The Career of J.D. Clark (NCAA 14)

[Hellisan]

2021: Season Overview





2021/2022: The 2021 season begins on page 114. In a November 14, 2020 article, Eddie Allen's 28-2 record as a starter and 93% winning percentage were discussed after the Junior quarterback led Iowa to an impressive comeback against Michigan State. All Allen did after that was win each and every one of his remaining games including a second championship to go 41-2 as a starter, with a 95.3% winning percentage as Iowa's starting quarterback. The Hawkeyes opened the season at home against #7 Georgia Tech, but the Yellowjackets would not be long for a ranking in 2021. Iowa won 41-17, and coach Clark immediately began feeding Larry Lloyd the ball with Kenard Goodman ineffective. The two would share carries for much of the year, trading off big games. Lloyd ran for 128 yards in his debut, and sophomore linebacker Brandon Butler was the MVP of the game with 10 tackles, a sack, and a forced fumble as the vaunted GT running game was shut down. Next it was off to Ames to play Iowa State. The Cyclones had the game tied at 21-21 at halftime thanks to QB John McIntyre playing out of his mind. That was put to a stop in the second half as ISU was shut out and Iowa won 52-21, with Eddie Allen accounting for four touchdowns. Defensive backs Joe Gibson and Jaivonn Bender had interceptions in the second half. Rutgers was on the slate next and were on the receiving end of Iowa's biggest margin of victory of the year. Allen was pulled early in the blowout, yet still tallied five touchdowns as the offense rolled up 593 total yards. Freshman TE C.J. Terry burst onto the scene with 6 receptions for 64 yards and 2 TD. Linebackers Brandon Butler and David Bryant ran the show on defense with two sacks apiece, and Joe Gibson and D.J. Halloway picked up interceptions. Halloway also picked up a late touchdown from freshman Nathan Malone, which angered Rutgers coach Eddie Gran. Rutgers would bounce back from an early loss to an FCS squad and the beatdown by Iowa to post an 8-5 record after going 2-10 in 2020. This was good for second in the B1G East. Iowa had another easy week on the slate in Bloomington against Indiana. Khayman Chia powered the defensive effort with a pair of sacks. The sophomore would ultimately lead the nation with 12 sacks. Iowa next welcomed Minnesota to Iowa City, and Larry Lloyd greeted the Golden Gophers with 235 yards on 22 carries, and a pair of touchdowns. It was Lloyd's best effort of the season, but he was injured in the game and had to miss the next several weeks. Eddie Allen threw for just 177 yards, but had five touchdown passes to five different receivers in a 48-21 victory to retain the Floyd of Rosedale. Another home game was up next as the Hawkeyes and Wisconsin tallied over 1,000 yards of total offense. Ultimately, three turnovers doomed the Badgers in a 47-31 Hawkeye victory. Eddie Allen (276 passing yards, 3 TD, 83 rushing yards) and Kenard Goodman (22 car, 146 yds, 2 TD) were the stars of the show, with C.J. Terry adding yet another touchdown reception to his freshman year stat line. Brandon Butler tallied 12 sacks and an early interception for Iowa. The Northwestern Wildcats always seem to give Coach Clark problems, and it was no different this season as the 44-34 win was much closer than the score would appear at first glance. Allen helped to overcome turnover woes by adding 182 rushing yards and a touchdown to a typical passing day, for three touchdowns overall - one, of course, to C.J. Terry. Linebacker Brandon Butler again had an interception in the 44-34 win. Iowa showed how far the gap has grown between Iowa and Illinois in a 51-28 romp in Champaign the following week. Quarterback Jordan Howard threw for 384 yards and three touchdowns but the Fighting Illini were run out of the building anyway as Iowa ran up 264 yards on the ground. Allen threw for 231 and 3 TDs in the win. Junior Tyris Wyckoff, who had a fairly quiet season from his defensive tackle position, had 5 tackles and two sacks. The next three weeks would bring snow, and Eddie Allen didn't adjust to the changing conditions right away. Purdue gave the senior problems in a low scoring 24-13 win as he completed just 9 of 20 pass attempts and ran for just 42 yards. The loss of C.J. Terry at tight end hurt, as Terry would miss several weeks and not return until the bowl game. The struggles ultimately were overcome