Iowa
Iowa State AD says he doesn’t care if SEC, Big Ten leave other P4 Conferences behind: ‘Let them break away’
The future of college football continues to be in flux, as schools and conferences wrestle with how to make more money.
Conference realignment exploded because schools like USC and UCLA were falling well behind, financially, relative to peers in the Big Ten or SEC. College Football Playoff expansion continues to be a topic of discussion, led in part by those two conferences, as administrators believe there’s more money to be made by adding more games and teams to the mix.
But another point of discussion in college football is even larger and more structural: the point of the NCAA and current configuration.
Big Ten Conference Commissioner Tony Petitti speaks during the 2025 Big Ten Football Media Days at Mandalay Bay Convention Center in Las Vegas, Nev., on July 22, 2025. (Louis Grasse/Getty Images)
Some have speculated that the Power Four conferences should leave the NCAA entirely, form their own breakaway league that’s organized differently than the existing format. Notable personalities like Kirk Herbstreit spoke about that earlier in 2026, saying that name, image and likeness (NIL) and other issues could be fixed if there’s a collective bargaining agreement (CBA) between conferences and players in a new entity.
INSIDE THE FIGHT: NIL ARMS RACE FUELING NEW PUSH FOR COLLEGE FOOTBALL PLAYOFF EXPANSION
“I think the Power Four needs to break away,” he said in an interview with Front Office Sports. “Create their own world, create their own governing body. Allow the Group of Four to create their own world. Allow them to have their own playoff. Much like FCS and Division II and III. Just create a new level, which would be the Power Four. Let’s create a new governing body, let’s put a commissioner. If we need to unionize the players, to allow them to create a CBA to avoid the antitrust laws, make the rules, come to an agreement like the NFL does on both sides.”
Then there are proposals that the Big Ten and SEC, as the two most successful conferences, should set up their own arrangement. And one athletic director at a major Big 12 program, surprisingly, seems to think they should.
Jamie Pollard of the Iowa State Cyclones stands on the sidelines before a game against the Baylor Bears at Jack Trice Stadium in Ames, Iowa, on Oct. 5, 2024. The Cyclones won 43-21. (Luke Lu/Diamond Images)
“Let them break away. We should break away from them,” said Iowa State AD Jamie Pollard to reporters this week, per Brett McMurphy. “Let them go, but they have to go in all their sports and see how fun it is to play baseball, softball and track when it’s just the 20 of you. That’s what I think we should do, but I’m one person & that’s probably a little more draconian.
ZERO BS. JUST DAKICH. TAKE THE DON’T @ ME PODCAST ON THE ROAD. DOWNLOAD NOW!
“That’s how I feel about it. Like, let’s quit talking about it. Quit threatening. Go do it. But if you’re going to do it, you don’t get to just do it in football and then keep all your other sports with us. No, take them all. See how fun it is.”
Sounds like relations between the two dominant superconferences and the rest of the P4 are in a great spot.
SEC commissioner Greg Sankey speaks with the media during SEC Media Days at the Grand Bohemian Hotel. (Vasha Hunt-Imagn Images)
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP
Pollard is right, directionally, in that the Big Ten and SEC “need” the other conferences. But it’s also short sighted to act as though the Big 12 doesn’t need them too. There’s logic to all sides of the argument; the Big Ten and SEC provide the most value to college athletics, but there is value from Big 12 and ACC programs too. And with everyone grasping for a large slice of the pie, there’s bound to be disagreement over how best to distribute money or make more of it.
It would be stunning if the Big Ten and SEC broke away entirely. But it seems increasingly likely that Power Four does break away from the NCAA. It’s only a matter of time.
Iowa
Iowa High School Girls State Soccer Champions Crowned In Thrilling Finishes
Three incredible games took place Saturday on the final day of the Iowa Girls High School Athletic Union State Soccer Tournament.
The event concluded from the Cyclone Sports Complex in Ames, Iowa, battling severe weather that rolled through the area during the tournament.
Waukee Northwest captured the Class 3A title, North Polk won gold in Class 2A and Hudson was crowned the Class 1A champions.
Here are recaps from the championship games of the Iowa Girls High School Athletic Union State Soccer Tournament.
