The Iowa Hawkeyes win third game in four outings with 58-43 win at Indiana

The Iowa Hawkeyes are beginning to compete in the Big Ten. With a 2-5 record now in the Big Ten, the Hawkeyes are not going to compete for any titles or post-season bids in the 2009-10 season. But, they are getting competitive as the season approaches February.

Iowa wins easily at Indiana, 58-43‎ - San Francisco Chronicle

The Hawkeyes followed up a competitive loss at Michigan State Wednesday night into a solid road win at Indiana Sunday afternoon/evening. The Hawkeyes hit the offensive boards in fueling the win over IU in Bloomington. Coach Todd Lickliter for Iowa wins a game in his home state. It was IU's lowest point total of the season.

Wednesday night's game:

A bounce here and a bounce there and Iowa may have won the previous time on the road. But, the Hawkeyes took care of business coming off a competitive game in East Lansing.

Michigan State 70, Iowa 63 MSU hangs on over Iowa‎ - Detroit Free Press

Iowa (7-12, 1-5) continued to fight as when the lead was whittled to 15, the Hawkeyes went on a 14-2 run to make it 64-61 with 2:03 to play. MSU got a layup ...

Iowa dominated inside vs. the Hoosiers on the boards. Further, defense fueled their first road win of the season. For everyone on the Iowa roster, it was their first Big Ten road win ever, since Iowa didn't win on the road in 2008-09.

Iowa returns to Carver-Hawkeye on Wednesday, when the Hawkeyes host Ohio State (14-6, 4-3 in the Big Ten).

peace

Final look at the Final Top 25 in College Football for the 2009 Season

Congratulations to the Alabama Crimson Tide for winning their first BCS Title. Heck, they even have the reigning Heisman Trophy winner on their roster. The 2009 season was an interesting year in College Football ...

