Ahh true. I had purged that moment from memory, but now it's back.
***Okie St Week Thread***
- Thread starter JM4CY
- Start date
Ahh true. I had purged that moment from memory, but now it's back.
Obviously from my handle, I'm an OSU fan.
In regards to ISU and OSU interactions, I've been to games up there around 10 times (not coming tomorrow) including 2011. The fans are always fantastic always ready for a conversation and a beer. Very similar to OSU fans. Some might not like to hear it, but I think that both of our schools learned a lot about how to be good hosts from Nebraska when they were in conference. Of course it was easier to be a friendly host fan base when for decades you really didn't have to worry much about losing. But in reality, neither ISU or OSU were big tailgating campuses until the last 20-25 years, so we both needed a role model and at least for OSU, Nebraska was ours.
For the game, it make perfect sense to me why the line is where it is. Our offense hasn't been good, Sanders is a capable QB, but he is not to the caliber of signal caller that OSU has been used to for the last 15+ years. He's definitely taken a step backwards without having much in the way of ready to play receivers. Tay Martin is our #1 receiver. He missed a couple games early in the year. We were supposed to have another senior WR, but he's hurt and from what I understand, has called it a career. In addition, we have Pressley, who is a sophomore that didn't play much before last year's bowl game. He's tiny, quick, and can destroy in open spaces. The problem is that we don't get him the ball in ways he can make plays. Then we have a bunch of Freshmen -the Green twins, Owens, Bray, and Cabbiness that all see the field during a game. So essentially Martin and 6 guys with little experience. They are getting better and better, but are still young and are learning. As always, we don't have much production out of our TE (which we call a cowboy back as they are hybrid fullbacks and tight ends) position. Our strength is our running game. Warren has been fantastic. He runs with more aggression than any OSU back in my memory (and that dates back to the Jimmy Johnson days). Some opposing players have said that tackling him is hard and it hurts. That is why he has been better after15 carries than before all season. He was supposed to be our #3 going into the season, but injuries to LD Brown and Dez Jackson (who should be back but won't start in front of Warren). We've been using Warren and Richardson (another Freshman) as our RB combination.
Our defense has been beyond good, even when our offense can't stay on the field to give them a break. We have quality players at every level. Our DL has shown good push and discipline despite our best DE being out all season, our LB that everybody should know about is Malcolm Rodriguez. He was a high school wrestler and as a result, even though he's a bit undersized, he never seems overmatched. Every game has been a different 2-3 guys stepping up and having huge games. The one DB that seems to get attacked more than the others in the passing game is Jarrick Bernard-Converse. It isn't that he isn't good, he is, but he's the most likely to be man up with a WR without much help.
As far as the game tomorrow goes, I'll say that I'm worried about this one. While the media and fan talking doesn't mean much in regards to how focused the team is on the opponent, it does seem like an inordinate amount of time and focus has been on what happened last Saturday. Hopefully the team itself hasn't been caught up in that. Anyway, OSU has a tendency to get a slow start and when teams do score on our defense it tends to be on the first drives or two of each half. Second quarters have been better than first quarters. This team was down by 13 @ Boise. Down by 14 @ Texas and climbed back in. I was in the stands against Boise and at half, I had no idea how the heck we were winning 21-20 which ended up being the final score. OSU beat Baylor despite Sanders having 3 big INTs (the only turnovers for either team). Had those not happened, the game would have been a blowout. This team is not a pretty team. They have to fight for everything. OSU has won by solid defense, timely turnovers, and just running the ball so much the other team gets wore down. Special teams for OSU have not been special. Our punter is erratic. He can punt it 65 yards on the fly one kick and then have two shanks in a row. The talent to be great is there, but not the consistency. We replaced our kicker a couple games ago. Tanner Brown has been consistent, however he's not had a pressure kick or a long field goal attempt since he took over the starting job. So a great unknown to all. The craziest stat for OSU's offense is that we've scored 3 total points in the 3rd quarter through 6 games.
