Wednesday, September 28, 2022

Wolverine Wednesday: Ian and Iowa Fool's Gold

On a personal note, Hurricane Ian is about to hit land in Florida later today.  I live on the other side of the state and we don't expect to get a direct hit. (We are already having strong wind and rain) By the time the storm gets north and east it is supposed to be a tropical storm.  With that said, I could lose power and Wi-Fi and won't be able to post. Hopefully, the power stays on!  If I'm dark for the Iowa game, I just may lose my mind! 😃


Michigan recently played Iowa in the Big Ten Championship in Indy and won 42-3.  Thinking that will happen again is fool's gold.   Michigan in that game put up 250 yards passing and 210 yards on the ground.  The Michigan defense gave up 3 points in the first quarter and not a single point the rest of the game.  Michigan scored 14 in the first quarter, 7 in the 3rd, and 21 in the 4th and gave Iowa their most lopsided loss of the year. 

So, what's the difference?

  1. That game was on a neutral field full of Wolverine fans 
  2. Michigan was just off the high of beating OSU 
  3. Iowa was on 4 game win streak prior to facing Michigan 
  4. Michigan lost playmakers on defense to the NFL 
  5. Michigan had coordinator turnover 
  6. Late in the Big Ten Season vs. now early in the season
  7. Maryland gave them some great "tape" from last weekend

In my opinion, Michigan took the field twice this year and didn't respect their opponents.  It happened against Colorado State and last week against Maryland.  Maybe the fumbled kickoff had something to do with that?  Either way, that is a concern for me going into this game.   

Yes, this is Michigan's first road game and Iowa is a very difficult place to play.   So that should be front and center in the player's mind.  On the flip side, Michigan did just roll them 6 games ago and Iowa's offense has struggled to score any points against anybody this year.   Getting this team focused will be job #1 for the coaches this week. 

On a side note: Iowa played Colorado State last season and won 24-14.

  • Iowa will be without starting linebacker Jestin Jacobs for the rest of the year.  Jacobs got injured in the Rutgers game and will require surgery. 

7 comments:

Brady2017 said...

Execute and we will be fine. J.J. will need to make quicker reads and be confident in his feet. Atmosphere will be great and UM plans on waving at the hospital patients. They will also wave goodbye to the Hawkeyes. UM- 24, Iowa- 10.

Brady2017 said...

If Donovan Edwards is back, make it UM- 27, Iowa 10. Go Blue!

Brady2017 said...

For all my gambling friends, safe bet in this one is to take the under. Total point line is 42.5 right now. Unless Iowa's defense gets stuck in a corn maze, this should be a grind it out, knock down, drag out affair. (Jimmy likes those!)

Goblu said...

Good luck with Ian, Bob. My mom lives near Ft. Meyers, and think they are ground zero for landfall. Fingers crossed for all.

What I'm looking for in this game is how JJ reacts to the below-par game last week. Does he move/run more, are his downfield passes better, etc. Don't see IA letting us run +200 yards, so pass game needs to be solid.

MichiganMan said...

Guys those are all good predictions. I am still nervous about this game. I will not watch it live since, I have a business obligation. I will record and only watch the game if know the final outcome is a positive for the GOOD GUYS!!

Bob, please stay safe and away from any glass doors/windows.

Blue for life
Fire Don Brown from UMASS!!

Tim said...

Bob - your family is in my thoughts and prayers.

Go Blue!

szanreno said...

Hope you fared the storm with the best of them. I was pulling for you. She was a tough ole gal. God's speed Bob...