2009 Final Top 25 Teams (taking from the final AP and USA Today Coaches polls):

1. Alabama (14-0) - Unanimous #1 to close out the 2009 season, after a strong win over Texas, who was playing without the AT&T player of the year, QB Colt McCoy in the title game! BCS Title Game - Beat Texas 37-21.
2. Texas (13-1) - Life without QB Colt McCoy was on display during the BCS Title Game and everything wasn't alright, but there was still a fight in the Longhorns none the less ... BCS Title Game - Lost to Alabama 21-37.
3. Florida (13-1) - The Tim Tebow era ends one game away from the BCS Title Game, which is better than the Outback Bowl folks ... was it coach Urban Meyer's last game coaching the Gators? BCS Sugar Bowl - Beat Cincinnati 51-24.
4. Boise State (14-0) - A great finish for the Broncos with a payback win over TCU in the Fiesta Bowl; this is a young Broncos team and Boise should carry the #1 top non-BCS team banner into the next decade of college football ... BCS Fiesta Bowl - Beat TCU 17-10.
5. Ohio State (12-2) - Sophomore QB Terrelle Pryor certainly had his best game so far with the 2010 Rose Bowl win; the next two years should get interesting in Columbus with experience at QB for coach Jim Tressel heading into 2010! BCS Rose Bowl - Beat Oregon 26-17.
6. TCU (12-1) - The Horned Frogs fall in their first BCS bowl ever, but they played well in 2009 as the top MWC team; the MWC is playing solid football again this past bowl season, with the Fiesta Bowl loss the only bowl loss the conference had in two bowl seasons! BCS Fiesta Bowl - Lost 10-17 to Boise State.
7. Iowa (11-2) - The Hawkeyes closed out the 2009 season with another win in a bowl game for coach Kirk Ferentz, OC Ken O'Keefe and DC Norm Parker, who have all been together for the past 11 seasons ... BCS Orange Bowl - Beat Georgia Tech 24-14.
8. Penn State (11-2) - The Nittany Lions are the right team for #8 and become the top rated team not to play in a BCS bowl in '09. How many more bowl wins does the all-time head coach Joe Paterno have left in Happy Valley? Capital One Bowl - Beat LSU 19-17.
9. Cincinnati (12-1) - The Brian Kelly era ended after a 12-0 regular season, then the Bearcats coach bolted for Notre Dame to replace Charlie Wies and much of the staff is either headed for Notre Dame or Buffalo now, a new era of Bearcats football begins in 2010 ... BCS Sugar Bowl - Lost to Florida 24-51.
10. Virginia Tech (10-3) - The Hokies didn't win the ACC title, but they closed out the 2009 season as the Top ACC team in the final polls ... Chick-Fil- A Bowl - Beat Tennessee 37-14.
11. Oregon (10-3) - The Ducks enter 2010 with the opportunity to be top dog in the Pac 10, after ending USC's eight year ride at the tip of the conference pecking order in '09, but 2009 will be remembered most for book end losses to open and close season ... BCS Rose Bowl - Lost to Ohio State 17-26.
12. Brigham Young (11-2) - The Cougars will enter the next decade looking to battle everyone in the up and coming MWC looking for BCS status in the next decade ... Las Vegas Bowl - Beat Oregon State 44-20.
13. Georgia Tech (11-3) - The Yellow Jackets are headed in the right direction after finishing the second year under coach Paul Johnson with the ACC Title, but work is to be done in finishing strong in bowl games ... BCS Orange Bowl - Lost to Iowa 14-24.
14. Nebraska (10-4) - The Cornhuskers ended the decade with an impressive bowl win in coach Bo Pelini's second season, raising him to 3-0 in bowl games for Nebraska, but are the Cornhuskers ready for prime time in 2010 and competing with the nation's best? This is a team that lost in Lincoln to Iowa State 7-9 ... Holiday Bowl - Beat Arizona 33-0.
15. Pittsburgh (10-3) - The Panthers pick up their first bowl win, since the 2002 season and the Dave Wannstedt program in his fifth season completes back to back bowl trips ... Meineke Car Care Bowl - Beat North Carolina 19-17.
16. Wisconsin (10-3) - The Badgers finish the 2009 season with a bowl win and their first win of the season vs. a Top 25 team. Can coach Bret Bielema in his fifth season in 2010? Champs Sports Bowl - Beat Miami-FL 20-14.
17. LSU (9-4) - Phil Steele was right picking the Tigers #17 in '09, LSU was young at QB in '09 and had the look of a team not ready for prime time in the #1 SEC this season ... Capitial One Bowl - Lost to Penn State 17-19.
18. Utah (10-3) - The Utes finished third in the ever improving MWC behind TCU and Brigham Young in '09 ... Poinsettia Bowl - Beat Cal 37-27.
19. Miami - FL (9-4) - The Hurricanes closed out the third season under coach Randy Shannon with too many ups and downs lead by youth at QB ... Champs Bowl - Lost to Wisconsin 14-20.
20. USC (9-4) - The Trojans finish the season with another bowl win in the Pete Carroll era, but like the previous decade, could the USC program be entering a new era with a new coach? Emerald Bowl - Beat Boston College 24-13.
21. Mississippi (9-4) - The Rebels were a team, like Oklahoma State, that was supposed to make noise in the Top 10 in '09, not quite ready for prime time behind senior QB Jevon Smeed ... Cotton Bowl - Beat Oklahoma State 21-7.
22. West Virginia (9-4) - The Bill Stewart era wraps up his second full season with a loss, unlike the Fiesta and Mieneke Car Care bowl wins the previous two seasons ... will success become more difficult as Rich Rodriquez players exit Morgantown? Gator Bowl - Lost to Florida State 21-33.
23. Texas Tech (9-4) - Despite the dismissal of coach Mike Leach near the eve of the Red Raiders bowl game, Tech takes care of business with remaining staff, but 2010 will be a new era for Red Raiders ... Alamo Bowl - beat Michigan State 41-31.
24. Central Michigan (12-2) - The Chippewas' close out their senior season on top in the MAC as the coach Butch Jones era closes and a new era remains an unknown ... GMAC Bowl - beat Troy 44-41.
25. Navy (9-4) - The Midshipmen deserve recognition at #25 over the final candidates and were clearly the top independent program in the FBS in 2009 ... Texas Bowl - beat Missouri 35-13.

Some final notes for the 2009 College Football Season ...

