A healthy corps of receivers should help the Iowa offense be more productive this season. A number of receivers suffered season ending injuries in 2007 or missed a good portion of the schedule. That includes junior Trey Stross who had 16 catches last year despite missing four games due to injury. Stross says it was hard last year with the injuries and he says it will be nice to have the depth this year. Stross says if he remains healthy he expects to be even more productive this year. He says the goal is to continue being consistent and to make plays. The Hawkeyes open the season August 30th at home against Maine.
Stross looks forward to more depth
August 8, 2008 By
Upper Iowa looks to win close games, improve record
August 8, 2008 By
Upper Iowa football coach Mike Knoll expects to have an improved team this season and they will need to be. The Peacocks were 3-8 in 2007 and with the expansion of the Northern Sun Conference the schedule will be even more demanding this year.
Knoll says the caliber of football teams has improved, and when that happens you have to step up the level of competition. He says the great thing is the players and the program is looking forward to the change. Winning the close games could get the program over the hump.
The Peacocks lost four games by six or fewer points in 2007. He says they were competitive last year, and the next step is to win those games and you can go from 3-8 to 7-4. Knoll says the main goal this season is to win more games than they lose.
Improvement will start with a defense that gave up 33 points per game a year ago. He says they will be better defensively and will have to create more turnovers. Upper Iowa opens the season August 28th at Drake.
State Patrol releases info on big pot bust
August 8, 2008 By
Authorities have just now released information about a big drug bust in western Iowa that happened back on May 4th. It happened on Interstate 80 near the Anita exit in Cass County.
Sergeant Brian Michaelson, with the Iowa State Patrol, says a trooper pulled over and searched a semi.
He says inside the trailer, the trooper found a false wall containing approximately 751 pounds of marijuana. The pot was valued at nearly 1.3 million dollars. Two Delhi, Californina men, 28-year-old Omar Alejandro Aispuro and 45-year-old Oscar Quintero, each pled guilty to one count of possession with the intent to deliver marijuana.
Each received a 5-year suspended prison sentence and placed on unsupervised probation for a period of one year.
SBA offices closing in some areas, but aid still available
August 8, 2008 By
The floodwaters of June are long gone and several government offices that were set up to offer assistance are now shutting down. This week, U.S. Small Business Administration disaster loan outreach centers in Allison and Webster City closed, but S.B.A. spokesman Bill Koonts says that doesn’t mean aid is no longer available.
Koonts says, "Even though those facilities may close, or any of the other recovery centers throughout the state may close, everyone still has until the application deadline to apply for help." That deadline is September 29th to visit one of the other centers, or to call the Federal Emergency Management Agency hotline toll-free at 800-621-FEMA.
Koonts says the past several weeks have been very busy for his agency. "So far, since all the flooding began way back in June, just in Iowa, the S.B.A. has approved 2,848 loans for a total of 176-million in assistance," Koonts says. And while the S.B.A. has "small business" in its name, he stresses that the majority of those loans weren’t to businesses, but rather to homeowners and renters.
He says they approved 387 business loans in Iowa for a total of 45-million dollars and 2,461 home loans to individuals for a total of $130.6 million. The S.B.A. still has disaster loan outreach centers open in: Cedar Rapids, Des Moines, Davenport, Iowa City, Mason City, Ottumwa, Waterloo, Waverly and West Burlington. For more information, visit the SBA website .
Harkin talks about Agriprocessors, Bill Clinton
August 8, 2008 By
Iowa Senator Tom Harkin says he’s "dismayed" about the latest charges of child labor law violations against the Agriprocessors meatpacking plant in Postville. Agriprocessors had denied allegations that it knowingly allowed underage workers into the plant, but Harkin, a Democrat, says he doesn’t believe the denials.
Harkin says it’s unconscionable that children were working in the plant in hazardous conditions, working 12-15 hours a day, "And don’t tell me, don’t tell me that the owners of that plant and the managers didn’t know, they knew what was going on."
