Iowa coach Tom Manufacturers was excited to observe his wrestlers compete on the U23 nationwide championships this weekend, and Patrick Kennedy spent the final two days displaying why.
Kennedy, the Hawkeyes’ proficient third-year wrestler, received the U23 males’s freestyle nationwide title on Sunday in Ohio. He went 7-0 to win at 74 kilograms (163 kilos), registering three wins over All-Individuals and two extra over NCAA qualifiers.
The efficiency strengthened Manufacturers’ pleasure. Kennedy joined this system as a ballyhooed recruit from Minnesota’s Kasson-Mantorville, however he has needed to wait two years earlier than cracking the Hawkeye lineup. He wrestled some however not typically in the course of the shortened 2021 season, then went 17-3 whereas redshirting in the course of the ’21-22 season.
Manufacturers anticipates Kennedy will step proper into the Hawkeye lineup subsequent season and be Iowa’s beginning 165-pounder for the foreseeable future, and if this weekend is any indication of what to anticipate, Kennedy may very nicely be a nationwide drive immediately.
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The 21-year-old outscored his seven opponents by a mixed 66-12. He beat a pair of NCAA qualifiers, in Appalachian State’s William Formato (10-0) and Columbia’s Josh Ogunsanya (15-5). He additionally beat two guys who each received 20-plus matches final season, in Wyoming’s Cooper Voorhees and Lock Haven’s Avery Bassett.
Kennedy’s last three matches on Sunday had been maybe his finest. Within the semifinals, he pinned Nebraska’s Peyton Robb, an All-American this past season at 157 pounds. Robb opened with a 4-point takedown, however Kennedy rallied to guide 6-4 after scoring an publicity within the second interval, throughout which he re-adjusted and recorded the autumn.
Within the best-of-three finals, Kennedy swept West Virginia’s Peyton Corridor, one other 2022 All-American. Kennedy scored 4 takedowns to win the primary match, 8-3, then scored 5 step-out factors to win the second, 5-0. This end result was particularly spectacular since Corridor beat Kennedy, 6-4 in sudden victory, on the Southern Scuffle final January.
► MORE: Iowa Metropolis Excessive’s Ben Kueter makes U20 males’s freestyle world workforce
The unlucky information for Kennedy is that this weekend’s competitors partially doubled because the world workforce trials occasion for the U23 world championships, set for October in Spain. Right here’s why it’s solely partially:
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USA Wrestling modified its U23 world workforce qualifying course of this 12 months. If any of the Senior nationwide workforce members are U23 eligible, they get first dibs on the U23 world workforce spot.
At 74 kilos, Kyle Dake and Jason Nolf, who will wrestle for the Senior world workforce spot on Wednesday at Last X in New York, aren’t eligible, however Iowa State’s David Carr, who beat Joey Lavallee in a wrestle-off for the third spot on the nationwide workforce final Friday at Last X in Stillwater, is U23 eligible. He has indicated he plans to take the spot, too.
That stinks for Kennedy, who no-doubt earned his nationwide title this weekend. However his efficiency ought to have Hawkeye wrestling followers buzzing as they await the arrival of the 2022-23 season.
Iowa wrestler Tony Cassioppi makes U23 males’s freestyle world workforce
Tony Cassioppi will get the chance to win one other world title this fall.
Cassioppi, Iowa’s lean-and-mean All-American heavyweight, joined Kennedy as a champion on the U23 males’s freestyle nationwide match on Sunday. However in contrast to Kennedy’s unlucky circumstance, Cassioppi shall be on the U23 world workforce.
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The 22-year-old stormed to first at 125 kilos (275), going 7-0 and outscoring his opponents 72-8. He notched wins over Oklahoma State’s Luke Surber, Wisconsin All-American Trent Hillger, then swept Missouri’s Zach Elam, a previous Junior world silver medalist, within the best-of-three finals, successful by scores of 11-4 and 13-2.
By advantage of USA Wrestling’s nationwide workforce members at 125 kilos all ineligible for the U23 world championships, Cassioppi earned the world workforce spot together with his championship run this weekend. The U23 world championships are set for October 17-23 in Spain.
Cassioppi, after all, received gold ultimately 12 months’s U23 world championships. Expectations, each internally and externally, are lots excessive that he’ll do it once more this fall.