1. Florida State (7-6, 4-4 ACC) - Head coach Bobby Bowden and defensive coordinator Mickey Andrews closed out their respective careers on top defeating West Virginia, as both retire to allow the Jimbo Fisher era to begin in 2010 at Florida State ... Gator Bowl - Beat West Virginia 33-21.
2. Oklahoma (8-5, 5-3 Big 12) - Sooners coach Bobby Stoops saw his season slide right out of the gate, when their 2008 Heisman Trophy QB was injured early in the opening season loss to BYU. A solid offensive line is always important for success in the BCS ... Sun Bowl - Beat Stanford 31-27.
3. Oklahoma State (9-4, 6-2 Big 12) - The Cowboys were supposed make a run as a Top 10 program in 2009, but they didn't get out of the gate well, after a nice win over Georgia to open the season and closed the season on the decline ... Cotton Bowl - Lost to Ole Miss 7-21.
4. California (8-5, 5-4 Pac 10) - The Cal Golden Bears never got on track in Pac 10 play, after opening 3-0 with a wins vs. Maryland, Eastern Washington and @ Minnesota ... Poinsettia Bowl - Lost to Utah 27-37.
5. Georgia (8-5, 4-4) - The Bulldogs didn't compete for any titles in the SEC in '09, but they did beat in-state rival Georgia Tech to close out the regular season and finish better in ... Independence Bowl - Beat Texas A&M 44-20.
6. Oregon State (8-5, 6-3 Pac 10) - The Beavers didn't close out the 2009 season very well missing a Rose Bowl bid vs. Oregon and now talk begins that with Carroll looking to a move to the NFL, will coach Mike Riley be headed to Southern California in the new decade? Las Vegas Bowl - Lost to BYU 20-44.
7. Clemson (9-5, 6-2 ACC) - The Tigers finished #24 in the final AP poll, but they slip, losing to in-state rival South Carolina in the final regular season game in coach Dabo Swinney's first full season at the helm... Music City Bowl - Beat Kentucky 21-13.
8. Notre Dame (6-6) - The Fighting Irish coach Charlie Weis couldn't get it done in '09 and the administration said enough, after five seasons, making the decisions to dismiss and declining a bowl game in '09. Season ended after regular season, no bowl for the Irish.
9. Arizona (8-5, 6-3) - The Wildcats were in the mix, surprisingly, for the Pac 10 title in '09, but the close of the 2009 season was eye opening, but not in a kind way with a blowout loss and goose egg ... Holiday Bowl - Lost to Nebraska 0-33.
10. C-USA - While Houston and East Carolina have had some outstanding highlights in '09 and '08, respectively, again the conference was shut out of the final Top 25, with both division winners losing in the '09 bowl season.
11. Sun Belt - Troy wins the Sun Belt title, but the Trojans lose in the top bowl for conference bragging rights with a 41-44 loss to Central Michigan, from the MAC, in the GMAC Bowl.

peace

It's time for the BCS Title Game: January 7, 2010

So, will it be the Texas Longhorns, champions of the Big 12, or will it be the Alabama Crimson Tide, champions of the SEC, tonight in the BCS Title Game. Sorry, it's not a National Championship Game, since there is clearly no playoff involved. We would endorse a +2 system for the traditional bowl games and get the BCS back to just influencing #1 vs. #2 at the end of the bowl season.

Citi BCS National Championship Game
BCS #2 Texas (13-0) vs. BCS #1 Alabama (13-0)

Pasadena, California
The Rose Bowl

TV: ABC

ESPN Radio

7 p.m. Central Time

Pick: Texas Longhorns 31, Alabama Crimson Tide 25

BCS Championship pre-game doo-dads: No. 1 vs. 2‎ - Dallas Morning News (blog)
2 in the final poll and an underdog in this BCS title game, but if recent history is any factor, the Longhorns are in exactly the perfect spot. ...

Fox's 4-year BCS deal over as college football's premium bowl ...‎ - Los Angeles Times
BCS title game a family affair for Mack, Watson Brown‎ - Cookeville Herald Citizen

Video: Strategies for winning big game KXAN.com
BCS Championship pre-game doo-dads: No. 1 vs. 2 - Dallas Morning News (blog)
Numbers favoring underdog Longhorns - ESPN (blog)
Wall Street Journal

Boston Globe

peace

The BCS Title Game is one day away; tonight the final non-BSC Bowl, GMAC Bowl, between two conference champions

GMAC Bowl: MAC champion vs. Sun Belt champion

Central Michigan vs. Troy
from Mobile, Ala. and Ladd-Peebles Stadium
Jan. 6 at 6 p.m. Central Time on ESPN

This game is pretty irrelevent on the FBS scale, but it is always nice to see two conference champions playing in a bowl match up. Will anyone really watch it?

Last night at the FedEx Orange Bowl: Iowa 24, Georgia Tech 14

It was a very good year at Georgia Tech‎ - Atlanta Journal Constitution
Georgia Tech ran into a big, athletic defense that had had over 40 days to prepare. When quarterback Ricky Stanzi was healthy, Iowa was the best team in the ...

Post-game notes on Robinson's health, Tarpinian's stealth - Gazette Online (blog)
Iowa's Adam Robinson (32) leaps over Georgia Tech's Mario Butler (2) in the second half of the Orange Bowl on Tuesday, Jan. 5, 2010, at Land Shark Stadium ...

Thursday Night at 7 p.m. Central Time on ABC
Citi BCS National Championship Game

BCS #2 Texas (13-0) vs. BCS #1 Alabama (13-0)
Pasadena, Calif.