Class 3A Final: Waukee Northwest 2, West Des Moines Valley 1
Two first half goals by Cora Sundet off assists from Natalie Elliott were enough to carry Waukee Northwest to the Class 3A championship over West Des Moines Valley, 2-1.
Sundet found the back of the net in the 29th minute to make it 1-0 off a pass from Elliott, as the two connected just 73 seconds later to make it 2-0. The Tigers would get on the board just over two minutes later when Bryn Kenworthy scored.
Waukee Northwest concluded the season unbeaten, going 13-0-3. Elliott was named the captain of the all-tournament team, as teammates Grace Hummel, Izzy Simonini and Grace Thomason joined her.
From West Des Moines Valley, Sabrina Rogers and Olivia Rotich made the team. Ankeny Centennial’s Josie Ehlinger, Evie Boyle and Kayle Pezzetti, along with Linn-Mar’s Dreya Kern and Bettendorf’s Alivia Snow completed the squad.
Class 2A Final: North Polk 1, North Scott 0
A Madelyn Cory goal in the fifth minute was all that North Polk needed to take home the Class 2A championship, besting North Scott, 1-0.
Cory scored off an assist from Addison Finn, as the Comet defense silenced the Lancers for the rest of the match.
Earning captain status of the all-tournament team was Blythe Knight of North Polk, as Campbell Schulz, Finn and Cory joined her. North Scott’s Reese Barnett, Paige Coon and Camryn Jones also made the team.
Norwalk’s Pearl Brown and Olivia Welch, along with Rylee Renz from Dallas Center-Grimes and Anaka Ott of Waverly-Shell Rock rounded out the all-tournament squad.
Class 1A Final: Hudson 1, Denver 0
Regulation and two overtime sessions were not enough to determine the Class 1A state championship between Hudson and Denver.
But on penalty kicks, it was all Hudson, as they made four to secure the title.
Gia Baldiviezo, Taylor Davis, Charlee Austin and Taylor Junker were all successful, as Denver’s loan made penalty kick came from Bailey Mullihan.
Baldiviezo was the all-tournament team captain, with Taylor Davis and Callie Stickfort joining her. From Denver, Grace Mullihan and Addyson Shepard made the team.
Council Bluffs St. Albert’s Elanor Coughlin and Ellie Larmie, Emma Haan and Shelby Arkulari of Aplington-Parkersburg, Addy Oetker of Des Moines Christian and Stella Sornson of Treynor completed the team.
Follow
Iowa
Eastern Iowa EMS crews train on motorcycle crash response
DUBUQUE, Iowa (KCRG) – Eastern Iowa EMS crews received specialized training Saturday on how to treat motorcyclists after a crash.
Course instructor Frank Prowant teaches the course, called Two-Wheel Trauma through nonprofit ABATE of Iowa, because EMS providers typically receive no specific training in motorcycle trauma.
“The motorcyclist is the one taking all the impact of an accident, all the force. There’s no airbags, no steering wheel that’s preventing further injury to them,” Prowant said.
Two-Wheel Trauma has been teaching first responders since 1986.
Prowant said ridership has grown over the years, and so have the crashes.
“We’ve went from just motorcycles to now we’re seeing e-bikes. We’re seeing electric scooters. We’re seeing all kinds of different motorcycles that are out there. And a lot of different injuries,” Prowant said.
Another instructor, Dick “Slider” Gilmore, said Iowa’s large riding community makes the training critical.
He said the Dubuque area draws heavy riding traffic.
“With the Mississippi River and all the cool places. We’re all drawn to this in the summertime. So, this area is maybe more important than most other places in Iowa because it’s where we gravitate to on our bikes,” Gilmore said.
Organizers plan to make the Dubuque training an annual event.
Copyright 2026 KCRG. All rights reserved.
Iowa
Out of the spotlight, democracy keeps working for betterment | Opinion
The basic machinery of democracy, for all its flaws, can still produce good decisions when used in good faith.
FIFA World Cup host cities lay out security plans ahead of matches
Host cities ramp up security and anti-human trafficking efforts ahead of FIFA World Cup matches across the U.S.
