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New rules in place as high school football teams gather for preseason drills

Sports

August 6th, 2013 by Ric Hanson

Most of the state’s 342 high school football teams will begin holding pre-season practices next week, although a few teams that play their first game on August 23 are getting started this week. All of the teams will need to follow new guidelines put in place by the Iowa High School Athletic Association. I-H-S-A-A Assistant Executive Director Todd Tharp says the biggest change may be the order of no more than one practice per day.

“I think it has been a fairly common thing for some of veteran coaches to hold a morning practice and then come back in the evening for another practice,” Tharp says. “We have also seen a lot of coaches going to one practice per day because they have kids from rural areas and it’s difficult to get those kids in and out from where they live.” That one practice must not exceed three hours in length. Tharp says that mandate applies only to “physical activity,” so a practice could go longer.

“They could take players (inside) to educate them and maybe watch a bit of game film…they might actually be there for three-and-a-half hours, but the key is three hours of physical activity,” Tharp says. Most of the changes to the pre-season rules in Iowa are based on safety concerns and follow national guidelines on the issue. Tharp says “full contact” with pads was previously allowed on day four or the pre-season, but the new rule allows full contact on day six.

“The national research is showing…we weren’t giving the kids enough time,” Tharp says. “So, the first couple days they can go in helmets. On days three, four, and five, they can wear helmets and shoulder pads.” For the first time this year, teams are allowed to hold a scrimmage with another school after 10 days of practice and prior to their first game.

“It’s going to be a coach’s discretion. Some might not want to do that,” Tharp says. “Others might want to take that opportunity to scrimmage against (a team) that they’re obviously not going to see during the regular season.” Many football coaches, particularly in some of Iowa’s smaller schools, have been pushing for such a scrimmage game for years — to take the place of an intrasquad game.

“A lot of our small schools might only have 18 kids out for high school football, grades 9-12. Obviously, if you don’t have 22, it’s tough to scrimmage,” Tharp says. “Also, you might have an intrasquad scrimmage with the varsity against the JV squad…well,
juniors and seniors going against freshman…you might not get a whole lot out of that scrimmage.” Another change involves post-season play. The UNI-Dome in Cedar Falls will only be used for the semifinal and championship games.

Tharp says that will eliminate 8:45 p.m. start times on a weekday for a playoff game, which had some players getting home well after midnight. The Cedar Falls Tigers, however, will continue to play their home games in the UNI-Dome.

(Radio Iowa)

(Podcast) Skyscan Weather Forecast: Tue., Aug. 6th 2013

Podcasts, Weather

August 6th, 2013 by Ric Hanson

Here’s the Freese-Notis (podcast) forecast for Atlantic & the KJAN listening area, and weather information for Atlantic from KJAN News Director Ric Hanson…

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Nat’l.Weather Service forecast for Cass & area counties in IA: 8/6/13

Weather

August 6th, 2013 by Ric Hanson

EARLY THIS MORNING...PARTLY CLOUDY. PATCHY FOG. NORTHEAST WIND NEAR 5 MPH.

TODAY...PATCHY FOG THROUGH MID MORNING. PARTLY SUNNY WITH A 40 PERCENT CHANCE OF THUNDERSTORMS. HIGH IN THE UPPER 80S. SOUTH WIND NEAR 10 MPH.

TONIGHT…THUNDERSTORMS LIKELY UNTIL EARLY MORNING…THEN A CHANCE OF THUNDERSTORMS EARLY IN THE MORNING. LOW IN THE MID 60S. SOUTH WIND NEAR 5 MPH SHIFTING TO THE NORTHWEST AFTER MIDNIGHT. CHANCE OF THUNDERSTORMS 70 PERCENT.

WEDNESDAY…PARTLY SUNNY. HIGH AROUND 80. NORTH WIND 5 TO 10 MPH.

WEDNESDAY NIGHT...PARTLY CLOUDY. LOW IN THE UPPER 50S. NORTHEAST WIND AROUND 5 MPH.

THURSDAY…PARTLY SUNNY WITH A 20 PERCENT CHANCE OF THUNDERSTORMS. HIGH AROUND 80. EAST WIND NEAR 5 MPH.

