Iowa State coach Matt Campbell says the Cyclone offense is working to become more consistent this spring. The Cyclones finished 4-8 last season and finished at the bottom of the Big-12 in scoring and total offense.

Hunter Dekkers had 19 touchdown passes and 14 interceptions in his first season as a start and Campbell says there will be a lot of competitive position battles this spring.

Campbell says another area that needs to make strides this spring is the offensive line.

Iowa State’s spring game is set for April 22nd.

Off to its best start since 1939 the Iowa baseball team is scheduled to open a three game series at home today (Friday), against Western Michigan. The Hawkeyes are 16-3 and that includes are early season win over top ranked LSU.

That’s Iowa coach Rick Heller who says the Hawkeyes have had a consistent approach no matter who the opponent is.

Thursday, March 23 (Sweet 16)

• No. 3 Kansas State vs. No. 7 Michigan State | 5:30 p.m. | TBS
• No. 4 UConn vs. No. 8 Arkansas | 6:15 p.m. | CBS
• No. 4 Tennessee vs. No. 9 Florida Atlantic | 8 p.m. | TBS
• No. 2 UCLA vs. No. 3 Gonzaga | 8:45 p.m. | CBS

Iowa State men’s basketball freshman Eli King will enter the transfer portal. The 6-foot-3 guard from Caledonia, MN was a reserve for the Cyclones this season and scored 11 points while averaging 3.4 minutes per game.

King was a three-star recruit out of high school and picked Iowa State over offers from Iowa, Marquette, Minnesota, Nebraska, Northern Iowa, and Stanford. He’ll have three years of playing eligibility left.

UNI softball coach Ryan Jacobs does not want his team to focus on Illinois-Chicago’s record as the Panthers get ready to visit the Windy City for a three game Missouri Valley Conference series. The Flames are 0-25 and Jacobs says a big part of that has been a challenging schedule.

Eight of their losses were to teams ranked in the top 25 and they opened Valley play by dropping three games at Indiana State.

As usual the other battle this weekend will be against the weather.

The Panthers are 14-9 and opened Valley play by sweeping a three game series at Murray State.

Iowa football coach Kirk Ferentz hit the transfer portal hard and several newcomers are in the two-deep as the Hawkeyes open spring drills. Michigan transfer Cade McNamara is listed as the starting quarterback though he will be limited this spring after undergoing knee surgery.

Ferentz says McNamara is taking part in seven-on-seven drills and is still a couple of months from being full strength.

McNamara led Michigan to a win over Iowa in the Big Ten Championship game in 2022 and quickly took on a leadership role with the Hawkeyes.

Another Michigan transfer in tight end Erick All practiced on Wednesday. He missed the second half of last season with a back injury.

IOWA CITY, Iowa — Juniors Josh Ogundele and Ahron Ulis have notified head coach Fran McCaffery of their intentions to transfer from the University of Iowa and the men’s basketball program.

In three seasons as a reserve center, Ogundele saw limited action in 38 games. The London native totaled 21 points, 19 rebounds, four blocks, six assists and six steals in 11 games as a junior.

In three seasons as a guard, Ulis competed in 84 contests, including 27 starts as a junior. The Chicago native averaged 6.1 points, 2.1 assists and 1.6 rebounds in 32 games this past season.

A familiar face will be donning the head coaches’ headset for Exira-EHK football in 2023. Former player and recent assistant coach Drew Buckholdt has been hired to lead the Spartans football program. The Exira-EHK school board approved his hire at their meeting this week.

Buckholdt played for Exira-EHK from 2013-2016 and went on to play college ball at Waldorf University. He has been an assistant on the Spartans staff the past few seasons and is excited to take over the head role.

Buckholdt said it’s been great to learn from Tom Petersen and he also got the chance to learn at Waldorf.

Buckholdt takes over a Spartan team that went 4-4 last season and he said he hopes to improve the physical style they want to play..

Buckholdt takes over for his former coach Tom Petersen who resigned after last season due to some health concerns and wanting to lighten his load. Buckholdt said it will be great to have Coach Petersen around as AD and someone to bounce things off of.

Listen to the full interview with Buckholdt below.

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Every NFL team was represented at Iowa State’s Pro Day as several Cyclones tried to improve their draft stock. All-America receiver Xavier Hutchinson ran routes with Pittsburgh Steelers coach Mike Tomlin watching.

Hutchinson was happy with his performance and wanted to show an ability to make big plays.

Hutchinson says his decision to return for his final season is paying off.

After moving from corner to safety prior to his final season Cyclone defensive back Anthony Johnson says that is where he is projected at the next level.

Johnson says his versatility is an advantage.

Johnson says the recent success of former ISU players in the NFL is helping the current players in the evaluation process.

Defensive end Will McDonald is considered a possible first round pick and says he tried to show his versatility.

McDonald says his versatility comes from his background in sports and includes martial arts.

McDonald could have entered the draft last year but felt the extra season would help his development.

IOWA CITY, Iowa — University of Iowa junior guard Caitlin Clark was named a Naismith Trophy Finalist on Tuesday. 2023 Jersey Mike’s Naismith Trophy, symbolic of the most outstanding players in men’s and women’s college basketball.

This season, Clark is the only player in the nation with more than 900 points, 245 rebounds, 290 assists, and 45 steals. She has registered +25 points, +5 rebounds, and +5 assists in 17 games this year and 39 times in her career which is the most in NCAA women’s basketball history.

Against teams that are top 26 in the NET Rankings, Clark picks it up a notch averaging 29.6 ppg, 8.4 apg, and 7.1 rpg. 

Most recently, Clark led the Hawkeyes to back-to-back home victories in the NCAA Tournament against Southeastern Louisiana and Georgia. Against SELA, registered 26 points (9-14 FG), 12 assists, and seven rebounds in 29 minutes of action. Against the Lady Bulldogs, she played all 40 minutes, netting 22 points (4-10 3FG), 12 assists, three rebounds, and three steals. Clark was also responsible for 31 of Iowa’s 33 second half points.

Clark is leading the nation’s best offense with 26.8 ppg, 7.3 rpg, and 8.6 apg. She also paces the country with four triple-doubles this season. Clark accounts for 52% of Iowa’s offensive output in points and assists.

She currently leads Division I in several statistical categories including assists per game, three pointers made (115), and triple doubles (4). She has scored 30 or more points in 10 games, including a pair of 40-point games. Clark broke all of the junior single season records in scoring and assists. She also became the single season leader in Big Ten history in dimes.

The West Des Moines, Iowa, native also was recognized as Big Ten Player of the Year for the second consecutive season as well as The Athletic National Player of the Year. She was also a unanimous Associated Press and All-Big Ten First Teamer. Last week, she was recognized as the CSC Academic All-America of the Year.

Clark and the 2-Seeded Hawkeyes are set to play 6-Seed Colorado on Friday at 6:30 p.m. (CT) inside Climate Pledge Arena in the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament in the Seattle Regional. The game will broadcast coast-to-coast on ESPN.