Rose Bowl

peace

It's Great to be a Hawkeye: Iowa wins first ever BCS bowl with 24-14 win over Georgia Tech in 2010 Orange Bowl!

What a win for the Iowa Hawkeyes (11-2 for season) with a 24-14 win over Georgia Tech (11-3) in the 2010 Orange Bowl to win first BCS bowl and finish a 11-2 for the second time in school history (2002 season). Iowa dominated Georgia Tech at the line of scrimmage. The Pick 6 by Iowa's QB Ricky Stanzi kept the game close for the Yellow Jackets to end the 1st quarter.

Iowa dominated on the ground, in the air and defensively by controlling the line of scrimmage.

Some articles on the 2010 Orange Bowl: (10) Iowa 24, (9) Georgia Tech 14

Jackets' Orange Bowl sours - AJC
Stymied by Iowa's swarming defense, Georgia Tech found itself out of options...

Schultz: Bowled over -AJC
At the game -AJC
Offense stalls - AJC
Rate the Jackets -AJC

Halftime analysis: Iowa 14, Georgia Tech 7 - ESPN (blog)
Iowa, Georgia Tech looking for redemption in Orange Bowl - USA Today

Iowa beats Ga Tech in Orange Bowl, 24-14‎ - Forbes

Iowa beats Georgia Tech in Orange Bowl, 24-14‎ - Mason City Globe Gazette

peace

Who's picking Iowa to win? We would like to, but when has Iowa ever won a BCS Game?

Time to pick the #10 Iowa (10-2) game in the 2010 Orange Bowl vs. #9 Georgia Tech (11-2) ...

Wow, we would call this game one of the better match ups in the BCS and all the 2009-10 bowls, for that matter. Unless, it turns out one of these teams isn't up to the task.? But, with Iowa's Kirk Ferentz and Georgia Tech's Paul Johnson squaring off, we would be very surprised in this one not going down the wire.

For a good read from the Atlanta paper on the game ...

Orange Bowl: Ga. Tech vs. Iowa
Nesbitt, Dwyer leads Tech's offense against Iowa's stingy defense in tonight's Orange Bowl.
GT stats

Iowa stats

Team stats
GT Blog: Jackets to wear new uniforms tonight

Tony Barnhart » Five burning questions about the Orange Bowl

Iowa Hawkeyes prep for Orange Bowl

If you want the local side here in Cedar Rapids ...

LIVE CHAT: Starts at 6:30 p.m.
Morehouse's keys to Iowa victory
VIDEO: The Hawkeye Hummer
Hawkeyes need to seize this night in Miami
PHOTOS, VIDEO: Hawkeye Huddle
Almost as important as the Rose Bowl

Someone suggested this afternoon that the Line moved, due to Iowa QB Ricky Stanzi being questionable, since he wasn't on The Gazette's two deep? Another rumor has been the health of Iowa RB Adam Robinson. If Iowa is without RB Robinson, we should be really concerned, since Robinson was a huge contributor most of the season and was a clear missing piece in Iowa's first loss.

Keys to the game:

• Special teams - Hard for Iowa to win without doing well here


• The Line of scrimmage - offense, as well as defense


• Either teams rushing attack - can one team control the line of scrimmage?


• Big Plays - always big in bowl games


• Coaching adjustments and preparation - two of the finer head coaches in FBS (Iowa's DC Norm Parker deserves mention, as well)

The absolute key of the game would appear to be Iowa's offense vs. Georgia Tech's defense.

• 69% of those polled by the OrangeBowl organization at 4:14 pm picked Iowa to win.

Of course, if it is based on butts in the seats, it would appear Iowa should be the favorite over Georgia Tech, rather than a four point underdog.

If we played right now, we would say Georgia Tech 28, Iowa 24. Of course, it's hard not to say Iowa by 6 points in a game that should be important for both programs.

The Orange Bowl should be a good football game this evening. It should be competitive and both programs likely will be good candidates to make some noise in 2010, as well.

peace

A little Fiesta tonight, before enjoying the The Orange on Tuesday in the BCS

The 2010 Fiesta Bowl kicks off on Monday, January 4Th at 7 p.m. Central Time on Fox and ESPN Radio in a great match up between two 12-0 conference champions from non-BCS programs from the WAC and the Mountain West.

Tostitos Fiesta

Boise State vs. TCU
from Glendale, Ariz.

U. of Phoenix Stadium

TCU beat Boise State 17-16 in last year's Poinsettia Bowl. So, this should be an interesting rematch, on the field that Bosie State took out Oklahoma a couple years back.

Next: FedEx Orange

Iowa vs. Georgia Tech

peace