Rough day for the running backs as Coker struggled, McCall had a serious injury and the FB position was shaky at best. Saw a lot of 2TE sets out there and lots of motion with the TE into the back-field. Really didn't see much from Gimm or Meyers at the FB position. Both really struggled to find a guy to hit and nether maintained contact very well either. Neither guy looks to be much of a receiving threat at this point and they'll need to pick it up over the next couple of weeks. It did look like Iowa was using more 2TE sets than normal as well, so it looks like the coaches are well aware of the issues here.
Pretty solid effort from Davis and we all saw what McNutt can do. Both guys are big targets and are going to be match up nightmares for a lot of secondaries. It will be very hard to play Cover 2 against these guys because both are physical and can beat press coverage with size and strength along with being great on the jump ball. Both guys are solid blockers and put in good effort there. Not much to see the from the rest of the WR group. Not a whole lot of snaps and no targets that I caught.
Iowa looks pretty deep at TE with CJF and Derby behind Herman. All are big targets and are legit receiving threats which should cause headaches for opposing DC's this season. If you want an idea what 3 solid TE's can do take a look at the sch-lacking Stanford put on VT in the Orange Bowl last year. A lot of 3 TE sets from Harbaugh helped Stanford to a blow out win. VT just had no answer for the powering running attack+PA off those sets.
Coker
Rough day for Mr. Coker out there. Even without the fumbles he was struggling to put his foot in the ground with any authority. After the fumbles he got even more tense and went into a shell. Could be the lack of contact, could be the fumbles but I wouldn't expect it last. He just looked like he got up on the wrong side of the bed in this one. He bumbled into JVB later on a play fake and all around just looked off. He should bounce back fine.
McCall
There aren't many true freshman who make you say "Wow", but this kid has a very impressive combination of speed and power. Broke a buncha tackles and ran wild on a very slick surface. The loss of this guy will hurt. Lets hope for a full and speedy recovery.
Bullock
Almost did a double take when I saw this guy out in the slot. Pretty big vote of confidence for a true frosh RB to get their number called on the first drive of the season even if only for sub-package play. Of course predictably he dropped the only pass he got a chance at but I'm pretty sure the conditions had a pretty big hand in that. Really liked the play call and package from Iowa, but gotta make plays when you get the chance.
McNutt
This looked like a statement game to me. Questions about how McNutt would fair as a true number 1 WR have been answered. McNutt showed big time ability after the catch to the tune of 2TDs, mostly on his own, and squeezed the ball nicely in the horrendous conditions. Did well as a blocker most of the time. He's poised to have a huge season and looks a step or two faster than last year. Based on film from last year I'd like to see him get his hips down further on sharp cuts(comebacks, hitches), but these were hardly the conditions to get a good read on that. Looking for big things from him as the year goes on.
Davis
Didn't have a whole lot of chances to do much but made plays when his number was called. He bailed out Vandenburg on a pretty poor throw with an acrobatic catch. Did a nice job becoming a defender on his other fade route where the ball was too far inside. He's got a lot of tools and should keep defenses honest as they try to deal with McNutt. Was very impressed by his abilities in the spring game and fall camp.We'll see a lot more from this guy as the season unfolds.
Herman
Looks to be another solid TE in the never ending streak at Iowa. Good powerful inline blocker and a capable receiver. Not a guy that's a big vertical threat but can be a threat on medium depth routes. Big frame and long arms should make him an option in the red-zone as well. Looked good running up the middle seam and on crossing routes.
CJF
I have high expectations for CJF this season but he wasn't dominating as a blocker in this one and did drop a pass in the rough conditions. Showed flashes blocking in run game and should get more consistent. Conditions made it tough to judge whether he had any real issues or if it was just footing. Would really like to see him running up the seam more as he's a match up nightmare for a safety or LB. Nothing like a 6'6+ security blanket for a QB to fall back on when he's having a tough day hitting his spots.
Derby
Had the dropped TD but it wasn't a gimme catch and the timing was way off due to JVB colliding with Coker in the backfield. If this guy is your 3rd TE you gotta be pretty happy with where you're at. He's a solid receiving target and is pretty quick and can get open against a LB.
KMM
Really not much to report here. Iowa ran a fair number of 3 WR sets but KMM didn't get to do much. He has some solid skills and should show up more and more often as the weeks go by.
No comments:
Post a Comment