RATT and on the record - Tim Lester as OC

[L. Wade Childress]

Everything is exactly the same.

 

[BBK]

The median in FBS football was 27.1 PPG. That should be the goal.

We scored 15.4 PPG last season

 

[demmert4]

No but Blair has basically said it’s happening.

Kirk has to be the only coach in the conference that consistently hires coaches for positions they’ve never coached before.

 

[The Full Monte]

if Kirk trots Bacon out to start one game he should be fired and every Hawk victory he coached should be vacated

This is why none of this matters at all. Kirk is still going to fall in love with a fat dipshit QB and refuse to allow any change to be made.

 

[Fletch]

The fool me once adage comes to mind here but in the end I decided to double down on my optimism for this hire like I did for Brian back in the day. The definition of success needs to be clarified though imo.

I think he will be clearly better than Brian and will be able to successfully evaluate and potentially develop the QB position.
I do not think he will be initially successful in putting together an offensive scheme that is tailored to our talent but am optimistic that he can learn. I predict year 1 will be somewhere in the 80 ranking of total offense in terms of PPG/YardsPG and am hopeful that by year 2-3 of his tenure he may have us in the top half of production.

It is becoming clearer that due to stubborn adherence to some unwritten rule on staff compensation that he is likely at best our 3-5 choice and that is very disconcerting and continues to grow my desire for an end to the KF era.

 

[Thomas Wolsey]

Bring it in!

 

[Bob Sanders]

I suspect Mo is going to be on par with GDGD and Kirk’s son. Well look back at his 2-3 yr tenure, Kirk’s exit into retirement, and think of what might have been with our top 20 defense.

This is a really stupid post. Brian was way worse that GDGD (and KOK), they aren't even remotely comparable.

 

[KitKatApples]

Kerky rules

 

[Kamala]

To be “successful” he need to be above the 33rd percentile in scoring the first year and 50th percentile after that

 

[kmurp]

This is a really stupid post. Brian was way worse that GDGD (and KOK), they aren't even remotely comparable.

He does have to work with Brian’s recruits though, and that makes his job harder.

 

[Gushawk]

I’d sign up for #80 in blood.

 

[HiawathaHawk]

Some clips of their RPO stuff with his explanations.

 

[HiawathaHawk]

 

[WizardHawk]

This is a really stupid post. Brian was way worse that GDGD (and KOK), they aren't even remotely comparable.

This is really stupid too. I never compared them. Was more of a simple blanket statement regarding the offensive shortcomings under both. Sorry I didn’t spell it out.

 

[Bob Sanders]

I don't play the predicting results game, but I do have a few predictions about how the offense will look.

Lester is a run leaning RPO guy and he was hired to run his offense. We're going to see a bunch of pistol formation RPOs and he's going to mix in more 2 TE sets than he usually does, but it's going to be his offense. I don't think TE usage in the past is a huge concern because TEs with blocking/receiving skills are a good fit in every offense. You just don't get many good ones at the MAC level.

I'm simply not buying into the fear that he will have to throw away his playbook and run the same stuff Brian was running, it simply doesn't make any sense because there's no indication that Lester has run anything other than RPO offenses out of the pistol or shotgun. The only thing I see KF drawing a line in the sand on is uptempo stuff and he's 100% right on that point.

KF's preferred way to run the ball (stretch play) was already basically abandoned in 2023 because it hasn't been working for years and they were flailing around trying to find anything that worked. The 2023 Iowa run game was completely unrecognizable compared to what we saw in the early Brian era and the GD era. Way more gap blocking and the number of shotgun runs went from nonexistent to a common part of the offense. Brian just sucks as a coordinator and the QB position was a disaster so the changes didn't fix stuff.

I have concerns about Lester. I think his results are a bit up and down and I don't like the apparent meltdown season at the end of his time at WMU. Time will tell if he has learned from those issues.

I don't have concerns about the style of play. When you look at his ideal season, 2021, that's exactly what you want from an Iowa offense. Kirk should have switched to Lester's preferred style of play like 5 years ago.

Their 2021 season included a road win over a Pitt team that finished 11-3.

 

[Bob Sanders]

This is really stupid too. I never compared them. Was more of a simple blanket statement regarding the offensive shortcomings under both. Sorry I didn’t spell it out.

Yes, you were comparing them. Putting Brian and GD in the same sentence is completely ridiculous.

 

[2HawkFans]

I voted NO because the current roster probably isn't going to make that possible. I also imagine it will take a bit of time to show potential recruits that things have changed to make Iowa more attractive. Plus there wasn't any criteria on what successful actually meant and Halo can have a high bar at times.

But after the past few seasons, I think we see better production on offense. With this D and ST it's enough to keep winning more games than we're losing. I trying to stay optimistic that brighter times are ahead.

 

[douglasbader]

If he can be even mildly competent Iowa will be in the playoff this year.

QB obviously the biggest question, but the OL will be improved. The RB's are more than good enough. The TE's are studs. WR's aren't great, but they are the best they have been since 2020.

Defense should be motivated, angry and ready to fuck skulls. Kicker and Punter are a question, but guessing that LeVar will have them figured out.

 

[Hawk&Balls]

If he can be even mildly competent Iowa will be in the playoff this year.

