KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — First-round draft pick Patrick Mahomes II will make his NFL debut at quarterback for the Kansas City Chiefs when they play an otherwise meaningless game against the Denver Broncos on Sunday. Chiefs coach Andy Reid said Wednesday that the former Texas Tech star would start in Denver.

The Chiefs locked up the AFC West with a 29-13 victory over the Dolphins last weekend, and cannot improve their playoff positioning against the Broncos. So, it makes sense for starting quarterback Alex Smith and many of the other regulars to get a week off before the playoffs.

Reid declined to say who else might sit out, but he did say there will be enough starters around his young quarterback to ensure Mahomes gets a fair chance to succeed.

While the temperatures have dropped to below freezing across the state, the Iowa Department of Natural Resources is warning those who enjoy ice fishing to be extra careful during the next few days. D-N-R Fisheries Chief Joe Larscheid says the cold snap likely froze most bodies of water solid — but you should still test it before venturing out. “We need a good solid four to six inches of clear ice, hard ice in order to be safe,” he says. Larscheid says even with that said — ice is never 100 percent safe. “In that lake that is mostly safe there could be weak points that you don’t even know about,” Larscheid says, “there’s upwelling there’s currents in the lake, so you’ve always got to be careful when you’re ice fishing.”

Larscheid suggests you go to a place where there are other anglers. That’s often where the fish are and if you happen to fall in, there’s someone there to help. He suggests that you fish with someone else so you have help if you would fall in. And don’t delay if the worst happens. “Call 9-1-1 immediately and then hopefully you have rope or somebody has rope and you can toss that rope to them, and hopefully they get ahold of that rope and you can pull them out,” Larscheid says. “But I would immediately call 9-1-1 because time is very significant in those situations.”

Larscheid says heavy winter clothing often makes it harder to swim or stay afloat if you fall into the water. He says to not panic, as most people are able to use their fingers, arms and legs for several minutes before hypothermia sets in.

(Radio Iowa)

The Top Ten teams in the Associated Press Iowa high school basketball poll with first-place votes in parentheses, win-loss record, total points and position last week at right:

Others receiving votes: Cedar Falls 4. Dowling Catholic, West Des Moines 4. Davenport, North 2. Cedar Rapids, Kennedy 1.

Others receiving votes: Webster City 3. Wahlert, Dubuque 3. Charles City 1. Benton Community 1.

Others receiving votes: Kuemper Catholic, Carroll 8. Northeast, Goose Lake 7. East Marshall, Le Grand 3. PCM, Monroe 2. Forest City 2. Central Lee, Donnellson 1.

Others receiving votes: South O’Brien, Paullina 10. Ankeny Christian Academy 9. Iowa Mennonite, Kalona 8. St. Albert, Council Bluffs 5. Gladbrook-Reinbeck 4. Bedford 4. Martensdale-St. Marys 3.

The 7:20-a.m. Sportscast w/Jim Field.

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

UNDATED (AP) — Take them out to the bowl game! The Iowa Hawkeyes and Boston College Eagles are on deck in the Pinstripe Bowl today (Wednesday) at Yankee Stadium. Iowa is the only team in the nation to lose a bowl game in each of the last four seasons. Boston College is trying to win eight games for the first time since 2009. Pre-game coverage on KJAN begins at 2-p.m.

PHOENIX (AP) — Alex Delton ran for 158 yards and accounted for four touchdowns, leading Kansas State to a 35-17 Cactus Bowl victory over UCLA in what could be the final game of coach Bill Snyder’s career. Delton replaced Skylar Thompson late in the first quarter and scored on runs of 68 yards, 3 yards and 1 yard.

HOUSTON (AP) — Missouri enters the Texas Bowl against Texas having won six straight games after starting the season 1-5. With a win against the Longhorns, the Tigers would become only the second team from a Power 5 conference to finish with eight wins after opening the year 1-5 and the first since Rutgers did it in 2008.

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. (AP) — The Denver Broncos say they plan to start Paxton Lynch at quarterback in their final game of the season. Lynch has only started one game this season and he left in the third quarter with a sprained ankle and spent the rest of the game sobbing on the bench. Lynch has been a major disappointment since general manager John Elway moved up in the first round to draft the ex-Memphis QB in the first round in 2016.

