Locked On Hawkeyes - Daily Podcast On Iowa Hawkeyes Football & Basketball - Iowa Hawkeyes quarterback dilemma: Can Jackson Stratton step up? Plus Hawkeye Hoops talk

Episode Date: November 12, 2024

The Iowa Hawkeyes football team is grappling with a quarterback dilemma as Cade McNamara and Brendan Sullivan are sidelined by injuries. With Jackson Stratton likely to start against Maryland, the Haw...keyes' quarterback issues take center stage. Tim Lester's role as the new offensive coordinator is under the spotlight, with his communication style and strategic improvements gaining attention despite ongoing challenges. Concerns mount over Iowa's defense, particularly their unexpected struggle against UCLA's running game. Meanwhile, the Iowa men's basketball team gears up for a challenging matchup against South Dakota, while the women's team celebrates a strong win over Virginia Tech. Kirk Ferentz's controversial timeout management also sparks debate, emphasizing the importance of strategic decisions in late-game scenarios.Tune in to explore these pressing topics and gain unique insights into the Iowa Hawkeyes' strategies and challenges.For your next listen, check out the Locked On College Football podcast! From NIL deals to never ending conference realignment rumors, Spencer McLaughlin gets you ready for an exciting season on the gridiron! Click HERE to listen now. Part of the Locked On Podcast Network. Your Team. Every Day.Support Us By Supporting Our Sponsors!Omaha SteaksFrom legendary steaks to mouthwatering desserts and more, save 50% off sitewide at OmahaSteaks.com. Plus, our listeners get an extra $30 off with promo code COLLEGE AND a $30 reward card when you shop early. Minimum purchase may apply.ROYDownload Roy for iOS or Android and enter referral code LOCKED ON and you’ll automatically be entered into a sweepstakes to win $5,000 cash. Visit JoinRoy.com for additional details. No purchase necessary, void where prohibited. Get off the sidelines and into the NIL game with Roy.GametimeDownload the Gametime app, create an account, and use code LOCKEDONCOLLEGE for $20 off your first purchase. Terms apply. Download Gametime today. What time is it? Gametime.FanDuelYou can start the season with a big return on FanDuel. New customers can place a FIVE DOLLAR bet and you’ll get started with ONE HUNDRED AND FIFTY DOLLARS in BONUS BETS - if you win your first FIVE DOLLAR BET ! Visit FANDUEL.COM to get started.FANDUEL DISCLAIMER: 21+ in select states. First online real money wager only. Bonus issued as nonwithdrawable free bets that expires in 14 days. Restrictions apply. See terms at sportsbook.fanduel.com. Gambling Problem? 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Every Day.Support Us By Supporting Our Sponsors!Omaha SteaksFrom legendary steaks to mouthwatering desserts and more, save 50% off sitewide at OmahaSteaks.com. Plus, our listeners get an extra $30 off with promo code COLLEGE AND a $30 reward card when you shop early. Minimum purchase may apply.ROYDownload Roy for iOS or Android and enter referral code LOCKED ON and you’ll automatically be entered into a sweepstakes to win $5,000 cash. Visit JoinRoy.com for additional details. No purchase necessary, void where prohibited. Get off the sidelines and into the NIL game with Roy.GametimeDownload the Gametime app, create an account, and use code LOCKEDONCOLLEGE for $20 off your first purchase. Terms apply. Download Gametime today. What time is it? Gametime.FanDuelYou can start the season with a big return on FanDuel. New customers can place a FIVE DOLLAR bet and you’ll get started with ONE HUNDRED AND FIFTY DOLLARS in BONUS BETS - if you win your first FIVE DOLLAR BET ! Visit FANDUEL.COM to get started.FANDUEL DISCLAIMER: 21+ in select states. First online real money wager only. Bonus issued as nonwithdrawable free bets that expires in 14 days. Restrictions apply. See terms at sportsbook.fanduel.com. Gambling Problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER or visit FanDuel.com/RG (CO, IA, MD, MI, NJ, PA, IL, VA, WV), 1-800-NEXT-STEP or text NEXTSTEP to 53342 (AZ), 1-888-789-7777 or visit ccpg.org/chat (CT), 1-800-9-WITH-IT (IN), 1-800-522-4700 (WY, KS) or visit ksgamblinghelp.com (KS), 1-877-770-STOP (LA), 1-877-8-HOPENY or text HOPENY (467369) (NY), TN REDLINE 1-800-889-9789 (TN)Follow Trent Condon on X: https://twitter.com/trentcondonLISTEN TO THE PODCAST: APPLE: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/locked-on-hawkeyes-daily-podcast-on-iowa-hawkeyes-football/id1441592240SPOTIFY: https://open.spotify.com/show/0GTyz5ygevcGXdTF6QSoEoYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/LockedOnHawkeyes

