The story…Iowa lost a game that they very well should have won.
As he did so, the ESPN camera’s showed Iowa Offensive Corrdinator, Ken O’Keefe signaling not to run the play. Stanzi snapped the ball and completed a 9 yard pass to Brandon Myers who dove ahead, eventually going out of bounds in an effort to stretch for the first down.
According to a source close to the team, Stanzi and O’Keefe exchanged some heated words after Iowa did not convert. Iowa punted and Pittsburgh ran the clock out to end the first half.
Much to the astonishment of Hawkeye Nation, Jake Christensen started the second half at quarterback and played the rest of the way.
Although he completed a 40 yard pass to Darrell Johnson-Koulianos and scored on a two yard scamper, Christensen was overall consistent—consistently bad. He looked like the Christensen we have all come to know and fear. Balls were high, they low and they were off target.
Remarkably, however, thanks to a bruising, churning Shonn Greene as well as a defense that came alive after a rough first quarter, Iowa was still very much in the game, trailing Pittsburgh 21-20, with 10:58 left. Then the head scratching began.
As the defense continually stuffed the Pittsburgh, giving the ball back to the offense numerous times, Iowa failed to convert. They had the ball for 6:08 during the last 10:58. Iowa ran 21 plays, 4 of which were rushes, 2 of which were rushes by Jake Christensen, and ONE of which was a rush to Shonn Greene. Greene not only carried the ball 22 times, for 142 yards and one TD before that last carry, he also carried the team.
Along with a myriad of other shocking play calls in the second half, the offense repeatedly stubbed their toe, finally sputtering out of gas in a last minute attempt to drive 99 yards for the go ahead score when Christensen scrambled on 3rd down only to fumble the ball. Pittsburgh recovered the ball and ran the clock out.
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Game Commentary: Aggravated, heated and excruciatingly frustrated would all be fitting words to describe my condition at the conclusion of the game.
Besides the questionable play calling, beyond the wasted offensive drives, and behind the “feeling” in Ferentz’s “gut,” there is a reason that Stanzi did not start the second half. But unfortunately we will never know what it was.
“I just felt like at halftime Jake had a little better feeling of what was going on, particularly what they were doing defensively,” Ferentz said. “I thought he gave us the best opportunity to win the football game.” Ferentz said after the game.
By now it would be naïve of you to take Ferentz at his word. Like all good coaches, Ferentz has what I like to call a “media mouth.” Everything is downplayed, everything is as in general as possible, and everything that happens on that sideline and in the locker room is clandestine and as much as possible, disguised as something else.
From a coaching/team standpoint, that’s usually a positive thing. But for a fan, it can sometimes be frustrating, especially in times of defeat.
What Ferentz really meant by “gut feeling,” was, ‘Stanzi did/said something that peeved me and I sure as hell wasn’t going to start/play him. That doesn’t fly around here.’
I will give him that benefit of the doubt on that one. In fact I am almost positive that he withheld Stanzi for that reason, and as much as I could sit here and question the severity of the punishment, I don’t fully know the severity of the crime.
“…I know I took a little bit of a lashing for my 'gut feeling'. But I can't share everything I observe or everything I think. I'm just not comfortable doing that. There are certain things that are for me and our coaches to visit with and think about…,” Ferentz said on Monday.
However, if he actually thought that Christensen “gave (them) a better chance to win,” then he and his whole staff should be fired immediately.
Christensen has expunged every conceivable opportunity given to him, proving only that he is incapable. I don’t know how many times Christensen has to throw the ball into the feet of a receivers, on a simple, 10 yard out route, for Ferentz to realize that he does not belong on the field at Iowa.
Unfortunately, now we have paid the ultimate price, a loss in a completely winnable game, to determine that Christensen is not the guy—something that should have been determined if not in the off-season, if not in the first three games and weeks of practice, then surely in the first half against Pittsburgh.
Iowa should be 4-0. Iowa is a better football team than Pittsburgh.
However, because Ferentz and his staff did not put the best quarterback on the field in the second half, because they called erroneous plays at inopportune times, and because they successfully wrote one of the nation’s leading rushers out of the fourth quarter script, they neglected to do the number one duty of any coach—give the players the best opportunity to win.
Although you’d like to believe it is uncharacteristic of Ferentz and his staff, losing winnable games sure is starting to become the status quo here in Iowa City.
This one will gnaw at Hawkeye Nation for quite some time, and I am sure, come November, we will probably look back on this game and wince.
And the crowd goes wild…or irate, throwing buffalo wings, TV remotes, and little children at the TV screen when Jake Christensen strutted out on to take the snap on the Hawkeye’s first drive in the second half.
Say what!?… “You’re sitting there, you’re waiting, but the best thing you can do is cheer the team on and be ready to go when you get your chance,” Stanzi said.
Mother Nature…could have done a better job than Ferentz and O’Keefe coaching the Hawkeye’s today. 75 degrees and sunny.
Next up…Northwestern (4-0)
The ‘eye see’s…a must win. If Iowa has hopes of wining 8 games this year, they better get the job done against the glorified, undefeated Wildcats.
With every ‘winable’ game a must win because of the loss at Pittsburgh, the Hawkeyes can ill-afford to stumble on Saturday if it has any aspirations of challenging Michigan State, Wisconsin, Illinois or Penn State.
Wildcat QB, CJ Bacher threw 4 interceptions last week against Ohio and RB Tyrell Sutton injured his leg, not playing the second half. He will play against Iowa.
I trust that the defense, although facing a spread offense, will figure it out much like they eventually did against Pittsburgh. Also, Iowa needs to feed the beast, Shonn Greene. Although Northwestern will be keying on him and loading the box, by riding Greene, it will help to relieve Stanzi of any pressure he may feel taking over and hopefully successfully open up the passing game.
NEW THIS WEEK
Side notes: I’d love to see DJK make a big play Saturday…Stanzi needs to stay out of the way, be consistent, and not make mistakes...he does that and we get a win, he will end the controversy...If Shonn Greene continues his bruise cruise, not only will Iowa win a few games they aren't supposed to, but he will be an All-American...That being said, The Jewel needs to be prepared to step up and relieve him when he get's winded...Looks like Mossbrucker is the guy at kicker, can't miss a 35 yarder if you want to start...My man, LeVar Woods will be hired on as an Administrative Assistant, fulfilling the duties of Chigozie Ejiasi, who was hired to fill the new player development position…for which he will be paid $44,000 annually…thus, taking from the good, hard-working tax payers of Johnson County and the state of Iowa a little bit more of their paychecks so that Chic can keep the Iowa football players out of jail because Ferentz, just every once in a while, likes to hop in his Cadillac Escalade, turn on some Bruce Springsteen, drive up to Detroit, MI (the gas burden also, ultimately falling on the taxpayer), crack his window just enough so that his voice can escape, and offer the guy about to break into the car on the street wearing a backwards, freshly stolen baseball cap with the sticker still on it, a scholarship play football at Iowa...but I digress. Go Hawks!
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