The third ranked Iowa State men returned to the practice floor after the Christmas break. The Cyclones have their final pre-conference tune up on Monday night when they host Houston Christian.

That’s Cyclone coach T.J. Otzelberger, who feels the time off was good for the players.

Otzelberger says while happy with their 12-0 start they know the challenges will get tougher with Big-12 play approaching.

Iowa State junior center Audi Crooks went into the Christmas break as the nation’s leading scorer. Crooks is averaging nearly 29 points per game for a 10th ranked Cyclone team that is 13-0. Crooks is second in the nation in field goal percentage at nearly 72 percent.

That’s ISU coach Bill Fennelly, who says Crooks is a match-up nightmare.

The Cyclones return to action on New Year’s Eve at Houston.

The Southwest Valley Girls Basketball team is 7-2 to begin the 2025-2026 season. The Timberwolves have won four of their last five games and Head Coach Mike Cormack believes the early success has been an all-around team effort.

Southwest Valley hasn’t allowed more than 40 points in each of their seven wins. Cormack gives credit to his assistants for the stifling defense.

On the offensive side of the ball, Senior Hailey Randall leads the way for the Timberwolves averaging 22.5 points a game, ranking second in the Pride of Iowa Conference. Southwest Valley returns to the floor Tuesday, January 6th in a home game against Nodaway Valley.

Sophomore Isaia Howard is providing energy off the bench for a 25th ranked Iowa team that is 10-2. The sophomore is a transfer from Drake and is averaging seven points per game and is second on the team in steals.

That’s Iowa coach Ben McCollum. He says Howard is one of the reasons the Hawkeyes continue to make strides at the defensive end of the court.

Howard tries to bring a disruptive element on defense.

The Hawkeyes return to action on Monday by hosting UMass-Lowell

Iowa football coach Kirk Ferentz believes The Hawkeyes’ next starting quarterback is already on campus. Iowa’s last two starters, Mark Gronowski and Cade McNamara, were acquired via the transfer portal. Hank Brown has appeared in three games this season after transferring from Auburn and Jeremy Hecklinski has appeared in two games after starting his career at Wake Forest.

Ferentz does not feel the Hawkeyes will be in the market for a starting quarterback when the portal opens next month.

The 23rd ranked Hawkeyes leave for Tampa on Friday to continue preparations for the ReliaQuest Bowl against 14th ranked Vanderbilt on New Years Eve.

Iowa State junior forward Milan Momcilovic leads the nation in three point percentage. The native of Wisconsin has made 48 three pointers in the third ranked Cyclones’s 12-0 start to the season and is connecting on better than 55 percent from behind the arc. ISU coach T.J. Otzelberger wanted Momcilovic to be more aggressive on the offensive end of the floor this season.

Otzelberger says Momcilovic has improved in all aspects of his game.

Momcolivic says it is early and there still needs to be improvement.

Momcilovic says his mental approach to shooting has gotten better.

The Cyclones return to action Monday night by hosting Houston Christian.

Iowa’s seniors hope to end their careers with a win when the 23rd ranked Hawkeyes play 14th ranked Vanderbilt in the ReliaQuest Bowl on New Years Eve. The Hawkeyes are 8-4 and leave for Tampa on Friday.

That’s defensive end Ethan Hurkett. Bowl games don’t carry the importance they once did but Hurkett says this one has a great deal of meaning for the Hawkeyes.

It will be Iowa’s final chance to post a win over a rated team this season.

The chore for the defense will be finding a way to slow down Vanderbilt quarterback and Heisman finalist Diego Pavia. The dual threat quarterback has passed for nearly 32 hundred yards and rushed for more than 800.

Vanderbilt finished the regular season with a record of 10-2.

After a three-game skid to start the season, the CAM Cougars basketball team has won two in a row heading into the holiday break. After wins over Ar-We-Va and Exira-EHK, Head Coach Ian Hunt sees the confidence skyrocketing amongst his team.

Hunt says the way the team doesn’t stand around and are always moving on the floor has been impressive.

