Redemption was a big theme Wednesday in Cedar Falls, as the U-N-I football team held their annual Media Day activities. The Panthers suffered through an injury-plagued, 7-5 season last year. But the Panthers have eighteen starters back this season, Panther coach Mark Farley says that group will play a large role in dictating how the new season goes. “That will be the basis of this football team. There’s good talent at some of the younger positions, but it always goes back to if you’ve got talent and leadership — guys that are invested in the program because they’ve been here — those are the ones who will battle for you in those tight situations that will make the difference between a good season and a great season,” Farley says. “The opportunity is there. We have to take advantage of that opportunity.”

The 2013 season saw the Panthers lose starters to injury at several key positions, including wide receiver, middle linebacker, and in their secondary. But according to Farley, the upside of dealing with those setbacks is a deeper team this season. Farley says they probably have more depth and more talented depth this year than they have had in the past. He says those are players who have the ability to come in and have the knowledge to play the game.

The Panthers open their season at Iowa on August 30. Farley says that playing an F-B-S team to begin the season presents a whole separate set of challenges. “We have to get this team to a very high level again for that first football game. If we don’t it’s going to be a very long afternoon. So we’ve got to get to a very high level,” Farley says. “Once we get to that level now you’ve got to sustain that for 12 more weeks — very hard to do. Sometimes the way you want to build a program is to keep growing it through the season and then everybody says you are better in the second game than you were in the first. We’d better be good in the first or we won’t have anything left in the second.”

According to Farley, 105 U-N-I players spent their summer in Cedar Falls preparing for the season. He says that shows their commitment on and off the field. “Now that’s different from other universities because at the F-B-S you get scholarships in the summer. At the F-C-S, if you stay, you pay. And you stay there because you want to be there, you stay there because you want to be there for your teammates. That number changes at F-C-S,” Farley says. “When you have 105 guys in the weight room all summer long working, when it is on them, that just shows the commitment and what they want to do with their team and what they want to do with their talent. That says a lot for them.”

U-N-I was picked to finish 3rd in the Missouri Valley Football Conference by the league’s coaches. The Panthers are 15th in the preseason F-C-S poll released by The Sports Network.

(Radio Iowa)

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Quarterback Andy Dalton is armed with a new contract that could keep him with the Bengals through the 200 season. It may just set the market for Chiefs counterpart Alex Smith. On Thursday night, Smith will get a chance to prove whether the two of them are truly comparable when the Chiefs play the Bengals in the preseason opener for both teams.

Dalton has led Cincinnati to the playoffs in each of his first three seasons, but he’s yet to win a playoff game. The Bengals were bounced by the Chargers last season. Smith helped to turn around a two-win team prior to his arrival, going 11-5 and making the playoffs last year. But the Chiefs blew a 38-10 second-half lead in a 45-44 playoff loss in Indianapolis, leaving Smith and the rest of the team eager for the start of a new season.

ST. LOUIS (AP) — Xander Bogaerts drove in both runs, including a go-ahead sacrifice fly in the ninth inning, as the Boston Red Sox beat the St. Louis Cardinals 2-1 on Wednesday night. The matchup of Shelby Miller and Joe Kelly, former teammates who were each other’s best man, was a high quality draw that brought out their best. Each allowed a run in seven innings.

Junichi Tazawa worked a perfect eighth and Koji Uehara worked around two hits in the ninth for his 23rd save in 25 chances. Boston won for just the third time in 14 games and snapped St. Louis’ three-game win streak. Trevor Rosenthal allowed two hits and a walk in the ninth.

IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) — Brandon Scherff garnered national attention in a most unlikely way for an Iowa player. Scherff went viral on Twitter. Coach Kirk Ferentz doesn’t even allow his players to use the social media site. But Hawkeyes strength and conditioning coach Chris Doyle recently posted a video of Scherff performing three lifts of 443 pounds from his knees to his shoulders as teammates watched in amazement.

It was a 30-second glimpse into why many consider Scherff the best lineman in the county. The 6-foot-5, 320-pound senior’s blend of strength and athleticism is why he’s expected to be the third Iowa tackle in six years to be taken in the first round of the NFL draft.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Des Moines is pushing hard for a shot at hosting the NCAA men’s basketball tournament. The Des Moines Area Sports Commission, Iowa State University and Global Spectrum, the company that operates Wells Fargo Arena, announced Wednesday that they’re bidding to host NCAA tournament games in 2016, 2017 and 2018.

