On Friday night a pair of 10-0 teams will battle it out in the Football Playoff quarterfinals with a berth in the semifinal at the UNI dome on the line. The Madrid Tigers and the ACGC Chargers both come into Friday night after both have dominant wins last week. The Madrid Tigers defeated Central Decatur by a score of 42-0 for the teams second shutout of the season. The Tigers came out and jumped to an early lead and never looked back. The Tigers rushing attack came in full force as they rushed for 362 yards as they were led by junior quarterback Preston Wicker who had 150 yards and three scores.

Madrid Head Coach Brock Hinkle said it has been a big key of emphasis for the Tigers to start quick and get a lead in these playoff games.

The Tigers has gotten better week in and week out. The Tigers stuffed Central Decatur to just over 200 total yards of offense and forced the team’s 14th interception on the season and coach Brock Hinkle was quick to give the praise to his defensive coaches for putting kids in the right spot with a great gameplan.

Now the Tigers move on to a tough opponent in the ACGC Chargers in the quarterfinals. Both the Tigers and Chargers have very similar game styles as both teams favor the run game. Over the last four games the Tigers have 10 pass attempts and the Chargers have just 4 attempts in that time frame. Coach Hinkle knows that the offense has to be clicking Friday night because possessions will be limited with the way these two teams use the clock.

The Chargers have three key rushers on the offensive side that all are near the 1000-yard mark on the season and Coach Hinkle knows it will be a big challenge for his Tigers defense.

The battle between these two unbeatens will kick off on Friday night at 7:00pm with the pregame show starting at 6:00pm right here on KJAN.

You can listen to the full interview with Coach Hinkle below.

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Kirk Ferentz says he intends to return next season as Iowa’s football coach. Ferentz was vague on his future plans during his weekly news conference following the announcement that Brian Ferentz will be removed as offensive coordinator at the end of this season.

That’s Ferentz on his Wednesday night Hawk Talk with Kirk Ferentz show. In a release on Wednesday night Ferentz says he plans to coach until he is no longer passionate about the game, players or coaches.

Ferentz is in his 25th season as head coach. The Hawkeyes are 6-2 and play Northwestern in Wrigley Field on Saturday.

Class 1A

#1 Ankeny Christian (38-3) vs. #3 Holy Trinity Catholic (33-10) @ 7:00 p.m.

Class 2A

#1 Dike-New Hartford (49-0) vs. #2 Hinton (32-1) @ 4:45 p.m.

Class 3A

#1 Mount Vernon (35-4) vs. #3 Western Christian (31-13) @ 2:30 p.m.

Class 4A

#2 Indianola (38-4) vs. #4 North Scott (28-4) @ 12:15 p.m.

Class 5A

#1 West Des Moines Dowling Catholic (32-7) vs. #3 Waukee Northwest (26-9) @ 10:00 a.m

Class 1A

#1 Ankeny Christian 3, #4 BCLUW 1 (25-14, 25-20, 16-25, 25-18)
#3 Holy Trinity Catholic 3, #2 Boyden-Hull 0 (25-17, 25-17, 25-21)

Class 2A

#1 Dike-New Hartford 3, #4 Denver 0 (25-9, 25-21, 25-12)
#2 Hinton 3, #3 Grundy Center 0 (25-16, 25-21, 25-18)

Class 3A

#1 Mount Vernon 3, #4 Davenport Assumption 1 (23-25, 25-16, 25-15, 25-20)
#3 Western Christian 3, #7 Union Community 0 (25-14, 25-20, 25-17)

Class 4A

#4 North Scott 3, #1 Clear Creek Amana 0 (25-19, 25-15, 25-21)
#2 Indianola 3, #6 Lewis Central 2 (23-25, 25-18, 25-18, 21-25, 15-10)

Class 5A

#1 West Des Moines Dowling 3, #4 Pleasant Valley 0 (25-20, 26-24, 25-18)
#3 Waukee Northwest 3, #2 Ankeny Centennial 2 (24-26, 25-23, 11-25, 25-20, 15-11)

The Underwood Eagles lost their opening game of the season to Van Meter 21-14. That 21 points allowed has been the most this Eagles team has allowed all year long. The Eagles have allowed just 6 total points over the teams last six games. The Eagles have won 9 in a row after the opening night loss including a 42-0 win over AHSTW last week in the 2nd round of playoff football. The Eagles defense for the sixth time this season pitched a shutout in a dominating display but on this night the rushing attack of the Eagles stole the show. The Eagles rushed for 393 yards and six total touchdowns on 44 carries. The Eagles wasted no-time getting on the scoreboard as they scored on their first drive of the night and had 21 on the board going into the halftime break. Head Coach of Underwood Nate Mechaelsen says the team has finally gotten healthy in the later part of the season and credits that to the offensive success.

Now moving onto the quarterfinals the Eagles will have their hands full as they will take on the 8-2 OABCIG Falcons who have won 7 in a row following their 2d round win. The Falcons have shocked a lot of people with their impressive season and Eagles Coach Nate Mechaelsen said they are maybe the most improved team from the start of the season until now.

The Falcons have a pretty explosive offense but like the Eagles they rely heavily on their defense to make big crucial plays to set up their offense. The Falcons have forced 32 turnovers on the season with 16 fumble recoveries and 16 interceptions. Coach Mechaelsen knows to win this game and advance to the UNI dome to the semifinals that his offense will have to take care of the ball.

In what will most likely be a defensive battle down to the end whichever offense is able to make the big play will likely pull out with a victory and move on to the final 4. The Eagles and the Falcons will kickoff at 7pm at OABCIG High School.

You can listen to the full interview with Head Coach Nate Mechaelsen below.