by the running game as Kenard Goodman ran for 130 yards and a touchdown, and the team got Larry Lloyd back from the injured list. (19 car, 86 yds). Before the game, Jordan Parsons was activated to bolster the pass rush and the small, speedy defensive end was able to pick up a sack to pair with two sacks apiece by Keegan Slack and [b]Tyris Wyckoff[b]. It was telling next week when the Hawkeyes shut down the air attack of Michigan State, which had given the squad trouble . The defense was beginning to pick up the pace as D.J. Halloway played well on both sides of the ball with his snaps limited on offense. The sophomore played well, with two deflections on defense and a touchdown reception on offense,, and fellow sophomores Khayman Chia and David Bryant combined for three sacks to hold MSU to just 297 yards of offense after giving up 513 yards the previous season. Just barely-ranked #22 Notre Dame (5-6 record) were almost blown out but put up 22 points in the fourth quarter to make Iowa sweat a bit. Larry Lloyd was back to his yardage-chewing ways with 146 yards and two touchdowns, and Allen found three different receivers for touchdown passes. It was an emergency the next week as the good old desktop PC went down and we had to improvise with a basic update for the Nebraska game. The 35-21 score was fairly close, but the Cornhuskers were held to just 218 yards of total offense Larry Lloyd (12 car, 95 yds, 1 TD) and Kenard Goodman (17 car, 114 yds; 5 rec, 67 yds, TD) once again proved to be a good combination, complementing one anothers' talents. Khayman Chia and Jordan Parsons each had a pair of sacks in the win, and Jaivonn Bender returned an interception 61 yards for a touchdown. The Hawkeyes avoided Ohio State in the regular season, but predictably, the Buckeyes were waiting for them in the conference championship game. After considering the various factors, Clark predictably went with a fairly similar approach as the last time the two teams faced off: Make Jonathan Hunter throw the ball. The inaccurate Hunter struggled in this regard, as multiple drives were stopped short due to easy throws that were missed. One of the ugliest plays of the season from the perspective of the opponent was when Hunter threw a pass directly to Joe Gibson in the flat, in press coverage on a receiver against a screen pass. Gibson sauntered in from 15 yards out. The poor performance by Hunter allowed the Hawkeyes to overcome the talent gap again and come away with a 42-35 victory that allowed them to go back to the BCS Championship game. Larry Lloyd was a big part of that success, helping Eddie Allen overcome a difficult passing day with 177 yards rushing and three touchdowns. With the game close at the end, Khayman Chia picked up a pair of sacks against All American right tackle Joe Robertson on the final drive. It was Chia's best moment of a spectacular 12-sack season. The BCS National Championship game against Oklahoma could not have been scheduled at a better location than the Rose Bowl from the perspective of these two Midwestern teams. The Hawkeyes and Sooners engaged in a back-and-forth affair that started slow, with four turnovers in the first half (two apiece) before the pace picked up and it turned into a full-blown shootout. Larry Lloyd was injured, Kenard Goodman fumbled and was rendered ineffective, and Eddie Allen was once again ready to pick up his teammates when it mattered most and when the chips were down. After guaranteeing a win, Allen authored a stunning hail mary to D.J. Halloway for the winning points as time expired to top off a career steeped in heroics. Allen completed passes to 10 different receivers in the game for 364 yards and 3 touchdowns. The Sooners kept Allen in check on the ground, but he tallied 58 yards on 16 carries and had a touchdown on the ground for four overall. Three freshmen who dominated last year's BCS game, now sophomores, again played key roles. After intercepting three passes last year, D.J. Halloway pilfered the game-winning touchdown pass from goat Obadiah Steele. David Bryant and Brandon Butler, who each had interceptions last year, did it again in the first half. With Allen graduating, it is youngsters like these three and Larry Lloyd who will determine the success of the team moving forward. Allen rides off into the sunset as one of the most decorated athletes in Iowa history, and certainly among the most clutch.










