Locked On Hawkeyes - Daily Podcast On Iowa Hawkeyes Football & Basketball - Locked On Crossover - Hawkeyes vs. Nittany Lions on the mat & the court

Episode Date: February 6, 2024

Trent Condon from Locked on Hawkeyes & Zach Seyko from Locked on Nittany Lions get together for a crossover edition of the show.Opening up with some thoughts on the upcoming wrestling dual between Iowa wrestling and Penn State and just how good this Penn State team is.How many matches can the Hawkeyes win?Then thoughts on women's and men's basketball and the two teams face off on Thursday night.A little football talk sprinkled in to finish up as well as the Big Ten goes to 18 teams next season.Support Us By Supporting Our Sponsors!LinkedInThese days every new potential hire can feel like a high stakes wager for your small business. That’s why LinkedIn Jobs helps find the right people for your team, faster and for free. Post your job for free at LinkedIn.com/lockedoncollege. Terms and conditions apply.GametimeDownload the Gametime app, create an account, and use code LOCKEDON for $20 off your first purchase.FanDuelNew customers, join today and you’ll get TWO HUNDRED DOLLARS in BONUS BETS if your first bet of FIVE DOLLARS or more wins. Visit FanDuel.com/LOCKEDON to get started.eBay MotorsWith all the parts you need at the prices you want, it’s easy to turn your car into the MVP and bring home that win. Keep your ride-or-die alive at EbayMotors.com. Eligible items only. Exclusions apply. eBay Guaranteed Fit only available to US customers.FANDUEL DISCLAIMER: 21+ in select states. First online real money wager only. Bonus issued as nonwithdrawable free bets that expires in 14 days. Restrictions apply. See terms at sportsbook.fanduel.com. Gambling Problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER or visit FanDuel.com/RG (CO, IA, MD, MI, NJ, PA, IL, VA, WV), 1-800-NEXT-STEP or text NEXTSTEP to 53342 (AZ), 1-888-789-7777 or visit ccpg.org/chat (CT), 1-800-9-WITH-IT (IN), 1-800-522-4700 (WY, KS) or visit ksgamblinghelp.com (KS), 1-877-770-STOP (LA), 1-877-8-HOPENY or text HOPENY (467369) (NY), TN REDLINE 1-800-889-9789 (TN) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Today, it's a crossover edition of Locked On, Locked On Hawkeyes, Locked On Nittany Lions. Myself, Trent Condon, alongside Zach Saco, as we take a look at the matchups, both on the mat and the hardwood, maybe even a little football talk here today. As always, thanks for making Locked On Hawkeyes or Locked On Nittany Lions your first listen every day. Make sure you hit the subscribe button if you're with us on YouTube. Helps us get in front of more fans. Today's episode is brought to you by FanDuel. Make every moment more. New customers join today. You'll get $200 in bonus bets. If your first bet of $5 or more wins, visit fanduel.com

slash lockdown to get started. Zach, it's always good seeing you once again. It is certainly a busy time. We got the crossover. Women's basketball is dominating our conversation. Wrestling is dominating your conversation for the winter sports scene. But how you been doing over there? Well, any chance we get an excuse to reconnect. And even better, outside of football, I mean, we got a double dose of Penn State versus Iowa this week.

So doing well. I mean, we got a double dose of Penn State versus Iowa this week. So doing well, I will say this. It's nice that Penn State will have the opportunity to beat Iowa once again in wrestling. I am pretty confident of that. However, it's just not going to be the same with all the guys, starters missing out of the lineup for the Hawkeyes. So it doesn't have that same feeling it normally would, especially coming off that surprising Michigan duel meet between the two. Yeah, it was interesting because leading up to it, look, to take down Penn State in a duel this year for this Iowa team was going to be, I mean, it would take every single break to go their way.