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Starting point is 00:00:00 Iowa football continues to have quarterback woes. The latest, the injuries piling up. Jackson Stratton, are you ready for the era? We break that down today. Talk with Scott Dockerman and a little basketball. Locked on Hawkeyes. You are locked on Hawkeyes, your daily podcast on the Iowa Hawkeyes. Part of the Locked On Podcast Network, your team every day.
Starting point is 00:00:30 Hey, welcome in. I'm Trent Condon, and this is the Locked On Hawkeyes podcast. Thanks for making Locked On Hawkeyes your first listen every day. We're available wherever you find podcasts. You can also watch us on YouTube. While you're there, hit that subscribe button. If you're listening on the audio side of the podcast side of things, give us a five-star review. Helps us get in front of more Hawkeye fans. You can start the season off with a big return on FanDuel. New customers can place a $5 bet. You'll get started with $150 in bonus bets
Starting point is 00:01:02 if you win your first $5 bet. Just visit FanDuel.com to get started. Well, it was press conference day today here on a Tuesday and got to hear from the coordinators. Offensive coordinator Tim Lester, Phil Parker with the defense, and LeVar Woods on the special team side of things. And as that wrapped up, a couple of takeaways from the conversation amongst the coaches. Start with Tim Lester.
Starting point is 00:01:30 Obviously, the newbie on the staff has grown into this role and I think created some excitement throughout the course of this season. Yes, the offense is not where anybody wants them to be. There is still a lot of work that needs to be done. But the growth that we've seen this season out of the running game, the steps forward that they made there, I think at least leads to a little bit of excitement and opportunity for Hawkeye fans to look at and say, all right, you're on the right path.
Starting point is 00:01:57 Now we've talked about as well, it's going to be a rebuilding year next year, but if we have a staff that stays in place, no retirement from Kirk Ferentz, Tim Lester stays on what this offense has a chance to be next year. But if we have a staff that stays in place, no retirement from Kirk Ferentz, Tim Lester stays on. What this offense has a chance to be next season. Do work in the transfer portal. Have to get better there. But this team's averaging 347 yards per game. On the surface, it's not great. It's 103rd in the country. But from where they were a year ago, it is a step forward. And there's just something about Tim Lester that is likable.
Starting point is 00:02:26 Now, likability is not a prerequisite for being a great coach and I think we know that, but the way that he explains things, the way that he explains the way they're going about it, I think he'll be successful as a recruiter and hopefully successful as a guy that's going to be able to bring in a quarterback
Starting point is 00:02:41 of his own. Iowa right now is in a deep, deep hole at the quarterback spot. And it's been a hole that has been digging for years upon years. After the graduation of Nate Stanley, who was a good, solid Big Ten quarterback. We're not talking about elite level, but a good, solid guy at absolutely cratered. It started with the decision to go after Spencer Petras as opposed to Zach Wilson. And from there, the number of misses that Iowa has had, it's absolutely incredible. I mean, you just look at the numbers and you look at the guys that have left the Iowa football program,
Starting point is 00:03:14 how bad it is. And now we go into this season. After an injury plagued year a year ago, Cade McNamara lost for the season. He's hurt again with a concussion. Now Brendan Sullivan goes down. Sounds like this week when they get back out onto the practice field, which they haven't for the first couple of days of the week. When they do, Jackson Stratton is going to be the guy that's getting a bulk of the reps because both Cade McNamara and Brendan Sullivan are not back out and ready to go on the practice field. So you have a guy that was 4'17 in his career at Colorado State. Not a highly regarded guy.