► RELATED: Thomas Gilman makes one other Senior males’s freestyle world workforce
Alburnett’s Tanner Sloan makes U23 males’s freestyle world workforce
Tanner Sloan, the Alburnett grad who’s now wrestling at South Dakota State, joined Cassioppi on the U23 world workforce by successful the title at 97 kilos (202) on Sunday. Sloan went 5-0 and swept Stanford’s Nick Stemmet within the best-of-three finals, 10-0 and 10-3.
Sloan, a three-time NCAA qualifier for the Jackrabbits, is now a two-time age-level world workforce member for USA Wrestling. He beforehand made the Junior males’s freestyle world workforce in 2019 that competed in Estonia.
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That 12 months, David Carr received a Junior world title. Moreover, Yonger Bastida, now an All-American at Iowa State, repped Cuba and took second at Sloan’s weight. Sloan went 0-1 and was eradicated on the primary day of competitors.
Three extra Hawkeye wrestlers earn All-American honors at U23 nationwide championships
Kennedy and Cassioppi produced the spotlight performances, however the Hawkeyes had a superb weekend total on the U23 nationwide championships, ending with 5 whole All-Individuals — and the opposite three all completed within the top-four.
Abe Assad went 6-1 and completed third at 86 kilos (189). He received his first 4 matches by a mixed 40-0 to achieve the semifinals, the place he misplaced to Oregon State’s Trey Munoz, 6-2. However he rallied with two wrestleback wins for third — 8-5 over Cornell’s Chris Foca, and 3-1 over Cornell’s Jonathan Loew, an All-American at 184 this previous season.
Brennan Swafford went 7-1 and took third at 79 kilos (174). He additionally made the semifinals then took third. He registered come-from-behind wins over Little Rock’s Tyler Brennan (down 4-0, received 5-4) and Michigan’s Max Maylor (down 5-2, received 7-5) and technical fall wins over Illinois’ Dan Braunagel, Air Power’s Sam Wolf, and Edinboro’s Aaron McDaniel.
Cobe Siebrecht put collectively an spectacular efficiency, going 8-2 for fourth at 70 kilos (154). He received seven straight matches within the wrestlebacks. He recorded an 18-8 win over Willie McDougald, a Huge 12 runner-up and NCAA qualifier; 10-0 win over South Dakota State’s Daniel Kimball; and pinned Northern Iowa’s Evan Yant whereas trailing 6-4.
Northern Iowa’s Julian Farber turns into U23 freestyle All-American
The Panther Practice introduced an enormous contingent of wrestlers to the U23 nationwide match, however solely Julian Farber, a third-year wrestler initially from Georgia, was the one medal-winner, ending seventh at 61 kilos (134).
Farber went 6-2 total, which included 5 straight wins within the wrestlebacks after a third-round loss. He beat Purdue’s Dustin Norris 12-1 and Arizona State’s Julian Chlebove 9-3 to achieve the top-eight. His solely losses got here to Minnesota’s Jake Gliva and Cal-State Bakersfield’s Probability Wealthy, each of whom had been NCAA qualifiers in 2022.
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Cody Goodwin covers wrestling and highschool sports activities for the Des Moines Register. Comply with him on Twitter at @codygoodwin.
Video: Jay Higgins on Iowa’s defensive performance in loss to Ohio State
Jay Higgins discusses a variety of topics after Iowa’s 35-7 loss to Ohio State.
COLUMBUS, Ohio — Iowa football coach Kirk Ferentz made his view of the quarterback position pretty clear after Saturday’s 35-7 loss at Ohio State.
No, the Hawkeyes are not headed for a change at quarterback, Ferentz said.
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“We’re not ready, I think, to have a controversy at that position,” the longtime head coach said.
The loss to Ohio State again illustrated the gap between Iowa and national powerhouses. The Hawkeyes haven’t beaten one of the three giants of the Big Ten — Penn State, Michigan or Ohio State — since a 2021 win over the Nittany Lions. Against ranked opponents last season, Iowa was beaten a combined 92-0.
Perhaps you could point to the fact that Iowa at least scored on Saturday as progress. But in reality, Saturday’s margin was similar to those three games last season.