And even that, I don't even know if it would have been close enough. And then that performance out of Iowa last Friday, it was, it was just hideous. I mean, it was, it's one thing to get beat and there's, you know, in the case of that one, four or five kind of toss-ups that I think four of the five probably leaned Iowa's way. You lose every single one of those toss-up matches. You see your, at the time, number one ranked guy in Real Woods get absolutely demolished and sound like maybe coming off a flu but just major decision in

just a match that we've never seen from him since he made his way to the university of iowa so any little glimmer of hope that was there i think for the hawkeye fan base it dissipated on friday night and now i think a lot of the people the question is are we even going to win a match and to have that be a part of the conversation going into an Iowa Penn State duel is just unthinkable and that and that's I and I didn't want to have that conversation again because that was the that was the idea leading up to Penn State versus Ohio State and Ohio State held its own uh Penn State still won eight out of ten matches but there was a pin by a freshman compared to a graduate senior and then a controversial

no takedown at 125. And then it's like, okay, well, Penn State's facing Iowa. So this should be a good back and forth, right? And then you start to look weight class by weight class and Penn State's in another situation again, where this might be at least guaranteed eight wins with the possibility, you know, again, the possibility of nine, even 10. I mean, I'm looking at, of course, 141 is real. What's going to feel better. I had no idea that he was recovering from the flu, but Penn state's definitely dealing with that in its own.

Right. There have been suspect Aaron, a gal, someone who's been around big 10 wrestling now transferring in from Minnesota was dealing with the flu. And, and then at one 65, you have Mikey Caliendo versus Mitchell Messenbrink who's come on really strong this season. So outside of one 41 with real woods and Bartlett, and then at one 65 with Messenbrink and Caliendo, this one might be all Penn state. And of course, well, of course there is one 25. I shouldn't neglect that one. And not, not everything's a given. Not everything's a given. Drake, Drake, I know, listen to me, uh, Drake, I Allah versus Braden Smith, Braden Davis. That one is going to be very exciting, at least for Penn state fans, because the one 25 purse seems to be broken, but I Allah who's taken over,

who learned behind Spencer Lee for how many years, uh, has come on strong this season too. Yeah. And, uh, that's one, I think you'd put more in probably the toss-up range. So before we dig real deep into the duel, we'll kind of go a little bit deeper into this. Just give us an overview. You know, as we look at Penn State, comes in the overwhelming favorite. That gap maybe has even grown as we've gone through the course of this season. Just an overview for the Hawkeye fans listening and the Penn State fans.

As you look at this program, where they are right now, if they don't win another national championship, it'll be a shock. But just kind of how the season has gone to this point. Well, I'll try to synthesize it as best as I can, I think. So there's things that Penn State is chasing and truly historic because there's a discussion about this being the best Penn State, Kale Sanderson team, best Kale Sanderson team, best Penn State team in history, possibly the best tournament team in history,

and something that I think Iowa holds, actually, where the most points scored in the NCAA championship. So Penn State is truly chasing something historic here. They were able to solve the problems at 125. They've utilized the transfer portal to the best of their abilities. I think going and get wrestlers like Bernie Truax and Aaron Nagao, even though they've gone cold here in the middle of the season, anybody can bounce back at any given time. They've been so talented in their own right for their respective careers.

But Penn State is still, the fact that they have this combination of veteran experience coupled with youth. Brayden Davis is a true freshman. Mitchell Messenbrink is a redshirt freshman, but he's also starting for the first time at Penn State transfers in, and in year one, he's the 165 starter. You have Levi Haynes, who's now a true sophomore.

And then you couple that with Carter Staracci, Aaron Brooks, Greg Kirkley, who have been around the system and have been leaders for these young guys. So it's the fact that the, even though there is this youth movement on the Penn State wrestling team, they haven't missed the beat. And frankly, they're better. It's, I don't want to say, oh, you know, there's the surprise. There's the shock. Everybody's talented in their own right. But it's the fact that you're getting true freshmen to compete at an all-American level right out of the gate

is nothing short of impressive for even Kale Sanderson at this point with all that he's accomplished. 158 points is the all-time record for team scoring in an NCAA tournament. Iowa did that in 1986, also 1991. They had in that year 157. It feels like maybe an attainable goal for this Penn State team coming up this year. And is that kind of the scuttlebutt right now? I mean, just working and thinking about doing something that for a long time felt impossible

to run past that Iowa team that did so well in 86 and both 91. The 91 was in the state of Iowa at the Unidome in Cedar Falls. And just the ridiculous nature that they had champion after champion, a number of guys making a run to the finals that season. Is that kind of, I guess, the target right now? It's not a national championship. Let's set a record. Yeah, that's definitely it.