Starting point is 00:03:48 Now, he was at one time in his high school career committed to Washington. Coaching changes changed that. That's how he ended up at Colorado State. Still, Jackson Strat. All right, made a couple of decent throws. There was something there. He can throw it. And it's good to see the excitement out of Tim Lester about what he potentially is going to need to start if the injuries continue against Maryland.
Starting point is 00:04:08 However, you need more. Iowa needs a difference maker at the quarterback position. And when you look at the way that Iowa's going to be next year, I don't believe that they can afford to go into a season with Jackson Stratton and Brendan Sullivan and a couple of young guys in there, that's not the way to go. I was not going to be good enough defensively. And we saw the step back throughout the course of this season that has led to many of the issues throughout the course of the season. Well, next year is going to be worse, likely, on the defensive side.
Starting point is 00:04:39 I mean, do you think you're going to find two linebackers that are playing at the level that Jay Higgins and Nick Jackson are playing at? You're graduating a ton up front. Replacing Wyatt Black is going to be incredibly difficult. You have a lot of veterans that are going to be moving on. Jamari Harrison's played his best football. He's gone. You haven't been able to figure out the second corner spot.
Starting point is 00:04:57 And on and on and on. You're going to have to be much better offensively, not just in the run game, better across the board next year. And it starts with the quarterback spot. You can't go into the season with that. My hope is that Tim Lester is a guy that is going to be able to find that player. Now, it doesn't have to be Cam Ward, right? You don't have to go out and spend the most amount of money in order to bring in a good
Starting point is 00:05:20 quarterback. And we've seen that. Look at Indiana. They go out and get Rourke. He's been outstanding. He's been exactly what they needed. in a good quarterback, and we've seen that. Look at Indiana. They go out and get Rourke. He's been outstanding. He's been exactly what they needed, and it's not like Indiana was flush with NIL funds that they were able to go out there and be the highest bidder in order to find a good quarterback.
Starting point is 00:05:36 If you can find that guy that fits the system. Another thing that I thought was interesting from Tim Lester, and talking about the passing game, he said this, quote, I don't want to use the wrong word, not up to par. I would like to use the word terrible because we have a long way to go. I'm encouraged about where we're going, but we're nowhere near where we want to be. That's exactly what you want to hear. That's what I want to hear. With an understanding, it's not good enough, no excuses, it needs to be better. And he said if he could, he'd say terrible,
Starting point is 00:06:09 but he didn't want to say terrible. But it's true. We see that. Yes, there's a lot that goes into it. But I thought a very refreshing conversation with Tim Lester, and he gives that to us seemingly every single time. I like the guy. I like the cut of his jib.
Starting point is 00:06:23 Will he be good enough? Will he get this offense back up to snuff? We'll see. Improvements have been there, but encouraging, no doubt. One other thing, and I can't remember if I brought this up in the quick instant reaction that we did after the game on Friday night against UCLA. It's something that drives me absolutely crazy. And Kirk Ferentz is not alone in this. This is football in general. But coaches that continually use timeouts at just dumb times in the second half of the football game. Now, I do know that we complained about the way that they went through the two-minute
Starting point is 00:06:56 situation. But this was early in the third quarter. It was when Brendan Sullivan took that hit over on the sideline. Looked like maybe he got his bell rung. I mean, he got hit hard, right? And Kirk Ferentz, as they were setting up for the punt, uses a timeout. Uses a timeout, and at the time, a seven-point game, and a game that we knew came down to the wire eventually. Why coaches waste timeouts in the second half of football games, I'm beside myself when that happens.