Coach Clark continued a hot streak that coincided directly with the
career of Eddie Allen.

However, give Clark credit. He has done just enough to put
together an offensive line and running game that helped Allen to
be at his best, and players such as C.J. Terry were also
instrumental in the absence of big-time play-making wide receivers
that could stretch the field deep.

The defense has steadily improved, but will lose a few key pieces
and once again it will be up to Clark to figure out how the the chess
pieces returning next year will best work together. a very good
recruiting class that will undoubtedly rank near the top of the nation
will assist in this endeavor. Clark has become one of the top rated
coaches in the nation along such luminaries as Urban Meyer
of Ohio State, and Bob Stoops at Oklahoma (yes, he's still
coaching at OU in this game).

[Careless Whisper]

Re: The Career of J.D. Clark (NCAA 14)

Really love your season wrap-ups.

[Hellisan]

2021 Offseason - Part 1

Coaching Carousel Coverage

As covered in another thread which will not be continued (sorry) a big hire was made prior to the coaching carousel when Minnesota let go of Jerry Kill:

Monday, December 13, 2021

Minneapolis, MN - Jerry Kill, long-time coach of the Minnesota Golden Gophers, has made the decision to retire, effective immediately. Kill's squad struggled to a 4-8 record this season, and the team has not won more than 7 games in any season in the past three years.

"I've had a great career, and I've enjoyed every second of it," said Kill. "Due to well publicized medical issues I have come close to retirement numerous times. It's finally time for me to do something that takes less of a toll on me physically. I'm not disappointed, only sad to admit with this retirement that we couldn't turn this thing around. I will be moving into another role within the athletic department, still to be determined. I will assist Mr. [Mark] Coyle in any way possible. I want to remain involved in Minnesota athletics, and he's going to allow me to do that."

Wednesday, December 15, 2021

Minneapolis, MN - In a move that was clearly determined before the announcement of Jerry Kill's retirement, Mark Coyle has announced the hiring of Jimmy Lake as the head coach of the Minnesota football team. Coyle's hire of Lake brings a totally new face and a new personality to lead the squad. Whereas Kill was getting up in years, Lake is a much younger man and brings a lot of fire and personality to the job. Whereas Kill was exceedingly conservative in the offensive game, Lake is willing to try new things. Most of all, Coyle feels Lake is ready for the role as he has learned behind an impressive list of coaches in his career.

Lake remained the secondary coach at the University of Washington over the past few seasons. While he said no promises were made, he felt as though he should have been promoted by now. Lake's secondary has consistently performed as well as any in the Pac-12. What's more, he is considered a star recruiter.

Lake has a diverse background in football, from his playing days at North Central High School in Spokane, WA to playing defensive back for Eastern Washington University from 1995-1998. After graduating from EWU, Lake worked in ticket sales for a short time with the school before joining the team as defensive backs coach in 2000. After that, Lake had a 1-year stint with the University of Washington in 2004 before filling the same role with Montana in 2005. Lake then went to the NFL, filling the role of assistant defensive backs coach in 2006-2007 with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers under head coach Jon Gruden and defensive coordinator Monte Kiffin. Lake continued to move around, to Detroit in 2008, and back to Tampa Bay as head defensive backs coach in 2010. After that ship sank, Lake eventually made his way to the University of Washington, where he was eventually named Co-defensive coordinator.

"I'm pumped for this new and exciting challenge. I received many offers over the years and my loyalty remained with the University of Washington for a long time. Now it's time for me to look to the horizon for something new. I was surprised as any of you when they decided to interview me, but I was not surprised when they decided to hire me. I made a good pitch. We'll get this thing going, I'm confident of that. I think they have made an excellent decision that will pay off. "

Asked why Lake was chosen for the job over more well-known candidates, Coyle simply said: "You'll see."


A "Bad Day" for the Other Teams in the Big Ten

Dick Baird lives on a lake. It was not lost on him - or anyone else, probably - that Lake was hired to coach football in the land of 10,000 lakes. Baird loves puns and football, definitely not in that order, and immediately referenced the pun in a recent interview. With that out of the way, Baird went on to say that the Big Ten is about to get tougher.

Baird is heavily biased toward anything related to the University of Washington, arguably their most ardent fan after joining the coaching staff at the age of 38 and coaching at the University from 1984-1999. You would never know it by speaking to him through the constant barrage of Pro UW talk, but Baird actually played at Washington State and was team captain.

