Iowa
Campbell touts ISU’s poise as late FG sinks Iowa
IOWA CITY, Iowa — Matt Campbell was seething.
The Iowa State coach paced the sideline at Kinnick Stadium in the third quarter Saturday, incensed by a special teams blunder in a game that had been filled with them for his team. Campbell lit into an assistant. He dropped his play sheet and picked it up, before resuming the screaming.
“Our kids’ poise was probably better than their head coach’s,” Campbell later admitted.
Campbell became so wound up because he felt the Cyclones once again were “teetering on the edge” of being out of the game against No. 21 Iowa, a chief rival and a team that had often brought out the worst in Iowa State during Campbell’s successful tenure.
But the Cyclones bounced back, erasing deficits of 13 and 12 points and rallying to win 20-19 following Kyle Konrardy’s 54-yard field goal with six seconds to play. The victory was Iowa State’s second straight at Iowa as it improved to 2-6 in the Cy-Hawk series under Campbell.
“The teams that have elite success in our sport, it still takes mental toughness, I don’t care if it’s Georgia or Ohio State or if it’s Iowa State,” Campbell said. “That’s the best I’ve seen at Iowa State in my time here, having the ability to respond in a football game in an environment like this. I’ve never seen it.”
Iowa State finished the first half with 101 yards, zero third-down conversions, five penalties — mostly of the pre-snap variety — one turnover and no points. The Cyclones started two drives inside their own 6-yard line, which prevented them from even launching their offensive game plan.
But Iowa couldn’t fully capitalize, twice settling for field goals inside the ISU 6-yard line. When Cyclones cornerback Darien Porter intercepted a cross-field throw from Iowa’s Cade McNamara, a switch flipped.
“My freshman year, I used to guard him all the time, and he was tough to guard at receiver,” cornerback Myles Purchase said. “To see him be able to do this in his senior year, his last year, to be able to perform like this is something special.”
Iowa State went 75 yards in nine plays, scoring on a 3-yard pass from Rocco Becht to Jayden Higgins against an Iowa defense that hadn’t allowed a point through its first six-plus quarters. Then, after Iowa responded with a touchdown, Becht found Jaylin Noel for a 75-yard score.
“We wanted to be more aggressive in that second half, because we thought we were pushing the ball in the first, just couldn’t get over those little humps, the pre-snap operations,” Becht said. “We couldn’t really get past the 50-yard line, so we had to pivot a little bit.”
The Cyclones maintained an assertive approach on the game’s decisive possession, down 19-17 with no timeouts and the ball at their 22-yard line. Becht found Noel streaking up the sideline for 30 yards, a late-game play that ISU had not practiced all week but kept stored for the right moment.
Konrardy had not attempted a field goal in a game before Saturday, while wowing teammates and coaches during practice with a leg that can connect from more than 60 yards. He missed a 41-yard attempt before halftime, but Campbell wasn’t worried, grateful to only be down 13 and with full faith in Konrardy.
The redshirt freshman hit easily from 46 yards early in the fourth quarter and was called upon again with nine seconds to play. As he walked out, Becht reminded him: “This is just like practice.”
“Not think,” Konrardy said of his pre-kick routine. “That’s it. Just go out there, not think and do what you do.”
Iowa State recorded its largest comeback since 2020, when it trailed Baylor by 14 points, and its biggest on the road since 2017, when it dug out of a 14-point hole to stun No. 3 Oklahoma. The rally also marked ISU’s biggest against Iowa since 2002, when the Cyclones came from 17 points down to beat a Hawkeye team that went 11-2 and finished No. 8 nationally.
“We talk in our own program, it’s a law of progression, nothing ever just goes straight to success,” Campbell said. “You’re going to have failures, you’re going to have blips, but the great teams, man, the special ones, they can make those down moments blips and get right back on the road to success. For our kids to be able to show that, in this environment, against this football team, it’s really impressive.”
Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz returned Saturday from a one-game suspension stemming from a recruiting violation, entering the field in warmups as 50 Cent’s “Many Men” played in the stadium. Ferentz said he remained committed to McNamara, who completed just 13 of 29 passes for 99 yards and had just 19 passing yards after halftime.
“It’s a big game for everybody in the state, certainly no bigger than the players on both sides and the coaches,” Ferentz said. “After a loss like this, it’s tough. There’s not much you can say to make anybody feel any better.”