Starting point is 00:07:26 And it happens continually. You see it. Third and eight. Coach calls a timeout. Don't want to go to third and 13. Look, the likelihood between picking up a third and eight and third and 13 is very negligible. In comparison to the importance of having a timeout. It's something that Kirk Ferentz used, apparently, to yell at the officials.
Starting point is 00:07:47 I don't get it. Timeouts are so important. The ability to stop the clock in a tight spot is so big. And could have the end of the game situation been a little bit different if Iowa had an extra timeout in their back pocket? I think there's a real possibility of that. Good talk some Iowa basketball,
Starting point is 00:08:04 the men's team on the hardwood tonight. And you can actually watch it if you don't have a BTN Plus subscription. It's on regular BTN. That's right. The Big Ten Network will have it. 8 o'clock tip-off. We'll talk a little bit about that. A better opponent than they faced the first couple of times out tonight
Starting point is 00:08:19 against South Dakota. And the big win over the weekend for the Iowa women's basketball team in the new look this season. We'll talk basketball, but first we'll talk with Scott Dockerman. A look back at what went wrong for Iowa and a look forward to this Iowa football program. Scott Dockerman has been on the Iowa beat for a long time. Great insight from Doc as we continue.
Starting point is 00:08:38 Stay right there as we continue. This is Locked on Hawkeyes. Hawkeye fans, listen up. You need to download the Roy app. You've heard us talk about Roy this season and how they are revolutionizing the NIL industry. Roy allows you, the fan, to have a say in who gets the NIL money. And here's what I absolutely love about Roy.
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Starting point is 00:09:47 Boy, was that a thing of beauty. Now, maybe with a different angle, he could have scored on that one. Still, seeing Jacob Gill, the numbers that he continues to put up in this offense. Six catches, 138 yards. It's something we haven't seen in four years out of a wide receiver. We're going to throw some money into Jacob Gill's account on Roy. Every contribution counts. 10, 20 bucks. It all adds up and it's going to help your favorite players stay put.
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Starting point is 00:10:28 Roy, support the player. Change the game. Hello, Scott Dockerman. How are you? I'm doing great. How about you guys? I'm doing okay. Doing okay.
Starting point is 00:10:42 Let's go all the way back to Friday night when Iowa paid a visit to the Rose Bowl to take on UCLA. Doc, Brendan Sullivan, when he hit Gil on that long pass, I thought, oh boy, you know what? Maybe Sullivan is the answer to the next year's quarterback question. And he may well end up being, but I don't think that should preclude them from going out and looking after what we saw later on in the game.
Starting point is 00:11:07 But look at the injuries took their toll. I thought that linebacker number four, when Sullivan went around the left side, he just clocked him right seemingly in the ribs or right around that area. I thought that there was the beginning of the end for Brendan Sullivan against that UCLA team. that UCLA team. So that was one. And the fact that UCLA, they just ran seemingly at will and out-physicaled Iowa, which I wouldn't have thought was possible. Yeah, I guess there's a lot there. I would start with that I was surprised, again,
Starting point is 00:11:38 kind of like with Michigan State, that a team that really fits, it really struggles in the area that Iowa supposedly is good at, yet was able to dominate in, and particularly running the ball. They were, well, 133rd in rushing. I mean, that was, and for them to run for 211 yards is not just concerning, it's potentially devastating because this was an area where you hang your hat. Your whole scheme is built to stop the run, and a team like that should be running 39 times for 72 yards, not for 39 times for 211 at five yards a clip. yeah i know jay jay higgins was out and that probably hurt them in certain plays for sure but they never got a handle on it and i think it's more of an indictment of
Starting point is 00:12:33 the defensive line at this point than it is even the linebackers so that was probably the area that i took away from that i was most concerned with and you know they've got a couple more games coming up and you know I would like to say that some of the same areas that Maryland struggles in that I was good in but after these two performances against teams like that where you look at what it those teams have accomplished what their statistics are versus what Iowa likes to do you'd think that should be another win but at this point you, I'm playing a guessing game. I'm not actually analyzing this and trying to figure a direction because this game and the Michigan State game just never fit.
