The lessons in a 7-5 season

PHOENIX -- You can be closed-minded and surly and simply ignore what there is to mine from a 7-5 season. Or you can pop open the hood and figure it out.

No, it wasn't what any of them expected, but here they are. This is the end of a long run. The 2010 season bottomed out like the Griswold's "Family Truckster," ka-chunk. That doesn't mean it's not worth examination.

That's been the thematic question throughout the week as the Hawkeyes (7-5) prepare for No. 12 Missouri (10-2).

The players are done looking for the reason. They've opened their minds to the lessons that 7-5 holds.

They store the outside disenchantment where they need to go get through the practice, the day, the game. They're aware of the fickle nature of fandom.

"People are going to talk," quarterback Ricky Stanzi said. "That's all you can do, if you're not playing, the only thing to do is talk. That's life, that's football. That's something you have to accept as a football player really early on. You have to accept it. You can't be soft. You have to have a strong enough character to endure."

If there's another 7-5 in their lives -- a car accident, a tax audit -- they at least have a map to negotiate it.

"There are a lot of good fans out there," said defensive end Adrian Clayborn, who could see worse than 7-5 in his next football station in NFL. "I don't want to say too much, fans are fans. They stick with us through thick and thin."

The "football as metaphor for life" is a solid theme. Reality is swift and harsh in both arenas.

"Big Ten football and life are very similar," guard Julian Vandervelde said. "You're going to get knocked down and hit in the mouth sometimes. Sometimes all you can do is get back up and look towards the next day and work harder the next time and try to not get knocked down again.

"For us, it's been a year of several knockdowns. Sometimes, you're going to have bad strings like that. You can't just lay down on the mat and say, just kick me, I'm done. You have to get back up. You have to push forward to the next one.

"The bigger the next one is, the more you look forward to the next one, that opportunity for redemption, to play a better opponent and really show what you're made of."

There are more practical views, more immediate. The best way to change 7-5 is . . .

"We're going to try to make it 8-5 this week with a win over Missouri," offensive tackle Riley Reiff said. "We're not satisfied. We know that."

They learned simple lessons about learning. Sounds so Zen, but it's so true.

"The biggest thing obviously is going back and looking at every single play and really focusing on something you can improve on," center James Ferentz said. "That can be anywhere from five to 10 things, but there's time to go over every single play more than once."

There are cliches, which are true nonetheless.

"One thing I'll take away is something I've learned throughout my life, you can't let the highs get too high or the lows get too low," strong safety Tyler Sash said. "I know that sounds really cliche, but it's true."

You really look everywhere and try to think about everything, in football and in life.

"You look at how you work in practice, the things you do off the field and what you do on the field," wide receiver Marvin McNutt said. "This is really a learning stage for us. In a way, it's good to see this. You know that not everything is going to go your way all the time."

So, going on, the first thing you do not to repeat 7-5 . . .

"Compete harder in practice," McNutt said. "You always go hard and give effort. Maybe we were missing that earlier in the year. Lately, we've had pretty good practices."

They're already learning.

The best way to get past 7-5 is, of course, make it 8-5.

"People are going to remember what you do in that last game," Vandervelde said. "We could be playing for the national championship or the Insight Bowl at the end of the year. We're either going to go out winners or we're going to go out losers.

"Nobody wants to go out a loser."

This whole 7-5 thing can change next season. There's always that. It can get better.

There are those who see the possibilities.

"No one knew who Cam Newton was last year, no one was talking about him," cornerback Shaun Prater said. "He was back in Texas. Every year something changes. Every year a star moves into the spotlight.

"You have to play the best you can play every week. You have to play the full 60."