In his trademark, strangely-pitched voice that sounds a little like Dick Vitale without the accent, Baird immediately voiced confidence in the abilities of Lake.

"He's tireless. He loves the game. He's current. He understands today's player. He's going to be great in living rooms. He's coached in the NFL and at the collegiate level for many years. If they have questions about his ability to be a head coach at this level, they won't be worried about that for long once they meet him. This kid is a good egg, but even more than that he's someone competent and someone with the determination to get the job done."

Lake isn't really a kid at 45 years of age, and that's just one more reason Baird thinks he'll succeed.

"He's youthful, but it's not like he's really a kid. He still has that kind of energy, though."

Baird noted that the Big Ten has been one of the most dominant conferences in college football over the past years, but said it has just gotten tougher. Baird said Lake will scour for talent and will not hesitate to go to his stomping grounds on the west coast, specifically California, to do so.

"It's a bad day for the other coaches, flat out," Baird opined. "I don't have nothing bad to say about the kid. I wish they would have hired him here. He's not afraid to mix it up either," said Baird, referring to Lake's occasional digs directed at other coaches in the Pac 12. "I'm just glad he's not coaching a Pac 12 school!

When he walks into the home of a young man from an urban area in the Midwest, where are they going to want to sign? One of those existing coaches, or someone that offers a new look? It's going to be fun to watch."

I started up another thread on a whim then spent the next two days realizing how stupid it would be to try and do two dynasties. The only way that could be done is if I had a lot more time on my hands, or took down the quality of this one AND had low quality with that one. I planned to just do one picture and a paragraph summary for each game, but what about team rosters? What about offseason improvement and all that other stuff? I just decided I will cover Minnesota and Big Ten football in general a little more thoroughly beginning this season. Sorry...





Hawkeyes replace another coordinator - Addazio remains on board

Tim DeRuyter was hired as head coach at NC State after a solid performance running Iowa's defense. None of the teams needing coaching help were interested in Steve Addazio, who added to one of the best offenses in football for a year, so Iowa will happily have him back.

To replace DeRuyter, the team tabbed Phil Parker, former defensive coordinator at Hawai'i. The Warriors were an all-or-nothing defense, and overall, the tradeoff seemed to work. They finished #115 in the nation in yards allowed but finished 18th in the nation in sacks, tied for third with 20 interceptions, and 35th in points allowed. Hawa'i' had an impressive season, finishing #15 in the nation.





National Coverage - Alfred, the hot name, signs with Florida


Jonathan Alfred went 10-4 and finished #24 at Colorado State. Florida was convinced that Alfred can do a better job than Bryan Harsin, who was fired on account of he didn't win enough. A 10-4 record seemed to be the magic number as Dan Enos was hired at Michigan State after taking Central Michigan to a 10-4 record. This means MSU will run a multiple offense and a 4-2-5 defense, which may pose problems.

Jeff Quinn was hired at CMU to replace Enos after he guided Buffalo to a 9-4 record.

Harsin was hired by none other than Iowa State after being fired at Florida with a 6-7 record. Harsin will run the Boise State / Multiple offense and a 4-3 defense.


People may have laughed when Lane Kiffin was made head coach at Army, but despite a switch to a new job he had a lot of success and was the most highly sought after coach on the market. When Mack Brown retired after an impressive 11-2 season finishing #2 in the nation, the Longhorns came-a-calling for Kiffin.

Not many of these names seem palatable, or even familiar, however, nobody was celebrating in Texas when Lane Kiffin was hired to lead the Longhorns. All he did was take them to a 12-1 season.

[Hellisan]

2021 Offseason - Part 2



Halligan, Bryant to stay another year.
Mesun transfers to Wisconsin

Redshirt sophomore outside linebacker David Bryant and junior wide receiver Lukas Halligan were interested in potentially going pro, but were generally leaning toward the idea of returning to Iowa to improve their draft stock. Bryant was projected to go in round 5, whereas Halligan was projected as a round 7 draft pick. Coach Clark urged each to return and promised (how does one promise this lol) Bryant that he could be a 2nd round draft pick if he remained at school. Coach Clark promised Halligan he would not regret getting his degree - something Halligan was clearly already leaning toward doing.

