Iowa had an entire Year to prepare for NDSU

[td577]

No one can tell me Iowa wasn't fully aware a loss could effectively end their season. Sure after the loss they can see some light, but going in the game, the reality is no matter how the rest of the season went, this had to be on their list of games you can't lose. While there is no doubt any team in front of you should be motivation enough, the big picture should be driving the story for anyone who can't get up for a FCS opponent. Motivation was not a factor. It wasn't a factor for Iowa because it is a game they all should of had a complete understanding they could not lose. Motivation wasn't a factor on the Bison side, because they don't play super bowls until January. I am sure they were excited to play, but I didn't see the false starts and other indicators of a team playing like this was their marquee game of the year.

Iowa had enough talent on the field to stay in the ball game for 59 minutes and 54 seconds even though they were getting throttled in the trenches. NDSU is good enough if motivation was extremely offset, the game would have been a blowout. It was just a classic smashmouth beatdown that lead to the last team who had the ball, won.

[BisoninNWMN]

Better team won. FBS fans are too arrogant to admit that they got their asses beat.

[IzzyFlexion]

Iowa also had an entire halftime to make adjustments.

They didn't score in the 1st quarter and were down because of an unusual defensive touchdown.

2nd quarter they scored twice. (2 touchdowns) NDSU gets a goose egg in the 2nd. 4 drives for 84 yards on 21 snaps but punted 4 times.

One theory could be complacence in the locker room at halftime thinking that they had things figured out and would cruise in the 2nd half.

That theory has a big hole in it though as the offensive problems for the Hawkeyes began after their impressive 3 play 83 yard touchdown drive. In their last 2 possessions to end the half (going to throw out the last one being a 1 play kneel down), Iowa ran 6 plays for a net minus 1 yard.

In the entire 2nd half, Iowa ran 20 plays for a net 64 yards!

[ndsubison1]

Thought the Iowa fans were pretty good before and after the game. A couple cocky fans before but had a lot of fans congratulate us. Had a guy at tailgating actually say he thought we were going to win haha

[TBone]

From what I`m seeing NDSU can play anybody. These fbs teams are not that great.

[56BISON73]

While tailgating Friday evening, a young man stopped by our group to talk. He was checking the tailgating areas near the Coralville Comfort Suites, making sure everything looked ok. He worked in the Iowa Athletic Department, we immediately struck up a conversation about Gene Taylor. I commented that, we had heard that Gene had communicated his concern about not taking NDSU lightly. He said that was true and the entire Hawkeye coaching staff did not take this game lightly. He said an example, earlier that week at a team meeting, a Hawkeye Coach asked every person in the room to stand up, if they had a previous National Championp, nobody stood. Then he said, the program coming to play on Saturday has 13, 5 at the D1 level and set a NCAA record, getting 5 consecutive NC'state in a row. He said you could of heard a pin drop in that room after he said that. No way the Hawkeyes looked past NDSU, they knew exactly who was coming to town.

Great post.

[Professor Chaos]

This week must be Rutgers Super Bowl also...

[BisonAccountant44]

I've always hated the "it was their Super Bowl" excuse because our Super Bowl is in Frisco.

At the same time though, there is no way these games don't mean a little extra to our guys. Even the coaches, when I read in the JK book about how much time they put in through the entire off season game planning for K State and then seeing the difference in this team between games 1-2 & 3 it makes a guy think that mage have been the case again and maybe there is a little more to it than the 0 credit I'd like to give the excuse, but not a lot more.

[56BISON73]

On the Hawkeye board you read . . . This was NDSU's Super Bowl, they only have to get up for 1 game a year, we were flat, this is lose-lose, doesn't matter to Iowa, they won but are still irrelevant, we should have bought the game out, etc, etc.

Iowa has been hearing about this game for 2+ years. Jim Delaney and Barry Alverez had to be speaking directly with Iowa and Ferentz telling them it's time to finally shut up these little FCS upstarts. Two former NDSU folks on the Iowa staff. Iowa, how do you not get up for this Game?!! The whole B1G had to loving the fact that one of their champs and best teams would finally shut up NDSU and destroy the Bison.

To me, the fact that the B1G was finally going to put the best of the FCS in its place was the stronger force. No way that NDSU would once again sneak up on an FBS opponent. That is what NDSU overcame. What the hell happened Iowa?

You certainly cant be under the impression that the Iowa players or any team for that matter prepares 2 years for 1 team and 1 game?
What happened is pretty simple. We out played them.

[VirginiaBison]

Well Iowa "bounced" back after their flat 34 yard running game against the Bison to 198 running yards against Rutgers.

For a while the Iowa-Rutgers game in the 4th quarter seemed eerily similar to the NDSU game.