Iowa Football: Picking apart the post-game hot takes after Hate Week

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AMES, IA – SEPTEMBER 14: Iowa State Cyclones students run onto the football field during a thunderstorm at Jack Trice Stadium on September 14, 2019 in Ames, Iowa. The game was delayed between the Iowa Hawkeyes and the Iowa State Cyclones because of lighting strikes. (Photo by David Purdy/Getty Images) /

The Game was decided by the Refs

Take: The officiating cost Iowa State the game and heavily favored the Iowa football team, the winning team.

A tradition such as complaining about the officiating after the game is almost as sacred as the tradition of tailgating before the game.

The refs in a college football game, or any game for that matter, are not perfect. People inherently make mistakes.

A great example of the referees affecting the outcome of a game occurred in last year’s NFL playoff game between the New Orleans Saints and the Los Angeles Rams.

This year’s Cy-Hawk Trophy game, however, is not one of those games. Both teams committed four penalties. The Iowa football team’s penalties cost them 15 yards while State’s yardage fee was 21 yards. There isn’t anything here objectively to indicate a bias for or against either team.

Even in the subjective, I only recall two somewhat questionable calls. First, on a third-down play, DJ Johnson was called for pass interference while an Iowa State lineman was called for offensive holding. The penalties offset and Iowa State did not wind up converting on the do-over.

One could make an argument that the holding wasn’t egregious, which is usually when holding is called. I, however, would argue that the Iowa State offense was given quite a bit of a leash most of the game pertaining to holding.

The only other call that was questionable was the intentional grounding call on Nate Stanley. The pass was tipped so the outcome inherently wasn’t intentional.

Not to nit-pick, but this call could have and probably should have changed the trajectory of the game. The following play, on third and 22, yielded one of the most beautiful throws I’ve seen Stanley make. The third-down was converted and the crisis was averted.

Take Temperature: Mercury, the closest planet to the sun. The narrative is a common theme amongst losing fan bases, but without any supporting evidence is about as hot of a take as you can have.

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