The disappointing aspect of the offseason was prized 4-star linebacker Demarja Mesun, who decided to transfer to Wisconsin. Nothing Clark could say convinced him to stay at Iowa, including a promise that he would play in 9 games. Mesun is a talented all-around linebacker with a good feel for reading defenses and is comfortable in coverage. He also has adequat e speed and amazing acceleration which would have played well for the Hawkeyes. Now Iowa will most likely have to face him year in and year out for the next 3-4 years, if he can get on the field with a talented Wisconsin squad.

Allen not projected as a draft pick

If Eddie Allen is to go pro, he may have to sign as an unrestricted free agent to do so. Allen is not projected as a draft pick, something that may surprise Iowa fans who watched him win anything and everything, however, the NFL is a different game. Eddie should be give a chance however as he would at minimum make a nice backup. Allen graduates with the school record in career passing touchdowns (84) and individual season touchdowns (33).

Mike Martinez projected to go in the 7th round

Mike Martinez signed with Iowa as a JUCO transfer as a sophomore and immediately stepped in as a 3-year starter. With Allen projected to go undrafted, and Halligan and Bryant returning, Martinez will likely be the only Hawkeyes selected in this year's draft. The Hawkeyes retained the vast majority of their best players despite losing Eddie Allen who will be impossible to replace.

[Deuce2223]

Re: The Career of J.D. Clark (NCAA 14)

Allen reminds me alot of Kellen Moore. Played great in college, but for some reason wasn't viewed to be a great player at the NFL level. I am curious how big was he. I am sure his Overall rating played a factor but I am sure you are well aware, that the size of a QB plays a factor in whether or not they get drafted. For some reason this sim engine doesn't like guy's shorter then 6'1 and like 200lbs.

[Hellisan]

Re: The Career of J.D. Clark (NCAA 14)

Really love your season wrap-ups.

Thanks man. I think they're getting too long, however they have increased with the intrigue and the fun I've had. I think I need to tone them down starting next year however. Thanks for replying!

Allen reminds me alot of Kellen Moore. Played great in college, but for some reason wasn't viewed to be a great player at the NFL level. I am curious how big was he. I am sure his Overall rating played a factor but I am sure you are well aware, that the size of a QB plays a factor in whether or not they get drafted. For some reason this sim engine doesn't like guy's shorter then 6'1 and like 200lbs.

From a big picture perspective I can see that, he's 6'0" 184 IIRC. Basically talking a college QB that may not make it in the pros. If you have an 88 accuracy arm you're good in College and that won't cut it in the NFL. If you have 91 speed you can outmaneuver a lot of guys in college and avoid big hits while racking up yards. Won't work for all but the most elite athletes in the pros. For that reason I see him more as like a shorter Marcus Mariota, a slight, accurate passer with great speed that just didn't fit those NFL criteria so much. But what a great college player! We should be thankful we got to see Kellen Moore he was a lot of fun to watch. As was MM

[Hellisan]

2021 Offseason - Part 3




The Hawkeyes have come away with the #1 class in the country. In terms of talent, I'm guessing we're top 10 or something. I'm still trying to get better at locating the best players and can't seem to get the speed I need at certain positions (WR, FS, SS) along with the skills that would make those players great. Nevertheless, we have a lot to be happy about with this group. I'll try to list a few players that could either contribute soon or look like long-term stars and then leave the details below for anyone that might want to look.

POTENTIAL IMMEDIATE IMPACT GUYS

Antwione Harkless - We recruited a true QB and an athlete QB. Harkless, the athlete, is an exceedingly tough runner but just as fast as Joshua Mack. He's also a little more athletic and more accurate, and has a better carry rating. Mack will redshirt, and it will either be Harkless or soph. Nathan Malone for the starting job. Malone is a stronger armed passer with similar accuracy. It remains to be seen how he will progress. Harkless could have a major role.

Nick Vessel - Nikolai Vessel says it's o.k. to call him Nick. We call him talented. This athlete was similar in terms of his talent at WR and HB. Ultimately, we have decided to use him at WR. It will be interesting to see a wide receiver with the ability to catch a pass then deliver a vicious stiff arm, jukes, and other moves in the open field, as well as the ability to take handoffs out of the backfield. Too talented to redshirt.

