Orange Bowl Saturday -- Iowa video

 Some guys are tight. I would count QB Ricky Stanzi as pretty wound up. I'd also throw OT Bryan Bulaga in that category. Other guys are loose. WR Marvin McNutt is super cool, but I think he's always like that. OLs Dace Richardson and Rafael Eubanks are relaxed. I can never tell with TE Tony Moeaki because he's always nervous when doing interviews.

I'm hoping to post the entire interview with offensive coordinator Ken O'Keefe, but I don't have it yet. Please, check back later for that.

The Iowa offensive lineman talks about fellow O-lineman Dace Richardson and the hardships the senior has gone through. And, oh yes, Bulaga was asked about the NFL. He will announce a decision after the Orange Bowl. I don't have a great feel on it, but I think he's leaning toward NFL. Although, a lot of the vibe thrown around Saturday is what kind of team Iowa COULD have next season.

The Iowa wideout has been the surprise of the offense. In his first full season as a WR, he caught 30 passes for 653 yards, an impressive 21.6 average. He runs a 4.7-second 40-yard dash, which isn't top speed for a WR, but he's still made plenty of big plays, including a 92-yard TD reception against Indiana. He talks about whether he prefers the slant or the fade route.

The Iowa tight end has been a lifelong friend with OL Dace Richardson. They attended Wheaton South HS together. Moeaki talks about the trials of Richardson's career, which included two missed seasons due to knee troubles. Also, Moeaki talks about the rise of sophomore WR Marvin McNutt.

You know, it'd be a pretty big deal if the all-Big Ten offensive lineman did decide to petition the NCAA for a sixth year of eligibility (not a slam dunk, but he's got the criteria -- two missed seasons -- down). He could bring a lot of game experience to an O-line that could, potentially, take a pretty big hit as far as experience goes next fall. Going off what he says here, it sounds like Richardson could be leaning toward coming back, but it's not a slam dunk, either.

There's a lot going on in the mind of the Iowa quarterback. He's got a lot on his mind, as you can tell from this video. He seems to be on track after missing the last two games of the season with a high-ankle sprain that required surgery. He talks here about sophomore WR Marvin McNutt, his opinion (he doesn't have one) on the futures of Richardson and Bulaga and that first naked bootleg he'll run in the Orange Bowl (he's not worried, even though it's the play that spun his season to an end).

The Iowa center talks about his first name. It was going to be "Carlos," after Carlos Santana, but somehow it ended up being Rafael. He's not Latin, so that's kind of interesting. He also talks about the Michigan State game, when fellow OL Dace Richardson went down with a broken ankle. It was a tough moment, but they knew they had to keep going. He believes the futures of Richardson and Bryan Bulaga (NFL) are really a toss-up. The NFL is a business.