Iowa

Iowa football WR ranks among highest-graded Big Ten wideouts

Published

10 months ago

June 15, 2025

Iowa football WR ranks among highest-graded Big Ten wideouts

The next step in the maturation of the Iowa Hawkeyes’ offense under offensive coordinator Tim Lester lies with the wide receiver group. To open things up, the Hawkeyes need their pass catchers to take the next step and become a viable weapon in the offensive scheme.

Iowa returns Reece Vander Zee, Jacob Gill, and Seth Anderson, who have all flashed at times but have not sustained consistent output. Part of their answer to this group could be the addition of a transfer portal player from Chattanooga, wide receiver Sam Phillips.

Phillips comes to Iowa after spending three years with Chattanooga, where he earned a spot on the SoCon All-Freshman team in 2022. His output has been strong, and it has him graded among Pro Football Focus’ highest-rated receivers returning to the college game in the Big Ten.

With Chattanooga, Sam Phillips registered 117 receptions, 1,519 yards, and 7 touchdowns in 28 games with the Mocs. Phillips also sparingly returned punts and kicks for Chattanooga, which furthers his skill set and versatility that Iowa can tap into.

Coming out of Cartersville High School in Cartersville, Georgia, Sam Phillips was lightly recruited before joining Chattanooga. He joined the Iowa Hawkeyes in December of 2024 via the transfer portal.

Contact/Follow us @HawkeyesWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Iowa news, notes and opinions. Follow Riley on X: @rileydonald7

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Iowa

Illini rip Big Ten rival Iowa to reach Final Four for first time in 21 years

Published

8 hours ago

March 28, 2026

Press Room

Illini rip Big Ten rival Iowa to reach Final Four for first time in 21 years

HOUSTON — Freshman Keaton Wagler scored 25 points and Illinois ended Iowa’s underdog March Madness run by dominating in the frontcourt, beating the Hawkeyes 71-59 on Saturday to advance to the Final Four for the first time since 2005.

This will be the sixth trip to the Final Four for Illinois, which has never won a national title. The Fighting Illini will face either Duke or UConn next weekend in Indianapolis.

The much taller Illini (28-8) outrebounded Iowa 38-21 in the South Region final. David Mirkovic led the way with 12 rebounds.

Coach Brad Underwood’s emphasis on recruiting in Eastern Europe has paid off in this tournament. Tomislav Ivisic of Croatia, who stands 7-foot-1, and his 7-2 twin brother Zvonimir have shined in March.

Andrej Stojakovic, who was born in Greece but whose father is Serbian three-time NBA All-Star Peja Stojakovic, scored 17 points for third-seeded Illinois.

His famous father watched proudly as his son punched his ticket to the Final Four, and Wagler’s parents — who met when they played basketball at a junior college in Kansas — cheered wildly throughout for their son, who was named MVP of the region.

Bennett Stirtz scored 24 points for the ninth-seeded Hawkeyes (24-13), who knocked off top-seeded Florida in the second round as part of an impressive run under first-year coach Ben McCollum, a four-time Division II national champion at Northwest Missouri State.

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Iowa

Rick Barnes reacts to Tennessee’s win over Iowa State

Published

20 hours ago

March 28, 2026

Press Room

Rick Barnes reacts to Tennessee’s win over Iowa State

No. 6 seed Tennessee (25-11) defeated No. 2 seed Iowa State (29-8), 76-62, on Friday in the NCAA Tournament Sweet 16 at United Center in Chicago, Illinois.

The Vols advanced to their third consecutive Elite Eight under 11th-year head coach Rick Barnes.

“One, very humbled by it,” Barnes said. “Certainly proud of our basketball team. They worked really hard. Defensively, I thought we knew we would have to have a great effort defensively. Certainly Iowa State, outstanding. T.J. (Otzelberger), outstanding program, coach.

“This time of year is always tough when you lose a key guy like they did, and that’s part of the tournament. That’s the tough part about it, but just really proud of our guys and the effort they made and against a team that they play as hard as any team we played all year. The start of the game, I don’t think we’ve seen anything like that all year, and we were able to withstand it. Again, just really proud of the effort from our entire team. Everybody had a hand in us winning this game.”

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Iowa

Tennessee basketball vs Iowa State Sweet 16 tipoff time changed for later start

Published

1 day ago

March 27, 2026

Press Room

Tennessee basketball vs Iowa State Sweet 16 tipoff time changed for later start

CHICAGO − Tennessee basketball’s Men’s NCAA Tournament game against Iowa State will start a little later than planned.

The Sweet 16 game between the No. 6 Vols (24-11) and No. 2 Cyclones (29-7) will now tipoff at 10:25 p.m. ET at the United Center on TBS.

The game was originally scheduled for 10:10 p.m. before the 15-minute delay. There is also the standard 30-minute break in between tournament games. Tennessee and Iowa State won’t begin until 30 minutes after the end of No. 1 Michigan (33-3) and No. 4 Alabama (29-5).

Iowa State forward Joshua Jefferson status

Iowa State’s star forward Joshua Jefferson is questionable against Tennessee basketball according to the NCAA player availability report released at 6:32 p.m.

Jefferson sprained his ankle in the opening minutes of Iowa State’s first-round game against Tennessee State. He sat for the remainder of the game and missed the Cyclones’ win over Kentucky on March 22. Iowa State didn’t need the All-Big 12 forward as it generated 20 Wildcat turnovers in its 19-point victory.

Wynton Jackson covers high school sports for Knox News. Email: wynton.jackson@knoxnews.com

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