Harkin says the latest allegations and the immigration raid on the plant in May show the need for stiffer fines and penalties against businesses that violate immigration and child labor law.
On another topic, Harkin says he expects former President Bill Clinton to deliver a message of unity at the Democratic convention, despite the talk of friction between Obama and Clinton. Harkin says Bill Clinton is a "pro" and will rise to the occasion.
"And I’m sure that he will give a speech that will bring disparate things together in the party, and try to unify the party, I’m sure he’ll do that," Harkin says. Harkin says he also hopes former President Jimmy Carter will be offered a prime time slot during the convention because of Carter’s work on human rights. Harkin made his comments on the Iowa Public Radio Program "The Exchange."
McCain calls Obama’s tire gauge suggestion "ludicrous"
August 8, 2008 By
During a Friday morning speech at the Iowa State Fair, Republican presidential candidate John McCain again ridiculed rival Barack Obama’s suggestion that Americans can improve their gas mileage by properly inflating their tires.
"My opponent doesn’t want nuclear power. He doesn’t want us to drill offshore and the other day he mentioned that what we need to do is inflate our tires," McCain said. "My friends, I’m all in favor of inflating our tires — don’t get me wrong, but that’s a public service announcement. It’s not an energy policy."
McCain told fairgoers the "lowest income Americans" are suffering most from high gas prices because they’re driving the oldest automobiles. "We must achieve energy independence. I have a plan to do so," McCain said. "…It’s all of the above. It’s got to be wind, tide, solar, nuclear."
During an interview with Radio Iowa about two hours later, McCain expanded his criticism of Obama for suggesting Americans could save as much gas by properly inflating their tires as would be gained by drilling in new locations along America’s ocean coastline.
"Look, on the tire gauge — Senator Obama said that the tire gauge would then replace offshore drilling. That’s simply ludicrous. That’s just not plausible," McCain said. "We need to offshore drill. We need to inflate our tires. We need to have nuclear, tide, solar, ethanol, renewable fuels, clean coal technology. We need to do all of those things."
Jenni Lee, a spokeswoman for the Obama campaign, issued a statement late this afternoon in response, suggesting McCain’s energy policy was full of "ineffective gimmicks for the American people and big tax breaks for the oil companies."
McCain made sure to mention his opposition to federal subsidies for ethanol at the very end of his State Fair speech. During his conversation with Radio Iowa McCain said he always wants to make that clear to Iowa audiences.
"While I was talking, I said (to myself) ‘I have not told these people again that I oppose subsidies’ because I don’t want them to walk away and have somebody say, ‘Yea, he’s against ethanol subsidies but he wouldn’t tell you about it.’ That’s just the way I am," McCain said. "But I also tried to emphasize that ethanol and renewables is going to be a part of the solution. E-85 will be a solution to our energy dependence problems."
McCain called himself the "underdog" everywhere, including Iowa, but McCain said he believes a carefully focused message will help him win the election.
Iowa Little League champ knocked out of tourney
August 8, 2008 By
Iowa was knocked out of the race to make the Little League World Series today in the semifinals of the Midwest Regional Tournament in Indianapolis, Indiana.
The top-seeded team from Urbandale fell to fourth-seeded Minnesota 3-2.
Urbandale fell behind 3-0 in the top of the first inning, but made a comeback scoring two runs in the bottom of the second. Urbandale couldn’t gain the lead as the Minnesota pitcher held them to just two hits for the ballgame.
Minnesota will face the team from the Dakotas Saturday night in the Midwest Regional final for a trip to Williamsport, Pennsylvania.
Team photo above : front row, left to right: Ryan Yoder, Dalton Coady, Jonathan Eide, Michael Staub, Jonah Eide, Trae Cropp; Second row: Trey Nesbit, Nick Ewing, Ryan Lillard, Logan Augustine, Jackson Ross, Joe Glaser; Back row: Coach Jeff Eide, Manager Mike Lillard, Coach Larry Augustine, Coach Dan Schuck.
