Thursday June 4th Local Sports

TONIGHT:
AM-1300 KGLO — Minnesota Twins classic game — 7:00
AM-1490/96.7-FM KRIB, kribam.com — 2015 Class 2A state baseball semifinal — Clear Lake vs. Davis County — 7:00

 

 

MASON CITY — School administrators statewide the last couple of weeks have been scrambling to prepare for the summer sports season. Mason City High School principal Dan Long says it’s been a collaborative effort working with the rest of their Central Iowa Metro League members schools in establishing schedules and safety protocols.

Athletic Director Dan Phipps says with modifying the teams’ schedules, he’s had to deal with issues such as scheduling umpires and having to think ahead in case there needs to be alterations to the schedule due to weather.

Phipps says athletic directors across the state know that this summer will be a constant situation of having to be fluid and flexible with a myriad of possible situations.

One of the casualties of the revised schedule means that the annual crosstown rivalry games between the Mohawks and Newman will not be played. Long says it was a tough decision to not play those games.

Mason City High’s first games of the year will be on the road at Waukee on Monday June 15th. The Mohawk softball team will play at Clear Lake the next night, with both the baseball and softball home openers being Friday June 19th at home against Dowling. Long and Phipps made their comments Wednesday afternoon during the weekly Cerro Gordo County COVID-19 press conference as you heard on AM-1300 KGLO.

 

 

 

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Former Iowa State football coach Johnny Majors, the coach of Pittsburgh’s 1976 national championship football team and a former coach and star player at Tennessee, has died. Majors died Wednesday at his home in Knoxville, according to his wife. He was 85.

Majors compiled a 185-137-10 record in 29 seasons as a head coach at Iowa State, Pitt and Tennessee.

At the age of 33, Majors was hired to take over the Iowa State football program prior to the 1968 season. Majors faced a giant rebuilding project, as the Cyclones were a combined 4-15-1 the two seasons prior to his arrival. In his third season (1970), the Cyclones made progress, recording a 5-6 mark, setting up a breakout season in 1971. Iowa State raced out to a 5-1 mark and ended the season at 8-3, securing a bid to the Sun Bowl, the school’s first-ever postseason appearance. In Majors’ final season in 1972, the Cyclones made it to their second-straight bowl game by participating in the Liberty Bowl, finishing the season with a 5-6-1 mark. One of the highlights of the season was a 23-23 tie vs. No. 3 Nebraska in Clyde Williams Field, ending the Cornhuskers’ 24-game winning streak vs. league opponents. Majors announced his resignation following the Liberty Bowl contest vs. Georgia Tech to take over the head coaching duties at Pittsburgh.

In his playing days, he finished second to Notre Dame’s Paul Hornung in the 1956 Heisman Trophy balloting.

Majors was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1987.

 

 

 

AMES, Iowa – The Iowa State Athletics Department announced Wednesday its first positive COVID-19 test result.

A part-time student worker notified the department over the weekend of a positive result and the athletics department staff member that worked closely with the student worker has been quarantined. Contract tracing procedures related to the incident are also underway. Additionally, four student-athletes (two different sports) have experienced symptoms after being in close contact with individuals outside of the athletics department who have been infected by the virus. Those student-athletes are also in quarantine and are awaiting test results.

“The potential for infections and positive test results has always been very real for an organization like ours and we’ve been thorough and diligent in planning for such incidents,” Director of Athletics Jamie Pollard said. “Our medical team, headed by Mark Coberley, has done a magnificent job in preparing protocols and procedures for countless scenarios related to the virus.”

Pollard said the positive results were not unexpected and he is confident that the medical professionals will skillfully address the situation.

“This certainly is not a great surprise. We believe our plan to isolate infected individuals, continually communicate and educate our student-athletes and staff on proper hygiene, ongoing efforts to thoroughly sanitize our facilities, and implement other strategies as necessary, will allow us to ultimately be successful in mitigating the impact of the virus,” Pollard said.

One key aspect of the recovery period is isolation for individuals with positive tests. Anyone staff or student-athlete with a positive result will be restricted from department facilities for an extended period of time (3-6 weeks). Individuals, who have been in close contact with an infected individual in the 48 hours leading up to their symptoms, will be isolated for one week followed by further testing. This is mandatory protocol to attempt to contain the potential widespread infection of COVID-19 amongst our athletes, staff, and community.

As more student-athletes begin returning to campus in the coming weeks, the sports medicine staff will be educating them on proper hygiene practices, responsible behaviors outside of our facilities and the importance of mitigating risks for contacting COVID-19.

 

 

 

IOWA CITY — Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz says the return of players to the football facility will be controlled. Ferentz and several members of the coaching staff have returned to their offices this week. Players begin returning on Monday.

Ferentz says they will be bringing back more coaches and staff in stages.

Ferentz says there are several new guidelines to enter the football facility.

Ferentz says for the time being staff meetings are still being held via Zoom.