Tag: Iowa State Football

A look at where the CBS Sports 133 rankings place the Hawkeyes, Cyclones

Ahead of the annual Cy-Hawk date, CBS Sports released its national ranking for each in its CBS Sports 133 rankings.

A lot of rivalries often play closer games than records, analysis, and what the on-paper reports say. Those don’t account for the emotion and the extra juice rivalry games bring out of teams and coaches.

The Cy-Hawk game between the Iowa Hawkeyes and the Iowa State Cyclones is no different. Although Iowa is favored, it is not by much at all. While Vegas favors the Hawkeyes, ESPN leans the other way with their matchup predictor taking the Cyclones.

With both teams 1-0, they head into this matchup looking to start the season on a two-game run of wins. The Hawkeyes want to take back the rivalry while the Cyclones want to try and build a winning streak of their own.

As kickoff looms, CBS Sports has their rankings of these teams as well. Their CBS Sports 133 ranks every team in college football from one all the way to, you guessed it, 133.

While some other outlets such as the Associated Press and US LBM Coaches Poll don’t slot the Hawkeyes in their top 25 this week, CBS has followed suit with Hawkeyes coming in as the nation’s No. 26 team. This is a one-spot drop.

Although Iowa State went 1-0, their win came against an FCS program, the University of Northern Iowa. The Cyclones are a bit behind the Hawkeyes and sit as the No. 60 ranked team. This is just a one-spot climb for the Cyclones.

A win for the Hawkeyes could do wonders to get them ranked among the polls as it would be a road Power Five victory. Iowa State could use this win to catapult them up and continue their climb before conference play in the Big 12.

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Seth Anderson embraces Cy-Hawk rivalry ahead of first meeting

Iowa wide receiver Seth Anderson is embracing the Cy-Hawk rivalry ahead of his first career appearance in it.

Seth Anderson may have just recently acquainted himself with Iowa football, but he’s already embracing one of the Hawkeyes’ biggest rivalries.

Anderson isn’t your typical Iowa homegrown recruit. He didn’t grow up in the Hawkeye State around the big Cy-Hawk rivalry. A Georgia native, the sophomore actually spent his first year at Charleston Southern.

He doesn’t have any previous connections to the battle between Iowa and Iowa State. Anderson’s teammates have gotten him up to speed on the rivalry.

“I heard it’s a big deal, you know, I heard we don’t have our trophy, so we’re going to work to get that back this week for sure. So yeah, it’s going to be good,” Anderson said.

Looking ahead to his first battle for the Cy-Hawk Trophy, the son of NFL wide receiver Flipper Anderson is already having some fun.

“I heard it’s going to be pretty toxic, a pretty toxic environment,” commented Anderson with his signature smile about Jack Trice stadium during a recent media availability. “It’s going to be loud and you live for that, so it’s going to be fun.”

Anderson experienced a heated college rivalry his first season at Charleston Southern. He very nonchalantly stated that ECU fans hurled cans at him and his teammates. Of course, that didn’t seem to faze Anderson one bit.

When asked what he’s seen on film from Iowa State, Anderson delivered the real fireworks.

“A lot of opportunity,” Anderson said.

In what way?

“In a good way,” Anderson responded with a smile.

It drew a chuckle from the media in attendance and adds a little trash talk into the equation for the contest this weekend.

Anderson started at wide receiver in the season debut against Utah State last week. He caught two passes for 41 yards, including the first Hawkeye touchdown of the season on a 36-yard reception from quarterback Cade McNamara.

“A lot of improvements to be made. It’s only up from here. You know, it was Week 1, so it’s a good start I think,” Anderson said of his first appearance in the black and gold.

Anderson and the Hawkeye offense will look to carry the momentum from the win into Saturday when they play rival Iowa State at 2:30 p.m. on Fox.

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Tory Taylor pokes fun at Iowa State fans ahead of Cy-Hawk clash

Insert sarcasm. Tory Taylor can’t wait to see the “humble” and “modest” Iowa State fans again this weekend.