Starting point is 00:13:14 If Iowa got a do-over for this offseason, bringing all the six-year guys back, bringing in all of them and returning for a season, do you think they'd take a mulligan and do it differently? Or would they run it back againulligan and do it differently? Or would they run it back again and try it the same direction? Because these guys, for the most part, maybe outside of Jay Higgins and Nick Jackson, there's been some disappointment on the guys that have come back for their final season.
Starting point is 00:13:35 If you gave true serum to Kirk Ferentz, would he take a mulligan in the way that they went about this offseason? You know, maybe there might be a couple of guys that you could say, well, probably not. I mean, you know, not to say that the disappointment, like take Nick DeYoung or even Kyler Fisher, who, you know, there's secondary roles. Kyler is, you know, a partial player. Is that worth a six-year scholarship in that situation or Nick, the young, who's really played sparing, not very much at all. Um, is that worth it? Or do you want to go to the portal and get somebody else in that spot?
Starting point is 00:14:14 You know, that, that means we see, I mean, I think it worked well, certainly with Jamari Harris and Nick Jackson and Jay Higgins and, and Quinn Schulte maybe isn't having a first of all big 10 season, but he's still pretty good. You know, I think we tend to overanalyze every time there's a loss and kind of throw everything out for the season. I thought they played really well in their home games this year.
Starting point is 00:14:39 You know, especially the last three. But I think that this is a concern and, and in some ways it reminds me of what happened after the COVID, the second COVID year with Iowa Wrestling, where they won the national title and ran everybody back, but then all those guys were injured. You know, they were all, because they'd all been through the wars
Starting point is 00:14:58 of college wrestling, and you kind of wonder if there's a little bit of that here. But I think there is some analysis to be done at the end of the season to see if this was the way you wanted to go. I think it was a sound philosophy. I think right now that watching the defensive line struggle, I think, is something that I didn't expect this year. What did UCLA do differently to contain Caleb Johnson the way they did?
Starting point is 00:15:24 It was by far his lowest output carrying the football this year. Oh, man. Well, they are very aggressive. That is the one area where they've been good at all year, and they've played some pretty good teams. And up front, they've got a couple of interior defensive linemen who are outstanding, Jay Toa being at the top of the list, and then Carson Schwessinger um he's a player josie josie jewel micah mcfadden when he was at indiana just all
Starting point is 00:15:52 over the place you know high energy a guy that you can look at and go man i'd love to see him play for iowa or you know if you're an iowa state fan play for iowa state you know mike rose type i mean just salt of the earth and so they're really good at stopping the run. They've been really, really bad against the pass all year. They've been in like 118th in the country. The problem is Iowa isn't real good there. You know, they lost their split end and Reese Vanderzee. You know, Luke Lachey is barely out there.
Starting point is 00:16:22 And Addison Estrange is not out there. So they're not able to take real advantage of that. You know, Luke Lachey is barely out there, and Addison Estrange is not out there. So they're not able to take real advantage of that. And so they're still trying to run the ball when they're throwing everything against the run. And they were able to hit some passes, but, you know, I would say more than anything, offensively, it was about quarterback mistakes. So I think the parallel with Michigan State is that the quarterback lost that game, quarterback on offense and offense against UCLA quarterback lost that game quarterback on offense and offense against ucla quarterback lost that game and then defensive inability to stop the run you know is the common
Starting point is 00:16:53 element in both those games against two beatable opponents is there anything that can be done with iowa's woes and big 10 teams in general now going out west we've seen the issues dating back years and years and years this is not just an iowa problem a lot of big 10 teams have had this issue but it's your new reality the likelihood is you're going to be making a minimum one trip west every single year what can be done do you go out a day early anything like that anything to help alleviate the concerns we've seen these teams going west play it on a saturday and on a friday i mean i think that's really about it i mean when we're seeing ucla cross the country and beating rutgers um you know when you see
Starting point is 00:17:33 penn state go to usc and have a chance to win and you know or win in overtime i i mean i i think that there are some issues there you're really just in a plane an hour and a half longer one way than you would be if you're going the other direction to Maryland or Rutgers. So I don't think it's that big of a deal. Now, I think the six-day window is a big deal, and that may be something that they need to explore, that only games involving, say, West Coast teams are on Friday or you have a bye before, but they chose they chose to do the buy after, you know, those, those are things that they are, you know, very much looking at right now, but by and large, I just don't, I don't think it's as big of a deal as maybe we, you know, early in the year,
Starting point is 00:18:16 there was really a common element, but then in the last three to four weeks, it's been real consistent that the best team usually wins. And I think you look at that with, I don't think that extra hour and a half in the plane hurt Iowa's run defense. I think Iowa's run defense hurt Iowa. Doc, we get a week reprieve from this question, but it's going to be front and center next week. And that's when the depth chart comes out and Cade McNamara seemingly is getting healthier.
