South Bend first baseman Josiah Hartshorn and right-hander Mason McGwire were named to the Futures Game roster.
Iowa
Rewind: Jermari Harris was exceptional on otherwise-iffy day for Iowa DBs
IOWA CITY — Troy seemed to try picking on Iowa cornerback Jermari Harris during Saturday’s football game, and that strategy did not fare well for the Sun Belt Conference team on Saturday.
Harris’ receivers were targeted a team-high five times, as tracked by Pro Football Focus, and the sixth-year cornerback did not allow any receptions.
The Chicago native was responsible for the Hawkeyes’ biggest defensive play of the afternoon when he intercepted Troy’s Matthew Caldwell in the third quarter and returned it for a touchdown at Kinnick Stadium.
With Iowa in zone coverage on first-and-10, Harris dropped back from his flat and easily picked off the pass intended for star wide receiver Devonte Ross. Then with great blocking from his teammates, especially linebacker Nick Jackson, he returned it 28 yards for the score.
Harris almost had another interception earlier in the game when he closely contested a pass intended for Ross on a third-and-6 in the second quarter. Harris broke up another third-down pass intended for Ross on a slant route in the third quarter.
He was the bright spot for the secondary on an afternoon where Iowa gave up 63- and 62-yard touchdown receptions to Ross. Third-year cornerback T.J. Hall was covering Ross on both of the big plays.
When Troy’s quarterbacks targeted Harris’ receivers, they were 0-for-5 with one interception, per PFF. When targeting receivers covered by other Hawkeyes, Troy’s quarterbacks were 16-of-19 for 229 yards.
Some problems with pass protection
Troy, after not recording any sacks in its first two games, took down Iowa quarterback Cade McNamara twice on Saturday.
The first sack happened when Troy linebacker Jordan Stringer pierced through the A-gap with ease as Iowa center Logan Jones barely slowed him down. The sack was despite Troy only rushing three defenders (with another three showing blitz before dropping back into coverage).
The second sack was on a second-and-eight on Iowa’s first drive of the second half. Troy’s Julian Peterson and Jordan Stringer both penetrated the A-gap between Jones and Connor Colby. Peterson quickly got past Colby, and Jones did not seem to see Stringer. Kaleb Johnson picked up Stringer in pass protection, but that left Peterson free to quickly pursue McNamara.
Both sacks proved to be drive-killers. The first sack, which was on third-and-2, preceded Troy’s 77-yard punt return for a touchdown. The second sack preceded a third-and-long and subsequent punt.
Kaleb Johnson leading the nation, with some good run blocking ahead of him
Johnson is No. 1 in the country with 479 rushing yards so far this season.
It is not a perfect stat, as Boise State’s Ashton Jeanty and Rutgers’ Kyle Monangai have played in one less game than Johnson due to their teams’ early byes. But even when looking at rushing yards per game, Iowa’s Johnson ranks third with 159.7.
Maintaining that pace is no guarantee, particularly as Iowa’s competition gets significantly stiffer in Big Ten play. But Johnson’s 159.7 yards per game, if continued over 12 regular-season games and a bowl game, would be at pace to break Shonn Greene’s program record for rushing yards in a single season.
One of the most impressive plays for Johnson, along with the run blocking ahead of him, was on the first play of Iowa’s second drive. Iowa operated in “12” personnel — one running back and two tight ends — with the ball on its own 23-yard line. McNamara pitched the ball to Johnson on the zone run.
Picture-perfect blocking, combined with Johnson’s breakout speed, meant Johnson essentially went untouched as he cleared the first and second levels and gained 39 yards. It was Johnson’s sixth run of 25-plus yards this season (and his seventh happened later in the game as well).
How much to take away from Week 3 result
Make any grand conclusions about the 2024 season from Saturday’s 17-point win at your own risk.
Since the Big Ten expanded the conference schedule to nine games in 2016, there has been very little correlation between Iowa’s margin of victory in the nonconference finale and Iowa’s number of Big Ten wins.
Iowa won six Big Ten games in 2016 and 2019. In the 2016 nonconference finale, the Hawkeyes lost to North Dakota State. In the 2019 nonconference finale, they throttled Middle Tennessee, 48-3.
In one of Iowa’s Big Ten West-winning seasons, the Hawkeyes won by only 10 points over Colorado State. In the other division title season, the Hawkeyes won by 31 over Western Michigan.
Comments: john.steppe@thegazette.com
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Right-hander Kenten Egbert went back from Triple-A Iowa to High-A South Bend.
Right-hander Eduarniel Núñez, whom the Cubs designated for assignment last week, cleared waivers and was assigned to Iowa.
The Cubs signed third baseman Michael Hallquist from the Milwaukee Milkmen of the independent American Association and assigned him to South Benc.
Everyone lost tonight. That stinks.
The Iowa Cubs were chicken against the Toledo Mud Hens (Tigers), 7-4.
Starter Doug Nikhazy didn’t make it out of the first inning. Nikhazy got pummeled for five runs on two hits and four walks while just retiring one batter. At least that one out was a strikeout.
Aaron Bummer made his Cubs debut in this game, pitching the sixth inning. Bummer faced four batters and retired three of them. The other one hit a solo home run. Bummer did not have a strikeout.
Liam Hendriks made his Cubs debut in the bottom of the seventh. He allowed a single and a walk, but no runs in his one inning of work. Hendriks struck out two.
Left fielder BJ Murray hit his tenth home run of the year with the bases empty in the sixth inning. Murray went 1 for 3 with a walk. He scored twice.
