September 14, 2008

I know I promised to talk about my South America trip this entry, but it will have to wait again. I was hoping that my pictures would have been accessible by now so I could post some of them on here, but this is not the case. My computer has the folder they are in frozen or locked so I can’t reach them. Weird. But not to fear, I have some good material to write about today.

Hawkeye fans and myself have something to cheer about after this weekend. An easy win over state rival Iowa State had every follower flashing the black and gold whenever possible. I made the trip to Iowa City on Friday night and people were already tailgating around 4 a.m. My friend was nice enough to late me stay with him that night, and we only got a couple of hours to sleep before we headed to the stadium. 

I went to the Homecoming game last year against Indiana and yet this still didn’t compare. Even with the constant rain and drizzle, tens of thousands of fans were out supporting their team. There was one instance when I felt bad for some of the State fans. While driving through Melrose, the main partying area for those who don’t already know, I saw one lonely fan wearing red and yellow and a mob of Hawkeye fans proceeded to run over and pour beer all over him. A lot of people got a kick out of that.

Once I was able to park, we set out the lawn chairs and started the grill. There really isn’t anything better than cooking hamburgers, drinking a cold one and playing bags at 8 in the morning in the rain nonetheless. After we got done eating we made our way back towards the stadium originally just sit outside of it and listen to the game. I suggested we try to get on top of one of the parking garages nearby to see if we could get a better view. We made it to the top of one and set up camp again. You couldn’t actually see the players, but you had a clear view of the jumbo-tron and you were close enough to get the atmosphere of being in the stadium. Overall, it was a really good spot to be if you didn’t have tickets.

With a 17-5 win the stats for the team continue to rise. This is the part where I go on my rant about Iowa. After the first 3 games of this season, Iowa is averaging 35 points per game whereas their opponents, a measly 2.7. For the second straight year, they haven’t given up a touchdown during these 3 games. Running back Shonn Greene is averaging 119.7 yards per game and is 5 pounds larger than the average of opposing teams linebackers. He has the speed to run around you and the strength to run you over. I expect good things from him this year. New starting sophomore quarterback Ricky Stanzi has got everyone wondering where this kid came from. He struggled a little bit this weekend with 2 interceptions, but a win is a win, especially when it’s against Iowa State.

What still cracks me up is that State can’t seem to get a kicker worth a scholarship. Missing 3 field goals all within 50 yards really hurt the team. Out of four deep trips into the Iowa red zone, the Cyclones only came up with 1 field goal. That just wont cut it in a rival game. I do remember, however, that State beat Iowa last year by kicking 5 field goals. It seemed that that was the only time kicker Bret Culbertson could make anything. 

The team has replaced him with freshman Grant Mahoney this year, and it doesn’t seem to be helping. The kid has got to be a decent kicker if he is starting Division 1, but that’s not always the case. Cyclone fans remember having to deal with walk-on Culbertson for 4 years and the troubles he had. But enough with this bashing, the main storyline is Iowa beat Iowa State and the Cy-Hawk trophy heads back to Iowa City for another year. As long as Iowa keeps winning, you will be reading a lot more of these types of comments from me, so be prepared.