I don't know about health status. Recent fumble doesn't elevate him in the coaches' eyes, I'm sure.

It's fair to question me on my holding up Irons as being potentially terrific.

I went on two things. A little bit I went on his apparent size (big!) and speed.

The other thing is that one of the regulars here pm'd me that one of the coaches stated that he has All-American ability.

It's natural for our coaches our players. The coaches brought them in and want to believe their own powers of recruiting/analysis and want to keep the players believing in themselves. So, there's a bit of conflict of interest in what they say about the team and players, apparently.

I mean, no one's heard much of our coaches knocking guys talent or effort, right?

Then, there's the overall credibility of our coaches given their lack of achievement (deadhorse warning: record built on wins over cupcakes..hey, we can beat 1-7 Buffalo this week...and crashing losses to peer MAC teams over the last 4 years).

I shouldn't have so whole-heartedly bought the Irons hope...not until proven more on the field.



(I still believe that he should have gotten more opps to prove it or not on the field last season, though.)

Irons has looked much improved when he has been healthy, unfortunately he has had a couple injuries. I haven't heard anything specific about this latest injury, but I'm sure we will see more of him this year

My x's and o's guy at Peden agrees, Billy. Pad level, lowering the shoulders, is something Irons still needs to improve on.

I agree that this is an area where he still needs to improve, but to me it seems that he has improved in this regard from a year ago. He seems to be running lower, and with some forward lean this year, whereas a year ago he was more upright, and often got knocked down easily when he was in heavy traffic.

If so, how can this be true mid-way into a guy's third year?

Three years to learn to run lower, with pads down--seriously?


There's something wrong here, either player or coaching...or both.

Sometimes we fans ask for the moon. We have a fairly fast 6', 224# RB. Remember, to get something you have to give something. No doubt they have worked on lower, but, as you get the bigger, stronger and faster often the lower is given. Be quick, be low, sometimes it is one or the other not both.

You do all you can to say the coaches are terrible. You backed irons because he wasn't playing much and you could say the coaches don't know what they're doing. Irons is a good back, we all love him, but we don't use anything we can to undermine the coaches credibility. Just part of your crusade.

Some thought he was ready to be the starter a year ago, but others thought that, while he had talent, he needed time to adjust to Division I. He has continued to improve, and it seems to me that the coaches have a pretty good handle on what he needs to do to get better, and when he is not hurt, they are getting him enough carries for him to continue to progress.

I love Irons and want to see more of him. His health is key to finishing the season strong.

I will repeat: Running back, heck football in general, is not so difficult that it should take so very long to learn.


The thought that it could take 2.5 years or longer to learn to run lower to the ground is simply laughable.

If we can't get it done in 2.5 years, then there's a problem. A very big and fundamental problem.


I'm sure that teaching this one simple thing is so complicated that it would take a genius such as Nick Saban or Urban Meyer to get it done.


I'll buy that people disagree with me on other stuff. But this one is ludicrous. I won't come close to believing it.

If it takes 2.5 years, heck it may take six years...and never happen.




There is no one on this board who couldn't get it done over half a season.

I thought it was interesting to see Irons in for one play--used as a decoy. That was the play where Papi got to the Toledo 4 yard line. It was called back on a blocking penalty. That play, if it stood, would have iced the game for Ohio (assuming we score from the 4 yard line). Why was Irons used only as a decoy? Is he still injured?

On a side note, the penalty was totally unnecessary. Big lineman (can't remember who) cuts a DB below the waist. It was away from the play. The DB had no real chance to stop the play. The lineman outsized the DB by so much, it was even more unnecessary. Why cut someone like that when you outweigh him by 75-100 pounds?

That was a frustrating penalty but I wouldn't be too hard on the player. Isn't that a recent rule change that that block is illegal? Unless I'm mistaken cut blocking has been historically used by OLs vs. the second level a lot and those would all be cases where the blocker outweighs the defender.

(Edit: I'm not sure I remember the play correctly. Was the illegal part that the OL was blocking from the side, or that he was blocking back toward the LOS? It's the toward the LOS aspect that was the rule change language added in 2013 says "4. Players not covered in paragraph 1 (above) may not block below the waist toward the original position of the ball at the snap.")

In this case, the way I remember it is that the blocker was facing away from the play (hard for the OL to tell that the defender couldn't still make the tackle), and the defender was facing the blocker -- so it wasn't dirty. To be contrasted with, say, the cut block on Idris Lawrence that ended his Ohio career. Which still infuriates me when I think about it.