Right fielder Ben Cowles was 3 for 4 with a steal. He singled home Murray in the fourth innning.
Second baseman Owen Miller went 2 for 4 with a double and two steals, one of which was a steal of home as part of a double steal with Cowles. He drove in one with an RBI groundout. Miller also scored one run.
The double steal of second and home.
The Knoxville Smokies got squeezed by the Columbus Clingstones (Braves), 8-3.
Brooks Caple gave the Smokies a good start, but he ended up getting the loss anyways. Caple allowed two runs on three hits over five innings. He walked two and struck out three.
This game 2-1 Columbus until Frankie Scalzo Jr. gave up six runs in the top of the ninth.
Center fielder Andy Garriola hit a two-run home run in the bottom of the ninth, his 17th on the season. Garriola went 1 for 4.
First baseman Edgar Alvarez was a perfect 3 for 3 with two doubles and a walk. He drove in one run.
The South Bend Cubs were dropped by the Beloit Sky Carp (Marlins), 9-8 in ten innings.
Mason McGwire threw the first three innings and surrendered one run on three hits. McGwire struggled with control as he walked three and hit two batters. McGwire struck out two.
After the Cubs failed to score in the top of the tenth, Grayson Moore entered the game, trying to send the game to the 11th inning. Instead, he gave up a walk-off two-out RBI double. Moore’s final line was one run on one hit over two-thirds of an inning. The run was earned—the automatic runner was doubled off of second on a lineout. Moore did not walk anyone but he did hit a batter who turned out to be the winning run.
South Bend blew a 7-1 lead in this game after five-and-a-half innings.
In his affiliated baseball debut, second baseman Michael Hallquist hit a two-run home run in his first at-bat in the second inning. Hallquist went 1 for 4 with a walk and two runs scored.
Catcher Logan Poteet hit his first South Bend home run in the sixth inning with the bases empty. It was Poteet’s 15th overall home run. Poteet went 2 for 4 with a walk. He scored two runs and had two RBI.
DH Jose Escobar connected on a solo home run in the top of the seventh. It was his fourth home run with South Bend and sixth overall. Escobar went 1 for 4 with a walk and two runs scored.
Poteet’s round-tripper.
Jose Escobar really got a hold of this one.
The Myrtle Beach Pelicans were allergic to the Hickory Crawdads (Rangers), 6-2.
David Bracho started, gave up one run in the first, three in the second and two in the third. Bracho’s final line was six runs on seven hits over three innings. He walked three and struck out two.
Yoendris Gonzalez and Anhuar Garcia then each threw three innings of no-run, no-hit baseball. Both of them struck out five. Gonzalez walked one. Garcia hit one batter. It was Garcia’s Myrtle Beach debut.
Catcher Jairo Diaz hit an RBI double in the bottom of the ninth. He was 1 for 4.
Highlights, such as they are.
Governor Kim Reynolds, her husband and five of their grandchildren stopped in Mason City this morning to get a look at the city’s new bike park.
“This is a great example of Destination Iowa funds,” Reynolds said, “I think they received $4.5 million, and the partnerships is how we get things like this done.”
Starting in 2023, Governor Reynolds used federal pandemic relief dollars to create the Destination Iowa program to invest in infrastructure, like airports, and boost locations to attract tourists and new Iowa residents and legislators have provided state tax dollars to continue the program. Reynolds said an Iowa Economic Development Authority survey shows the value of the program. “It really pointed out that when people come here from out of state and if they love the experience, they really are more likely to move here and become a resident,” Reynolds said.
The Reynolds family is making a week long tour around the state, visiting outdoor destinations and attractions to draw attention to the governor’s June 8 executive order that established an Iowa Office of Outdoor Recreation. “It’ll partner with tourism, it’ll really highlight all of the great amenities that we have in this state and really drive people to the state,” Reynolds said.
This is day three of the Reynolds’ family road trip. Yesterday they hiked in the Loess Hills and stopped at the West Bend Grotto. The governor said her grandkids were excited this morning as they drove into Mason City’s new bike park. “The whole Winnebago was full of the wow factor,” Reynolds said. “They were lined up on the windows and they were like pointing stuff out and we about tripped over each trying to get out the door so they could get out there and experience it.”
The Prairie Rock Trails Bike Park features wood boardwalks, jumps, and several single-track routes for riders of varying ages and skill levels. It connects riders to more than 20 miles of trails and 600 acres of scenic parkland.
(By Bob Fisher, KGLO, Mason City)
Iowa
New York Times/Siena Polls in Alaska, Iowa, North Carolina, and Ohio – Siena Research Institute
- Alaska: Sullivan 47% – Peltola 45%
- Iowa: Hinson 48% – Turek 46%
- North Carolina: Cooper 50% – Whatley 43%
- Ohio: Husted 50% – Brown 47%
All Toplines
All Crosstabs
AK Toplines
AK Crosstabs
IA Toplines
IA Crosstabs
NC Toplines
NC Crosstabs
OH Toplines
OH Crosstabs
“The fight for control of the U.S. Senate is on. Republicans hold razor thin leads in Alaska, Iowa and Ohio while in North Carolina, the former governor holds an early 7-point advantage,” according to Siena Research Institute’s Executive Director, Don Levy. “Of the six states we polled, these four as well as Maine and Texas, all except for North Carolina are well within the margin of error.”
Contact Information:
Siena Research Institute Director, Dr. Don Levy is available starting at 8:30 AM ET Wednesday, July 1st, to discuss the findings.
Levy can be reached at (518)-284-3551 or don.levy@reconmr.com to arrange for interviews in person or via phone.
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