Here is the latest Mid-America sports news from The Associated Press

UNDATED (AP) — Iowa State sophomore quarterback Zeb Noland is transferring after losing the starting job to freshman Brock Purdy. Noland started five games for the Cyclones, including four this season. He threw for 722 yards on 70 of 110 passing, but Purdy has been the spark Iowa State was looking for when he relieved Noland in a win at Oklahoma State three weeks ago. Noland will leave at the end of the semester.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Nebraska’s defense has struggled all season and even showed vulnerability to the big play against FCS opponent Bethune-Cookman. The Cornhuskers will need to be much better when they travel to eighth-ranked Ohio State to face Dwayne Haskins and the Buckeyes on Saturday. Nebraska coach Scott Frost is biding his time and says depth will be built through recruiting. For now, the Huskers are 13th in the Big Ten in defense with six starters who were on the worst unit in the conference in 2017.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Chiefs owner Clark Hunt says he could not have imagined the quick success of Patrick Mahomes at quarterback. Hunt also talked about several other topics during a midseason discussion with reporters, including his excitement for the upcoming game against the Rams in Mexico City and his thoughts ahead of the NFL’s trade deadline.

ST. LOUIS (AP) — Adam Wainwright became a free agent, then finalized a $2 million, one-year contract with the St. Louis Cardinals that allows him to earn $8 million in performance bonuses as a starting pitcher, $3 million for relief appearances and $4 million more for games finished. St. Louis announced the agreement Oct. 11, but the deal was held up because it would have violated baseball’s maximum-cut rule. Because he became a free agent, the rule no longer applied.

ST. LOUIS (AP) — The St. Louis Cardinals have hired Jeff Albert as their hitting coach and Stubby Clapp as their first base coach, rounding out manager Mike Schildt’s coaching staff for next season. Albert spent time with the Cardinals before spending the past six years with the Astros, while Clapp has been the manager of the Triple-A Memphis team the past two seasons.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Sammy Watkins admits he had an ego problem when he first came into the league. But he has matured over the past few years, and now his me-first attitude has been replaced by a team-first outlook in Kansas City. And perhaps not surprisingly, that has allowed Watkins to have a breakout season for the high-flying Chiefs.

UNDATED (AP) — Purdue had all the answers for four weeks. Quarterback David Blough played impeccably. The defense proved it could go toe to toe against some of the nation’s top teams. It all went wrong last weekend in a loss to Michigan State. Coach Jeff Brohm is back on cleanup duty this week as the Boilermakers prepare to host No. 19 Iowa on Saturday.