Starting point is 00:18:41 I was of the opinion that he's probably never going to, you know, take another snap as a Hawkeye quarterback. Then you see Sullivan not able to finish the game, and he took some shots in that football game. I'm not so sure that Cade McNamara's Iowa career is finished, Doc. Where are you on that when we reconvene a week from Tuesday and listen to Coach Ferentz? Oh, this is the time that he loves it the most.
Starting point is 00:19:06 It's going to be all about practice, and we're not there. So it's going to be like, this is how they practice. We get to watch practice. You don't. And so it's going to be like, okay, we're playing guessing games or we're talking to people who are at practice, and they're giving us their biased opinions or whatever, and that's the way it's going to work.
Starting point is 00:19:30 That, to me, I think it is going to be about practice and who performs and i but i also expect them both to play um i i don't think you can just say well we're just going to play this one guy throughout i think it's a matter of you've got two regular season games left in a bowl um does it really matter anymore you know i think you think maybe you have them both play against Maryland in certain situations. Maybe you do things differently. I mean, like other teams do and then finish out the string and then figure out your future very quickly, which to me is you got to go get yourself a passer in the portal.
Starting point is 00:20:05 And whether that's Brandon Sullivan staying and being a part-time starter, maybe the starting quarterback, but, you know, he plays half the plays and you have somebody else who's like, say, a redshirt freshman who's leading a blue blood. There was a four star that just isn't going to be able to get a chance to get on the field. And there's an opening, you know, something like that is probably what I would do if I'm Iowa. We have one big remaining game before rivalry week.
Starting point is 00:20:31 That's right, over the next couple of weeks. Now, there'll be upsets. There's things that happen. But Indiana-Ohio State's the biggest remaining one before rivalry week. Anything that you learned watching the Hoosiers against the Wolverines over the weekend and with Ohio State with the bye week seemingly now and righting the ship, if you will, after the 45-0 win against Purdue. What do you think we're going to see in that one here in a couple weeks?
Starting point is 00:20:54 Yeah, Ohio State basically had a bye week. Purdue, and I wrote about Purdue today because I went over there a few weeks ago. Indiana, Ohio State to me is going to be maybe the game of the year, and that includes the Ohio State-Oregon game. I've been very impressed with Indiana. When I got to see them in person, it wasn't just so much that, hey, Nebraska had a bad day and they took advantage of it.
Starting point is 00:21:15 No, they bait the bad day throughout four quarters. And for them, you know, I wondered about the Michigan game. Not that I thought they were clearly a better team, but there's something different if you're an old-school Big Ten team I wondered about the Michigan game. Not that I thought they were clearly a better team, but there's something different if you're an old-school Big Ten team and you see the team with the winged helmets and they're the defending national champions and you're undefeated and there's all kinds of pressure associated with that. And the stadium's full, which before this year was nonexistent.
Starting point is 00:21:40 And you've got to take all that into account. They're physical. They're not good. They'll hit you and they'll run on you. And you've got to be prepared for into account. They're physical. They're not good, but they'll hit you and they'll run on you. And you've got to be prepared for that. And they took those shots. I mean, they took a lead. They absorbed some hits. They gave up some points, but they pulled it out.