The Cyclones had experienced plenty of bad feelings in the series under Campbell, but Saturday’s win could propel them toward bigger goals.
“Whenever we would get down in this game, we knew in our hearts that we would be able to come back,” Purchase said. “None of us got down. That’s a big growth from what we’ve had in the past.”
Iowa
Iowa judge rules against Libertarian candidates, keeping their names off the ballot for Congress
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Three Libertarian candidates seeking U.S. House seats in Iowa will not appear on the ballot this November following a judge’s ruling Saturday, upholding a state election panel’s decision.
The ruling came in an appeal by the candidates after the State Objection Panel, composed of one Democratic and two Republican elected officials, ruled 2-1 that the Libertarian candidates should be removed from the ballot on a technicality.
The panel agreed with several Republican Party officials who argued that the Libertarian Party failed to follow state law when it nominated the candidates at its party convention, which was held on the same day as precinct caucuses where the candidates were selected. State law says the term of convention delegates begins the day after the caucuses.
That means the Libertarian candidates were not nominated at valid county conventions, conservative attorney Alan Ostergren argued.
Polk County District Judge Michael Huppert agreed and rejected the candidates’ arguments that the state panel had no authority to strike them from the ballot. He found that the state law is “mandatory in nature and requires strict compliance.”
“The panel concluded correctly by requiring this level of compliance,” Huppert wrote.
The panel’s two Republican members, Attorney General Brenna Bird and Secretary of State Paul Pate, sided with the challengers, saying the parties are obligated to follow the rules governing candidate nominations. The lone dissent on the three-person panel came from State Auditor Rob Sand, a Democrat, who accused his colleagues of political bias.
Independent or third-party candidates usually have little chance of winning. Still, the question of how their margin of support could change the outcome of the race vexes Democratic and Republican leaders alike.
“In general, the parties are worried about minor parties that might take votes from them,” said Stephen Medvic, professor of government at Franklin & Marshall College. “It’s a pretty straightforward calculus. The Libertarian is more likely to take votes from the Republican.”
Challenges to third-party candidates are as common as the election cycle, Medvic said, and especially at the presidential level, they often occur in swing states where a fraction of the vote for a third-party candidate could matter most.
One of Iowa’s four congressional races was decided by a razor-thin margin in 2022. Republican Zach Nunn, who challenged incumbent Democrat Cindy Axne, won by less than a percentage point. There was not a third-party candidate.
The Libertarian Party of Iowa reached major party status in 2022, when their nominee for governor earned support from more than 2% of voters.
The state’s attorney told the judge at a hearing Thursday that the state’s regulations for major parties are reasonable and non-discriminatory to keep the nominating process organized and transparent, arguing that Iowa’s interest in keeping the candidates off the ballot is to maintain election integrity.
The chair of the Libertarian Party of Iowa, Jules Cutler, told the judge that this was “bullying” to keep the “small kid on the block” off the ballot. Cutler has called the party’s technical mistakes embarrassing but argued they should not invalidate the nominations.
The judge’s ruling means that the names of Libertarian nominees Nicholas Gluba in the 1st District, Marco Battaglia in the 3rd District and Charles Aldrich in the 4th District will not be included — for now — on the ballot.
Ballots were supposed to be certified by Pate’s office on Sep. 3, but the judge ordered certification to be put on hold until the issue could be heard in court. An appeal to the Iowa Supreme Court is still possible, further delaying the certification and printing of ballots.
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What’s not to love about Oklahoma State’s offense?
With Doak Award-winning RB Ollie Gordon leading the attack behind an experienced offensive line (more than 200 career starts with seven seniors), the Pokes can move the ball consistently on the ground while setting up valuable play-action passes for ever-improving QB Alan Bowman (1,200-plus play-action passing yards in 2023).
While I have questions about OSU’s defense, it could improve with nine starters returning from last year’s unit.
Overall, the Pokes return 19 starters from last year’s Big 12 Championship runner-up roster, ranking first nationally in experience.
Conversely, Arkansas ranks 88th in experience.
I worry about the offensive line (62 career starts) and linebacking corps (lost all four starters from last season).
There are major depth concerns across the defense, and on offense, it’s uncertain how Boise State transfer QB Taylen Green will perform in the SEC after three years in the MWC.
I always want to bet more experienced teams against less experienced ones in September.
The former is generally more game-ready in non-conference play.