QB obviously the biggest question, but the OL will be improved. The RB's are more than good enough. The TE's are studs. WR's aren't great, but they are the best they have been since 2020.

Defense should be motivated, angry and ready to fuck skulls. Kicker and Punter are a question, but guessing that LeVar will have them figured out.

who is WR after Brown and Anderson? (not that it matters)

 

[Verbal]

 

[douglasbader]

who is WR after Brown and Anderson? (not that it matters)

Bostick, the usual stable of white try-hards like (Wetjen / Wick) and then some freshman that supposedly have talent like Jarriett Buie and KJ Parker.

The hope is that maybe they can pull one more portal guy after spring ball.

 

[sergeanthulka]

Bostick, Buie, Dayton Howard, Wetjen, Alex Mota, & a bunch of crackers I won't name.

 

[Hawkstrat]

Bostick, Buie, Dayton Howard, Wetjen, Alex Mota, & a bunch of crackers I won't name.

I bet they already have names.

 

[Gushawk]

Looking at the schedule, 9-3 seems most likely with the auto loss in Columbus, imo. That’s in the mix but likely a little shy.

 

[Mr. Hawk]

I bet they already have names.

likely first names ending in "en" or "yn".

 

[Bob Sanders]

QB obviously the biggest question, but the OL will be improved. The RB's are more than good enough. The TE's are studs. WR's aren't great, but they are the best they have been since 2020.

They need to go all in on Lainez this spring and then go get a portal guy in the spring if he isn't good enough. There has to be two guys ready to play because Cade is an injury waiting to happen.

 

[sergeanthulka]

They need to go all in on Lainez this spring and then go get a portal guy in the spring if he isn't good enough. There has to be two guys ready to play because Cade is an injury waiting to happen.

And if we're going heavy RPO, then Bacon & Cade aren't suited well for that style anyway. (Bacon not really being suited for ANY style).

 

[Bob Sanders]

And if we're going heavy RPO, then Bacon & Cade aren't suited well for that style anyway. (Bacon not really being suited for ANY style).

Why is Cade not suited for RPOs? RPOs generally don't involved QBs running the ball, the option is either handing the ball off or passing.

 

[Glen]

likely first names ending in "en" or "yn".

We going to have a problem?

 

[Gushawk]

Cade would be fine at RPO if he wasn’t made of glass. It’s mostly about quick and good decision making and accuracy on short to medium throws.

 

[Verbal]

They didn't score a touchdown over the last ten quarters of the season, and got humiliated in the Big Ten title game and the bowl. The defense will be dispirited if the '24 campaign begins in anything resembling the same manner. I'll give Lester a shot, but he's got his work cut out for him and I am skeptical he's up to the task.

 

[Gushawk]

There is no suitable scheme for Bacon and he needs to be encouraged in the strongest terms possible to GTFO.

 

[OlePeep]

I'm not reading all those charts and analysis but wouldn't Lt. Dan and Bacon both be ill-suited for Lester's preferred scheme?

scooped, leaving it

 

[Shawneemicks]

Iowa isn’t running rpo offense folks. Get real

 

[Verbal]

I would be unsurprised to learn that willingness to run a scheme that fits Bacon's skills (lol) was part of the final decision on the hire.

 

[Fletch]

Shawnee has had e-gotdamn-nough of this RPO talk.

 

[L. Wade Childress]

It WONT be LaDarius, Zahir, Mareyohn, or Trae.

might be Jaxon.

 

[Gushawk]

at least the candidate’s receptiveness to keeping fatty was quite possibly a consideration

 

[sergeanthulka]

Why is Cade not suited for RPOs? RPOs generally don't involved QBs running the ball, the option is either handing the ball off or passing.

The threat of the QB run is certainly a nice arrow in the proverbial RPO quiver.

 

[Fletch]

The threat of the QB run is certainly a nice arrow in the preverbial RPO quiver.

RPO isn’t the “option”

 

[Fletch]

Oh, and *proverbial

 

[sergeanthulka]

RPO isn’t the “option”

Huh?

 

[sergeanthulka]

Oh, and *proverbial

Looks like I spelled it right to me. Did you eff it up?

 

[Fletch]

Looks like I spelled it right to me. Did you eff it up?

No. Your ninja edit was denied.

 

[sergeanthulka]

No. Your ninja edit was denied.

I didn't edit shit.

 

[thrawn]

Huh?

Run (handoff) Pass Option

RPO doesnt’t require a QB run

 

[douglasbader]

I think my favorite lol thing about the RPO teams is how it makes the QB a certain kind of robot that even when a team is running a 2 minute drill at the end of the game with an empty backfield, they will still instinctively fake the initial handoff to air no matter what is going on.

 

[sergeanthulka]

Run (handoff) Pass Option

RPO doesnt’t require a QB run

I didn't say that it did.

I'm suggesting it's pretty advantageous, however. And moreso than the in the play-action / drop back scheme we've had.

 

[Mr. Hawk]

Based on the bowl game, non-fat Fat Marco could run an effective RPO, imo.

 

[AZmessDAWG]

They didn't score a touchdown over the last ten quarters of the season, and got humiliated in the Big Ten title game and the bowl. The defense will be dispirited if the '24 campaign begins in anything resembling the same manner. I'll give Lester a shot, but he's got his work cut out for him and I am skeptical he's up to the task.

Yes the defense will be dispirited. Great take.