The news has felt best to avoid lately. It ranges from “discouraging” to “somehow real life, not the Onion.” And political news is the worst. Washington seems to be drawing from the movie “Idiocracy.” The Iowa Statehouse is no better. More voting restrictions. Less access to healthcare. Required propaganda at the University of Iowa. Another year of failing our schools and our youth. State finances aptly described as “a time bomb.”
These hot messes are real. They are also not the whole story. They are the sexy topics that stir controversy, satisfy donors, and get views. But underneath all the bold type, a shocking amount of work is happening with bipartisan support and following the “regular [legislative] order” that produces good decisions.
To give you a break from the daily doomscroll, here are some good things that happened this session. They remind us that the system can work outside big money and wedge issues.
Let’s start with slavery, euphemistically referred to as “human trafficking” these days. It’s second only to drug dealing in scale, but it’s rarely in the news. Iowa probably has a few hundred people enslaved at any given time. This year, Iowa passed several different bills addressing trafficking. Commercial drivers and child-protective services will be trained to recognize it. Victims now have a bill of rights and will be treated as victims, not as prostitutes, and Iowa is funding services for them. Prosecuting traffickers will be easier, and conviction will have more serious consequences. These are significant improvements.
There are bright spots on civics and government, too. Despite going backward on voting, the Legislature significantly improved our open records and open meetings laws. These changes include much-needed modernization, such as requiring notices to be online and not just on a physical bulletin board. They also crack down on bad-faith practices that have been used to block requests, such as unreasonable fees or labeling reporters as “vexatious requesters.” This is a win for Iowans.
Iowa also moved to shore up our citizens’ lamentable lack of civics knowledge, recognizing a Civics Seal of Excellence for high school graduates and reasonable requirements for graduates of Iowa State University and the University of Northern Iowa to have a basic understanding of America’s history and government. (Their requirements of the UI were not reasonable, but that is a topic for another time.) If only they had funded their mandates.
There are even rays of sunshine amid the gloom of reproductive rights and healthcare laws; minors can now consent to their own care before, during, and after giving birth, and miscarriages and ectopic pregnancies are clearly separated from abortions.
This session had numerous other, solidly positive bills, from modest water quality improvements to making animal torture a felony. The unifying theme among these bills is that they are either boring or address indefensible problems. No one campaigns in favor of nitrate-necessitated water rationing or animal torture. Elected officials want Iowans to know how the government works. Even some anti-choice politicians recognize the need for miscarriage care.
Unfortunately, this practicality breaks down in the face of partisan dogma and wealthy donors. More unfortunately, those partisan issues backed by wealthy donors are often the biggest issues of the day, and Iowa Republicans outdid themselves this year in passing inept and/or vindictive bills to campaign on.
But they aren’t the whole story, and it’s important to focus on the good things, too. They show that the basic machinery of democracy, for all its flaws, can still produce good decisions when used in good faith. It also reminds us that even the people passing the most atrocious, politicized bills aren’t always puppy-kicking cartoon villains. They’re often just people without the moral fiber to resist perverse incentives. And that understanding frames the challenge for us and those we elect in November: how do we change the system so that decency and good work matter more than wealthy donors and partisanship?
Kelcey Patrick-Ferree and Shannon Patrick live in Iowa City and write at www.ourlibertiesweprize.com. And biannual time changes must be abolished.
-
Hawaii7 minutes agoRoad closures for the week of June 13-19 – The Garden Island
-
Idaho14 minutes ago‘They’re Idaho horns’
-
Illinois17 minutes agoIllinois Lottery Powerball, Pick 3 results for June 13, 2026
-
Indiana22 minutes agoStephanie White says fans ‘or bots on social media’ are a problem, not Indiana Fever locker room
-
Iowa29 minutes agoIowa High School Girls State Soccer Champions Crowned In Thrilling Finishes
-
Kansas32 minutes agoEngland get rapturous welcome as they settle in to sprawling Kansas City home
-
Kentucky37 minutes agoKentucky Bluegrass 3 Wheel Klassic returning to Owensboro for second year
-
Louisiana44 minutes ago
Louisiana Lottery Powerball, Pick 3 results for June 13, 2026