ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (AP) – A person familiar with the deal tells The Associated Press that third-round draft pick Justin Houston has agreed to a $2.78 million, four-year contract with the Kansas City Chiefs.  The person spoke on condition of anonymity Wednesday because the team had not made an official announcement. The deal includes a $671,000 signing bonus.  Houston was the 70th overall pick out of Georgia and among the last rookies to sign. The 6-foot-3, 270-pound defensive end is expected to bolster the Chiefs’ pass rush along with outside linebacker Tamba Hali, who agreed to a five-year deal worth $60 million on Wednesday.  Starting cornerback Brandon Carr also signed his free agent tender on Thursday and joined Hali and most of the rest of the Chiefs in training camp.

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (AP) – Tamba Hali jogged down the long, grassy hillside to the practice field at Missouri Western State University, the modest crowd on hand for the Kansas City Chiefs’ practice bursting into applause.  Yes, the veterans have finally arrived at training camp.  One day after agreeing to a five-year, $60 million contract, Hali and the Chiefs enjoyed their first full-squad practice since arriving last week. Veteran free agents had been unable to participate until Thursday, when the new collective bargaining agreement was ratified and league year officially began.  Hali joined newcomers such as wide receiver Steve Breaston, defensive tackle Kelly Gregg and fullback Le’Ron McClain on the practice fields. The Chiefs still wore only shoulder pads and helmets as the coaching staff takes a cautious approach to getting everybody up to speed.

AMES, Iowa (AP) – This fall was always supposed to be when Jerome Tiller took over as Iowa State’s quarterback.  The redshirt junior spent the past two seasons serving as Austen Arnaud’s understudy, soaking up the lessons offered by one of the program’s top quarterbacks.  But Tiller might only have another two weeks to prove he’s ready to be Arnaud’s successor.  The Cyclones have thrown the starting job up for grabs, and Tiller’s just one of three guys fighting for the chance to grab it.  Tiller says improving his accuracy is a focal point in his efforts to beat out Steele Jantz and Jared Barnett for the top spot.

     AMES, Iowa (AP) – Brad Keselowski won’t run in Saturday’s NASCAR Nationwide race in Iowa following a head-on crash into a wall at Road Atlanta on Wednesday.  Penske Racing says Thursday that Parker Kligerman will drive the No. 22 Dodge in Friday’s practice sessions, but Sam Hornish, Jr., will run both qualifying and the ace.  Keselowski crashed during a testing run in Atlanta. He walked from the car and was taken to the hospital for precautionary reasons. Penske says it will evaluate Keselowski’s condition and provide information when it becomes known.  Keselowski won the inaugural Nationwide race at Iowa Speedway in 2009.

     The Big Ten football teams will begin playing nine conference games in 2017 instead of eight.  The conference announced the change Thursday and it came as no surprise. When the league expanded to 12 teams by adding Nebraska this season, Commissioner Jim Delany said a nine-game conference schedule was being strongly considered.  The Big Ten split into two six-team divisions this season and will hold a football championship game for the first time.  The Big Ten has been playing an eight-game conference schedule since 1985.

AMES, Iowa (AP) – Iowa State will host Lehigh in the season opener on Nov. 12 and play Texas in Hilton Coliseum in its Big 12 opener on Jan. 4.  The Cyclones released their 2011-12 schedule on Thursday. It includes seven opponents who reached the NCAA tournament last season.  Iowa State will host both Iowa and Northern Iowa this winter.  The Cyclones will face the Panthers in Ames on Nov. 30 and the Hawkeyes on Dec. 9.  The Cyclones will play 18 Big 12 games next season following the loss of Nebraska and Colorado.  Iowa State will face each league opponent home and away.

w/ Chris Parks

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MILWAUKEE (AP) – Casey McGehee homered three times and the Milwaukee Brewers rallied to beat the St. Louis Cardinals 10-5 on Wednesday and add to their NL Central lead.  McGehee hit go-ahead, two-run homers in both the first and third innings and added a seventh-inning solo shot to give Milwaukee its eighth win in nine games at Miller Park. Corey Hart also homered for the Brewers, who extended their lead over the Cardinals to 3 1/2 games in the division.  Rafael Furcal hit a three-run homer and drove in four runs off Randy Wolf (8-8) in his fourth game since being acquired Sunday in a trade with the Dodgers, but new Cardinals starter Edwin Jackson struggled.

     ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (AP) – Ricky Stanzi didn’t pick up his first NFL playbook until about a week ago.  He’d better be good at digesting that thick binder full of information, though, because his first preseason game with the Kansas City Chiefs is little more than a week away.  The disorganized and disjointed offseason brought on by maddening labor strife has been particularly hard on first-year players trying to find their way in professional football. Without rookie minicamps and organized team activities, guys such as Stanzi must play catch-up throughout the first week of training camp.  The Chiefs open their preseason a week from Friday against the Buffalo Bills, making that adjustment period more condensed than perhaps ever before.

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (AP) – Former All-Pro fullback Le’Ron McClain has agreed to a one-year contract with the Kansas City Chiefs, according to a person with knowledge of the deal, giving the defending AFC West champs a short-yardage option to go with a talented group of speedy running backs.  The person spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity Wednesday because the team had not announced the deal.  The Chiefs generally do not release such information until a player has signed a contract.  McClain could take some of the load off Jamaal Charles and Thomas Jones, a pair of smaller, shifty running backs who each logged more than 200 carries last season. Charles made his first Pro Bowl after gaining 1,467 yards on the ground and 468 through the air, while Jones ran for 896 yards in his first season in Kansas City.  Jones appeared to lose a step late in the year, though, and he turns 33 later this month. Coach Todd Haley would like to spread the ball around to keep both of them fresh, and McClain gives the team another option along with the versatile Dexter McCluster, who saw time at running back and receiver last season.  “There’s some interesting things to think about, you know, some of the skill position guys we have between Jamaal’s ability to catch the ball, Dexter’s versatility,” Haley said earlier Wednesday.  The 260-pound McClain is coming off a mercurial four-year run with the Baltimore Ravens, who selected him in the fourth round of the 2007 draft out of Alabama.  He carried only eight times his rookie season before running for 902 yards and 10 touchdowns in 2008, when he was voted first-team All-Pro by The Associated Press. McClain made his second straight Pro Bowl the following season, even though his production dipped significantly, and last year managed 85 yards rushing as his role shifted to primarily that of a blocking back for breakout star Ray Rice.  McClain decided to become a free agent this year and the Ravens looked elsewhere for help, signing All-Pro fullback Vonta Leach to an $11 million, three-year deal last weekend.  The Chiefs and general manager Scott Pioli have been selective with their free-agent signings during the early frenzy of training camp, quietly and effectively upgrading several positions of need.  They gave quarterback Matt Cassel another target by signing former Arizona Cardinals wide receiver Steve Breaston, plugged a hole in the middle of the defensive line with former Baltimore Ravens tackle Kelly Gregg, and are hopeful Brandon Siler can join Derrick Johnson to form a formidable pair of run-stopping inside linebackers.  Kansas City also added some depth to its training camp roster on Wednesday, signing a pair of rookie free agent cornerbacks in Javes Lewis out of Oregon and Mario Russell out of Carson-Newman.