Iowa
Does Saturday’s showdown with Iowa State mark BYU’s best and last opportunity to get bowl eligible?
/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/24909349/merlin_2995813.jpg "Does Saturday’s showdown with Iowa State mark BYU’s best and last opportunity to get bowl eligible?")
The intangibles seem to favor BYU in Saturday night’s frosty showdown with Iowa State.
Everything else, the really important things such as offense, defense, special teams and talent, favor the Cyclones.
“Just one more step and we are there for a bowl game. We are always aiming to win every game, not just aiming to get to a bowl game. We want to win out.” — BYU receiver Keelan Marion
Predicting how this matchup of a mid-level Big 12 team playing at the home of a lower-level Big 12 team, a newcomer to the league, will go doesn’t appear to be that difficult. On paper, the numbers say Iowa State (4-2, 5-4) should roll to an easy win over reeling BYU (2-4, 5-4) at 8:15 p.m. at LaVell Edwards Stadium.
That’s why the Cyclones are eight-point favorites; if this game was being played in Ames, ISU would be a double-digit favorite over a team that has been outscored 72-13 in its last two outings and scored just one touchdown in its last 10 quarters.
Call it the bowl game to go to a bowl game. The victor gets to six wins and bowl eligible. The loser most likely stays home for the holidays, seeing as how up next for BYU is No. 17 Oklahoma (7-2) in Provo and No. 15 Oklahoma State (7-2) in Stillwater.
Iowa State hosts No. 7 Texas (8-1) next week, then finishes out at Kansas State, which almost knocked off the Longhorns in Austin last week and is receiving votes in one poll and is ranked No. 25 in another.
“It is huge. It is the biggest game of the year for us, because it is the game this week. And it is a chance to get bowl eligible, which is obviously a team goal that we have. So it is absolutely huge,” said BYU center Connor Pay.
You get the picture.
The Cyclones, who lost 28-21 to No. 21 Kansas last week in Ames in their first opportunity to get bowl eligible, had won three straight before that and are clearly playing better football than the Cougars. Coach Matt Campbell’s program has seemingly recovered nicely from a sports betting scandal that cost them starting QB Hunter Dekkers and running back Jirehl Brock.
“There is a ton of urgency,” said BYU linebacker AJ Vongphachanh. “To get that sixth win is huge, especially coming back home against a good opponent. We are super eager to get that (win) and build off that.”
Injuries have riddled the Cougars on both sides of the ball, but BYU head coach Kalani Sitake said the Cougars won’t use excuses and will have to rely on other strengths — such as ballhawking ability, a boisterous home crowd, and the penchant for rising to the occasion when all seems lost — to get them through, utilizing the so-called intangibles that have helped BYU down Power Five schools Arkansas, Cincinnati and Texas Tech.
This will be Sitake’s 100th game as BYU’s head coach.
“We are one win away (from bowl eligibility),” he said. “I wanted to do it last week. I wanted to do it (the week before). I want us to be at our best every week. I am not really worried about the record, except for we are so close now that it can provide us more time to get together (in pre-bowl practices). But you just don’t talk about it. You gotta go out and get it.”
Receiver Keelan Marion, who has taken on a bigger role the past few weeks because starters Darius Lassiter, Keanu Hill and Kody Epps have been out, said the recent blowout losses haven’t dampened spirits, or nicked their collective confidence.
“Just one more step and we are there for a bowl game,” he said. “We are always aiming to win every game, not just aiming to get to a bowl game. We want to win out.”
Defensively, BYU will be without starting defensive tackles John Nelson and Caden Haws and rush end John Henry Daley. Defensive coordinator Jay Hill said Tuesday that safety Talan Alfrey might finally be available.
That deficiency up the middle doesn’t bode well for the Cougars considering that Iowa State has a solid rushing attack. The Cyclones aren’t as proficient on the ground as West Virginia, which put up 336 rushing yards vs. BYU last week, but they aren’t too far behind the Mountaineers.
“We are excited for another opportunity to go play and for another challenge to show what we can do on defense,” BYU defensive end Tyler Batty said. “We have had some highs and lows, so defensively we just gotta be excited to go out and prove that we can shut down the run game.”
Linebacker Max Tooley said the Cougars have changed some things in practice this week in an effort to improve their physicality and tackling. Whether it works remains to be seen.
