*** Official #18 IOWA STATE vs Houston Game(Day) Thread ***

[bosco]

We’re going to need depth at RB. Good to have different styles. Jackson has been impressive. He’s very quick and shifty at the line and second level. Appears Sama needs bigger holes to utilize his straight line speed. He tends to get bumped and tackled or tried to get tot he edge and teams are too quick.

I feel the most overrated thing for a RB is there game breaking ability. If I was an OC I would rather have a back that can consistently get me the yards that is available for a play vs one that will break a 70 yd TD but the other 15 rushes gets negative yards because he's trying to hit the home run.

If you can get a back that knows when and has the ability to break one then you have something. Abu has that potential but he's still learning. Hopefully he catches on because he's ceiling is higher than Jackson and if this team is to max out it'll require Abu to become that. Until then it's comforting to know we have a back like Jackson.

 

[AuH2O]

We’re going to need depth at RB. Good to have different styles. Jackson has been impressive. He’s very quick and shifty at the line and second level. Appears Sama needs bigger holes to utilize his straight line speed. He tends to get bumped and tackled or tried to get tot he edge and teams are too quick.

I definitely have been pro Jackson from the first game and believe he is pretty clearly the best runner.

I was wrong about Hansen, I thought he should just be the 3rd down back as a guy that picks up the blitz and is a good receiver, but he’s a pretty solid runner, now that he’s getting north and south.

And Sama has run tough and physical. The challenge is you might give him 10-12 carries that don’t get much then he busts a big one.

 

[khardbored]

Here's the penalty on Barrett (#61) in the 3rd that took away the score by Higgins. Lame way to lose an all-timer TD catch for sure but looks like the right call, strictly speaking.

View attachment 135225

When you block the opponent back 5 yards, you are going to be downfield. There should be some context here by the officials.

I found some references to the neutral zone “expanding” up to three yards either side of the line of scrimmage once the ball is snapped.

Here’s the rule right out of the NCAA rule book. It refers to “three yards beyond the neutral zone,” which here means the ball-width neutral zone at the original line of scrimmage.

View attachment 135243

Technically, yes, it was a penalty, but MAN -- that's ticky-tacky!!!
I think most officials are a little more lenient than that.

Also, pretty sure #61 got mixed up and thought it was a run play. Maybe a couple guys did.

 

[RezClone]

Subscribe to this guy on YouTube! He does a good job with posting both full games and abbreviated games!

Yup I know the family. BIG Iowa Staters, all of them. They appreciate the shoutout.

 

[Cyinthenorth]

So happy for Jackson. What, 5'6"?
Imagine how may coaches felt he was too small...and told him so.

I was admittedly worried we had just brought in the next Deon Silas, but he has much more to offer and can in fact play at this level.

I would say Houston is the worst in the Big 12 right now.

Was this a great game by ISU? Far from it. Yet they still got a shutout and won a conference road game by 20. And come November, nobody is really going to care if ISU beat Houston by 20 or by 40.

ISU is 4-0, 1-0. Time to move on to Baylor.

This. Imo, style points don't really matter unless you're an at large big 10 or sec. Big 12 won't have at larges, just win the games on your schedule by 1 or by 50, it won't matter

 

[AuH2O]

Technically, yes, it was a penalty, but MAN -- that's ticky-tacky!!!
I think most officials are a little more lenient than that.

Also, pretty sure #61 got mixed up and thought it was a run play. Maybe a couple guys did.

I don’t think it’s ticky-tack. His entire body is already beyond the three yard zone in this image, moving forward, and notice Rocco’s just releasing the ball.

This has been an area of emphasis too. Like Curt pointed out it looked like an RPO that should have the ball out quickly. But it wasn’t there and Rocco held on to it longer.

 

[1SEIACLONE]

I couldn't find an exact definition of this rule.

"Ineligible Receivers Downfield​

One of the most common penalties called in regard to eligible receivers is the "ineligible receiver downfield."
This rule is in place to prevent offensive linemen from going too far downfield to block before the actual throw.
You will see this penalty called most often on screen passes to running backs, when offensive linemen "release" from their pass-blocking stance to go downfield and try to block too soon.
The rule states that an ineligible receiver can't go outside of the neutral zone before a pass is thrown.
This means offensive linemen must stay within that neutral zone and can't "release" to block downfield on a passing play until the pass is actually released from the quarterback's hand.
When an ineligible receiver downfield penalty is called, it results in the offensive team losing five yards. Whatever play actually happened will be canceled out, and the offense will repeat the down."

What is an Ineligible Receiver? (Full Explanation)

In a football game, not every player on offense is actually eligible to receive a pass. Here's how to know who can and can't receive passes.

footballadvantage.com

So, what constitutes "the neutral zone" in this case? Obviously this is different than the 'neutral zone' on an off-sides call.

The NFL its 1 yard and in college football its 3 yards from the LOS.

 

[1SEIACLONE]

I don’t think it’s ticky-tack. His entire body is already beyond the three yard zone in this image, moving forward, and notice Rocco’s just releasing the ball.

This has been an area of emphasis too. Like Curt pointed out it looked like an RPO that should have the ball out quickly. But it wasn’t there and Rocco held on to it longer.