I think that ISU jumps out early. Then OSU claws back and the half time score will be either tied or within a field goal either way. Then ISU will take the lead or extend the lead in the 3rd quarter. Then the 4th quarter things will tighten up as OSU fights back to lead. It will come down to ISU's offense versus the OSU defense for a late drive. I bet on OSU's defense and Purdy's propensity to make a pressured mistake which allows OSU a very very tight win. I'm thinking somewhere in the range of 24-21 or something like that. The big wild card is if OSU has a turnover filled day. If we do, then ISU is good enough to hurt us with it (unlike Baylor). We know that turnovers are not all the same. Some hurt more than others. 3rd and long and throwing a pick 40 yards down field where the DB is down immediately is not nearly impactful as a pick 6 or a turnover on the first play of a possession, etc. But I expect to see an almost Big 10 style smash mouth hard nosed football game tomorrow. May the best team win and not be a result of the guys in stripes deciding the game.
In regards to ISU and OSU interactions, I've been to games up there around 10 times (not coming tomorrow) including 2011. The fans are always fantastic always ready for a conversation and a beer. Very similar to OSU fans. Some might not like to hear it, but I think that both of our schools learned a lot about how to be good hosts from Nebraska when they were in conference. Of course it was easier to be a friendly host fan base when for decades you really didn't have to worry much about losing. But in reality, neither ISU or OSU were big tailgating campuses until the last 20-25 years, so we both needed a role model and at least for OSU, Nebraska was ours.
For the game, it make perfect sense to me why the line is where it is. Our offense hasn't been good, Sanders is a capable QB, but he is not to the caliber of signal caller that OSU has been used to for the last 15+ years. He's definitely taken a step backwards without having much in the way of ready to play receivers. Tay Martin is our #1 receiver. He missed a couple games early in the year. We were supposed to have another senior WR, but he's hurt and from what I understand, has called it a career. In addition, we have Pressley, who is a sophomore that didn't play much before last year's bowl game. He's tiny, quick, and can destroy in open spaces. The problem is that we don't get him the ball in ways he can make plays. Then we have a bunch of Freshmen -the Green twins, Owens, Bray, and Cabbiness that all see the field during a game. So essentially Martin and 6 guys with little experience. They are getting better and better, but are still young and are learning. As always, we don't have much production out of our TE (which we call a cowboy back as they are hybrid fullbacks and tight ends) position. Our strength is our running game. Warren has been fantastic. He runs with more aggression than any OSU back in my memory (and that dates back to the Jimmy Johnson days). Some opposing players have said that tackling him is hard and it hurts. That is why he has been better after15 carries than before all season. He was supposed to be our #3 going into the season, but injuries to LD Brown and Dez Jackson (who should be back but won't start in front of Warren). We've been using Warren and Richardson (another Freshman) as our RB combination.
Our defense has been beyond good, even when our offense can't stay on the field to give them a break. We have quality players at every level. Our DL has shown good push and discipline despite our best DE being out all season, our LB that everybody should know about is Malcolm Rodriguez. He was a high school wrestler and as a result, even though he's a bit undersized, he never seems overmatched. Every game has been a different 2-3 guys stepping up and having huge games. The one DB that seems to get attacked more than the others in the passing game is Jarrick Bernard-Converse. It isn't that he isn't good, he is, but he's the most likely to be man up with a WR without much help.
As far as the game tomorrow goes, I'll say that I'm worried about this one. While the media and fan talking doesn't mean much in regards to how focused the team is on the opponent, it does seem like an inordinate amount of time and focus has been on what happened last Saturday. Hopefully the team itself hasn't been caught up in that. Anyway, OSU has a tendency to get a slow start and when teams do score on our defense it tends to be on the first drives or two of each half. Second quarters have been better than first quarters. This team was down by 13 @ Boise. Down by 14 @ Texas and climbed back in. I was in the stands against Boise and at half, I had no idea how the heck we were winning 21-20 which ended up being the final score. OSU beat Baylor despite Sanders having 3 big INTs (the only turnovers for either team). Had those not happened, the game would have been a blowout. This team is not a pretty team. They have to fight for everything. OSU has won by solid defense, timely turnovers, and just running the ball so much the other team gets wore down. Special teams for OSU have not been special. Our punter is erratic. He can punt it 65 yards on the fly one kick and then have two shanks in a row. The talent to be great is there, but not the consistency. We replaced our kicker a couple games ago. Tanner Brown has been consistent, however he's not had a pressure kick or a long field goal attempt since he took over the starting job. So a great unknown to all. The craziest stat for OSU's offense is that we've scored 3 total points in the 3rd quarter through 6 games.
