JOHNSTON, Iowa (KCRG) – The Iowa National Guard is honoring 1,800 Iowa soldiers who are being deployed to the Middle East for Operation Inherent Resolve.

The Iowa National Guard will hold 24 send-off ceremonies across the state from May 28-30.

The ceremonies will provide Iowans the chance to show support for service members and their families.

All are welcome to attend.

“These send-offs are a vital tradition,” said Major General Stephen Osborn, Adjutant General of the Iowa National Guard. “They represent not only the courage and dedication of our soldiers but also the unwavering support of the communities that stand behind them. We encourage Iowans to attend, show their gratitude, and stand shoulder-to-shoulder with our troops as they embark on this important mission.”

Ceremonies are being held in several eastern Iowa towns, including:

• Dubuque (133 IN A Co) – Wednesday at 5:45 p.m. at the Dubuque Armory, 5001 Old Highway Road
• Iowa City (133 IN B Co) – Wednesday at 5:30 p.m. at the Melrose Readiness Center, 4540 Melrose Road
• Davenport (133 IN D Co) – Wednesday at 3:30 p.m. at the Davenport Armory, 5300 W Kimberly Road
• Waterloo (133 IN HHC & G Co) – Wednesday at 6:00 p.m. at Cedar Falls High School, 2701 W 27th Street, Cedar Falls
• Mt. Pleasant (224 BEB A Co) – Thursday at 2:30 p.m. at the Theatre Museum of Repertoire Americana, 405 E Thresher Road
• Cedar Rapids (224 BEB C Co) – Thursday at 2:00 p.m. at the Cedar Rapids Armory, 1500 Wright Brothers Boulevard
• Davenport (224 BEB HHC, B & E Co) – Thursday at 2:30 p.m. at the Mississippi Fairgrounds Speedway, 2815 W Locust Street
• Cedar Rapids (334 BSB HHC, A & B Co) – Friday at 5:00 p.m. at the Cedar Rapids Armory, 1500 Wright Brothers Boulevard

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The Iowa Hawkeyes have prided themselves on their strong defense for much of the Kirk Ferentz era, but the problem is they lost a ton of key players on that side of the ball this offseason.

Perhaps most notably, Iowa lost all three of its starting linebackers from 2024, which includes Butkus-Fitzgerald Award winner Jay Higgins.

Iowa has managed to piece things together in previous years after losing strong talent, so there is no reason to believe that the Hawkeyes won’t be able to do it again, but in this new NIL era, it may become considerably tougher for Ferentz and Co. to make significant moves.

Well, evidently, Iowa has identified a linebacker that it truly wants on its roster moving forward: three-star Georgia product Billy Weivoda.

The Hawkeyes just made an offer to Weivoda, and now, he will be visiting Iowa City for three days between June 13 and 15.

Weivoda is a class of 2026 recruit, so he obviously won’t be able to suit up for Iowa for a couple of years, but at least the Hawkeyes are getting ahead of things by trying to lock down a linebacking corps for the future.

The Alpharetta, Ga. native is the 56th-ranked linebacker in the country, via 247 Sports’ composite rankings. He is also the 78th-ranked player in the state of Georgia overall.

Weivoda also has upcoming meetings slated with Appalachian State, Jacksonville State and Virginia Tech, so Iowa may certainly have an edge from a prestige perspective. He already took a visit with Georgia Tech back in January.

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The Iowa State men’s basketball team will face Northwestern in the Cyclones’ second exhibition game of the year on Sunday, October 26, 2025, at Hilton Coliseum in Ames, Iowa. The game will be the first in a two-game “home-and-home” exhibition series over the next two years, with the teams facing off again in Evanston, Illinois, in October 2026.

The Cyclones recently announced they will hold a similar style exhibition series with Creighton, which kicks off at CHI Health Center Omaha on October 17, 2025. A second exhibition game at Hilton Coliseum is scheduled for October next year:

Their 2025 exhibition schedule represents Iowa State’s ambitious preseason plans, featuring multiple games against high-major opponents. The last time the Cyclones played multiple exhibition games was in 2009, when they convincingly defeated both Black Hills State and UNC Pembroke.

Creighton and Northwestern are expected to be significantly more competent opponents, offering Iowa State an excellent opportunity to assess their team and set expectations before the start of the regular season.

Expectations are high for an Iowa State team that was ranked in the AP Top 25 throughout the 2024-25 campaign. They finished the season ranked No. 17 after amassing a 25-10 record, but exited both the Big 12 tournament and the NCAA tournament earlier than supporters had hoped. The Cyclones were ranked No. 13 in ESPN’s Way Too Early Top 25 in April and maintained that position in CBS Sports’ Top 25 rankings last week.

The Creighton Bluejays compiled a strong 25-11 overall record during the 2024-25 season, earning second-place finishes in both the Big East regular season standings and conference tournament.

Northwestern finished 17-16, technically earning their third straight winning season, but the narrow margin reflected a disappointing campaign for the Wildcats.