Few Iowa Hawkeyes can give as good of a glimpse into the feeling of playing at Jack Trice Stadium as punter Tory Taylor. The most popular punter in America had some fun with the Iowa State fanbase ahead of the Hawkeyes’ clash with the Cyclones on Saturday.

“Well I can really just remember I guess how humble and modest their fans are out there,” Taylor commented, his thick Australian accent struggling to mask the sarcasm in his voice. “It’s a pretty nice place to play. It’s not like there’s 8-year-olds hanging over the fence, giving you the rude finger or anything like that. So yeah, excited to go back there and enjoy such a pleasant environment.”

It should be noted that while mostly deadpan through that entire statement, a smile did start to break through at the very end. With some fun out of the way, Taylor spoke candidly about what the upcoming contest means to him.

“All jokes aside, it’s probably my favorite game of the year. My favorite game that I’ve probably ever played was at Iowa State a couple of years ago. It was obviously a big matchup, which it is every year. Every game is pretty big, but, yeah, that was a fun game.

“I’m very excited. Just looking forward to going back out there, because didn’t really have that good of a game this past weekend, so looking to rectify a few things,” Taylor said.

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Iowa State starting RB Jirehl Brock leaves team amidst gambling investigation

Jirehl Brock, Iowa State’s starting running back and a key part of the Cyclones’ offense, has left the team amid the gambling investigation.

The annual Cy-Hawk rivalry game between the Iowa Hawkeyes and Iowa State Cyclones could be surrounded by some new storylines that continue to bubble up among each roster. Those storylines are the ongoing investigations that allege players on each roster made bets involving their own teams and teams within their universities.

The newest athlete involved is Iowa State starting running back Jirehl Brock. Brock has also been charged with tampering with records and is accused of making over 1,300 bets which are said to include Iowa State football games. News broke that Brock has chosen to voluntarily leave the team due to the investigation.

While this is an ongoing investigation, there are steep consequences should Brock be found to have placed bets on his own team. If Brock is found to have bet on the Cyclones while playing, he could be punished with permanent loss of eligibility from the NCAA.

Jirehl Brock has tallied 158 carries for 713 yards and four touchdowns as a member of the Cyclones. He was slated to be the starting running back and bring the most experience to the backfield.

Iowa State’s backfield now turns to a committee of talented, albeit young, backs to carry the load. Cartevious Norton is a sophomore that ran for 312 yards on 87 carries last year. Eli Sanders is a redshirt sophomore that had 47 carries for 197 yards.

For Iowa, it started with a trio of current and former Hawkeye players charged with tampering with records. That group featured backup kicker Aaron Blom, former Iowa baseball player Gehrig Christensen and former Iowa men’s basketball player Ahron Ulis.

In the weeks since, four more current or former members of the Iowa football program have been charged with tampering with records related to the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation’s probe into sports gambling.

That group includes junior walk-on wide receiver Jack Johnson and student manager Owen O’Brien. Former Hawkeye wide receiver Arland Bruce IV and former Iowa defensive back Reggie Bracy are also among those four. Bruce transferred to Oklahoma State, while Bracy transferred to Troy.

Iowa State’s starting quarterback Hunter Dekkers is accused of placing bets on his own team and it is alleged that he placed these bets while under Iowa’s legal betting age of 21.

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Swinney gives his take on gambling issues in college football

In light of recent stories on gambling in college football and the NFL, Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney gave his thoughts on the matter.

As the market and popularity of sports gambling grows, there has been a surge of recent cases involving athletes violating gambling policies and facing punishments.

Earlier this month, one Iowa football player and two Iowa State football players were implicated in a gambling investigation. Since the initial report, four more Iowa State players and three more Iowa players have been charged, according to ESPN. There have also been several NFL players suspended for gambling on NFL games over the last few years.

In light of the gambling issues in sports, Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney touched on how he and his program ensure players are educated on the gambling policy.