I think that ISU jumps out early. Then OSU claws back and the half time score will be either tied or within a field goal either way. Then ISU will take the lead or extend the lead in the 3rd quarter. Then the 4th quarter things will tighten up as OSU fights back to lead. It will come down to ISU's offense versus the OSU defense for a late drive. I bet on OSU's defense and Purdy's propensity to make a pressured mistake which allows OSU a very very tight win. I'm thinking somewhere in the range of 24-21 or something like that. The big wild card is if OSU has a turnover filled day. If we do, then ISU is good enough to hurt us with it (unlike Baylor). We know that turnovers are not all the same. Some hurt more than others. 3rd and long and throwing a pick 40 yards down field where the DB is down immediately is not nearly impactful as a pick 6 or a turnover on the first play of a possession, etc. But I expect to see an almost Big 10 style smash mouth hard nosed football game tomorrow. May the best team win and not be a result of the guys in stripes deciding the game.
Prediction/What ISU Needs to do to Win vs. Okie State:
Offense (what is needed):
As we have noticed the last couple weeks, both Breece and Charlie Kolar are finally getting back to full health after some early fall dings/knicks. This was clear against KSU (Breece 200+ yards and Kolar the clear go-to guy on big 3rd downs). After watching the Okie State vs. Texas game last week, I assume the Cowboys will come in with a relatively identical scheme. Last week they brought pressure with linebackers and cornerbacks on several downs. They attempted to commit to stopping the run but with guys like Breece and Bijan, that is tough to do. With that being said, I think a big key to the game will be Brock’s mobility. OSU will bring pressure and at times when that pressure gets through on 2nd and long/ 3rd down Brock will need to create with his legs. This was the case in Brock’s first college game at Oklahoma State in 2018, he rushed 19 times for 84 yards and a touchdown. To be successful on OL must continued to improve and blocking must be sound, especially from the RBs either Breece or Jirehl when picking up blitzers. I trust X and Charlie to get open and Brock will find them with time.
Offense (what will happen):
Breece will finish with just over 100 yards and a touchdown but will be more involved in the receiving game picking up a couple big plays. Charlie Kolar will finish with 6 catches for 60 plus yards and a touchdown. X and Noel will be workmanlike, and both come up big on a couple third downs. Brock will finish with another efficient game through the air and 40 yards plus on the ground, adding a rushing touchdown.
Defense (what is needed to win):
Spencer Sanders is turnover prone and to be successful Iowa State must force him/allow him to make these turnovers and bad decisions. OSU will not have the luxury of giving Jaylen Warren 33 carries, Unlike the Texas game they will be stuck in third/second in long and will be forced to pass. The CB2s, Like Speedy and TJ Tampa will need to step up to contain OSU’s quick WR’s. Big games from the DL like Will Mcd, and Enyi are needed to force Sanders out of the pocket and to make tough throws. Hummel, Rose, Vance and Dae Dae Make tackles to limit place for the Cowboys. The secondary must be surehanded on potential interceptions that will be crucial in the game.
Defense (what will happen):
Standers throws two interceptions, one with a huge game changing return. Greg E. has a monster game and racks up 9+ tackles. both will and any get to Sanders a couple times and force some bad throws. Jaylen Warren is held to just around 100 yards and only 1 long run. the sellout crowd makes it difficult on the Oklahoma State offense, but the cyclones secondary gets beat on a couple long throws from Sanders out of the pocket.
Final Score: Iowa State 27 - Oklahoma State 23
Offense (what is needed):
As we have noticed the last couple weeks, both Breece and Charlie Kolar are finally getting back to full health after some early fall dings/knicks. This was clear against KSU (Breece 200+ yards and Kolar the clear go-to guy on big 3rd downs). After watching the Okie State vs. Texas game last week, I assume the Cowboys will come in with a relatively identical scheme. Last week they brought pressure with linebackers and cornerbacks on several downs. They attempted to commit to stopping the run but with guys like Breece and Bijan, that is tough to do. With that being said, I think a big key to the game will be Brock’s mobility. OSU will bring pressure and at times when that pressure gets through on 2nd and long/ 3rd down Brock will need to create with his legs. This was the case in Brock’s first college game at Oklahoma State in 2018, he rushed 19 times for 84 yards and a touchdown. To be successful on OL must continued to improve and blocking must be sound, especially from the RBs either Breece or Jirehl when picking up blitzers. I trust X and Charlie to get open and Brock will find them with time.