I think that's it. And I don't know exactly what the conversation ultimately is. If you listen to Kale Sanderson, I don't think it's about we got to set the record. We got to set the record. We got to set the record. It's more about the things that he does say that are a little more casual. He always says wrestling's a game. It's a fun game and we enjoy playing the game.

And anytime, you know, hey, Penn State was so dominant, Kale, what do you have to say about that? Well, we made some mistakes that we still need to capitalize on. So it's really it's not about chasing glory or anything like that. It's it's truly on a day to day basis. Get one percent or more better for them. So if they happen to set a couple of records in the process, I think they'll do just that. We're going to talk about this duel and dig a little bit deeper into things. We got basketball to talk about, a doubleheader before we get to Friday

with both the men and the women facing off against each other. Back-to-back games on BTN on Thursday night. Maybe a little football as well as we continue. We're talking Hawkeyes and Nittany Lions. This is Locked On Hawkeyes and Nittany Lions Crossover Edition. Hawkeyes and Nittany Lions crossover edition. Happy Super Bowl to all who celebrate from FanDuel. It's America's number one sportsbook.

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up. That's fanduel.com slash locked on. Make every moment more with FanDuel, an official sportsbook partner of the NFL. Welcome back once again. It is a crossover edition Locked On, Locked On Hawkeyes with myself, Trent Condon, and Locked On Nittany Lions with Zach Saco. Zach, let's dig in a little bit deeper. You talked about a couple of the matches that appear to be toss-ups. I think one of the most intriguing ones will be at heavyweight

and what we see at the end. Will Ben Keeter go out there for Iowa? Will he take it or will it be Hill? Hill Keeter, as accomplished as an amateur wrestler, as anybody that we've seen going back to Spencer Lee, what he's done in the national scene already, but he's also a football player.

Just getting back on the mat after the football season concluded. He's been out there a couple of times, and the question still remains here in Hawkeye land. Do you go out there? Does he get past the five-match limit? And does he burn his red shirt this season? Or do you maintain that any year where a national championship looks unattainable, building towards the future? Same thing with Gabe Arnold, also wrestling right now. Another guy

that as a true freshman probably could be an All-American. And I think the same case for Keeter, but you're talking down the podium a while. So it's about building for the future there. That's probably the most intriguing one for me and the great unknown of what we're going to see at heavyweight. Well, and that's just it. And what I led off with, because I know that Iowa is dealing with some of the random ramifications of the gambling allegations, or I will just call it the gambling scandal in this case, and Tony Cassiope isn't going to be out there so I and that's what I mean so Penn State and Iowa doesn't have the same flair this time around unfortunately because you would be able to cap off one of the the number one versus number two teams in this dual meet hypothetically

if guys like Tony Cassiope were available and that one could have been a big 10 title that one could have been an NCAA title between Kirk Fleet and Cassiopeia hypothetically so I and I Spencer Lee being gone also doesn't have you know there I I respected Spencer Lee a lot one of the best wrestlers in in history when it when it comes to collegiate wrestling and and what he decides to do you know continue to do in the future with his with his career but Spencer Lee coming over from Pennsylvania, there was that rivalry aspect to it. People didn't like Spencer Lee since he was a Pennsylvania kid and then ends up going to Iowa and terrorizing the Big Ten and the NCAAs for as long as he did. So there couple that with just just the the unknown and the unfortunate circumstances, some poor decision, again, allegedly, right? Some poor decisions, allegedly.

This doesn't hold what it normally does here. And Gabe Arnold's really talented, but he's going to get a little bit of a reality check. And I know that him and Carter Scoracci have some prior beef before the season. The beefs are fun, right? That's what makes the sport of wrestling kind of what it is for people that are diving back into it. before the season. The beefs are fun, right? That's what makes the sport of wrestling kind

of what it is for people that are diving back into it. And that's a lot of people. I know as we get closer to March, a lot of more people are starting to tune in and get really re-engaged with wrestling, the more casual a wrestling fan, a lot of changes in collegiate wrestling and changes across the board with three point takedowns and the like. What's been, what's kind of been the feedback that you've heard from the fan base and a great wrestling fan base there at Penn State with the changes and trying to evolve the sport of wrestling, get a little more action? You know, at the collegiate level, it's just so high level.