The Bowman-Gordon duo should roll over a questionable Razorback defense that ranked 74th in EPA per rush allowed last season.
The pick: Oklahoma State -10.
IOWA STATE (+2.5) over Iowa
I’m bullish on Iowa State. With 19 starters returning from last year’s roster that improved mightily after a slow start, I think the Cyclones could explode this year.
I love QB Rocco Becht, 2023’s Big 12 Freshman of the Year.
Two of his top three receivers from last year return alongside all five offensive line starters.
The Cyclones are strong and experienced in the secondary.
Though the Hawkeyes always field an elite defense, I’m not ready to believe that Tim Lester has suddenly fixed a hapless offense after a 40-0 victory against FCS Illinois State.
I don’t overreact to Week 1 FBS vs. FCS results, and I’m far from ready to buy in on QB1 Cade McNamara.
At the minimum, this should be a sloppy, lower-scoring game decided by one possession, and I’m willing to take the points in a points-at-a-premium battle.
Cyclone head coach Matt Campbell is 31-16 against the spread as an underdog of three or more points in his career.
The pick: Iowa State +2.5.
OREGON (-19.5) over Boise State
The Ducks looked awful against FCS Idaho (24-14 win) last week, but they dominated the boxscore, tripling the Vandals in first downs (31-10) and more than doubling them in total yards (487-217).
Oregon was unlucky with ill-timed penalties, skewing the final result.
Again, I don’t overreact to Week 1 FBS vs. FCS results, so I remain high on the Ducks as national title contenders.
While Boise State is among the favorites to represent the Group of Five in the College Football Playoff, I’ve downgraded the Broncos significantly after their performance against Georgia Southern.
Betting on College Football?
I had concerns about the defense, but it’s much worse than I imagined.
Georgia Southern dropped 45 points on 99 total plays, generating 0.30 EPA per rush (90th percentile) with 10 explosive plays (12 percent, 85th percentile).
What do you think Dan Lanning, Dillon Gabriel and the Ducks will do? They might drop 60.
Though superstar RB Ashton Jeanty obliterated Georgia Southern’s weak, undersized defensive line (school-record 269 yards and six touchdowns), he will be less effective against stiffer competition.
Oregon has talent and experience on defense, with nine returning starters from last year’s unit.
Lanning should key in on Jeanty, trying to force inexperienced QB Maddux Madsen into uncomfortable passing situations.
Last week: 1-2. Clemson (L), Syracuse (L), Hawaii (W)
2024 Season: 1-2.
IOWA CITY, Iowa (KCRG) – There is an investigation after reports of a car following other vehicles on interstate 380 with flashing lights, but it’s not a law officer.
The Johnson County sheriff said the most important thing to do is verify if you’re dealing with an undercover police officer. In this case, the sheriff says it wasn’t an undercover officer.
The driver in the car allegedly following others reached out to the Johnson County Sheriff, who is now investigating.
“I was driving home from Cedar Rapids and I passed that car, and when I did they got behind me and turned on red and blue lights,” said Kaylee Picek, who was followed by the suspicious car.
She said when she was on her way home the car started flashing what appeared to be police lights. But she didn’t pull over, because something didn’t seem right.
“Then he got behind me and followed me for a while and I called 911 because I was like ‘there’s no way this Red Buick is a police car, there’s no way,’” Picek said.
The 911 operator reassured her the Buick was not part of a police department or sheriff’s office. The car eventually stopped following her.
Sheriff Kunkle said she did the right thing in a confusing moment.
“Especially if it’s an officer from a local agency, they can verify directly over the radio that that is in fact a law enforcement officer,” said Sheriff Brad Kunkle.
Iowa has laws about which vehicles are allowed to use flashing lights, especially if they’re blue. But Sheriff Kunkle wouldn’t say if the driver of this car will face charges… only that the situation is under investigation.
For Picek, she’s just grateful her drive home ended the way it did.
“If you have any doubts about it, calling 911, calling the police, if it is a police officer, it’s not gonna be a big deal, they’ll just tell you to pull over. And if it isn’t a police officer you might have saved your own life,” Picek said.
Picek said while she doesn’t think her particular situation was likely to become violent, she’s worried it would have become dangerous if she had pulled over.
“I think maybe it might have been some road rage thing. Or more so a power trip thing, he got passed, he didn’t like it. And he wanted to control how other people drove without doing it the proper way.”
Copyright 2024 KCRG. All rights reserved.
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