“If you gamble, you’re going to be done; You can’t gamble on college sports; you just can’t do it,” Swinney said on Wednesday. “It’s a pretty straightforward message. Any time something happens, that’s just something we always do, whether it’s college football, pro football or just something stupid in the world going on, we send that to our players.”

“We all learn from our own experiences, whether good or bad, mistakes or whatever. But wise people learn from others, mistakes and successes,” Swinney added. “We’ve talked about it a lot. It’s a sad situation. You can’t do it. You can, but you jeopardize your opportunity to play. Gotta make the right decisions.”

Swinney added that he wouldn’t be opposed to releasing more frequent injury reports to help alleviate any possible external pressures for coaches and players to leak information for gambling purposes.

The NCAA’s rules “prohibit participation in sports wagering activities and from providing information to individuals involved in or associated with any type of sports wagering activities concerning intercollegiate, amateur or professional athletics competition.” These rules mean that no collegiate athlete may participate in sports gambling, including fantasy leagues, March Madness tournament brackets and online sports betting.

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Iowa State betting scandal adds another likely win to Texas’ schedule

While Iowa State looked to be a likely upset, the recent betting scandal tips the scales toward Texas.

The Iowa State Cyclones are in the midst of controversy. The Cyclones and Iowa Hawkeyes are catching heat for betting on contests including the head-to-head Cy-Hawk game on the football field. The news is a black eye on college football and Iowa State.

Iowa State quarterback Hunter Dekkers headlines the list of players. After video displayed Dekkers appearing to accept a $500 bet that his team would beat an opponent, it’s unlikely Texas will face the Cyclones quarterback in 2023.

Earlier this offseason, I predicted the Cyclones would defeat the Longhorns as one of the team’s two losses. At this point, it’s not happening. For that reason we’re entertaining an 11-win season for the Longhorns though we have pushed back against that win total.

The likely dismissal of Dekkers negates whatever advantage the Iowa State defense would have over Texas. And while you might expect Texas to score in the mid-to-low 20s or lower like they have over the last four seasons, the Cyclones offense could score 10 points or less.

There’s plenty that could occur over the next month but it looks like the schedule sets up for a breakout season for Texas.

How the Longhorns match up with every 2023 opponent

Texas has the matchup edge in several games. We dive into matchups for every game.

The Texas Longhorns begin their 2023 campaign in just under seven weeks. The team takes on the Rice Owls to start the season on Sept. 2.

Matchups determine results of games. That bodes well for the Longhorns heading into the season. Several position groups for the team are built to overpower their opposition. It all begins at receiver.

Texas has five indefensible wide receivers. Xavier Worthy, Ja’Tavion Sanders and Jordan Whittington return as the most proven, while AD Mitchell and Isaiah Neyor bring some of the most unrealized upside.

Other position groups can hold their own and morph into the mechanism necessary to negate their opponents. The Texas secondary fits that description with several veteran playmakers and elite up-and-comers.

Let’s look at how the team matches up against its 2023 opponents.

Bold potential Big 12 upset picks for every week of the 2023 season

We look at 14 potential earth shattering upsets that could wreck the Big 12 football season.

The last two seasons have come with significant surprises in college football. The Big 12 has been no stranger to such surprises. TCU went from 5-7 to a national title game in 2022. A year earlier the Baylor Bears went from 2-7 during covid season to 12-win Big 12 champions.

Individual upsets are more common in college football. Last season saw Appalachian State upset preseason top-10 Texas A&M in Aggieland. The game upended whatever recruiting momentum the Aggies secured from an upset victory over Alabama a year prior.

More upsets are on the horizon. The Big 12 could be in the center of several of those upsets. The Texas Longhorns will be favored in nearly every game, so essentially any of their losses would be deemed an upset. Nevertheless the other teams in the conference are not immune to surprise losses.

Here’s a look at a potential Big 12 upset loss for every week of the 2023 season.

Trio of Iowa opponents tabbed as bounce back candidates

It’s bounce back season. At least according to 247Sports anyways. A trio of Iowa foes made the cut for their top 10 bounce back candidates.

