Hawkeye Football
Okay first the unpleasantness that is the Hawkeye football team. I’m not in the “we need to fire Ferentz” camp because I know it isn’t realistic but I am squarely and whole-heartedly in the “bench James Vandenberg” camp. Seven games is plenty of time to come to the realization that Vandenberg isn’t going to turn it around and lead this team to victory. The four wins have come in spite of Vandenberg and not a single one of them has been because of him. The Hawks beat Michigan St. because their QB sucked worse than ours and that is our only good win on the year. The only argument against the QB change is the coaches see the players in practice and they know who gives the Hawks the best chance to win. Really, I’m supposed to believe that the coaches that only found Mark Weisman after two in-game injuries and an illness left them no other choice but to play him can make the correct decision on the QB. The same coaches that only put Jordan Cotton in on kick-off return after Greg Garmon’s injury when clearly Keenan Davis was not suited for the role (Cotton has two returns for touchdowns and yes I know one was called back but he didn’t need the block in the back to score). You want me to trust the coaches that thought Don Shumpert was the third best WR on the team early in the year. Ever heard the phrase you can’t see the forest through the trees, I have to assume it is something like that happening here. The coaches are too close to it and their loyalty to Vandenberg is mystifying. I don’t know why Vandenberg is so unbelievably inaccurate but his pass that was picked off by Mauti was the last straw for me. How do you not see the best defender on Penn St’s team and then throw a pass that even if Mauti hadn’t been there stood no chance of reaching the intended receiver. I don’t know if Jake Rudock is ready to step in or if he’ll be any better but how could he be any worse? He certainly isn’t likely to complete less than half his throws, which is where Vandenberg is headed. Maybe Rudock isn’t the answer but I know for a fact that Vandenberg isn’t.
Last minute edit here: On Tuesday at his press conference Kirk Ferentz was asked many questions about the QB situation and basically said he was sticking with Vandenberg. When asked point blank “Is Jake Rudock ready to play?” Ferentz’s response was “We won’t know until he starts playing.” NO KIDDING, why the hell didn’t he play in the blowout loss to Penn St then Coach. Ferentz’s just basically admitted that practice isn’t enough to know how someone will play in a game, well we know how Vandenberg plays in games give Rudock a chance.
The Good News…….Iowa Hawkeye Basketball season is just around the corner.
Since it is obvious that the Football team is a lost cause (as long as Vandenberg is starting) let’s take a look at the sleeper team in Big Ten basketball…the Iowa Hawkeyes. Coach Fran McCaffery has his most talented and deepest team yet and probably the best Hawkeye team since the days of Horner, Brunner and Haluska (hopefully with a better NCAA tournament outcome). McCaffery has said he plans to start two freshmen, a sophomore and two juniors so apparently the starting line-up isn’t going to be a secret but who gets what minutes will be the really interesting part.
The Starting Five
PG: Mike Gesell Fr.
Gesell is the slightly less heralded freshman behind new center Adam Woodbury but he was a four-star recruit and he may make a bigger impact than Woodbury. This kid brings shooting, athleticism and floor leadership that this team needs. His biggest contribution is that he allows Devyn Marble to move to a more natural position, which leads me to…
SG: Devyn Marble Jr.
This is Marble’s team without question; the Hawkeyes go as far as Marble takes them. He stepped up last year and played out of position at point guard because the team needed him to and Matt Gatens was the starting shooting guard. This year Marble moves off the ball where his scoring ability can be better utilized. It won’t be his job to get everyone involved in the offense it will be his job to be the offense. While he isn’t a great shooter (although he was pretty good last year in the NIT) and he isn’t overly athletic he just has an ability to score, let’s just say it’s in the genes.
C: Adam Woodbury Fr.
The big man we beat out Roy Williams for (I’ve never said that about Iowa basketball) was a top 25 recruit and a legit 7 footer. He’s got good size and good athleticism and he can keep up with this team’s preferred pace. He’s bigger than Eric Hansen and more fleet-of-foot than Jared Reiner and he gives Iowa a presence in the middle.
SF: Aaron White So.
Last season’s most pleasant surprise isn’t going to be able to sneak up on anyone this year but that shouldn’t be a problem given his basketball IQ. Playing small forward will be a slight change since White saw most of his time last year at power forward but he could be a match-up nightmare for smaller SF’s. He and Marble combine to give the Hawkeyes one of the more talented duos in the Big Ten.
PF: Melsahn Basabe Jr.
Technically since McCaffery didn’t actually name the official starting five he just gave their classes Zach McCabe could be the starter since he is also a junior power forward but Basabe is the guy McCaffery wants to be the starter. Basabe is lighter this year like he was during his freshman season and that is music to my ears. Basabe brings athleticism to the front court and he’ll be more of a shot-blocking presence than Woodbury is at center. If the Basabe from his freshman year shows up it will be a sight to see.
The Bench
Zach McCabe PF Jr.
McCabe is the jack-of-all trades and master of none. He will see time at SF, PF and probably C which means he will likely be the first man off the bench. He brings toughness and versatility to this team and that’s what makes him more valuable off the bench than he would be as a starter.
Eric May SF Sr.
May is the lone scholarship senior on the team and if his back is healthy he can find a role on this team. The best thing about this team is that they don’t need to rely on May to be a major contributor. He can bring athleticism and leadership and if he can make himself into a tough on-the-ball defender he could be a very valuable reserve.
Anthony Clemmons PG Fr.
Clemmons is the other freshman PG that will also allow Marble to not have to play out of position. McCaffery has said some nice things about Clemmons and fully expects to use Clemmons with Gesell in the back court. Clemmons gives us depth we haven’t had a point guard in a long time.
Josh Oglesby SG So.
The designated shooter. He’s more than that but hopefully on this team he gets to fill that role and anything else he does is just icing on the cake.
Gabe Olaseni C So.
Gabe is the athletic jumping jack back-up center. Shot-blocking and rebounding need to be his main focuses.
Patrick Ingram SG Fr.
Ingram will need to carve out a place for himself as a defensive specialist if he wants to earn minutes.
Kyle Meyer PF Fr.
The most likely player to redshirt this season simply because he may not be needed. He’s talented but he may have to wait his turn.
Looking to the future.
The greatest news about this team is that there is one scholarship senior meaning the Hawks have a couple of years with this group to make some noise. Also, transfer Jarrod Uthoff from Wisconsin will be sitting out this season but will be practicing with the team and will make practices that much more competitive. To say that I am excited for this Hawkeye basketball season would be a huge understatement. A good, deep, talented team led by a very impressive coach, been too long since I could say that about Hawkeye Basketball.
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