Where I Come From: Expectations For ISU In 2010
by Mark Kieffer on Jul 12, 2010 9:00 AM CDT
in EA Sports NCAA FB 11
8 comments
This post is sponsored by EA Sports NCAA Football 2011.
I've read some fan expecatations, and they are all over the place. I'll keep it short because I was hoping to delve into this more, as I continue to research our opponents. I also like to simulate (in my mind) the Big 12 week by week, so that I can come up with records for teams that are feasible.
But I'll put it like this. It's going to be a hard season. Possibly brutal. But in short, I think those that are picking Northern Illinois over ISU are just hating. Northern Illinois will be a good mid-major, but come on. Every year we go through this exercise, and every year some punks try to say teams like Northern Illinois, North Dakota State, etc., are going to win. It may be a close game, as the first game of the year is usually sloppy, but a night game at home, and a fired up crowd will result in a win.
I'm also not all that impressed with Utah. They will be solid, but they're beatable too. Everyone should reserve judgement on Texas Tech until we see if Tubberville utilizes the offense properly. I think it's possible to get 6 wins again, but realistically I'm thinking 4-5 wins out of Northern Illinois, UNI, K-State, Utah, Texas Tech, CU, K-State, and Iowa if we get overlooked. Even though it's a probable loss, I have a hard time thinking Nebraska will be better this year than last year to be honest. It's really hard to get a feel for any of the North teams, and about half of the South teams in my mind. What I really want to see is us being respectable. With this many upperclassmen, you want to start seeing meaningful wins, but the schedule is just really stacked against a team that just isn't on the same level right now.
No matter what happens, if they play hard, never say die, and give it all they got, do it the Paul Rhoads way, it'll be a successful season in my mind. Building a program takes some time, and if we get to a bowl game, great, if not, not a shocker to me.
What about you guys? What are you hoping for? I'm definitley going to revisit, as I'm finishing researching the teams. This is just a gut feel in early July on what I'm thinking.
This concludes our discussions. Please get your comments in by 5pm Central Time if possible. Tonight, I'll announce the winner of the game, and tomorrow we'll have an open thread for those of you that purchased NCAA Football 2011!
0 recs |
8 comments
|
Email
Print
Comments
Go hard or go home.
“No matter what happens, if they play hard, never say die, and give it all they got, do it the Paul Rhoads way, it’ll be a successful season in my mind. Building a program takes some time, and if we get to a bowl game, great, if not, not a shocker to me.”
This is exactly how I feel. Our team has improved enough over the past year that if we were to take that experience and those gains we made and play the 2009 schedule again in 2010, we would probably do pretty well. Unfortunately, that’s not what’s happening. Overall, we’ve gotten better, but so has our level of opponent. THAT SAID, that simply puts us in a pretty similar position to where we were last year: nobody expects us to win more than a few games, but look what happened in 2009. We made that jump once, no reason we can’t do it again. If we do, I will be stoked and thrilled and overjoyed and proud to be a Cyclone. However, with every loss (each of which will be like a knife to my heart, as every loss always is) I will keep things in perspective and will still be proud to be a Cyclone.
Let’s not forget- college football is a crazy, crazy, crazy sport. Things can (and do) go totally haywire every single season, and you NEVER know what bizarre surprise is just around the corner. It is also a sport where underdogs can rise up and shine brighter than any athletes ever have. Between those two things, I don’t count the Cyclones out until the fat lady sings.
That is true
What I worry about is fans say “we went to a bowl last year, so we gotta do it again”. Truth is, this team could be much improved from last year and have a worse record. We arguablly have the hardest record in the nation. If we got to 6 wins this year, it’d feel like winning 8 or 9 games.
by Mark Kieffer on Jul 12, 2010 4:16 PM CDT up reply actions
Wow, I think my comment disappeared
Damn, I had a bit typed out and then must have hit preview instead of publish…
Long story short, I think we win all our non-conference games with the exception of Iowa, although one will give us a scare. We beat K-State this time around but I don’t think we take down a Nebraska team with a chip on their shoulder. Who knows but I bet we drop one game we shouldn’t, either to Colorado or Kansas.