Starting point is 00:21:56 And so I was probably as impressed with them winning that game in slugfest fashion as I have been the way that they've been boat racing teams. So I know Michigan is not good. They're nowhere near where they were last year, but that's an area where they have to step up and fist fight somebody. And then you look at Ohio State is capable of doing it every way you want to. If you want to go up and down the field, they'll do it. If you want to play slam ball between the tackles, they can do that too.
Starting point is 00:22:23 I would say Ohio state is more talented as more pro potential, but I love this Indiana team. They are, they just play. So it's just a beautiful way that they play football. I know it's a beautiful game. And, and so I think it's going to be a very close competitive game. I like Indiana's quarterback a lot more, but I'm not sure that they have overall playmakers to pull out in the Death Star. But I think they absolutely should be in the playoff, no question. I think they're the third best team in the league to me. Yeah, I'm with you. It'd be a travesty if they don't get in at this point
Starting point is 00:22:59 because what their final game is, Purdue, right? Regular season? Oh, yeah. That's a walk. That's a buy as you would just called it. Doc, what have you got coming up this week at the athletic? Yeah, right now I'm kind of going through the big 10 and writing every team's most important remaining game. I haven't gotten to Iowa. Cause for them, it's like the least of the teams.
Starting point is 00:23:22 Cause they're, you know, Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota, they've already clinched full eligibility, but they don't have anywhere to go. So do their games really matter? But I'm writing that now. I posted a story about Purdue kind of holistically. How, how does a team go from being a divisional champ two years ago to now being last in the big 10 and both scoring offense and defense to getting beaten, you know, by a combined 146-7 by three top 10 teams, and they've got two more left on their schedule.
Starting point is 00:23:51 And then we've got a bunch of other things associated with the college football playoff when the rankings come out in between games tomorrow night. So, yeah, it's going to be a busy week as always. Scott Dockerman from The Athletic. Enjoy the conversation with Doc. Always great stuff from him. We continue here, Locked on Hawkeyes. Let's talk a little basketball.
Starting point is 00:24:08 Men's team in action tonight. Women's team with a nice win over the weekend. Basketball to wrap up as we continue Locked on Hawkeyes. Get ready to tackle the NFL action with FanDuel. It's America's number one sportsbook. Because right now, new customers, you can bet $5 and get 150 in bonus bets. If you win the FanDuel sportsbook app gives you everything you need to place live bets on the NFL all in one place. So when you get a hunch in the middle of the game, you can check out the lead, the stats view live play by play,
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Starting point is 00:25:32 in the early portions of the season as they get a 71-52 win against Virginia Tech. Now, of course, we saw Virginia Tech two years ago in Iowa's first Final Four trip with Kaitlin Clark and company. That was, we saw them there. Kenny Brooks had done an outstanding job. Now, Kenny Brooks is left.
Starting point is 00:25:47 He is off their head coach to Kentucky. And a roster that is young. We'll put it that way. That is a very young roster. Now, Iowa, of course, going through the changes of their own. Abby Marshall no longer there. Kaitlin Clark no longer there. Kate Mart on and on and on.
Starting point is 00:26:03 This is a different look. But as we saw out of this squad, getting healthier, getting Sidney Affolter back out there for 24 minutes. That was good to see. She was doing Sidney Affolter things. Six rebounds, three assists, hit her only bucket of the ball game. This freshman class is going to be outstanding. With Mullaney and Hyden and Stremlow, you start right there.
Starting point is 00:26:23 That is a great building block that Gian Jensen's going to have. But I thought maybe the biggest takeaway that I had from this one was the play of Addison O'Grady. Going into last season, I think many people, myself included, thought that Addison O'Grady was going to be the apparent
Starting point is 00:26:38 at the center position, that we were going to see her take the reign for what we saw going back. And every single year, Gian Jensen having that traditional post player that plays at a high level. And it didn't happen. I think there was a reason for that. And if you go and you watch some of those behind the scenes kind of things and see different practice clips.
