Metro Sports Report

Looking ahead with the Hawkeyes and ISU

A little bit about a lot of things ...

This week I expect Iowa's special teams and defense to play a lot better against Pittsburgh, and I think the Hawks will win by a 14-point margin after being fooled on defense against Iowa State last week.

The Cyclones deserved to win and they got it, and Steele Jantz put on one of the best shows that any quarterback could put on. But now the big story is, can he continue his inspirational play on the road against Connecticut?

If Iowa State wins that game, I think they are looking at a chance for a winning season. And Jantz as the quarterback becomes the real, legit QB.

Hill nets 5 TDs as No.1 Tigers pound J-Hawks

CEDAR FALLS - Cedar Falls tailback Barkley Hill continued to shine under the lights of the UNI-Dome in Friday night's 42-6 thrashing of Cedar Rapids Jefferson.

The Tigers led, 42-0, at halftime.

Oftentimes serving as Hill's personal escort, senior fullback Ben Challgren wouldn't have it any other way.

Hill finished with 219 yards rushing on just 12 carries, recording five touchdowns and 204 yards on his first 10 touches.

"He definitely deserves all the credit he gets," Challgren said of Hill, whom he helped lead into the end zone on outside toss plays for three of Cedar Falls' first five touchdowns. "He's a real athlete.

"It's a lot of fun blocking for him. You're hitting the first guy, but then you're seeing Barkley run by you for a touchdown.

"Whenever he gets the ball, he's a threat," Challgren said. "They've got to put a lot of people in the box and we're physical up front so it should be a fun year."

5 Metro ADs opposed to 4A district football

Imagine a district for Class 4A football that includes Linn-Mar, Kennedy, Jefferson, Dubuque Hempstead and Dubuque Senior.

Also imagine a 4A district that includes Washington, Prairie, Iowa City High, Iowa City West, Muscatine and Burlington.

Imagine Xavier moving down to Class 3A for football, and imagine the Mississippi Valley Conference being eliminated as a premier football league.

It could all happen as soon as the 2012 campaign, even though the five Metro public schools are opposed.

Todd Tharp, an assistant director of the Iowa High School Athletic Association, made a two-hour presentation about the Class 4A district proposal Thursday to all of the Mississippi Valley Conference athletic directors at Jefferson High School.

When it ended, the athletic directors from Linn-Mar, Kennedy, Washington, Jefferson and Prairie all said they'll vote "no" on the district proposal, expressing strong feelings about protecting the integrity of the Mississippi Valley Conference. Mike Winker, the athletic director at Xavier, declined to state an opinion.

Coach's wife was right: Hillyer is good player

Cedar Rapids Kennedy football coach Tim Lewis is a shrewd judge of talent. As it turns out, so is his wife.

Shelly Lewis has been convinced for several years that Alex Hillyer would be a good football player for the Cougars. Tim Lewis preferred to take a wait-and-see approach.

Hillyer ran for 208 yards and three touchdowns for Kennedy in its 41-28 upset victory over Washington last Friday, so Mr. and Mrs. Lewis were both happy.