The Iowa Hawkeyes will be looking for a bit of a bounce back in 2023 after a middling offense held them out of the Big Ten Championship game. However, they certainly will not be the only Power 5 program seeking a bit of redemption after a down year.

Three of Iowa’s opponents for the 2023 season were featured in Grant Hughes’ 10 teams most likely to bounce back for 247Sports.

That group starts out with chief rival Iowa State.

The Cyclones finished 4-8 last season, but six of those losses came in one-score games, including a one-point loss to Big 12 Champion Kansas State in Week 6. Ball protection is a point of emphasis after ranking 103rd nationally with 23 turnovers last season, and improvements are expected with Nate Scheelhaase taking over at coordinator and quarterback Hunter Dekkers entering year two as the starter. – Hughes, 247Sports.

This sounds very similar to the argument for Nebraska last year. Many proclaimed them to be the “greatest 3-9 team of all time” after their 2021 season. If just a few plays went differently they would have finished with a winning record, and certainly that would be the case in 2022, right? Wrong. Scott Frost was fired and Nebraska was a mediocre 4-8.

They did beat Iowa to keep the Hawkeyes out of the Big Ten Championship game, though, so do with that what you will.

Speaking of Nebraska, they also were featured on this list.

The Huskers have not been to a bowl game since 2015, but new head coach Matt Rhule is looking to flip the script in 2023. Nebraska returns a whopping 16 starters from last season’s team and added 12 players in the portal, including former Georgia Tech quarterback Jeff Sims, who is projected to be a top 10 quarterback in the Big Ten next season. – Hughes, 247Sports.

I think there’s certainly more reason to be excited about the Cornhuskers this year than last year. What a lot of people forgot heading into 2022 was that they still had Scott Frost at the helm. Now Matt Rhule is in charge, and while his team in the NFL was not great, it’s undeniable how good he is at the college level. Jeff Sims is also intriguing. The idea of returning 16 starters sounds great, but those are 16 starters from a 4-8 squad.

Finishing out the list of Iowa opponents projected to have a bounce back year is the Michigan State Spartans. The Spartans were probably the biggest disappointment in the Big Ten last year, going 5-7 after an 11-2 record in the 2021 season.

Michigan State hosts Central Michigan and Richmond to open the season and has manageable Big Ten matchups with Maryland, Rutgers, Nebraska and Indiana, softening the blow of facing Michigan, Ohio State and Penn State down the stretch.

The Spartans endured repeated blows in the transfer portal, losing quarterback Payton Thorne to Auburn and wide receiver Keon Coleman to Florida State but have enough talent remaining on the roster to avoid missing back-to-back bowl games for the first time since 2005-06. – Hughes, 247Sports.

Yeah, that didn’t do a ton to convince me to buy into Michigan State either. We all know the portal struggles they had. They also lost two of those “manageable” Big Ten matchups last year and only beat Rutgers by six.

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Ranking the Iowa Hawkeyes’ five most important games in 2023 and why

Iowa has a good draw with its 2023 schedule. It’s still the Big Ten, though. Here are the Hawkeyes’ five most important games.

Spring ball is over. The summer workouts are about to get underway. College football isn’t as far away as it may feel right now. We are about four months out from the opening kickoff for many teams on Saturday, Sept. 2.

The Iowa Hawkeyes are looking for 2023 to be a season where fresh faces, incoming transfers, and returning stars look to turn the corner and get this team back to Indianapolis for the Big Ten Championship game.

Iowa does get a favorable schedule this year as they avoid both the Michigan Wolverines and the Ohio State Buckeyes. That sets up nicely, but, in exchange, some of the Hawkeyes’ key games do require them to go on the road.

The Big Ten West has seen changes this offseason with a multitude of new head coaches and transfer quarterbacks. How does that impact Iowa? Can the Hawkeyes navigate the Big Ten West and be in the conversation late in the year like they expect? Here are the five most important games in 2023 for the Iowa Hawkeyes and why.

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