For the Cougars, it’s not just about the shots you make and how many points you put on the scoreboard, but the way you handle yourself on the floor.

During the break, there may be some new sets CAM utilizes.

The Cougars return to the floor on Saturday, January 3rd with a road contest at Boyer Valley.

AMES, Iowa – Iowa State head coach Jimmy Rogers has announced that Jesse Bobbit, a former player for him at South Dakota State, has been named the Cyclones’ defensive coordinator.

“Jesse was one of the most focused players I’ve ever coached and that has carried over into his coaching career,” Rogers said. “He has a great ability to build a culture within his defensive staff and on that side of the ball. A culture where guys play for each other and hold each other accountable.

“The style we are going to play here will replicate Jesse’s personality, his intensity and what he expects on a day-to-day basis.”

Bobbit arrives at Iowa State after a successful first season at Washington State as he helped a team with 75 newcomers reach the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl, which it won Monday against Utah State with Bobbit serving as interim head coach.

Washington State finished the season 7-6, with its almost completely new roster. The Cougars had a few near upsets as well, falling by four points or less to College Football Playoff qualifiers Ole Miss (21-24) and James Madison (20-24), as well as ACC Champion Virginia (20-22), on the road. Bobbit’s defense held each of the three opponents to at least 10 points below their season average.

The Cougars allowed just 20.2 points per game in 2025, including just 13.5 points in the final nine games. In total, WSU allowed 10 points or less in six of 13 contests.

Under Bobbit’s leadership, Washington State had one of the nation’s best passing defenses in 2025, ranking 13^th nationally while allowing just 174.4 passing yards per game. On the ground, WSU gave up just 125.2 rushing yards as its total defense finished the regular season ranked No. 15 with opponents recording just 299.5 yards per game.

Washington State racked up 31 sacks and was outstanding in specialty situations. The Cougars were seventh nationally in fourth down conversion defense (.333) and their red zone defense ranked 10^th nationally (.727).

Prior to Washington State, Bobbit spent three seasons (2022-24) at South Dakota State alongside Rogers, winning back-to-back national championships in 2022 and 2023 and finishing as a semifinalist in 2024. Three Jackrabbits’ defensive players earned All-America accolades during his tenure as an on-field assistant.

He became SDSU’s defensive coordinator when Rogers took over as head coach and the Jackrabbit defense finished first in the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) both seasons, including allowing just 9.3 points during the 2023 national championship season.

The 2023 team also ranked first nationally in red zone conversion percentage defense (.588), total defense (257.2 yards per game) and turnovers gained (29).

Bobbit’s first stint at Washington State was from 2020 to 2021 when he was a graduate assistant and worked in quality control for the defense. The 2021 Cougar squad played in the Sun Bowl.

The Palatine, Illinois native was a three-year starter at linebacker for the Jackrabbits, serving as team captain and earning All-Missouri Valley Football Conference second team honors in 2016.  Out of college, he worked at Bellevue West High School as linebackers and special teams coach in 2018.

Bobbit earned his bachelor’s degree in physical education with a minor in health education from South Dakota State in 2017. He received his master’s degree in education from Washington State, where he served as a graduate assistant.

Coaching Experience

2026 – Iowa State – Defensive Coordinator

2025 – Washington State – Defensive Coordinator/Linebackers

2023-24 – South Dakota State – Defensive Coordinator/Linebackers

2022 – South Dakota State – Safeties/Recruiting Coordinator

2021 – Washington State – Defensive Quality Control

2020 – Washington State – Graduate Assistant (Linebackers)

2019 – South Dakota State – Graduate Assistant (Linebackers/Safeties)

2018 – Bellevue West High School (Neb.) – Linebackers/Special Teams

At a time when college football players have business decisions to make Iowa and Vanderbilt appear focused on the ReliaQuest Bowl in Tampa. The 23rd ranked Hawkeyes and 14th ranked Commodores collide on New Years Eve. Iowa sophomore left tackle Trevor Lauck.

Lauck says he is enjoying bowl season.

The Hawkeyes finished the regular season with a record of 8-4.