The Iowa Hawkeyes 2008-09 Season: What Is It Worth?

This Saturday the Iowa Hawkeyes host third-ranked Penn State. This game is interesting to me for two reasons. First of all, since the BCS standings have been announced, every top undefeated team is ripe for an upset. Second of all, what does this game mean to the Iowa Hawkeyes' 2008 season?

What does it really matter, in the Kirk Ferentz era, if the Hawkeyes play in The Liberty Bowl? To the coaches, does it mean another year of job security? If they beat Penn State, it's going to ruin the Big Ten's only shot at playing for a national championship. If the Big Ten wants to start gaining back some respect nationally, it's going to have put its best team against a USC/Alabama-type and inject some of the flavor back into Big Ten football.

Part of the Hawkeyes' problem is the whole BCS/playoff issues that have been haunting college football since the beginning of time. That's a whole other issue and the only thing I can say about that is the GOP should look into the powers at be of college football and even they could learn a thing or two about spin control from them. Karl Rove has nothing on Myles Brand. 

Back to Iowa, it isn't having a bad season by any means. Expectations weren't too high, but they did start out 3-0, beating Iowa State. Doesn't it seem like every year the Hawkeyes start off ranked or with high expectations, Iowa State seems to come in and upset them and dash the hopes for the rest of the season? (I think this annual game needs to be reconsidered, saving that for another blog spot.)

The Hawkeyes head over to a streaky Pittsburgh team and lose a gut-wrenching game by one point. They proceed to lose the next two games to Northwestern (inexcusable) and Michigan State by a combined eight points and finally finish up last week by losing to Illinois by three points. Season is over, no Big Ten title.

I mean, that's essentially all the Big Ten teams can play for anymore, right? There is no championship game, nothing left to play for except for draft status for the players and whatever prestige the Motor City Bowl could possibly bring. 

At some point, Iowa is going to have to get over the hump with Ferentz or go in another direction. The Hawkeyes have extremely passionate football fans, so expectations need to be higher and games need to matter at this point of the season every year, or at least once every five years.