“This hasn’t been the way we wanted our season to go,” Tooley said. “Anytime you can extend that season, to play that extra game, that is a big bonding moment as a whole for the team. … So in that aspect, yeah, it is something you want to work for.”
Offensively, BYU will start Jake Retzlaff at quarterback for the second-straight week. It’s a big ask of the junior college transfer, considering that BYU’s offensive line has regressed as the season has worn on and weapons such as Epps, Lassiter and Hill are questionable to play.
The Cougars should have a healthy stable of running backs for the first time since Week 2; Offensive coordinator Aaron Roderick said freshman LJ Martin and Aidan Robbins are good to go.
But Iowa State has the 32nd best rushing defense in the country, giving up just 117 yards per game on the ground.
“They have the conference’s best defense for a reason,” Sitake said. “We gotta find a way to put points on the board and have our guys execute at a high level in all three phases so we can have a chance to win this game. Excited that we are home in front of our crowd. Looking forward to that being an advantage.”
Fans cheer at LaVell Edwards Stadium in Provo during a BYU football game on Friday, Oct. 28, 2022.
Ben B. Braun, Deseret News
Iowa State coach Matt Campbell on Verdon, Sadowsky, McLaughlin
Iowa State coach Matt Campbell on defense bouncing back with return of Will McLaughlin, Malik Verdon, and Jack Sadowsky playing.
Week 11 of the 2024 NFL season is in the books, and several former Iowa State players had huge hands in their teams’ performances.
The collection of ex-Cyclones in the NFL continues to grow, with several more added to rosters this season after having around a dozen consistently active last season. While the star-studded names like Brock Purdy, Breece Hall and David Montgomery continue to shine week after week, several others Iowa State fans will recognize are making significant impacts at the pro level too.
With that, here are a few ex-Cyclones who stood out in Week 11 of the NFL season.
David Montgomery, Detroit Lions RB
Everyone on the Detroit Lions got a piece of the action in Sunday’s 52-6 win over the Jacksonville Jaguars. Montgomery was right in the middle of the dominance.
The former Iowa State running back finished with 15 carries for a game-high 75 yards and two touchdowns. Montgomery also added three catches for 20 yards.
He’s now found the end zone 10 times this season, but Sunday was Montgomery’s first game with multiple touchdowns since a 47-9 win over the Dallas Cowboys on Oct. 13. Montgomery and the Lions are rolling right along this season.
Brock Purdy, San Francisco 49ers QB
Just when Purdy and the 49ers seem like they’ve turned a corner, disaster strikes on the field. That’s what happened in Sunday’s 20-17 home loss to the Seattle Seahawks.
The former Iowa State quarterback still managed a decent day, finishing 21-for-28 for 159 yards with one touchdown and one interception. Purdy also added five carries for 40 yards and a score. He’ll look for a rebound winning performance Sunday at Green Bay.
Breece Hall, New York Jets RB
It’s a broken record at this point. Hall goes for a decent day, even as his New York Jets continue to sputter significantly.
In Sunday’s 28-27 loss to the Indianapolis Colts, the former Iowa State running back finished with 16 carries for 78 yards and a touchdown. Hall also added seven catches for 43 yards and a score. It’s impressive the stats keep coming even as the wins aren’t.
Dargan Southard is a sports trending reporter and covers Iowa athletics for the Des Moines Register and HawkCentral.com. Email him at msouthard@gannett.com or follow him on Twitter at @Dargan_Southard.
Iowa
University of Iowa fraternity suspended after 56 pledges found in basement during alleged hazing
The University of Iowa has placed one of its fraternities on interim suspension after an alleged hazing incident last week.
Alpha Delta Phi has been accused of having 56 blindfolded pledges “with food thrown on them” in the fraternity house’s basement, according to a criminal complaint obtained by the Iowa City Press-Citizen.
The pledges were discovered by Iowa City police and university police when the agencies responded to a fire alarm at the fraternity house at around 12:45 a.m. on Nov. 15.
The fraternity was ordered by the university’s Office of Student Accountability to “suspend all operations” pending the outcome of the investigation into the hazing allegations. The fraternity’s national organization also placed the UI chapter under suspension.
SYRACUSE UNIVERSITY SUSPENDS FRATERNITY AFTER ‘REPUGNANT’ HAZING VIDEO SURFACES ONLINE
A fraternity at the University of Iowa is suspended by the school and its national organization following hazing reports. (Reuters)
One person, who is not a student and does not live at the fraternity house, was arrested and charged with interference with official acts, the university said.