Des Moines has long wanted to host the men’s basketball tournament at Wells Fargo Arena, which opened downtown in 2005. But Iowa’s capital city has had to settle for less prestigious events like the women’s basketball and wrestling tournaments. Des Moines ranked first in attendance among women’s basketball regional sites in 2012. The 2013 wrestling championships drew strong crowds as well.

The city also hosted the NCAA outdoor track and field championships in 2008, 2011 and 2012 at Drake Stadium.

IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) – Iowa will face Texas in New York’s Madison Square Garden on Nov. 20. The Hawkeyes announced Wednesday that they’ll face the Longhorns in the semifinals of the 2K Classic tournament. Iowa will then play either California or Syracuse the next day.

Texas is expected to be one of the top teams in the nation next season. The Longhorns bring back most of their contributors from last season, when they finished 24-11, and they’ve added star freshman Myles Turner. Iowa will also play at North Carolina and host Iowa State in what should be its toughest non-conference schedule under fifth-year coach Fran McCaffery.

NEW YORK (AP) – Syracuse will play California and first-year coach Cuonzo Martin in the semifinals of the 20th annual 2K Classic benefiting Wounded Warrior Project at Madison Square Garden. Texas and Iowa will meet Nov. 20 in the other semifinal announced Wednesday. The championship game will be Nov. 21.

The semifinalists will each host two games on campus before going to New York. The complete bracket will be announced later. National champion Connecticut beat Indiana in last season’s championship game.

w/ Jim Field

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Iowa’s offensive line returns four of five starters from last season’s 8-5 bowl team, but line coach Brian Ferentz says that doesn’t mean all but one spot is locked up as they open fall practice. “There’s spots that are open, things can move, nothing is set in stone. Every position is open,” Ferentz says. He says he doesn’t expect senior left tackle Brandon Scherf or junior center Austin Blythe to be displaced and he says there are others he also doesn’t expect to lose their starting spots. “What’s important for us over the next 25 days or so is to really nail down who is going to be playing for us. And it may be more than five guys, it may only be five guys, but I know we’d better find at least five.” Ferentz says filling out the offensive line is much easier with Blythe back at the center spot.

“Anytime you have to break in a new center, it’s like breaking in a new quarterback, that’s no fun. When you have to break in a new quarterback and a new center, that’s a little bit difficult and certainly we had to do that last year — which wasn’t always fun,” Ferentz says. “The benefit is — because we did that last year — we should be looking at two more seasons of continuity there.” He says the center is key because of the philosophy they have for the offense.

“I think you’ve got to start with the idea that all of our centers have to be intelligent guys. We put a little bit more on their plate than we do on any of the other positions,” according to Ferentz. “We kid around and say you only have to count to two to play on the offensive line here. And to some extent that is true.” Ferentz says the other lineman only have to count to two because the center points out all the offensive calls and passes them on. There’s another reason the center position is so key.

“If it was just a matter of intelligence, we’ve had a lot of guys who could probably play center. The second thing is, we are always going to ask that guy to be the bell cow for our offensive line,” Ferentz explains. He says the center has to lead the others no only by pointing out assignments, but by effort and poise as well. Ferentz says Blythe has grown into that role in the last two years.

Iowa opens the season on August 30th at home against Northern Iowa.

(Radio Iowa)

ST. LOUIS (AP) — Jon Jay hit an RBI single with two out in the eighth inning to break a tie and lead the St. Louis Cardinals to a 3-2 win over the Boston Red Sox on Tuesday night. The Cardinals won their third in a row and fourth in the last five. Boston has lost three in a row.

Jay, who missed the previous five games with a wrist injury, blooped a hit to left off reliever Junichi Tazawa to bring in former Red Sox A.J. Pierzynski with the winning run. Reliever Pat Neshek picked up the win by striking out the side in the eighth.

St. Louis closer Trevor Rosenthal recorded his NL-leading 35th save in 39 chances. Boston beat St. Louis in six games in last year’s World Series.