The refs have been told to crack down on it because of RPO's in the past that had lineman getting 5 yards or more down field blocking and then the QB throws a pass. When they are coming off the ball selling run, the LBers come up thinking run, and then QB's were pulling the ball and throwing a pass. So now they watch it closer than they did 5 years ago or so. Its a good rule, and should not be changed, our lineman was down field, and it was a correct call..

 

[SolterraCyclone]

We’re going to need depth at RB. Good to have different styles. Jackson has been impressive. He’s very quick and shifty at the line and second level. Appears Sama needs bigger holes to utilize his straight line speed. He tends to get bumped and tackled or tried to get tot he edge and teams are too quick.

I’m not a running back expert, but he seems to run very upright. So when he gets tackled, he’s not going forward for another yard or two, he’s getting stood up or pushed back.

If you just need a runner to get a 3rd and 1 or 2nd and 3, Jackson and Hanson seem to be better options. Jackson is shifty within the trees and picks up what he can. Hanson is a more powerful straight-line runner.

 

[Montgomery-Magic]

i was at the game. Primo seat for $15 , it was so easy to sneak down to lower level.

The first half was so painful. I didn’t understand why we didn’t go to TE’s. I remember only 1 incomplete pass. to a TE. What am I missing?

 

[CycloneVet]

A couple of observations:

College football road night games have the potential to be very weird. Especially if you let the inferior team gain some confidence.

We have decent to good running backs. We don’t have David Montgomery or Breece Hall right now. It would be nice to get the next one. The ones that left weren’t either.

I wish we were utilizing the tightends more as well as a consistent 3rd receiver. I expect the TE usage will improve throughout the year.

Houston was a bad team with a terrible offense. They lack discipline. However there is some athleticism across the board especially on defense where they use it to disrupt what you are trying to do with blitzes and stacking the box.

A win is a win and we have 4 of them so far

 

[blutarsky]

I feel the most overrated thing for a RB is there game breaking ability. If I was an OC I would rather have a back that can consistently get me the yards that is available for a play vs one that will break a 70 yd TD but the other 15 rushes gets negative yards because he's trying to hit the home run.

If you can get a back that knows when and has the ability to break one then you have something. Abu has that potential but he's still learning. Hopefully he catches on because he's ceiling is higher than Jackson and if this team is to max out it'll require Abu to become that. Until then it's comforting to know we have a back like Jackson.

Hard to compare Sama and Jackson. They run differently. Sama may end up being the better back, but the change of pace across the RB room helps all three.

I also don't think Hansen is just a "Jeff Woody-type" back. I think he has more to offer the offense. I hope he could be a poor mans Kyle Juszczyk. Line him up in different spots. He could be a miss match for defenses.

 

[SolterraCyclone]

A couple of observations:

College football road night games have the potential to be very weird. Especially if you let the inferior team gain some confidence.

We have decent to good running backs. We don’t have David Montgomery or Breece Hall right now. It would be nice to get the next one. The ones that left weren’t either.

I wish we were utilizing the tightends more as well as a consistent 3rd receiver. I expect the TE usage will improve throughout the year.

Houston was a bad team with a terrible offense. They lack discipline. However there is some athleticism across the board especially on defense where they use it to disrupt what you are trying to do with blitzes and stacking the box.

A win is a win and we have 4 of them so far

Agreed. I’m also not really disappointed with any of the RBs cause I didn’t feel our running game was going to be as strong as those 2020/2021 teams (I remember debating someone on that).

So far, they’ve been what I’ve expected. Jackson has been a nice little revelation.

 

[bosco]

Hard to compare Sama and Jackson. They run differently. Sama may end up being the better back, but the change of pace across the RB room helps all three.

I also don't think Hansen is just a "Jeff Woody-type" back. I think he has more to offer the offense. I hope he could be a poor mans Kyle Juszczyk. Line him up in different spots. He could be a miss match for defenses.

It is easy to compare the 2 as far as production goes. Jackson is the more reliable back at the moment. Abu has the higher ceiling lower floor.

 

[NebrClone]

Hard to compare Sama and Jackson. They run differently. Sama may end up being the better back, but the change of pace across the RB room helps all three.

I also don't think Hansen is just a "Jeff Woody-type" back. I think he has more to offer the offense. I hope he could be a poor mans Kyle Juszczyk. Line him up in different spots. He could be a miss match for defenses.

Hansen is a lot faster than people think. A lot faster than Woody.

 

[BWRhasnoAC]

Hansen is a lot faster than people think. A lot faster than Woody.

He's fast once he gets going. Doesn't have the acceleration or agility like the other two. That's fine though, keep running him out of the I and he will get you yards.

 

[CycloneVet]

Hansen is a lot faster than people think. A lot faster than Woody.

Yea agree with this, he hits one and makes a safety miss then he will open some eyes as far as his speed

 

[VeloClone]

As far as the running game goes against UH, I think they really missed Stevo. Not to say ISU didn't struggle at times running the ball in some other games, but he was missed here. Dude is an animal.

 

[StLouisClone]

As far as the running game goes against UH, I think they really missed Stevo. Not to say ISU didn't struggle at times running the ball in some other games, but he was missed here. Dude is an animal.

How long is Stevo out?

 

[VeloClone]

How long is Stevo out?

Campbell said Stevo traveled with the team because they thought he would be ready. He warmed up but they pulled the plug because he wasn't quite ready. Matt sounded like they are confident Klotz will be fully ready next weekend.