Soil Compilation

Sports
Around the Big Ten – Week Four

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Week three of college football was the final tune-up for the Big Ten before the conference schedule began. This week, we’ll talk about Iowa’s 55-0 victory over Northern Iowa, Northwestern’s final game before moving into Ryan Field, and the Southern California showdown between USC and Oregon.

Music
Gin Blossoms Live at Hy-Vee Ampitheater

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On a cool night, somewhere in between the last days of summer and first days of fall, the finale to the Hy-Vee Ampitheater’s inaugural season took place. Starring Arizona’s Gin Blossoms, hundreds turned out on their feet for the band in North Liberty’s newest venue.

Sports
Around the Big Ten – Week Three

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Week two of college football gave us a pair of early Game of the Year candidates. Unfortunately for the Big Ten, those games came at their expense. This week, we’ll take a look at Iowa’s cathartic win over Iowa State, Oregon’s early-season struggles, and Ohio State’s meltdown against Texas.

Sports
NFL

Chalk Talk: How Bama beat the Bulldogs

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Hello and welcome to the first of a brand new series from me where we will analyze big plays and other sequences in football games from this last season. So, what better place to start than the biggest of them all(so far), the national championship game. Unless if you have been living under a rock you would know that by now Alabama has won it all once again for the 5th time in the last 9 years Although, Bama was the favorite it was definitely not their prettiest of championship wins. Alabama hadn’t lead in the entire game, was down … Continued

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Where Will Kirk Cousins Land?

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A big move in the world of the NFL occurred last week. That move was ignited by the Kansas City Chiefs. The Chiefs agreed to send their quarterback, Alex Smith, to the Washington Redskins for cornerback Kendall Fuller and a third round pick. This trade leans towards Kansas City’s benefit. They not only cleared $17 million in cap space with sending Smith off, they ended the quarterback debate. It is now Patrick Mahomes time. Mahomes was selected 10th overall in last year’s draft and started one game last season. He is now 1-0 as a starter. As both teams are … Continued

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Forever 40: Remembering Chris Street

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An escape. They’re dramas. Plays. An act on the gridiron. A dance on the hardwood. Sports are so popular in today due to the world needing an outlet. A place to diverge our attention from the everyday life. Baseball, the national pastime. Football, the modern-day gladiators. Athletics are so popular due to their ability to create storylines. Magic vs Bird. Steelers and Cowboys. Yankees and Red Sox. Rivalries drive sports. But, even more so than rivalries, fans fall in love when the sports meet the outside world. Iowa has had the best of luck with these kinds of stories. Just … Continued

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The Vikings QB Debacle

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After what has been a pretty impressive season for the Minnesota Vikings, there are a lot of positives to take away from this team. The run game is finally a dependable aspect of their offense, thanks to the upgraded offensive line. The Vikings offense, which ranked 28th last season, is now a top 10 offense in the NFL. Lot of props should and will go to the offensive line, but some should also go to their diamond in the rough QB, Case Keenum.   Case and Point The Vikings acquired Case Keenum in March of 2017, mostly for the role … Continued

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NFL Midseason Honors 2017 Edition

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IOWA CITY – Entering Week 8 of the 2017 season, the NFL never ceases to amaze its fans. Rookies have grown throughout the first 7 weeks. Some have flourished, others have stalled. The league’s elite continued their stride. The veterans’ show off their leadership as they enter decline. Thus, the cycle of the NFL moves on. This period of the season, known as the midseason, is one where teams attempt to regroup for the final push. The playoffs are on the horizon. However, if the season ended today, how would the awards shape up? While the annual NFL Honors show … Continued

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Time’s Up. Blake Bortles Is Past Expiration Date

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On the Right Path In 2015 Blake Bortles was coming off his rookie campaign in the NFL, which was sub-par to say the least. The first year is always rough for a rookie Quarterback in the league, so the optimism was still there for Bortles after year one. Sure enough, Bortles made the stride that everyone had hoped for his second year and all the sudden the team from Jacksonville was a threat to compete in the AFC South. During his 2015 season Bortles put up statistics some of the best QB’s in the league. He ranked top five in … Continued

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Jay Cutler Should Get Another Shot

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If someone was asked to sum up the career of former Denver Bronco and Chicago Bear Jay Cutler in one word, that someone would be wise to describe him as polarizing. As a resident in the Chicagoland area throughout the duration of Cutler’s 8 year career, I can assure you that very few talking heads had an opinion of him that wasn’t on the extreme end of the spectrum. Cutler has been the poster boy for the “you either love him or you hate him” cliche. What bothers so many people in the Cutler fan camp is how he has … Continued

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Comparing the 2017 NFL Draft Class to 2002 Backyard Football Players

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Video games in the recent age have had a very small number of companies control the entire sports market. EA Sports and 2K Sports are juggernauts in their own rights. But there was once a company that made games that were simple, fun and uber-competitive: Humongous Entertainment. They made “Pajama Sam” and “Putt-Putt” as well as many other franchises. However, the one franchise HE is widely known for is their “Backyard” sports editions. Baseball, Football, Basketball. All sorts of sports full of kids that are short and from port to port. A particular game that I grew fond of over … Continued

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Biggest Offseason Needs for Chicago Bears

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Coming off a disappointing 3-13 record, John Fox has now led two straight losing seasons in Chicago. There will be no time for mourning in Halas Hall, though, as the 2017 season began after the final game in Minnesota on January 1st. Taking a quick look at the Bears’ injury report during the 2016 season, names like Kyle Long, Zach Miller, Danny Trevathan, Kevin White and Jeremy Langford are among the many that could have made a profound impact on the season. Pile on Alshon Jeffery’s four-game suspension, and Chicago never stood a chance. Barring more devastating injuries in 2017, … Continued

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