Robert Dyches - Gives us a second well-rounded in-line tight end to pair with C.J. Terry. We will look for a move TE in this class.

Jordan Kijenmij - One of two 5-star recruits along with Vessel, Kijenmij will be our fastest defensive end and also has adequate strength with solid moves and a great feel for pursuit. He will start immediately.

Here's our list. This is just the guys we signed (not including those weird walk-on things), minus one guy that unfortunately I had to cut.

[Deuce2223]

Re: The Career of J.D. Clark (NCAA 14)

Was wondering if you actually meant to target the 1* or if that was a CPU signing. They seem to like to add 2-3 guy's to my class's every year, but it makes sense now that I see he is a FB. For some reason every 2* and 3* FB get's offers It's like the CPU doesn't create enough. I have actually alot of times looked for a blocking TE that I can move to FB vs being left looking for a 1* guy.

Are you hoping a redshirt year will give Mack the boost he needs to be a 4 year starter for you or will Harkless come in and steal the show.

[moose141]

Re: The Career of J.D. Clark (NCAA 14)

Interesting hearing your decision on Mack to redshirt him, he seemed like a no brainer 4 year starter to me... or least to give him a shot in practice mode before handing out redshirts to give him a shot in the quarterback competition, haha. Looks uber talented, and that speed seems to put him right in that Eddie Allen mold, even if the throwing leaves a bit of something to be desired. You're got the ground and pound game to help him out anyways! Jealous of your little shot at Vessel as not having top end speed, lmao, as his 89 speed rating would make him the fastest guy at halfback for me, you've got riches then at that position that is for sure. Excited to see Kijenmij play from week 1 as well, high expectations for sure.

Love your recaps of all the graduates as well! It's fun to see how their ratings change over time with your progression system. I had worked up something similar to show player stats when I got to the season end as well, but I wanted to get right into 2020! Not to mention no one that I had recruited other than Paris Ford was leaving yet, so this season I will likely break the goodbye graphics out! Thanks as always for the continued inspiration, it's fun to see what everyone around here can cook up.

[Hellisan]

Re: The Career of J.D. Clark (NCAA 14)

Was wondering if you actually meant to target the 1* or if that was a CPU signing. They seem to like to add 2-3 guy's to my class's every year, but it makes sense now that I see he is a FB. For some reason every 2* and 3* FB get's offers It's like the CPU doesn't create enough. I have actually alot of times looked for a blocking TE that I can move to FB vs being left looking for a 1* guy.

Are you hoping a redshirt year will give Mack the boost he needs to be a 4 year starter for you or will Harkless come in and steal the show.

I target a lot of 1 and 2-star players from Iowa, since that's all the state will give me. I try to maintain at least as many players from Iowa as any other state despite the fact that yeah they generally stink. Yeah the fullback is a tough position to find a good one, despite there being so many. At least for me. I kinda like the guy I have now, at least he can catch, but he did drop a few and gets WHACKED when I try to run people over. The QB situation isn't really settled yet, that is one thing I like about doing manual improvement, is usually the actual players will work it out with one turning out better than the other. In this situation, with Mack and Harkless rated 78 and 75 respectively (with Harkless being the far more reliable and powerful runner as well as having a more accurate arm on "paper," you could just go four years and they would be the same quality player OVR wise the entire time. Thank God I normally don't have to deal with that. Your reply inviting me to ask any additional questions in a shorter post had me LOL'ing yesterday.

Interesting hearing your decision on Mack to redshirt him, he seemed like a no brainer 4 year starter to me... or least to give him a shot in practice mode before handing out redshirts to give him a shot in the quarterback competition, haha. Looks uber talented, and that speed seems to put him right in that Eddie Allen mold, even if the throwing leaves a bit of something to be desired. You're got the ground and pound game to help him out anyways! Jealous of your little shot at Vessel as not having top end speed, lmao, as his 89 speed rating would make him the fastest guy at halfback for me, you've got riches then at that position that is for sure. Excited to see Kijenmij play from week 1 as well, high expectations for sure.

