get completely blown out at this point in the week.
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I don’t know about that.
We might lose 24-7 and it would feel like a blowout. But is that really a blowout?

Minnesota isn’t the type of team to turn the ball over 4 times. And if Iowa doesn’t get 3-4 turnovers they aren’t scoring 30+
So will be hard to have a blowout even though it might feel like an ass kicking
 

This setup is very similar to the Purdue game. We are coming off a very bad unexpected loss that we should have won at home and we have to go on the road to take on a much better team than the one we just lost to.

The defense is playing good football and should be able to keep the Gophers in the game but the offense needs to really step it up from what they did last week. The playcalling needs to be a LOT better. Of course, they can't lose the turnover battle or we are toast.

If you look at this objectively and all the history though, I do not see how you can take the Gophers. Minnesota has not won in Iowa since 1999, Fleck still has not ever beaten Iowa and this is a game the Hawkeyes always seem to pull out.

I will go with Iowa: 27 Minnesota: 17

Sorry.
 

Gold Rush said:
This setup is very similar to the Purdue game. We are coming off a very bad unexpected loss that we should have won at home and we have to go on the road to take on a much better team than the one we just lost to.

The defense is playing good football and should be able to keep the Gophers in the game but the offense needs to really step it up from what they did last week. The playcalling needs to be a LOT better. Of course, they can't lose the turnover battle or we are toast.

If you look at this objectively and all the history though, I do not see how you can take the Gophers. Minnesota has not won in Iowa since 1999, Fleck still has not ever beaten Iowa and this is a game the Hawkeyes always seem to pull out.

I will go with Iowa: 27 Minnesota: 17

Sorry.
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In Fleck's 4 matchups with Iowa the two closest games have come in the two games at Iowa. In 2017 we lost by 7 and in 2019 we were knocking on the doorstep with the go ahead score and ended up losing by 4.

We are also 7-3 in our last 10 Big Ten road games. Fleck's teams play well on the road for whatever reason. And as to those 3 loses
2019 - by 4 to Iowa - Dropped pass late that may have led to go ahead score
2020 - by 1 to Maryland - Missed XP in overtime of crazy game
2020 - by 3 to Wisconsin - Opportunities were there for the upset

Anything can happen Saturday, but those ready to throw in the towel already may want to rethink things a little.
 


MNVCGUY said:
In Fleck's 4 matchups with Iowa the two closest games have come in the two games at Iowa. In 2017 we lost by 7 and in 2019 we were knocking on the doorstep with the go ahead score and ended up losing by 4.

We are also 7-3 in our last 10 Big Ten road games. Fleck's teams play well on the road for whatever reason. And as to those 3 loses
2019 - by 4 to Iowa - Dropped pass late that may have led to go ahead score
2020 - by 1 to Maryland - Missed XP in overtime of crazy game
2020 - by 3 to Wisconsin - Opportunities were there for the upset

Anything can happen Saturday, but those ready to throw in the towel already may want to rethink things a little.
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Everything you say is true -- but there is a reason why Iowa is favored by 7 points and not the Gophers......
 

Gophers can't be worse than they were last week. Look for a refocused team. Iowa will be just as determined to win, though. Gonna be a tough game.

I believe this is the year the Gophers get it done at Kinnick, 27-21.
 

There's always a first for everything. A first for Fleck is this weekend at Kinnick when the Gophers beat the Hawks. The Marines taught me that cohesion is very important. I think this team will really stick together under adversity and support each other, raising their performance level from the Illinois weekend.
 

The Gophers control their own destiny!!! Ah unless the refs / including replay booth, announcers and sideline reporter are against the Gophers…
 

Ugh. After watching us being unable to move the ball and/or look somewhat competent on offense in two separate games, I have a really hard time seeing us move the ball against maybe the best defense we’ve faced this year.

In the third quarter last week, I still thought we could find a way to win 17-14. Sanford has me convinced he is who he is.

Hope I am wrong, but seeing another dagger in 2021: The Season That Could Have Been.
 

If I were I-O-W-A I'd rush 13 players on all Gophers' possessions...:p

I'm sure I'll be pumped by gameday.
 

Gold Rush said:
Everything you say is true -- but there is a reason why Iowa is favored by 7 points and not the Gophers......
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Iowa should be favored to win this game at home. But the separation between the teams is not great and if the Gophers play well in all 3 phases on Saturday they have a great shot of coming away with a victory.

People will fixate on the 1-7 record Fleck has against Iowa and Wisconsin, but if they can't see that the talent gap has narrowed then they are not paying attention. As inconsistent as the 2021 version of the Gophers has been, if we play to our capabilities we absolutely can win all 3 games left on our regular season schedule.
 

Replacement Gopher said:
Ugh. After watching us being unable to move the ball and/or look somewhat competent on offense in two separate games, I have a really hard time seeing us move the ball against maybe the best defense we’ve faced this year.

In the third quarter last week, I still thought we could find a way to win 17-14. Sanford has me convinced he is who he is.

Hope I am wrong, but seeing another dagger in 2021: The Season That Could Have Been.
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Everyone is solely focused on our offense and totally ignoring the fact that our defense is playing really well and should be able to contain Iowa's offense and keep them from scoring a ton of points.

So yeah, our offense is going to need to play better against Iowa than it did against Illinois, but it isn't like we have to go into this one thinking we need to score a ton of points to have a shot either.

If the D keeps them to 16 points or less the way they have in 6 of our last 7 games, we absolutely have a shot to get the W.
 

Zero expectations. Be pleasantly surprised when anything good happens. Life as a Gopher fan.

If we can either get a win or a Mike Sanford Jr. firing it will be a good day.
 

If MNs initial game plan is not working the first quarter, hopefully they do something they havent done in the Mike Sandford era and thats make adjustments right away instead of waiting till theres 9 minutes left

if this, then we have a chance.

if not, im cancelling youtube tv and will be back next year.

we have too much talent that is being used the wrong way on offense for us to not have beaten IL and BG
 

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