I would count 5 wins as realistically good?
I have the same fashion sense as Tom Arnold.
2010 season
I’ve got a feeling we win 6 games this year. I already have a bet of $20 bones on 5 or over with a co-worker. And when you work for $8.50 an hour you better feel pretty damn good about your odds. Since I have done no research this is all from my gut. I will instead try to sum up how I feel about each game with a movie quote due to my overall lack of knowledge…
Northern Illinois – W – “Lights OUT baby!!!” – Alvin Mack in The Program
@ Iowa – L – “We’re in hell right now gentlemen. Believe me. And we can stay here, get the shit kicked out of us, or we can fight our way back into the light. We can climb outta hell… one inch at a time!” – The coach from Any Given Sunday
@ K.C. vs. Kansas State – W – “Being perfect is when you can look someone in the eye and know you did not let them down.” – The coach from Friday Night Lights
UNI – W – “You know what you are… what you’re made of. War is in your blood. Don’t fight it. You didn’t kill for your country. You killed for yourself. God’s never gonna make that go away. When you’re pushed, killing’s as easy as breathing.” – Rambo
Texas Tech – W – “We’re outgunned, and undermanned. But you know sumpin’? We’re gonna win. You know why? Superior attitude. Superior state of mind.” – Steven Seagal in Hard to Kill
Utah – L – “Ready your breakfast and eat hearty… For tonight, we dine in hell!” – King Leonidas in 300
@ Oklahoma – L – “It’s not your fault.” – Robin Williams in Good Will Hunting
@ Texas – L – see quote from Oklahoma game
Kansas – W – “Aye, fight and you may die. Run, and you’ll live… at least a while. And dying in your beds, many years from now, would you be willin’ to trade ALL the days, from this day to that, for one chance, just one chance, to come back here and tell our enemies that they may take our lives, but they’ll never take… OUR FREEDOM!” – William Wallace in Braveheart
Nebraska – L – “If we go out and half-ass it ‘cause we’re scared, then we’ll always wonder if we were really good enough. But if we go out there and give it all we’ve got… that’s heroic. You guys wanna be heroes?” – Mox in Varsity Blues
@ Colorado – W – “They fought like warrior poets…they fought like Scotsman.” – Braveheart again cause it’s the best.
Missouri – L – “No one, and I mean no one, comes into our house and pushes us around.” – coach in Rudy
"I'm like a bulletproof tiger" - Kenny Powers
Looking forward to 2010, not dreading it
Jordan made a good observation in that college football is such a crazy game where you never know what’s going to happen. That’s one reason why it’s so fun to watch, like on Oct. 24th last year, or in 1998 when the Cyclones finally beat the Hawks, in Iowa City no less. Several weeks ago Stewart Mandel at Sports Illustrated polled his readers who were fans of traditional powers (Texas, Florida, Oh. St) and those who were fans of teams that don’t go to a bowl every year (Iowa State, Kansas, etc). Fans of traditional powers said they dread almost every game where they’re favored, because if you lose it’s just unbearable, and if you win, well, you were supposed to win. Fans of the underdog teams enjoy the games more because you get the bigger thrill when you win.
In spite of the tough schedule, I’m still hopeful this team can surprise like it has in the past. The coaches really proved themselves last year by getting the players to buy in to the system, perform well, and finish with a winning record. Here’s to year 2 bringing more success.
CyHawk, TroyDavis4Life, and MichiganClone: If you guys are gamers, email me your mailing address (kieffer.mark@gmail.com). I’ve got some consolation prizes for you guys.
Comments For This Post Are Closed
Secondary Sidebar
User Tools
FanPosts
Community blog posts and discussion.
Certain photos copyright © 2010 by Associated Press or Getty Images. Any commercial use or distribution without the express written consent of Associated Press and Getty Images is strictly prohibited.
