Voice of the Hawkeyes Board

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fuisu said...

Interesting read during a dead period

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fuisu said...

I think they had Ohio State too high, yes I hate them but if we never had to play them again I'd be fine.

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fuisu said...

I'd want to switch Illinois & OSU but bump up PSU....

Personally I'm already giving up on the PSU as a rivalry I don't see us playing them again for a long time.

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Denverhawk said...

For me, personally, Indiana, Purdue, Illinois and Penn State are about the same. I am a little indifferent, as long as we don't lose. Michigan and Michigan state games I love, because they usually are good, competitive games and we win as much as we lose, so I feel like we have a chance. Minnesota, Wisconsin, Nebraska and Northwestern for me are the border rivalry games I get up for. I hate Ohio State. Hate them. I wouldn't p*ss on Urban Meyer or Jim Tressel or Mike Vrabel or several others if they were on fire. And it's because we either get our a$$es kicked or lose by a point, but we barely ever win. That school has broken my heart too many times. I cheer for the SEC schools when they play Ohio State, and ask them to put the throttle down. Shallow? Yes. Honest. Yes. Perhaps even a little jealous of their success and wish Iowa would step up to their level? Begrudgingly, yes. Man, I hate Ohio State. Whew, I need an aspirin and a beer probably...

Some text.

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lumuhawk said...

Any writer that puts Illinois 10th on the list and behind Purdue on the rivalry list obviously knows nothing about Iowa football. Just because Iowa hasn't played Illinois much in the recent past has no bearing on what the fans want. I'm not saying Illinois is by any means at the top of the list or anywhere near it, but 10th and behind Purdue is a joke.

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Denverhawk said...

For me, personally, Indiana, Purdue, Illinois and Penn State are about the same. I am a little indifferent, as long as we don't lose. Michigan and Michigan state games I love, because they usually are good, competitive games and we win as much as we lose, so I feel like we have a chance. Minnesota, Wisconsin, Nebraska and Northwestern for me are the border rivalry games I get up for. I hate Ohio State. Hate them. I wouldn't p*ss on Urban Meyer or Jim Tressel or Mike Vrabel or several others if they were on fire. And it's because we either get our a$$es kicked or lose by a point, but we barely ever win. That school has broken my heart too many times. I cheer for the SEC schools when they play Ohio State, and ask them to put the throttle down. Shallow? Yes. Honest. Yes. Perhaps even a little jealous of their success and wish Iowa would step up to their level? Begrudgingly, yes. Man, I hate Ohio State. Whew, I need an aspirin and a beer probably...

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iowabuckeyes said...

I think something that's both sad and significant about this list is that Wisconsin is #1. Sad because it's a valued rivalry that was unceremoniously dumped curbside when the B1G went to divisions in exchange for what...a contrived "rivalry" with Purdue? And significant because it's emblematic of how I believe the B1G is losing its identity because by focusing on money, it's ignored what's important to the fans. Growth doesn't have to only come from mergers and acquisitions and hostile takeovers; brands can be grown organically, from within, from schools' existing fan bases. Fans will come out on a cold, rainy November Saturday for a rivalry game because it's a game that's always meant something to them. Traditions matter. Stadiums are more electric, great environments for both fans and recruits. But the bigger and more spread out the B1G gets, the less passionate fans will get because their teams are playing opponents that they just can't get fired up for. That's why going to an east/west divisional alignment makes so much sense. It lets the schools' geographical proximity to one another help fuel the fire of their fans' and players' passions.

With an east/west realignment, Iowa will lose Michigan--because Ohio State and Michigan want to be in the same division and what OSU-UM want, we get--and probably MSU but you'll pick up Wisconsin, Illinois and probably Purdue while keeping Nebraska, Minnesota, and Northwestern. That puts five of those six rivals within 3-4 hours drive of Iowa's borders. There isn't be another B1G team that will be situated that close to as many as 5 of its 6 divisional rivals. Even Purdue as the farthest away is only 5½ hours from Iowa City. And that could make Iowa City's centralized location an asset instead of a burden, as well as bring some clarity to Ferentz's circle the wagons/tighten the belt recruiting strategy.

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iowabuckeyes said...

But aren't those travel expense hardships shared by virtually every school? How do Michigan and Ohio State get kids from Florida and Georgia and Texas to visit but Iowa can't? It can't be strictly economic. Or at least not uniquely economic to Iowa. Ohio State got an NSD commitment from a 5-star safety from Tennessee who never stepped foot on campus until mid-January. He grew up a Vols fan and took a half-dozen unofficial visits plus an OV to Alabama. He was supposed to go to the OSU-Michigan game but couldn't make it because it kicked off at noon and he had a playoff game the night before and couldn't get to Columbus in time and cancelled; he went to Alabama-Auburn instead. Schools can't comment on recruits until they've signed their LOIs but Meyer had to be seething at losing an opportunity to host a 5-star OOS at The Game. But Meyer had recruited him for a year and refused to give up, just kept pushing until finally the kid used one of his 5 OVs to visit Columbus. He said his heart said go to Tennessee but his head said Ohio State.

Vonn Bell's recruitment probably had a lot to do with Meyer urging the coaches to petition the B1G to remove its moratorium on night games in November. By pushing the games that matter most into the evening, they become a) more exciting, and b) easier for recruits to get to and from. With a 9-10 hour drive, an Ohio kid isn't going to make a noon kickoff in Kinnick but he could make a 7 p.m. kickoff.

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iowabuckeyes said...

I think something that's both sad and significant about this list is that Wisconsin is #1. Sad because it's a valued rivalry that was unceremoniously dumped curbside when the B1G went to divisions in exchange for what...a contrived "rivalry" with Purdue? And significant because it's emblematic of how I believe the B1G is losing its identity because by focusing on money, it's ignored what's important to the fans. Growth doesn't have to only come from mergers and acquisitions and hostile takeovers; brands can be grown organically, from within, from schools' existing fan bases. Fans will come out on a cold, rainy November Saturday for a rivalry game because it's a game that's always meant something to them. Traditions matter. Stadiums are more electric, great environments for both fans and recruits. But the bigger and more spread out the B1G gets, the less passionate fans will get because their teams are playing opponents that they just can't get fired up for. That's why going to an east/west divisional alignment makes so much sense. It lets the schools' geographical proximity to one another help fuel the fire of their fans' and players' passions.

With an east/west realignment, Iowa will lose Michigan--because Ohio State and Michigan want to be in the same division and what OSU-UM want, we get--and probably MSU but you'll pick up Wisconsin, Illinois and probably Purdue while keeping Nebraska, Minnesota, and Northwestern. That puts five of those six rivals within 3-4 hours drive of Iowa's borders. There isn't be another B1G team that will be situated that close to as many as 5 of its 6 divisional rivals. Even Purdue as the farthest away is only 5½ hours from Iowa City. And that could make Iowa City's centralized location an asset instead of a burden, as well as bring some clarity to Ferentz's circle the wagons/tighten the belt recruiting strategy.