Offense (what will happen):
Breece will finish with just over 100 yards and a touchdown but will be more involved in the receiving game picking up a couple big plays. Charlie Kolar will finish with 6 catches for 60 plus yards and a touchdown. X and Noel will be workmanlike, and both come up big on a couple third downs. Brock will finish with another efficient game through the air and 40 yards plus on the ground, adding a rushing touchdown.
Defense (what is needed to win):
Spencer Sanders is turnover prone and to be successful Iowa State must force him/allow him to make these turnovers and bad decisions. OSU will not have the luxury of giving Jaylen Warren 33 carries, Unlike the Texas game they will be stuck in third/second in long and will be forced to pass. The CB2s, Like Speedy and TJ Tampa will need to step up to contain OSU’s quick WR’s. Big games from the DL like Will Mcd, and Enyi are needed to force Sanders out of the pocket and to make tough throws. Hummel, Rose, Vance and Dae Dae Make tackles to limit place for the Cowboys. The secondary must be surehanded on potential interceptions that will be crucial in the game.
Defense (what will happen):
Standers throws two interceptions, one with a huge game changing return. Greg E. has a monster game and racks up 9+ tackles. both will and any get to Sanders a couple times and force some bad throws. Jaylen Warren is held to just around 100 yards and only 1 long run. the sellout crowd makes it difficult on the Oklahoma State offense, but the cyclones secondary gets beat on a couple long throws from Sanders out of the pocket.
Final Score: Iowa State 27 - Oklahoma State 23
I think it will be a typical OSU-ISU game, with the winning margin less than 6 points. I went ahead and took OSU and the points, so I'm hoping the Cyclones win by three, and Draft Kings puts some cheddar in my wallet.
5 things:
1) OSU pass rush vs ISU's offensive line
This is what scares me most. OSU against texas looked like a really fast defense. Every play it looked like they had 15 guys on the field, 5 of which were rushing and every offense player downfield looked like they were double covered. People keep talking about the pick 6 (which I blame Casey Thompson for pre-snap), but I think the bigger play in the game was when OSU knocked Thompson out of the game. That let them pin their ears back even more to go after Hudson Card. We have to protect Purdy and limit OSU's ability to be aggressive. We all know it's coming, but what can we do about it? I hope Manning and Purdy go into this game expecting a lot of blitz's and pressure.
2) Spencer Sanders - will he be inconsistent or does he magically find his groove against us (again).
Man, from what I've seen so far this year of OSU, Sanders looks pretty bad. He looks like he's good for 4-5 off target throws a game, plus some poor reads trying to run the ball. Of course he still has the ability to hurt you with a perfect ball downfield as well. Also aleast against Texas his receivers weren't great either, they had multiple drops. If we get this version of Sanders, I'm not sure this game is close - that said, the past 2 years we've made him look much better against us than he has against other teams.
3) ISU run game/consistent progress on offense - OSU's defense looks legit. They seem to have a knack for getting off of the field on 3rd down. We can't find ourselves in 3rd and long often. We cannot go 3 and out (see 4a below) and give up major differences in field position. There will be a ton of pressure on the offense to move the ball and they must overcome that. I'm going to be watching for play calling early. I'd bet we're going to try to go more north/south and run right at them. OSU doesn't look like a defense where you try to be faster than them. #43 Jarod Rus is going to be very important.
4) Special Teams (again) - There's really 2 things here. 4a) we have to cover up our massive problem at punting again. Unfortunately I think our expectations have to be 30-35 yards of net punting. No big returns. That's the best we can hope for at this point. 4b) I'm assuming this is going to be a close game, so field goals are going to matter. Mevis and Assalley have been nails so far this season, we're going to need them to be again. I know everyone hates seeing a FG instead of a TD, but we must get points when we get inside the OSU 35.
5) ISU defense against OSU - I put this one last on purpose. ISU shouldn't have a big problem in limiting big plays against OSU, but we did give up big plays both of the last 2 games against them. If I see more than 1 wide receiver screen go for 10+ yards I'm going to lose it. We need all of our DBs to tackle well. Jaylen Warren is basically the same player as Duce Vaughn, so he'll get his, but we have to also limit his big plays. We did well against Duce, I'm hoping we can do the same again.