PHOENIX (AP) — Alex Delton ran for 158 yards and accounted for four touchdowns, leading Kansas State to a 35-17 Cactus Bowl victory over UCLA in what could be the final game of coach Bill Snyder’s career. Delton replaced Skylar Thompson late in the first quarter and scored on runs of 68, 3 and 1 yards.

PHOENIX (AP) — Kansas State coach Bill Snyder could be coaching his final game when the Wildcats face UCLA in the Cactus Bowl. The 78-year-old coach has not decided whether he wants to return for a 27th season or retire to spend more time with his family.

The 7:20-a.m. Sportscast w/Chris Parks.

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COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa (AP) — A former softball coach has been found guilty of sexually abusing a 14-year-old girl in Council Bluffs. The Daily Nonpareil reports that John Osborn was convicted Friday of four counts of sexual abuse. Court records say his sentencing is scheduled for Feb. 1. It was the 50-year-old Osborn’s second trial on the charges. He’d been convicted in spring 2015, but the judge ordered a new trial when new evidence surfaced before Osborn could be sentenced. The second trial was delayed by appeals.

Council Bluffs police say Osborn and the girl engaged in sex acts when the girl stayed at Osborn’s house for a sleepover with his daughter.

The top 25 teams in The Associated Press’ college basketball poll, with first-place votes in parentheses, records through Dec. 24, total points based on 25 points for a first-place vote through one point for a 25th-place vote and previous ranking:

Others receiving votes: Arkansas 85, Clemson 55, Notre Dame 40, Louisville 26, Texas 21, UCLA 12, Oklahoma St. 8, Auburn 5, St. Bonaventure 5, SMU 5, New Mexico St. 4, Rhode Island 2, Florida 1, Michigan 1, Minnesota 1, Nevada 1, Stephen F. Austin 1.

The 7:20-a.m. Sportscast w/Ric Hanson.

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KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Alex Smith threw for 304 yards and a touchdown, Kareem Hunt ran for 91 yards and a score and the Kansas City Chiefs beat the Miami Dolphins 29-13 on Sunday to clinch back-to-back AFC West titles for the first time in franchise history. Tyreek Hill had six catches for 109 yards, and Harrison Butker converted five field goals, as the Chiefs (9-6) dashed what faint postseason hope the Dolphins (6-9) still harbored. Jay Cutler threw for 286 yards and a touchdown, but a chunk of that came on a 65-yard toss to Jakeem Grant late in the first half. Otherwise, Miami struggled against a Chiefs defense that has been stingy and opportunistic the past two weeks.

That’s coincided with the return of Marcus Peters from his disciplinary suspension. The Chiefs’ star cornerback had two interceptions and forced a fumble against the Chargers last week, a win that pushed them to the brink of the playoffs. He recovered a fumble and forced another on Sunday, giving Peters a hand in five turnovers the past two weeks. Both turnovers led to points, but they weren’t the Dolphins’ only costly miscues. They also were nailed for defensive holding four times, all of which came on three scoring drives for Kansas City. And the Dolphins inability to get off the field on third down, after holding opponents to 8 for 39 the past two games, was similarly deflating.

Still, the Dolphins had the ball trailing 17-13 late in the first half, the outcome and their longshot playoff hopes were still in the balance. But they soon went three-and-out and the Chiefs added a field goal to make it 20-13 at the break, then another to start the second half. Even when the Dolphins made a crucial stop on fourth down to get the ball back later in the third quarter, they squandered the opportunity. Peters stripped Kenny Stills to give the Chiefs the ball, and Butker hit his fourth chip-shot field goal for a 26-13 lead with 12:19 to go.

That gave a sparse crowd that turned out on Christmas Eve, braving slick roads from an overnight snowfall frigid wind chills at kickoff, plenty of time to celebrate a division title. Turn their thoughts toward a home playoff game in the new year, too. Chiefs TE Travis Kelce had four catches for 47 yards and a score , and has a catch in 63 straight games. … Chiefs coach Andy Reid improved to 5-1 against Miami. … Dolphins WR Jarvis Landry had five catches for 51 yards, giving him a league-best 103 catches this season. … The Dolphins had won seven of their last 10 against Kansas City. Their last loss at Arrowhead Stadium was in 2002.

Up next: The Chiefs head to Denver next Sunday to finish their regular season.