I mean, these guys are so talented. They know what they do. And it turns into, when you've got two wrestlers, just such a slog at times. What has been the feedback that you've heard? I mean, it's definitely more exciting. There's been some changes just in general, like traditionally. I mean, music isn't really played at wrestling dual meets, and Penn State has made a change there just to try to make it a little more entertaining and appealing for other types of fans, different fans,

rather than it just be, you know, hey, we're just wrestling, and that's all we're going to do here. As far as the rules go, I I'll, I haven't anything. I haven't heard anything specifically as far as direct feedback. Like, yeah, I prefer three over two. There's definitely that you miss that to scream, you know, when it's going back and forth, but you know, watching it now, comparing it to years past, it's definitely, I like the three points. It also benefits what Penn state likes to do. Penn State is more of the, they teach an aggressive style of wrestling. They're offensive. Most of them are offensive wrestlers. So this three points allows them to do so much more and they're being rewarded for it now. So I look at some select wrestlers, like Michigan in

particular, just has a couple where it's just it's not benefiting because they were defensive wrestlers all along and it doesn't reward that so when you have Aaron Brooks who is getting tech ball after tech ball after tech ball and then Mitchell Messenbrink who I don't want to say has adopted this style but continues to craft this style that was already in his nature comes to Penn State and then he's able to, you know, get, you know, build it up. Right. And then he's able to get, so it's, it, it makes for Penn State to be a stronger team because they're just already naturally an offensive team with the way they like to attack and score points and now they're rewarded for it. All right. Prediction time. Let's get into it, Zach. What you anticipate to see here. I'll kick it off. As I said, I don't have a whole lot of

hope of getting this one. I just want to see at least a'll kick it off. As I said, I don't have a whole lot of hope of getting this one. I just want to see at least a couple of wins here. We're going to do that. How about 27-6, Penn State rolls and Iowa gets at least two victories on the mat. Which victories are you looking for? Like where is that? Is that one 125, one 165? I was 125 for sure. I think Ayala, I am hopeful at least that he can kind of turn it around here and we'll go 165. Those are the two that I got the win column for Iowa. If Bo Bartlett is better, that's the one that I really circle.

I think that Braden Davis is still a little underestimated here. I mean, he's number three in the country for a reason. I know he got a scare against Vinny Kilkeary against Ohio State, and it was a takedown. I'm not afraid to admit that as a Penn State podcast host. But Drake Ayala's just kind of just a little back and forth. I know he's top five. I think he'll be an All-American,

but just a little inconsistent for me at times. And same thing, Mitchell Messenbrink. He's wrestling like a maniac because he feels, I don't want to say that he feels he's being disrespected, but there's just that. So him, him and Mikey Caliendo are probably, that one is probably the most exciting one for me. I say, if I'm going to give a score, just, you know, for the lack of like trying to calculate every single bonus point, I guess I'm going to go in the neighborhood of something like 30 to three. I mean, I was not going to give in the neighborhood of something like 30 to three.

I mean, I was not going to give up a lot of bonus points, but I only have one decision that I think in my mind legitimately happens. And that's real woods over Bo Bartlett. And that's assuming he's 100% in his own right. But like you said at the top, this very well could be a sweep for the Nittany lions. If all goes well. Yeah, it's crazy. I mean, even if Iowa can get 25, that's a possibility, right? If they get 41, if they get a win, I mean, I can't see Frannick beating Haynes. I just can't at this point in time, but let's say something crazy happens. He just gets out there and gets a 3-2 victory. Caliano, I mean, you put even every single thing goes Iowa's way, it's still probably 6-4, you know, in the bow cheat.

And then the chances of a bonus. But now somebody could get caught. I mean, you could get a wild pin out of somewhere. But even that, the path just, it's impossible. It really is. And you hate to say that. Certainly, Iowa wrestling, I've watched so many dominant teams. And it's frustrating to be at this point.

But there's a lot more that goes into it. Absolutely. And that's what I mean. It's just, it's not, it doesn't have the same type of excitement as it normally would in years past. I,

you look forward to the 16 to 15, 19 to 17 type of dual meet that we've seen at Carver Hawkeye and just the past five years, but we're, we're not exactly going to get that this time around. So hopefully guys like Gabe Arnold can, you know, continue to, to build up and, you know, as a Penn state show, how much do I want to say like, Oh yes, the, you know, we want the enemy to be better, but truly we do because I want to see Penn state earn these types of victories and not basically get mulligans because guys like Cassiopeia aren't

available for different reasons. And then Gabe Arnold's just at the start of his career. Let's turn our attention now to some basketball as both the men and women get ready to play on Thursday night. Penn State, you know, year number one, obviously new regime over there with Mike Rhodes coming in from VCU after Shrewsbury makes his way to Notre Dame. Won the last couple of games, couple of road victories on top of it for Penn State. Again, an overview here, rebuilding type of season, but some successes early on for Penn State.

