Minnesota Predictions

It is hard to believe that the regular season is almost over. The anticipation that begins to brew all summer once the preseason magazines begin to come out is followed by the beginning of camp and the opening weekend, and before you know it, we are at the final game. Here are my thoughts.

Leadership. Saturday marks the final time that fourteen seniors have the opportunity to don the black and gold and run out with the Swarm. I can only imagine the emotions that those seniors feel as they play in their last home game and go through the ritual of being announced to the Kinnick faithful before running out to midfield to greet their parents or loved ones. What a special moment, especially for those players from the state of Iowa that likely dreamed about playing for the Hawkeyes at a young age. One of the things that I will remember about this class is the leadership that it has provided throughout this season. AJ Edds, Pat Angerer, Rafael Eubanks, Tony Moeaki, Kyle Calloway, Trey Stross and Joe Conklin have all provided outstanding leadership and have shown the underclassmen what it takes to succeed. I think one of the primary reasons for Iowa’s success the past two seasons has been the outstanding leadership that the past two senior classes provided. During the lean years of 2006 and 2007, leadership seemed to be one of the elements that was lacking. Congratulations and thank you, seniors, for all of your hard work the past four or five years.

Offensive Explosion. Similar to my prediction of a kickoff return for a touchdown, I have been thinking that each week is the week that the Iowa offense will finally break out of its shell and explode. Minnesota ranks in the middle of the Big Ten in both run defense and pass offense, and while they have several talented linebackers with Simoni Lawrence, Nate Triplett, and Lee Campbell, they have had a tendency to be susceptible to the deep ball. I look for Iowa to come out throwing the ball from the start and will not be surprised if Ken O’Keefe calls for the play action pass with a deep route in the first series. Iowa should be back to the Adam Robinson and Brandon Wegher one-two punch this week, and with the way the offensive line played last week against one of the best defensive lines in the country, I think Iowa will be able to establish the run and use the play-action pass effectively late in the game.

Double Shutout? After being shutout from the scoreboard last year, Minnesota likely has some thoughts of revenge on its mind. Unfortunately, after losing Adam Decker, their offense has resembled a very battered unit. Minnesota ranks dead last in the conference in total offense and dead last in rushing offense. To make matters worse for the Gophers, they have given up 34 sacks, which is good for first or last in the Big Ten, depending on how one views it. I am hopeful that the Iowa defense will be able to get back to its ball-hawking, turnover ways. Iowa has not had a meaningful turnover since Indiana. The key to Iowa’s success towards the end of last year and during the 9-0 run was the ability of the defense to force turnovers and setup the Iowa offense with good field position. Be sure to enjoy it while it lasts, because it very well could be the last home game for Adrian Clayborn and Amari Spievey, who certainly are in the discussion for being in the starting lineup for the All-Ferentz era team. Likewise, this could be one of the last games that Norm Parker coaches. Evidently, he has not been attending practices and has been struggling with his health since the Northwestern game. The attitude and consistency that Norm Parker has brought to Iowa defenses for the last eleven seasons has been remarkable. His outstanding coaching abilities, down to earth personality, and sense of a humor would certainly be missed.

Skill Players. Even when compared to the 2002 season, the skill players on this team are something that we have not seen at Iowa in awhile, if ever. There is so much talent on this team that it is a problem to distribute the wealth. I do not think Iowa has ever had hands like Marvin McNutt, big play ability like Derrell Johnson-Koulianos, the ability to throw the deep ball by Ricky Stanzi, and the athleticism of Tony Moeaki as a collective group ever. As I alluded to earlier, I really think that this is the game that we will see all of these offensive talents on display in one game. The scary part is thinking about all of the skill players that will be wearing an Iowa uniform for the next two seasons.

A win Saturday will give Iowa a very, very good opportunity to be selected as an at-large BCS team. I am of the thought of Jon Miller and many of the national pundits that an Iowa win all but guarantees the Hawkeyes a spot in the Fiesta Bowl. A BCS bowl berth would be a very handsome reward for this team given all of the adversity and odds that they have faced the entire season. I cannot think of a better way to send the seniors out than with a BCS bowl clinching win on a beautiful fall Saturday at Kinnick Stadium.

Prediction: Iowa 28 Minnesota 7

Pick to Click: The Seniors