IOWA CITY, Iowa -- It's Wible here, just got in the pressbox, and thank the lord because it's pretty brutal outside. Nothing we're not used to back in Pennsylvania, but when we stepped on the plane it was 65 degrees, now it's 35 and windy. No mountains to stop the wind out here in the midwest.
Just as we settled in to the pressbox, the Nittany Lions came out on the field to just take a look around and get accustomed to the place, after all Penn State hasn't been to Kinnick Stadium since 1994.
Most of the players were dressed in black suits, but one all-gray suit, topped off by gray shoes stood out. Daryll Clark was the third Lion on the field and walked from one end zone to the opposite goal post, the whole time rocking out to whatever was flowing through his ipod.
But the best candidate for dancing with the stars today is Aaron Maybin. He was shakin' his grove thang for 30 or 40 seconds in the end zone, while sporting a sweater vest. Taking a cue from Ohio State coach Jim Tressel?
The big question is what affect will the weather have on the game. It's windy, with gusts approaching 30 miles per hour. It won't be easy to throw in this weather. As I speak, Pat Devlin is testing his arm and his throws are flying a little high, but actually don't look too bad.
That said, I'm predicting a conservative, run-first game plan from both teams. A lot of Evan Royster and a lot of Shonn Greene. Not feeling too good about my prediction of 34 points for Penn State, but I feel solid about Iowa not reaching 10.
I'm gonna grab a quick bite to eat and will check back with yall a little closer to game time.
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The pressbox is pretty nice and the stadium looks worlds better than it did the last time I was here in 2004. A lot of renovations and there's a pretty cool series of pictures on the wall showing the demolition of the old pressbox in 2005.
The sky's starting to spit flurries, but nothing too hard. Snow shouldn't be an issue, but the wind and cold will be. The ball's gotta feel as hard as a log.
Still no sign of any Hawkeye players, but the fans are starting to filer in. It's supposed to be a "blackout" today, with a twist. Every Iowa fan is supposed to wear black, except for the students, who are encouraged to wear green, for Iowa running back Shonn Greene. It seems like every time Penn State goes on the road the other team holds a "blackout" or a "scarlet fever." Guess the "whiteout's" catching on.
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Back to the field, Kevin Kelly is on the field talking with Mike McQueary about the wind. Kicking into the wind in the north end zone, a 50-yard attempt falls well short and Kelly's 40-yard try barely clears the crossbar. But on his next attempt Kelly nails it. The ball starts out fine, but then just dies around the goalline.
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Watching the punters kick into the wind is pretty brutal. Jeremy Boone's longest punt into the wind was 35 yards, and he kick a few ducks that didn't travel further than maybe 20 yards. Field position is going to be key in this game (duh).
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Clark's throws don't look too hampered by the wind, he's throw tight spirals and only had a ball fly on him a few times. The receivers have dropped a couple balls and fallen a few times. It's tough to catch with numb hands.
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Quick aside, being a lifelong Pittsburgh Steelers fan, I love Iowa's uniforms. The story behind the uniforms is former Hawkeye coach Hayden Fry, who was hired to rectify a losing program in 1978, wanted to first give Iowa the look of a winner. And since both Iowa and Pittsburgh shared black and gold color schemes and the Steelers were the dominant NFL franchise at the time, he gained permission from then Pittsburgh owner Art Rooney to copy the Steelers' uniform scheme.
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Aight, it's less than half an hour till gametime, so I'm gonna pick this bad boy up in another thread. Catch ya on the flipside.
-- Wible


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