Bottom line, I think it comes down to which team (QB most likely) turns the ball over. OSU and Spencer Sanders has shown they turn it over quite a bit - but on the flip side, I'm never confident with ISU vs a super aggressive blitzing team. I would be very surprised if it's a low-turnover game.
1) OSU pass rush vs ISU's offensive line
This is what scares me most. OSU against texas looked like a really fast defense. Every play it looked like they had 15 guys on the field, 5 of which were rushing and every offense player downfield looked like they were double covered. People keep talking about the pick 6 (which I blame Casey Thompson for pre-snap), but I think the bigger play in the game was when OSU knocked Thompson out of the game. That let them pin their ears back even more to go after Hudson Card. We have to protect Purdy and limit OSU's ability to be aggressive. We all know it's coming, but what can we do about it? I hope Manning and Purdy go into this game expecting a lot of blitz's and pressure.
2) Spencer Sanders - will he be inconsistent or does he magically find his groove against us (again).
Man, from what I've seen so far this year of OSU, Sanders looks pretty bad. He looks like he's good for 4-5 off target throws a game, plus some poor reads trying to run the ball. Of course he still has the ability to hurt you with a perfect ball downfield as well. Also aleast against Texas his receivers weren't great either, they had multiple drops. If we get this version of Sanders, I'm not sure this game is close - that said, the past 2 years we've made him look much better against us than he has against other teams.
3) ISU run game/consistent progress on offense - OSU's defense looks legit. They seem to have a knack for getting off of the field on 3rd down. We can't find ourselves in 3rd and long often. We cannot go 3 and out (see 4a below) and give up major differences in field position. There will be a ton of pressure on the offense to move the ball and they must overcome that. I'm going to be watching for play calling early. I'd bet we're going to try to go more north/south and run right at them. OSU doesn't look like a defense where you try to be faster than them. #43 Jarod Rus is going to be very important.
4) Special Teams (again) - There's really 2 things here. 4a) we have to cover up our massive problem at punting again. Unfortunately I think our expectations have to be 30-35 yards of net punting. No big returns. That's the best we can hope for at this point. 4b) I'm assuming this is going to be a close game, so field goals are going to matter. Mevis and Assalley have been nails so far this season, we're going to need them to be again. I know everyone hates seeing a FG instead of a TD, but we must get points when we get inside the OSU 35.
5) ISU defense against OSU - I put this one last on purpose. ISU shouldn't have a big problem in limiting big plays against OSU, but we did give up big plays both of the last 2 games against them. If I see more than 1 wide receiver screen go for 10+ yards I'm going to lose it. We need all of our DBs to tackle well. Jaylen Warren is basically the same player as Duce Vaughn, so he'll get his, but we have to also limit his big plays. We did well against Duce, I'm hoping we can do the same again.
Bottom line, I think it comes down to which team (QB most likely) turns the ball over. OSU and Spencer Sanders has shown they turn it over quite a bit - but on the flip side, I'm never confident with ISU vs a super aggressive blitzing team. I would be very surprised if it's a low-turnover game.
Beautiful day too! Engineering lots look like a good solution. See everyone tomorrow!
Well HaHa! I'm not sure yet. But I'll let you know when I find it, now that you've asked.
Probably gonna hold/pass on the one we were almost going to buy today. I won't give the make and model yet, or dealer (online) until I know more.
Thanks for asking! Go Ducks! I will get back with you once we are sure on one. It's for my 22 y/o soon-to-graduate-college son.
Good call. It’s gonna be a ball buster. You might need more than 6.
I told the people before I left work that they should not plan on understanding me Monday and that my voice is likely to be extremely horse.
Biggest issue with Okie Lite coming to town is the bottleneck all the double wides cause passing through KC.
Last paragraph, ESPN+ game story: "Will that work against Iowa State? Brock Purdy is completing 74% of his passes, Breece Hall is averaging 5.6 yards per carry, and the Cyclones are basically two semi-fluky losses away from an unbeaten record. They outgained Iowa and Baylor by a combined 369 yards but fell to the former because of turnovers and to the latter because of special teams miscues. They never left the SP+ top 20 and currently rank 12th. In a season full of toss-ups and unlikely wins for OSU, this might be the least likely win of all. But that defense will give the Cowboys a shot.