Yeah, it's the fact that they've shattered expectations. I mean, five and six in the Big Ten. Okay, that's not exactly too flattering, but Trent, I don't know how many preseason polls you looked at, preseason rankings that said for the Big Ten overview that Penn State 14th in the Big Ten. They're going to be last. On this show, we kept saying that no, Penn State is not a bottom feeder.

This is a team that can be competitive and has elements of an NCAA tournament team. You have the A-10 player of the year last year, who also coupled as the defensive player of the year in Ace Baldwin. You have a A-10 player of the year last year, who also coupled as the defensive player of the year in Ace Baldwin. You have a proven winning coach who has been successful every stop of the way of his career. So yes, it's new in the Big Ten scheme, but because of the transfer portal, it doesn't take at least three or four years to build it up because he comes in late in terms of where they are in timing of the off season, but is able to get in, you know, get some high school recruiting started, but focus on building out of the transfer portal and getting veterans, sixth year guys, fifth year guys, fourth year, third year, second year, while getting some true freshmen in the process. So Mike Rhodes from accomplishing things in the

short term and also setting it up for the longterm so that Penn State isn't going all in in the beginning where it hurts them, you know, two, three years down the road when they're trying to scramble and find other guys to complete this roster. They have players that can eventually turn into leaders and be the faces of the team in each respective year. He truly crafted a five-year plan overnight for Penn State. On the Iowa perspective, this is another must win and they're stacking up. And the reason for it is just inexplicable home losses to Michigan back in the December games, the two games that you play before we really get into conference play a Michigan team that has all kinds of issues up and down the roster. Uh, guys not traveling. You have that part of it with Doug

Daniel, and then you couple it with what's happened with Juwan Howard. He looked like he was maybe going to be fired right before the game. They lose that one. Blow a late lead at home against Maryland. Let one slip away against Indiana on the road. Those three games, they go the other way. We're talking about Iowa back solidly in the NCAA tournament and on their path for their sixth straight NCAA tournament appearance. But now the road for them going forward.

Of course, after the Penn State game, they're back home Super Bowl Sunday against Minnesota, and then they go to Maryland and looking for revenge in that one. Iowa, I think for any realistic possibility of being a tournament team, they have to win those next three games because down the stretch, they have Wisconsin, Michigan State on the road, two games against Illinois at Northwestern. And of course, the return game with Penn State is the only one that looks on paper like it's

definitely going to be in the win column for Iowa. So it is incredibly important. It's going on the road. We've seen plenty of Penn State games where the environment is, let's just say, iffy inside of the big arena there. Anticipate the save on Thursday night, probably going to be friends and family only in the crowd. I mean, Penn State's done better with attendance because that's been Mike Rhodes initiative but don't you I don't I sat around a fan that said you know there's curtains up in

the Bryce Jordan Center and complained about that for a long time and more or less he's right if Penn State truly wants it now the Bryce Jordan Center is just, it's not an arena just for basketball. It is massive. But to say that, both sides can be right, that Penn State is still not close to being this elite basketball program from the players to the facilities to the actual perception of how they present basketball games themselves, but also not too far off from the crowds have been better. Mike Rhodes has taken the initiative to make it fun to be a Penn State basketball fan, and it's shown with the students, and that's who it starts and ends with.

And then other fans, alumni, people in the area have trickled in behind. So I've actually been impressed. Penn State basketball, at least these past few years with Micah Shrewsbury for the two, Mike Rhodes in this first season, have been more fun, honestly. We will look forward to that. There's also a women's basketball game. We'll dig into the matchup on the men's side a little bit deeper, touch on women's basketball, and maybe a football question or two as we continue.