THURSDAY NIGHT THROUGH SATURDAY…PARTLY CLOUDY. LOW AROUND 60. HIGH IN THE LOWER 80S.

Univ. of Iowa 2013-14 wrestling schedule released

Sports

August 6th, 2013 by Ric Hanson

The University of Iowa wrestling schedule for next season has been released. It includes seven home dates and a return to one of the sport’s premiere events. Iowa will open the 2013-14 season on the weekend of November 15 at a tournament “yet to be determined.” Then, the Hawkeyes will host the Iowa City Duals on Friday, November 22. The other teams will be Baker University, Cornell College, and Iowa Central. The home schedule also includes dual meets against non-conference foes Buffalo and Oklahoma State, and Big Ten opponents Michigan State, Indiana, Minnesota, and Michigan.

The Hawkeyes will visit Evanston, Illinois on December 29-30 for the Midlands Championships. Iowa did not compete in the Midlands last year. Iowa wrestles Iowa State in Ames on December 1. The Big Ten Championships will take place March 8-9 in Madison, Wisconsin, while Oklahoma City hosts the NCAA Championships March 20-22.

(Radio Iowa)

ISU to wear Jack Trice throwback unis against Iowa

Sports

August 6th, 2013 by Ric Hanson

The Iowa State Athletic Department says the football team will wear throwback uniforms during the game with Iowa on Sept. 14th in Ames. Marketing director, Mary Pink, says the uniforms will go all the way back to the 1920’s. “They’ll look like the uniforms from the Jack Trice era…they will be cardinal jerseys with five stripes and a white number. And then they will have gold pants and then striped cardinal and gold socks to complete the uniform,” Pink says. They uniforms will be topped off with the cardinal helmets and just numbers on the side instead of the current I-S-U logo.

Trice was the first African-American player in Cyclone history, and the football stadium is named in his honor. He played in two games at Iowa State and died from injuries suffered in a game at Minnesota during the 1923 season. Pink says they researched the equipment Trice wore 90 years ago. “We had to look at pictures of what were worn during that era and look at trying to match them as closely as we could. We went through many different designs to accurately depict what the jerseys and the pants would have looked like,” Pink explains. Fans will be able to bid in an online auction at Cyclones.com to buy the uniforms. The first round of bidding starts this Friday, August ninth.

She says the auction will feature over 100 uniforms and each period Friday to Friday they will give fans a chance to bid on the uniforms. The starting bid for the uniforms is 250-dollars, which is the base cost of the uniform. Pink says the auction lets fans have a great piece of memorabilia. “These are the actual game-worn jerseys and pants,” Pink says. The only other time that Iowa State players wore a throwback uniforms was in 2007 against Iowa.  Those uniforms honored the 1977 Cyclone team and commemorated the 30-year anniversary of the school’s Peach Bowl appearance.

The Cyclones defeated Iowa, 15-13 in that game. The Cyclones will hold their annual media day on August 11th, and they open the season August 31st against Northern Iowa.

(Radio Iowa)

King criticizes embassy closures, says reputation of US damaged

News

August 6th, 2013 by Ric Hanson

Iowa Congressman Steve King opposes the Obama Administration’s decision to close 19 U.S. embassies in Northern Africa and the Middle East all week due to terror threats. “We should not be pulling out of our embassies because of a threat of al Qaeda. We should be reinforcing our embassies,” King said. “We are the United States of America. We should be able to bring the force to bear to defend them.” Prison breaks in Iraq, Libya and Pakistan in late July freed hundreds of terrorists linked to al Qaeda. U.S. intelligence agencies reported heightened internet chatter about attacks on Western targets planned for this week, at the end of Ramadan, a month-long period of fasting and self-reflection for Muslims. King, a Republican, says the embassy closings were the wrong move.