More: Leistikow: Rating concern levels for Iowa football at quarterback, offensive line, defense
The quarterback position wasn’t good enough on Saturday. Cade McNamara finished the game 14-of-20 passing for 98 yards and three turnovers — two fumbles and one interception. Just like the game itself, the quarterback play fit an old, tired narrative.
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When, if ever, will Iowa’s quarterback woes finally be solved?
To be clear, quarterback production was not the only deficient area on Saturday. The Hawkeyes were beaten in the trenches — on both sides of the ball — and outgained 203-116 on the ground. Iowa’s defense also gave up four touchdowns through the air.
After Iowa trailed just 7-0 at the break, it got ugly in the second half. Ohio State is a legitimate national championship threat, and the Hawkeyes didn’t do much in the third and fourth quarters to show they could compete at that level.
“The bottom line is, you’ve got to play clean football against a team like this,” Ferentz said. “We weren’t able to do that. They get some credit on that, too.”
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Kirk Ferentz on Cade McNamara after loss to Ohio State: ‘Cade will be fine’
Kirk Ferentz discusses a variety of topics after Iowa’s 35-7 loss to Ohio State.
Since the 2019 departure of Nate Stanley, Iowa’s quarterback struggles have been no secret. Whether it be Spencer Petras or Alex Padilla or Deacon Hill, Iowa hasn’t gotten necessary production from that position. There was optimism that McNamara, once a prized transfer from Michigan, would be the solution.
Through the first 10 games of his Iowa career, McNamara has fallen short of that.
The lowest bar for McNamara to clear as Iowa’s quarterback — taking care of the ball — is something he was unable to do on Saturday.
McNamara’s turnovers came on three consecutive possessions to open the second half, all but erasing any first-half hope that Iowa had managed to build.
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Because Iowa lives in such thin margins, avoiding turnovers is paramount, even more so against a team like Ohio State. The lack of ball security was a reason the quarterback position was such a disaster at Iowa last season. Hill finished the season with a ratio of eight interceptions to five passing touchdowns.
McNamara’s touchdown pass-to-interception ratio this season is now 3-to-3. He was without a turnover against Illinois State, Troy and Minnesota, but coughing up the ball proved costly against Iowa State and Ohio State. An early second-half turnover against Iowa State this season gave the Cyclones life. Three against Ohio State on Saturday shut the door on a possible upset.
“We evaluate every position week to week,” Ferentz said about quarterback. “But we’re comfortable. I think Cade’s improving. I really do. It sounds funny with the turnovers today, I think he seems more comfortable. His timing seems better. And he was getting the ball out really well in the first half. We have to improve as a collective offense.”
It might go against popular opinion but to Ferentz’s point, McNamara started Saturday’s contest well, completing 10 of his first 12 passes. There is, however, a gaping hole in that argument.
Completion efficiency is not McNamara’s biggest issue. In fact, in the last two games — against Minnesota and Ohio State — he was a combined 25-of-39, marking major improvement from a putrid 13-of-29 outing against Iowa State.
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But that extremely efficient stretch against Ohio State matters less if it amounts to zero points and also means turning the ball over three times later on.
In his Iowa career, McNamara has not yet thrown a touchdown against a power conference opponent (granted, a redzone package with backup Brendan Sullivan was implemented earlier this season, making it more difficult for McNamara to do so). But more troubling than the lack of touchdowns are the fact that all three of his interceptions this season have come against power conference opponents (one was a last ditch heave against Iowa State). You can also add the two fumbles against Ohio State to that turnover tally.
Iowa didn’t get McNamara just to beat up on lower level programs. When the competition level rises, he needs to do so with it.
“We just can’t turn the ball over,” McNamara said Saturday. “We had three drives in a row with turnovers. That just can’t happen. They just came out in the second half and they played well. They’re are a good defense and they’re a good team.”
You can argue ad nauseam against Ferentz’s assertion that McNamara is improving. But bottom line is, the fact that this is even a discussion is a problem. It was reasonable to think that McNamara would’ve been better than this through five games.
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Iowa doesn’t need its quarterback to be prolific. Running back Kaleb Johnson solves a lot for the offense with the way he’s been playing. Iowa just needs McNamara to take care of the ball and make defenses pay on occasion when the chance presents itself.