It's a crossover edition of Locked On, Locked On Hawkeyes, and Locked On Nittany Lions. Trent and Zach continue here in a moment. Today's episode is brought to you by eBay Motors. Passion, drive, and patience. What brings home the winning trophy is also what keeps your ride or die alive. eBay Motors has everything you need to maintain your vehicle and level it up to peak performance. From superchargers, roof racks, exhaust kits, LED headlights, and more, whether you're into speed, power, or style, eBay Motors has got you covered. With over 122 million parts for your number one ride or die, you'll always find exactly

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Crossover edition. Locked on Nittany Lions with Zach and locked on Hawkeyes with me, Trent Condon. All right. Into the matchup here and what we anticipate to see. A couple of things jumped off the stat sheet to me. Three point shooting has not been a great thing for Penn State. It's also been a bit of an issue for Iowa. So might hear a lot of rim clanging coming up on Thursday night. Well, but these teams like to play fast. So even though there's going to be a lot of bricks thrown at the backboard, and you might think that Penn State and Iowa are respectively building houses in the Bryce Jordan Center, these two teams will be able to score at will.

And I think finding a way, because Penn State played more of a Mike Rhodes type of style against Rutgers. And I think that was more the nature of the Rutgers game, being on the road and everything. But you're also missing your best offensive player in Kanye Clary to this point. But with that being said, you're also missing a defensive liability. So you saw a little more a higher scoring. But Penn State state without its best offensive weapon beat Rutgers on the road by double digits and then be Indiana for the first

time in a decade by double digits. So they hadn't won out there in 10 years. And then to beat them by double digits was impressive again, without Kanye Clary. So Kanye Clary is expected to be back. Iowa likes to score points and push the tempo Penn Penn State, because of the system they have in place right now and their two-guard system when they're both healthy, and Ace Baldwin and Kanye Clary, they like to attack. They like to create steals, create turnovers, but they do give up the easy baskets. So points will certainly not be at a premium in this one on Thursday night.

High-scoring affair. I kind of see it the same way. Mentioned the importance from an Iowa perspective, but Penn State, you know, they're kind of moving up that ladder now and they're thinking about what a minimum getting a single by doing something like that, being able to play, get into the top eight, top nine, something like that. I mean, that's a realistic possibility. It feels like for this Penn State team, the way they played over the last couple of weeks. I mean, why not? When you beat teams that are comparable to you and you've come,

you've had them, you took Maryland to double overtime. You shot, you erased an 18 point deficit and beat Ohio. So I know Ohio state's going down, you know, going down in the conference a little bit, but it's, it's the victories when you're a seven point underdog and really not many teams, not many perspectives, spectators, analysts are giving you a chance against Rutgers against Indiana. And again, you take that and you win by 10 plus without your best offensive player. So it's trying to, I think they found something here, but you have to be able to capture this in a bottle while also you can't neglect Kanye Clary because he's your leading scorer averaging

over 18 points a game you can't just say well because we won these two games we're going to bench you or but I really do think they should consider taking some of his minutes away because he is a defensive liability at times just because he's a smaller guard he's a mismatch and I know that Iowa an offensive juggernaut is going to try to exploit that if he is out there at full strength we true we don't have official confirmation if he's going to play. And we imagine, we anticipate, but we don't know if he's going to play and then for how long, if he's going to be on a minutes restriction or anything.

The nightcap will be Iowa-Penn State on the women's side of things. And a great environment in Carver-Hawkeye Arena. Sellout as the season's been sold out since May when season tickets went on there. Going to be something I'm sure different than what the Penn State players are used to going into that environment. But they're playing well. Lost their last time out against Michigan, but had won six consecutive before that. What is it about this Penn State team as they played much better as we got back into conference play? I mean, if we're looking at it as an overall lady line, basketball has been

a shell of itself. It really hasn't been that competitive. Penn state hasn't been able to find an answer. And then Carolyn Keiger comes in and it's like, okay, there's a little bit of optimism here that maybe Penn state can get back to its roots and its winning ways. But then, you know, your one's disappointing your two, your three, your four. And it's like, okay, new athletic director in Pat Kraft, is Coach Kieger going to stick around? I mean, that was the honest conversation as how much longer will she have since this wasn't the person that hired her.

