Were the stats really lopsided?

[Hawkangler]

A 99 yard kick off return is like a 99 yard drive. Add in Michigan's extra 41 uards in penalties and Michigan only had a two yard difference. The time of possession is skewed because of the KO score. Not to mention our punting flipped the field and pinned them back.

 

[uihawk82]

A 99 yard kick off return is like a 99 yard drive. Add in Michigan's extra 41 uards in penalties and Michigan only had a two yard difference. The time of possession is skewed because of the KO score. Not to mention our punting flipped the field and pinned them back.

You are totally correct to consider all yardage both positive and negative. A long time ago before rules were put in to help the offenses and the passing game when a team got an offensive holding penalty it was almost always a drive killer, and it still is many times. All plays matter.

And of course Mich had two big 15 yard penalties late in that game.

 

[Kirk is God]

Well of course things look better when you add those yards in, but people like offensive yards. Glad we got a coach who emphasizes all 3 phases of the game.

 

[Gonzo_Bloor]

Yeah the "take away the <fill in blank> and they really didn't do much" thing always makes me laugh.

Hey, take away JJ Buchanan and Michigan's offense really didn't do much.

Lol.

 

[EvilMonkeyInTheCloset]

Yeah the "take away the <fill in blank> and they really didn't do much" thing always makes me laugh.

Hey, take away JJ Buchanan and Michigan's offense really didn't do much.

Lol.

Or like saying, "if you take away Jeremiah Smith from Ohio State's offense, then they won't do much because the world deserves to see them lose again, and because f*** Wisconsin, that's why."

Right?

 

[yrunvs]

A 99 yard kick off return is like a 99 yard drive. Add in Michigan's extra 41 uards in penalties and Michigan only had a two yard difference. The time of possession is skewed because of the KO score. Not to mention our punting flipped the field and pinned them back.

It's called Kirk football chess.

 

[HawksRule73]

The 3 stats that have the highest correlation to winning are:

1. Turnover margin - Hawks won that.
2. Special Teams score - Iowa had one, Michigan didn’t.
3. Red zone offensive and defensive efficiency (scoring tds in the red zone while keeping opponent out of end zone) - Iowa was 2/2 scoring TDs in the red zone while holding Michigan to 1/4 TDs in the red zone.

If you’re looking for why Iowa won, that’s why. Yards have almost no correlation to winning.

 

[Outbackbowl2017]

Phil plays a bend, don’t break defense. Meaning keep the play in front of you and gain as many yards as possible but you aren’t going to score is the goal.

 

[UIAlumFireFighter]

The 3 stats that have the highest correlation to winning are:

1. Turnover margin - Hawks won that.
2. Special Teams score - Iowa had one, Michigan didn’t.
3. Red zone offensive and defensive efficiency (scoring tds in the red zone while keeping opponent out of red zone) - Iowa was 2/2 scoring TDs in the red zone while holding Michigan to 1/4 TDs in the red zone.

If you’re looking for why Iowa won, that’s why. Yards have almost no correlation to winning.

There most certainly IS a correlation:

Teams with more offensive yards gained win 70-75% of the time.

That’s part of the reason football analysts are often so bewildered with IOWA winning ball games - We, much more often than not, SUCK on offense. Obviously.

 

[Jonesy5960]

I think what could be said is that Michigan did dominate in the trenches, but (and this seemed inconceivable a few months ago) Iowa made the big plays in all 3 phases needed to win the game. The kickoff return was huge. The stop on Michigan's 4th down was huge. The interception at the 2 yard line was huge. The 2 throws at the end of the game were huge.

 

[uihawk82]

Well of course things look better when you add those yards in, but people like offensive yards. Glad we got a coach who emphasizes all 3 phases of the game.

And what has been the knock on the Big 12 for two decades, all offense and flash and no defense. And it has been proven correct because once the bowl games and national championship games come the Big 12 teams with no defenses just get run over and their high powered offense get stuffed by top defenses.

Iowa is a very tough team, Kirk preaches all 3 phases, he is a little too conservative many times but he has evolved. KF has had some very good offense too especially when a good passing game is had that goes along with the usual good running game.

 

[Kceasthawk@77]

A 99 yard kick off return is like a 99 yard drive. Add in Michigan's extra 41 uards in penalties and Michigan only had a two yard difference. The time of possession is skewed because of the KO score. Not to mention our punting flipped the field and pinned them back.

Certainly Michigan controlled the line of scrimmage, which is a point of emphasis for us. Also most of Iowa's yardage was in the last 9-10 minutes of the game. I did hear a couple of the analysts point out that the KO return did remove one series from our offense as well, which while a valid point, we weren't moving the ball in the first have on offense.

 

[Jonesy5960]

Certainly Michigan controlled the line of scrimmage, which is a point of emphasis for us. Also most of Iowa's yardage was in the last 9-10 minutes of the game. I did hear a couple of the analysts point out that the KO return did remove one series from our offense as well, which while a valid point, we weren't moving the ball in the first have on offense.

With the exception of the first drive where Iowa drove 33 yards to the Michigan 45 yard line and decided to punt on 4th and inches after burning a timeout.

I could sense Kirk's butt cheeks clenching throughout that entire chain of events knowing fully well he was never going to let them run a play.