In critical moments, that hasn’t been the case.
Iowa running back Kaleb Johnson reacts to 35-7 loss at Ohio State
The Hawkeyes junior wound up rushing 15 times for 86 yards, but most of those came after the game was decided.
Through the first 10 games of his Iowa career — split between 2023 and 2024 due to injury — McNamara hasn’t done much to validate the excitement that once surrounded him. Ferentz has preached patience for someone who has been out for an extended period — on multiple occasions. That faith in him could still bear results.
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But time is becoming of the essence for McNamara to change the narrative.
Said Ferentz: “Cade will be fine.”
Follow Tyler Tachman on X @Tyler_T15, contact via email at ttachman@gannett.com
Big Ten volleyball continues with a true Midwest matchup between Nebraska and Iowa.
The Huskers host the Hawkeyes in the hopes of extending their 33 consecutive wins at home. That shouldn’t be a problem as they’ve never lost to Iowa through 38 matches played.
However, Nebraska will likely be without sophomore phenom Andi Jackson, who missed Nebraska’s road match against Illinois with an injury. Transfer Leyla Blackwell stepped in for her first start, though, recording six kills and three blocks from the middle.
As the underdogs, the Hawkeyes will put up their best fight against the No. 2 team in the nation. They won their first two Big Ten matchups in five sets each. Freshman outside Malu Garcia led the way with 17 and 11 kills, earning her the conference’s Freshman of the Week honors. She leads the Hawkeyes this season with 2.76 kills per set, though Iowa will need to find a more balanced attack to get past the best defense in the nation.
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Here’s how to watch the Big Ten matchup between Nebraska and Iowa volleyball.
MORE: How to watch every Nebraska volleyball match in 2024
Where to watch Nebraska vs. Iowa volleyball today
TV channel: Nebraska Public Media (local)
Live stream: Big Ten Plus
The Nebraska vs. Iowa volleyball match will not be broadcast nationally, but local viewers can find the game on Nebraska Public Media. However, cord-cutters can stream the match on Big Ten Plus.
What time is Nebraska vs. Iowa volleyball today?
Date: Sunday, Oct. 6
Time: 3 p.m. ET
Nebraska hosts Iowa on Sunday, Oct. 6. First serve is set for 3 p.m. ET from Bob Devaney Sports Center in Lincoln, Neb.
Nebraska volleyball schedule 2024
Below is a look at the Huskers’ next five matchups on their schedule.
Date
Game
Time (ET)
Sun., Oct. 6
vs. Iowa
3 p.m.
Fri., Oct. 11
vs. Purdue
8:30 p.m.
Sat., Oct. 12
vs. Rutgers
8 p.m.
Fri., Oct. 18
at Michigan State
6 p.m.
Sat., Oct. 19
at Ohio State
3:30 p.m.
Iowa volleyball schedule 2024
Below is a look at the Hawkeyes’ next five matchups on their schedule.
Video: Kirk Ferentz says Leshon Williams, Seth Anderson are back healthy
Kirk Ferentz discusses a variety of topics ahead of Iowa’s matchup with Ohio State in Columbus.
Iowa football can’t seem to get out of its own way at Ohio State.
Trailing 7-0 in the second quarter and having already missed a field goal, the Hawkeyes’ offense got to a 4th-and-inches near midfield. Iowa had just turned the Buckeyes over on downs, and getting points on the subsequent drive would’ve been a big momentum swing.
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Head coach Kirk Ferentz seemingly thought so as well and sent out the punt team to run a fake, where the ball was directly snapped to one of the players lined up in front of punter Rhys Dakin. Iowa successfully converted the fourth down, only for the referees to signal that Ferentz had called a timeout right before, negating the play.
More: Iowa vs. Ohio State score today: Live updates, highlights from Week 6 game
Having already played his hand, Ferentz then had his team do a real punt after the timeout, but Dakin did not hit it well and the ball only went 22 yards.
Ohio State then appeared rejuvenated and converted consecutive plays of 21 and 23 yards. But luckily for the Hawkeyes, star linebacker Jay Higgins forced a fumble and recovered the ball to keep Iowa’s deficit at one score.
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