Starting point is 00:26:57 Kaitlyn Clark was hard on Addison O'Grady. Addison O'Grady, look, she's not Monica Sinano. She's not Monica Sinano. She's not one of the greats. But she is a competent big in the women's college basketball game. Yeah, at times she needs to get it up quicker, but she goes 9-9 from the floor. And I don't care what level you're playing,
Starting point is 00:27:18 you're taking on a power four conference team at Virginia Tech and you put up a 9-for-9 performance, I think that says a lot. I think that there were times that we saw Addison O'Grady a year ago start to kind of fall back, not want to be aggressive because she didn't want to upset Kaitlyn. And there are some players that just don't mesh well. We'll see if this is going to be a transformation. You're going to love Lucy Olsen. If you saw her on Sunday, you'll saw why.
Starting point is 00:27:46 She's going to fill it up. She's going to make plays. She's not the three-point shooter that Kaitlyn Clark was, but she's a different kind of point guard. And boy, the way she turns the corner, she can get to the 10. She's a fun, fun player to watch. This is going to be, I think, a fun season of Iowa basketball.
Starting point is 00:28:00 Is it going to be a team that's contending for a national championship, that's even contending for the second weekend? That's still to be seen. Still, nice win against Virginia Tech. On the other side, the men, they get going here for their third game of the season tonight against South Dakota. This will be the most difficult opponent they've faced to this point in the season.
Starting point is 00:28:19 And what has been two games in, I would say a little disappointing. I thought more out of this squad. Now they won by 22 against Texas A&M Commerce, won by 15 against Southern, didn't cover in either of those basketball games. But really the reason I think to be concerned about this squad is I just thought that we were going to see a little bit more on the defensive side of the floor that hasn't been there. And the rebounding continues to be an issue against two overmatched teams. Of the bye games, South Dakota might be the best
Starting point is 00:28:48 that they face. According to the Ken Pomeroy rankings, they are the best that they'll place of the bye games. The first two, this one against South Dakota, Ryder, USC, Upstate, New Orleans, and New Hampshire. This is the highest ranked out of that group. There's going to be some kids that want to get an opportunity. They played the same two teams that Iowa has, Southern and Texas A&M Commerce.
Starting point is 00:29:09 They won both those games relatively easy. So it's going to be an interesting one tonight. I think this is going to be more of a basketball game that maybe many people anticipate. I think this one's going to be
Starting point is 00:29:19 not down to the wire by any means. I think Iowa wins comfortably, but you look at that number at FanDuel, Iowa favored by 22. I think I'd be grabbing the points with the Coyotes here. We want to see Sato Traore. Got to see him out on the floor. If that's going to change the equation for this Iowa basketball team, I still maintain, I think the backup big position needs to go to Lajay Dembale. Play that way. Play him inside a little bit more when Owen Freeman needs a blow,
Starting point is 00:29:47 gets into foul trouble, whatever it is. But we'll see. I want to get more, a better view of this team. And again, if you weren't able to watch the first couple of games, don't have BTN+. This is just on normal Big Ten Network tonight, 8 o'clock with the tip-off with Iowa and South Dakota. We'll be back with you with a reaction podcast.
Starting point is 00:30:04 After that one, Plenty of thoughts coming your way on Iowa basketball as we make our way through the bye week for the football program. Thanks for making Lockdown Hawkeyes your first listen every day. Also want to let you know Lockdown Big Ten.
Starting point is 00:30:19 Still for you there each and every day. Craig Scheman does an outstanding job talking Big Ten. All 18 teams. He's got you covered and does great work at it Scheman does an outstanding job talking Big Ten, all 18 teams. He's got you covered and does great work at it. You can find the Lockdown Big Ten podcast on YouTube or wherever you listen to podcasts. Your team every day. That's what we do here on the Lockdown Network. And thanks for being with us here today.
Starting point is 00:30:37 We'll talk to you again tomorrow. Go Hawks.

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