But full belief, full confidence from someone that she didn't work with originally, and now it's actually translated into results. She's been able to work the transfer portal. She's been able to also get players that are just, again, it's kind of like Penn State wrestling, a mix of youth and veteran experience. Names to know, obviously, McKenna Marisa. Marisa is the dynamic scorer and has been for the past few years for Penn State. But it's the fact that they're getting, again, from younger players and that Shea Chesky

has been one of their better scorers this season. So those two combining together is what has helped Penn State be in the top half because they're still not overly dominant. This isn't a game I expect them to win, especially on the road against a top-five Iowa team with Kaitlin Clark, who's probably statistically going to go down as the best, will go down as the best women's basketball player in college history so if Penn State loses this game uh it's okay in my mind I've been very pleased uh and impressed with the way that they played this season it should be a fun one and a doubleheader of basketball

on Thursday night Zach let's finish up with this just a football thought uh going in for both sides it's been such a fun rivalry I know you're quite a bit younger than me, but Penn State, you know, going back to when I was in school in the late 90s and seeing some of those games, going out to a couple of games in State College and just the incredible environment. I feel like a lot of respect between the two programs now. I know what happened a couple years back in Kinnick, ruffled some feathers and James Franklin didn't take it very kindly to the injury. But that aside, you know, it's been a fun rivalry and we won't see it nearly as often as we have here over the last couple of decades. But just Penn State going into the offseason, new Big Ten, obviously this year, a difficult schedule. Hey, you got what you wanted. No more

East-West divide. You guys are good, right? All good with the 18-team Big Ten. Yeah, there's just, are good right all good with the 18 team big 10 yeah there's just i mean and penn state is in the conversation where if things go right i put ohio state up there i put oregon up there but penn state's quietly this this third place team and then some people i mean espn feels pretty confident about having penn state as the second best team in the big 10 it's ohio state and essentially everybody else at this point but yeah that east west east-west divide going away, I am a huge fan of. And we call this new Big Ten. There could be a newer Big Ten with what's being discussed about rumors of Texas A&M joining the conference, this alliance between the Big Ten and the SEC, and then a Super 2, and breaking away from the NCAA. I've talked about that on my show,

but slowly, progressively, it's becoming more. Those are where there's smoke, there's fire. So these rumors are starting to materialize a little bit. I'm not saying this is happening tomorrow, but honestly, five years from now, or maybe 2030, we could see something totally, completely different where college football is just its own separate entity and it's behaved that way for the longest time.

But why not actually doing it, whether you're for or against it? I can understand your side of the debate, whichever anybody that takes, you know, the audience yourself, Trent. But we are going to see a college football universe on its own exist. And it's not going to look anything like your father, your grandfather, your great-grandfather's college football. Not like it. It's going to be a whole lot different and getting into the 12 team playoff, the importance of that going to change the equation, certainly for a lot of programs and a year number one,

new offensive coordinator coming in for Iowa as Tim Lester will take over the reins there. The schedule, even with the big 10 and the West going away, it actually sets up really well. Now they have to go to Ohio state early in the season, even with the big 10 in the West going away, it actually sets up really well. Now they have to go to Ohio state early in the season, but short of that, they got Washington coming in. Obviously new coaching staff there. They go to Michigan state, new coaching staff there. They have the protected rivalry games against Wisconsin, Nebraska, and Minnesota. Two of those games are at home, the Nebraska and the Wisconsin games. It sets up really well for

Iowa to have another run here. They can just figure out that offense and at least become competent on that side. Maybe I would can make another run here coming up this season. Zach is always a lot of fun. Thanks for joining us here. Thanks for the crossover. A good idea. Wrestling,

basketball, football. We hit it all. Good. Yeah. Like I said, anytime we can have an excuse to have a crossover extravaganza and we were able to hit on so many sports in the process.

Very much enjoyed the conversation since it wasn't so hyper-focused on one topic. And it's always great to chat with you, Trent. Zach, also want to remind everybody, Lockdown has launched the first ever national sports 24-7 streaming channel on YouTube. It's Lockdown Sports Today, and it's here for you 24-7 covering the top sports stories of the day with local experts of Locked On, plus our national shows covering every league.

Go to Locked On Sports Today on YouTube and subscribe to the first-ever national sports 24-7 streaming channel. For Zach, I'm Trent. Thanks for joining us. Make sure you hit that subscribe button. Locked On Hawkeyes, Locked On Nittany Lions. We'll talk to you again tomorrow as we do that

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