Not that I can see. Couple of 19s, most recently under Groce, but no 20-loss seasons, apparentlyHas Illinois ever lost 20 games in a season? Looking at their upcoming schedule, I can definitely see that as a possibility.
Iowa has a complete team. They don’t defend all that well, but they have two good bigs, a solid PG and several guys who can score at will. Just makes NUs loss at home sting more, since Iowa has a good shot at finishing in the top 15-20 IMO.I’m really impressed with what Iowa has built under Mccaffery. They have a system and a clear style of play that they recruit to, just like Wisconsin, and they rely on a lot of Iowa natives, which doesn’t really matter but is cool to see.
And yet just last year, Iowa was 4-14 in the B1G. Shows how much results can change year to year due to youth, injuries, luck......Iowa has a complete team. They don’t defend all that well, but they have two good bigs, a solid PG and several guys who can score at will. Just makes NUs loss at home sting more, since Iowa has a good shot at finishing in the top 15-20 IMO.
And yet just last year, Iowa was 4-14 in the B1G. Shows how much results can change year to year due to youth, injuries, luck......
Other than the top teams, how many can build a good consistent program at top level? Now my definition of top programs might be different than yours as it might include a few more teams such as WIS or PU. But if you are not in that group, not many can put together that consistent top level team.They were about as good of a 4-14 team last year as one could be- a young team with a lot of talent, but didn't really know how to play defense together or how to win close games. I told my Iowa friends coming into this season that if they could get off to a good start, they could have a really nice year. And that's exactly what has happened. They have a bunch of guys that can score, just like last year, but they are a year older and have now learned to play a bit better defense too (still not a great defense, but definitely better). Wieskamp has also been everything they hoped he would be - he's going to be a giant pain in the *** for the next four years.
Despite all of that, I'm still not completely sold on McCaffery. He's a good offensive coach, but still not 100% sure he's a guy that can build a good consistent program at the top level. If he is, it better happen over these next few years because he's got enough young talent on the roster to make it happen. If they don't make the tourney for the next few years in a row, I don't think he'll be around beyond that.
Other than the top teams, how many can build a good consistent program at top level? Now my definition of top programs might be different than yours as it might include a few more teams such as WIS or PU. But if you are not in that group, not many can put together that consistent top level team.
So you have the top group of say 7-10 top teams and your group includes another say 10-15 teams (about 2 per P 5 conference). As I said, rarified air.Mine is a program that makes the tournament most years and sniffs top 10 rankings now and then. Kind of that second tier after the big boys (Duke, Kentucky, Kansas, MSU, etc.).