Love your recaps of all the graduates as well! It's fun to see how their ratings change over time with your progression system. I had worked up something similar to show player stats when I got to the season end as well, but I wanted to get right into 2020! Not to mention no one that I had recruited other than Paris Ford was leaving yet, so this season I will likely break the goodbye graphics out! Thanks as always for the continued inspiration, it's fun to see what everyone around here can cook up.

Ok, so in my stream of consciousness sort of blabbering about my team I may have left out some important context that wasn't included on the list of recruited players below.

Harkless is rated as a defensive back or something. When you assign him the QB position as an athlete he jumps up to a level of OVR competitive with Mack as well as the returning guy, Malone. Malone didn't improve a LICK in his first offseason, and then had a clutch randomized improvement at the top of his possible range (I now bump them up into the next range if that happens, or vice versa if they're at the low end of the range. So he not only is a competitor for the job now, but has a better arm than the other guys in terms of throw power - which I think helps. I think having a stronger arm makes them more accurate on hard throws like seams or comebacks.

Each of these guys are also interesting in that they are different from Allen, whereas Mack is kind of similar (size, speed, elusiveness), although Allen had a good carry rating so he could reliably take carries without fumbling the ball. With Mack, I would severely limit his straight up carries where you can't slide. Which isn't necessarily a negative... The offense could be different and fun. But I've never used a power running QB before... I even have a dumb story line made up about why Harkless wears generic shoes

That's kind of why I'm leaning with the returning player Malone to start and Harkless to get the second opportunity. But I will promise to consider it moving forward and take reader feedback. Video included below with ratings.

AS far as the players leaving, yeah that group of guys was almost depressing in their inability to improve at all. I just had my best offseason improvement yet (I think, haven't run the numbers. In addition to better improvement overall this time, a lot of the bad improvements went to guys I don't really need, and I had a lot of good players get even better or guys that were on the fence have a big year to become relevant. It was super awesome, my wife had to come check out why I was celebrating.

Couple of videos.... WHO SHOULD BE THE STARTER GUYS?

Keep in mind I don't know what the citizenship is for the two freshmen, oftnen times the freshmen that have the worst citizenship rating coming in will get a suspension.




Malone has been edited to his 2022 ratings in this video:

[moose141]

Re: The Career of J.D. Clark (NCAA 14)

I think if you want to be a 60/40 pass team or even 50/50, then it has to be Malone as the starter. If you want to be a more run heavy oriented offense then I think Harkless is the guy. He's got a dope name to have in the starting lineup too, haha. Harkless just looks to have the durability built into to him to be able to lead a rushing offense, while Malone's arm is too good right now compared to the others to pass up. You could even platoon them if you really wanted... either have packages for Harkless and make Malone the true starter, or even go back and forth alternating drives in the first game or two to see who earns the job with their play.

[Deuce2223]

Re: The Career of J.D. Clark (NCAA 14)

The Awareness factor has me leaning Mack over Hark. I think Hark could be a a great Wildcat option and a guy who could even line up in the backfield with Mack for some Option attacks. Don't know what is catch rating is, but maybe some WR too. If Mack was to get hurt, then he could also step in as the #1 QB too.

Malone honestly looks like the type of kid who would transfer possibly, bascially a Hurts/Burrow situation where a more talented guy who fits the system better comes in.

But like Moose says depends on your offensive style, because honestly any of the 3 have the skills to be good. Eddie Allen good is still the question. But with Larry "Feed Me" Lloyd in the backfield, I don't think you will need to ask to much of any QB well he is on campus.

[Careless Whisper]

Re: The Career of J.D. Clark (NCAA 14)

Harkless definitely has one of the better computer generated names I've seen in the game. I agree with the platoon at least for the first couple weeks, with their camp competition for the job stretching out into the season. I like the idea of having a pocket passer like Malone take the reins to give you something different than Allen, but it's really hard to sit an impact freshman - especially at the most important position.

[joshuahuskers]

Re: Introduction and Table of Contents

If it were me, I’d start Mack. His mental grasp of the game (awareness) gives him the edge, especially when he possesses similar other tools to Hark.

