IOWA CITY, Iowa – The University of Iowa Department of Athletics and Athletics Development are pleased to present a virtual Hawkeye Events series – Hawkeye Events LIVE – to replace the annual outreach schedule featuring Hawkeye coaches and student-athletes, along with Herky the Hawk and Iowa Spirit Squads.

In an effort to maintain this nearly 50-year tradition of traveling across the state of Iowa to meet with Hawkeye fans in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Hawkeye Events LIVE series, featuring a question and answer session with coaches, student-athletes, and friends of the program, has been created for this spring and summer.

“We are excited to continue our annual tradition of reaching out to our Hawkeye fans across Iowa,” said Matt Henderson, senior associate athletics director for revenue and external relations. “Doing so virtually this summer now allows us the opportunity to connect our coaches and student-athletes with even more fans across Iowa and the nation.”

The weekly series will be hosted by Laura VandeBerg, host of hawkeyesports.com, and broadcast live on the Iowa Hawkeyes Facebook page. The weekly schedule is as follows:

DATE
Time
Featuring

Friday, May 15
4 p.m., CST
Select Hawkeye senior student-athletes

Thursday, May 21
Noon, CST
Gary Dolphin, Voice of the Hawkeyes

Thursday, May 28
5:30 p.m., CST
Kirk Ferentz, football

Thursday, June 4
Noon, CST
Lisa Bluder, women’s basketball

Thursday, June 11
5:30 p.m., CST
Tom Brands, wrestling

Tuesday, June 16
Noon, CST
Fran McCaffery, men’s basketball

Thursday, June 25
5:30 p.m., CST
Vicki Brown, volleyball

For more information on Hawkeye Events and the LIVE series please visit jointheiclub.com/events.

(Radio Iowa) — There will be auto racing this weekend — but without fans in the stands — at one of the oldest tracks in Iowa. Officials with the Hamilton County Speedway in Webster City have announced the first night of racing will be this Saturday evening. The race track will adhere to several rules and guidelines due to the COVID-19 pandemic with all participants asked to observe social distancing and the wearing of face masks.

For the first time in its history, the grandstand to the speedway will be closed to the public. Spectators will not be allowed to watch the racing on Saturday. Fans can watch the races via their computer or smart phone by logging on to RacinDirt.TV for a charge. The half mile dirt oval track is the oldest in Iowa when the first race was held in July of 1910.

The semi-banked half mile track was completed in the spring of 1939 with the first races held on the track in September of that year.

The 7:20-a.m. Sportscast with Jim Field.

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Here is the latest Mid-America sports news from The Associated Press

UNDATED (AP) — Four Major League Soccer teams have taken the first small step toward returning to play by allowing players to use team training fields for individual workouts. Sporting Kansas City, Atlanta United, Orlando City and Inter Miami had players in on the first day they were allowed by the league. Nashville, LAFC, Real Salt Lake, Houston and Portland are among the league’s 26 teams that plan to start Thursday, with more lined up next week.

UNDATED (AP) — All 10 schools in the Big 12 Conference expect their campuses to be open in the fall, a key step toward launching fall sports. Conference commissioners have stressed to Vice President Mike Pence that college sports cannot return until campuses reopen. The football season is slated to begin Aug. 29, though Big 12 schools don’t begin play until the following week.

UNDATED (AP) — It is less than four months before the scheduled kickoff of the college football season. Not one of the 14 schools in the Big Ten Conference can say for sure they will have students back on campus this fall. That is a crucial step for sports. The most resolute about having students back has been Purdue President Mitch Daniels. He says he expects students will be back on campus “in typical numbers.” No other school has gone even that far.

UNDATED (AP) — All but one of the 14 schools in the Southeastern Conference have indicated they plan to reopen their campuses for the fall semester. That step is widely believed to be needed to resume football and other sports. South Carolina and Tennessee became the latest schools in the nation’s top football conference to announce their plans, joining Alabama, LSU and others. Vanderbilt hasn’t announced its plans for the fall. Schools across the nation are largely closed through the summer because of the coronavirus pandemic.

(Radio Iowa) – Iowa Games officials are still planning on holding their summer games in July but the COVID-19 pandemic has forced several sports to be cancelled or adjusted. Spokesman Cory Kennedy says air gun competition has been cancelled. District qualifying for bowling has been moved to July and the bowling finals have been moved to August.

The first of three weekends of competition is July 11th and 12th.

Kennedy says a lot will depend upon when the Iowa State University campus reopens.

Kennedy is advising Iowans to register online.

The main weekend of competition, which includes the opening ceremonies, is July 16th through the 19th.

(Radio Iowa) Iowa’s Michael Ojemudia (oh’-jay-moo-dee-uh) feels experience will help him transition to the National Football League. Ojemudia was selected in the third round of the NFL Draft by the Denver Broncos after a senior season in which he was named second team All-Big Ten.

He joins a Bronco team that includes former Hawkeye linebacker Josey Jewell and tight end Noah Fant.

Ojemudia says a talented group of receivers will help him improve in training camp.

The 7:20-a.m. Sportscast with Jim Field.

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The 7:20-a.m. Sportscast with Jim Field.

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The Atlantic Schools Athletic Booster Club, represented by RaeLyn Barkley, along with Kipp Harris with the Atlantic Facilities Fundraising Committee, said today (Monday), the Committee has reached it’s goal of matching funds needed to put field turf on the Trojan Bowl.  Jim Tyler and his family, along with their business, the Atlantic Bottling Company, kicked-off efforts to fund the project by donating $100,000, on the condition the community raise an equal or greater amount of money.

Harris and Barkley thank the Tyler family and Atlantic Bottling for their continued support of Atlantic and the many community projects that they have supported over the years. Financial reports indicate that $137,050 was raised during the three months, ending March 31, 2020, bringing the total amount raised to $237,050.  The project, that was approved with the idea that fundraising would pay for it, has a total estimated cost of $600,000. Fundraising will conclude for the field turf project on June 15th.

Those interested in supporting the project can send a contribution to 1307 E. 7th Street, Attn: Emily Freund, Atlantic, Iowa, 50022. Make checks payable to Atlantic Schools Booster Club, which is a 501 c 3 organization.

(Radio Iowa) — The Big Ten Conference extended its ban on organized workouts and activities from May fourth to June first. The extension means organized workouts with strength and conditioning staffs and on-campus meetings with players cannot happen until at least then. Under normal NCAA off-season rules, you are allowed eight hours per week with your team in the weight room and film room. Right now, the only thing you are allowed to do is to conduct digital meetings remotely with your players. Iowa strength and conditioning coach Chris Doyle says training facilities may look a lot different when football players return to campus. Doyle is used to having 30 players per shift in the weight room but that may change due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Doyle says the coaching staff is looking at a variety of plans that would help lower the risk.

Doyle says they are looking at all aspects of the training facilities.