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Atlantic Cross Country and Track runner Alex Sonntag signed his letter of intent to Simpson College on Wednesday, November 1st. Sonntag was surrounded by family members and friend’s Wednesday afternoon. Sonntag has a 17:28 5K time and has enjoyed his time participating in Trojan athletics. Sonntag looked at other schools, but Simpson was the one that just felt right to him.

Sonntag is looking forward to continuing his athletic career with the Simpson XC and Track program. His still has goals he wants to achieve.

Atlantic’s Head Cross Country Coach Dan Vargason is proud of how Sonntag has run for Atlantic and knows his future looks bright in the world of collegiate athletics.

Sonntag’s final year of high school track and field begins in the spring.

AMES, Iowa – Iowa State head men’s basketball coach T.J. Otzelberger has announced the plans to redshirt a pair of freshmen for the 2023-24 season. JT Rock and Jelani Hamilton will sit out their initial year in Ames.

“After discussion with Jelani and JT, we have decided that it’s in their best long-term interest to redshirt this season,” Otzelberger said. “Player development is at the forefront in everything that we do in our program and that will serve Jelani and JT well this season.”

Rock, the youngest player on an NCAA Division I men’s basketball roster this season, reclassified and enrolled a year early at Iowa State. The Sioux Falls, S.D. native was a four-star recruit and ranked in the top 100 by all three national outlets.

Hamilton, a four-star recruit from Marietta, Ga., was ranked No. 111 in the country by Rivals.

Cameron Adam, Northwestern

Jr. – Edinburgh, Scotland – Merchiston Castle School

• Carded a seven-under-par 209 for a top-10 finish to help the Wildcats take second overall in their fall season finale at the Cal Poly Invitational in Carmel, Calif.
• Fired rounds of 71, 70 and 68 to tie for sixth place on the individual leaderboard
• The Edinburgh, Scotland, native turned in his top 18-hole effort during final-round play, carding a four-under-par 68 that included eight birdies
• The Academic All-Big Ten honoree earns his first career Golfer of the Week honor
• Last Northwestern Golfer of the Week: Ethan Tseng (Oct. 4, 2023)

2023-24 Big Ten Men’s Golfers of the Week

Sept. 7: Hunter Thomson, Jr., MICH

Sept. 14: Max Herendeen, Fr., ILL/Mac McClear, Gr., IOWA

Sept. 20: Daniel Aas, Sr., WIS

Sept. 27: Herman Sekne, Sr., PUR

Oct. 4: Ethan Tseng, So., NU

Oct. 12: Jackson Buchanan, Jr., ILL

Oct. 18: Timmy Crawford, Gr., ILL

Nov. 1: Cameron Adam, Jr., NU

The championship race is underway for Iowa State as the Cyclones get ready to host Kansas on Saturday night. At 4-1, the Cyclones are part of a five-way tie for the Big 12 lead.

That’s junior receiver Jaylin Noel. Since starting the season 1-2 the Cyclones have won four of their last five.

Iowa State is averaging better than 28 points in conference play but Noel says the Kansas defense will present challenges.

Noel is looking forward to a night game.

Junior tackle Tyler Miller on how the Cyclones bounced back from a slow start.

Miller on being in the thick of the title chase.

A key has been pass protection. The offensive line has given up only six sacks all season.

AMES, Iowa – Iowa State’s Big 12 Conference football opponents for the next four seasons (2024-27) were announced Wednesday by the conference. Dates for the games will be announced at a later date.

2024

In 2024, Iowa State hosts longtime Big 12 foes Baylor, Kansas State and Texas Tech along with Cincinnati and UCF coming to Jack Trice Stadium for the first time. On the road, the Cyclones will face trips to Houston, Kansas, Utah and West Virginia.

Schedule Notes

*The games against Houston and UCF will be the first meeting in series history.

*Iowa State is 4-1 all-time against Utah with the last meeting coming in 2010. The Cyclones are 2-0 playing at Utah.

*Cincinnati will visit Ames for the first time.

2025

The 2025 Cyclone squad will host BYU, Kansas, Arizona and Arizona State in Ames. Road games will be against Cincinnati, Colorado, Kansas State, Oklahoma State and TCU.

Schedule Notes

*Iowa State faces Arizona State for the first time.

*The Cyclones will meet Arizona for the seventh time (1-4-1) but first since 1968.

*ISU revives the series against Colorado with the first meeting since 2010. It will be the 66^th meeting all-time (15-49-1).

*BYU returns to Ames for the first time since 1974 and the third time overall.

2026

In 2026, five Big 12 home games await as ISU hosts Cincinnati, Kansas State, Oklahoma State, Utah and West Virginia. The Cyclones will go on the road to face Arizona, Baylor, BYU and UCF.

Schedule Notes

*The Cyclones will play at UCF for the first time.

*ISU’s game at Arizona will be the first since 1966 and the sixth overall.

2027

Iowa State hosts Colorado, Houston, TCU and UCF in 2027. The road games for that season feature tilts at Arizona State, Kansas, Oklahoma State, Texas Tech and West Virginia.

Schedule Notes

*Iowa State hosts Colorado in Ames for the first time since 2009.

*ISU hosts Houston and plays at Arizona State for the first time.

ISU Big 12 Future Opponents
2024
H: Baylor, Kansas State, Texas Tech, Cincinnati, UCF
A: Houston, Kansas, Utah, West Virginia

2025
H: BYU, Kansas, Arizona, Arizona State
A: Cincinnati, Colorado, Kansas State, Oklahoma State, TCU

2026
H: Cincinnati, Kansas State, Oklahoma State, Utah, West Virginia
A: Arizona, Baylor, BYU, UCF

2027
H: Colorado, Houston, TCU, UCF

A: Arizona State, Kansas, Oklahoma State, Texas Tech, West Virginia