The Iowa City Press-Citizen identified that person as 21-year-old Joseph Gaya. His charge stems from standing “in front of the officers in the doorway of the room full of pledges” and refusing to move out of the way, the outlet reported.
He allegedly stepped between two witnesses and an officer during a conversation, and told the witnesses “not to talk to the police.” The officer told Gaya to step away, but he allegedly refused and eventually told the officer, “You can (expletive) leave, how about that?”
The two witnesses told Gaya they were “fine,” according to the Press-Citizen, but he still did not leave.
The Alpha Delta Phi fraternity at the University of Iowa is under an interim suspension following an investigation into alleged hazing in the house’s basement. (Google Earth)
FLORIDA FRATERNITY BROTHER WITH BRAIN DAMAGE FROM HAZING SENDS LIFESAVING WARNING TO FUTURE GREEKS
The university said its Office of Student Accountability will follow its discipline procedure for student organizations, which includes issuing sanctions for prohibited behaviors, such as hazing.
“As registered student organizations, fraternities are expected to uphold the values of the university, and their members are expected to comply with the Code of Student Life,” the university said in a news release.
The affected students have been offered “counseling and resources,” according to UI.
Campus police at the University of Iowa are investigating the hazing incident, along with the university’s Office of Student Accountability. (University of Iowa Campus Safety / Facebook)
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“The university is committed to protecting the health and safety of its students and will address any behavior that puts student safety at risk,” the university said.
Fox News Digital has reached out to Alpha Delta Phi’s national organization and the University of Iowa police.
Federal regulators want the Iowa Department of Natural Resources to expand the state’s 2024 list of impaired waters and is accepting public comment through Dec. 13.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency said nitrate and nitrite levels in six sections of the Cedar, Des Moines, Iowa, Raccoon and South Skunk rivers have exceeded safe drinking water standards and need to be curtailed.
With the EPA’s additions, Iowa’s list would include 581 impaired streams, rivers, lakes and reservoirs.
Michael Schmidt, staff attorney for the Iowa Environmental Council, said the EPA’s response stands out.
It’s a demonstration that we are not fully addressing our water quality problems in Iowa.
Michael Schmidt, attorney with the IEC
“[The] EPA does not very often disapprove state submissions for impaired water lists, like this, and I think [the] EPA’s action recognizes the high nitrate concentration across Iowa, especially in Iowa’s major rivers,” Schmidt said. “It’s a demonstration that we are not fully addressing our water quality problems in Iowa.”
A growing number of studies have linked low nitrate concentrations in drinking water to colorectal cancer, thyroid disease and other health issues.
The Iowa Environmental Council criticized the DNR earlier this year for de-listing waters prematurely.
The Iowa DNR said it’s reviewing the EPA’s action and declined further comment.
What does it mean for a waterway to be on the list?
Every two years, the EPA requires states to submit a surface water quality report and a list of every impaired waterbody or segment. The causes for impairment run the gamut, from fish-killing fertilizer spills to E. coli that shuts down beaches.
Once a waterbody or segment is on the list, the state works with the EPA to set a Total Maximum Daily Load, or TMDL. It’s a target to reduce pollutants and a starting point to create a restoration plan.
On Nov. 12, the EPA said it partially approved the Iowa DNR’s submission, including its rationale to delist 84 water segments that had been on the impaired list. But the federal agency disagreed with the state’s decision to leave out half a dozen segments that provide drinking water to Des Moines, Iowa City, Cedar Rapids, Ottumwa and Oskaloosa.
The decision stated, “Iowa is not assessing all pollutants with toxic effects with reasonable consideration of the individual pollutant, endpoints, and adverse effects being considered.”
The EPA said the Iowa DNR did not use all readily available public data “from the Iowa Water Quality Information System, which includes data from the University of Iowa’s Iowa Institute for Hydrologic Research (IIHR) and continuous data from the U.S. Geological Survey; data from local and state entities available through the organization Upper Iowa River; and volunteer data available through the Clean Water Hub.”
The agency said the Iowa DNR did not provide a science-based rationale for excluding some information.
The EPA is accepting public comments on the additions to Iowa’s 2024 impaired water list through Dec. 13, 2024. After reviewing comments, the EPA said it will issue a response and may revise its decision before transmitting the list to the Iowa DNR.
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