The good news is if your starter struggles, you have two other viable options.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Hellisan]

Re: Introduction and Table of Contents

I think if you want to be a 60/40 pass team or even 50/50, then it has to be Malone as the starter. If you want to be a more run heavy oriented offense then I think Harkless is the guy. He's got a dope name to have in the starting lineup too, haha. Harkless just looks to have the durability built into to him to be able to lead a rushing offense, while Malone's arm is too good right now compared to the others to pass up. You could even platoon them if you really wanted... either have packages for Harkless and make Malone the true starter, or even go back and forth alternating drives in the first game or two to see who earns the job with their play.

Good points. I've decided to essentially do what you're saying here. I will "start" Malone, and then depending on that first drive I will mix in Hark. Thanks man, i listened to a lot of your videos last night while editing my roster and really liked some of your ideas in recruiting on how to limit success such as focusing on a player that can get the most of the total points you can lay out, and then the others have less. I might go with something like that although this will be a weird year, and we're going to be focusing on very few players.

The Awareness factor has me leaning Mack over Hark. I think Hark could be a a great Wildcat option and a guy who could even line up in the backfield with Mack for some Option attacks. Don't know what is catch rating is, but maybe some WR too. If Mack was to get hurt, then he could also step in as the #1 QB too.

Malone honestly looks like the type of kid who would transfer possibly, bascially a Hurts/Burrow situation where a more talented guy who fits the system better comes in.

But like Moose says depends on your offensive style, because honestly any of the 3 have the skills to be good. Eddie Allen good is still the question. But with Larry "Feed Me" Lloyd in the backfield, I don't think you will need to ask to much of any QB well he is on campus.

The AWR factor actually is a thing. I know slightly in the game although I don't know to what extent. However, I have decided that the biggest way I can challenge myself without going to sliders that make the game less fun for me is by watching a certain percentage of 3rd downs. I'm going to use AWR to determine that to some extent, not sure exactly how and what but it will be a part of my games moving forward. Despite that, I will not start Mack because he's just most similar to Allen and I want a change of experiences.

Harkless definitely has one of the better computer generated names I've seen in the game. I agree with the platoon at least for the first couple weeks, with their camp competition for the job stretching out into the season. I like the idea of having a pocket passer like Malone take the reins to give you something different than Allen, but it's really hard to sit an impact freshman - especially at the most important position.

I do rename a lot of the players there, I just report them with their made up names (when applicable) all the way through and have the in-game name off to the side in Excel in case I forget who is who. Names are selected in what I think is the most fun way and that is I go to the maxpreps (or similar) page and randomly select a first name and then randomly select a second name. So there is an Antwione A. and then there is a Z. Harkless, and so that is how that particular name was selected. Keep in mind that's the 2019 roster. You can go back if the most recent roster doesn't have a ton of names yet. I do make sure the names "fit" and sometimes will switch to other names to match the face unless I already know I will change the face since it matches one currently on the roster, as changing faces is always a crapshoot. I don't rename everybody, I usually like about 30% of the names. I do rename players that sign on other teams so that's why you see a Nikita Zagotti with Ohio State

This just provides an extra level of fun and I guess an ode to those real players? And sometimes you'll see a midwestern town with a lot of German or Croatian names or something like that and you can sort of pick something that jives with where they come from. I like that a lot.

"Impact freshman" - I wonder if any of them will be that. In practice mode it does seem to exaggerate my accuracy setting of 5 to be more like 2 (if that existed)... still better than 0 in games which is just unusable. Anyway, once the games start up they MIGHT be o.k. but there were a lot of really bad throws between all three guys. For sure though, the returning guy had the best chance for good throws due to his better arm strength. At least in practice. Thanks for the feedback and that is what I'll be going with!

If it were me, I’d start Mack. His mental grasp of the game (awareness) gives him the edge, especially when he possesses similar other tools to Hark.

The good news is if your starter struggles, you have two other viable options.


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Thanks man. I have decided to go ahead and redshirt him, however that can always be taken off. I take the redshirt off 1-2 players a year due to injury and other depth or performance concerns.


I really appreciate anytime you guys respond and keep in touch with me and if I haven't responded in a thread or something in awhile and you want any feedback I can provide like input on a depth chart or anything like that, feel free to PM me!

My mid-year resolution is that even if I don't have the time to update my own chise I will make sure to be reading. I don't know why I ghost when I can't update my own, maybe because I'm bummed about it lol.