“If we build a reputation that we’re going to retreat from internet chatter, what kind of a country are we?” King asks. King suggests Obama has inappropriately sent “signals” to the enemy. “I wouldn’t be telling ’em any of this,” King says. “If I made a decision to have an ambassador someplace else, I wouldn’t tell the world that.” The decision to close the embassies has generally met with widespread approval from Democrats and Republicans in congress. Some Republicans argue the decision showed the Obama Administration had learned from last year’s deaths at a U.S. outpost in Libya. King is not convinced the closures are the right move. “If you announce that it’s too dangerous now, pull everybody out of the multiple embassies and if you just look at the map of the Middle East and then when are we going to declare that it’s safe enough to come back?” King asks.

Americans traveling overseas have been told to take additional security precautions and be wary of the dangers of public transportation. Interpol — an international police agency based in France — issued a global security alert on Saturday, warning of attacks on westerners in Northern Africa and the Middle East. Several European nations — including Britain, Germany and France — closed their embassies in Yemen as a precaution.

(Radio Iowa)

Council Bluffs man sentenced in Omaha killing

News

August 6th, 2013 by Ric Hanson

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — A judge has sentenced a Council Bluffs man to prison his part in a 2011 killing in Omaha. The Omaha World-Herald reports Douglas County District Court Judge Joseph Troia sentenced 42-year-old Corey Brooks to a minimum of 56 years in prison in the shooting death of 50-year-old James Asmus. The sentence means Brooks will be eligible for parole in 28 years.

Brooks was convicted of manslaughter in the killing as well as drug and gun charges. Before he was sentenced, Brooks apologized to the Asmus family and asked the judge for leniency. Two other men were charged in the shooting. Asmus was found shot to death on September 2nd in a south Omaha garage. Prosecutors say a plan by Asmus to rob Brooks may have prompted the shooting.

Dodgers win 15th in a row on road, 3-2 over Cards

Sports

August 6th, 2013 by Ric Hanson

ST. LOUIS (AP) — Zack Greinke pitched into the seventh inning and raised his batting average to .405 with an RBI single, helping the Los Angeles Dodgers win their 15th straight on the road with a 3-2 victory over the St. Louis Cardinals on Monday night. Nick Punto was productive subbing for injured shortstop Hanley Ramirez and the Dodgers got an RBI apiece from Andre Ethier and A.J. Ellis while matching the Cincinnati Reds’ 15-game run in 1957. They’re two wins shy of the NL record set by the 1916 New York Giants.

Greinke allowed two runs in 6 1-3 innings for his 100th career victory, allowing two hits in the third, fourth and fifth but no runs. Paco Rodriguez earned his second career save with a perfect ninth. Adam Wainwright gave up three runs in seven innings and failed in his third straight attempt at winning his 14th.

McGwire’s homecoming marred by drug penalties

Sports

August 6th, 2013 by Ric Hanson

ST. LOUIS (AP) — Mark McGwire’s first trip to Busch Stadium in a visitor’s uniform was focused more on his past instead of the homecoming. The Los Angeles Dodgers hitting coach and former Cardinals home run king said Monday that his opinion about the penalties Major League Baseball handed down for performance-enhancing drugs is not as important than those of current players. Dodgers pitcher Chris Capuano and first baseman Adrian Gonzalez both said new testing procedures are paying off and making it tougher to cheat.

McGwire admitted in 2010 that used steroids during his career. That announcement came a few months after the Cardinals hired him as hitting coach. McGwire said it was a “tough question” whether he could be considered a trailblazer for PEDs in baseball and he has told players it’s not worth it.

Stewart breaks right leg in Iowa crash

Sports

August 6th, 2013 by Ric Hanson

OSKALOOSA, Iowa (AP) — Three-time NASCAR champion Tony Stewart has broken his right leg and had surgery following a crash in a sprint car race at Southern Iowa Speedway Monday night. A spokesman for Stewart said the 42-year-old driver broke his right tibia and fibula. A scheduled test for the No. 14 Stewart-Haas Racing NASCAR team at Atlanta Motor Speedway on Tuesday was canceled. No replacement driver for this weekend’s race at Watkins Glen was immediately announced.

The accident came a day after Stewart finished ninth in the NASCAR race at Pocono Raceway. He’s 11th in the Sprint Cup standings with five races to go until the Chase for the championship field is set. Stewart was leading the 30-lap feature in a 360 winged sprint car with five laps to go when a lapped car spun in Turn 4 and collected Stewart and two others.