Iowa High School Sports Podcast

The Gazette's K.J. Pilcher and Hall of Fame coach Dick Briggs look back at last week's girls' state wrestling tournament and boys' state duals and preview this week's boys' district tournaments on this episode of the Pinning Combination.

It’s one of the busiest weeks of the Iowa high school wrestling season and the Pinning Combination podcast with The Gazette's K.J. Pilcher Hall of Fame coach Dick Briggs breaks it all down. We recap last Saturday’s boys’ conference tournaments and Tuesday’s regional duals, then preview the Xtream Arena-hosted boys’ state duals (Saturday) and girls’ state tournament (Thursday and Friday).

No. 1-ranked teams in Iowa high school basketball picked up some big wins last week: Class 1A’s top-ranked North Linn girls beat 3A No. 1 Mount Vernon, while the 4A top-ranked Cedar Rapids Kennedy boys handled West Des Moines Valley. And there’s another big boys’ game on Friday, when 1A No. 1 Bellevue Marquette hosts No. 3 North Linn. The Gazette's Jeff Johnson and Jeff Linder discusses those game...

The Class 4A boys’ rankings had a big shake-up this week (though Cedar Rapids Kennedy is still the clear No. 1) and that leads this episode of Call It Both Ways with The Gazette's Jeff Linder and Jeff Johnson. Other topics this week include a big win for the Marion girls, North Linn’s consistent success, the Clear Creek Amana girls taking over the top spot in Class 4A and a conference realignment...

It was only about a month or so ago when the Pinning Combination podcast had limited topics during a slow period of the wrestling schedule. That’s far from the case now. This week’s episode with The Gazette's K.J. Pilcher and Hall of Fame coach Dick Briggs highlights the standouts from the weekend of high school tournaments and previews upcoming boys’ conference tournaments and regional duals and...

The Gazette's Jeff Linder and Jeff Johnson Call It Both Ways on their weekly high school basketball podcast. Lots of topics this week, including the Mount Vernon girls' rise from a one-win season to a No. 1 ranking, schedule changes, participation numbers, Eric Dettbarn's 500-win career and more.

Weather wiped out much of the wrestling schedule in Iowa last week, but there still are a few topics to discuss on this week’s episode of the Pinning Combination with The Gazette's K.J. Pilcher and Hall of Fame coach Dick Briggs, including Monday's J-Hawk Invitational, updated IHSAA dual rankings and events to watch this week.

The Call It Both Ways podcast is snowed in for the time being, but The Gazette's Jeff Johnson and Jeff Linder still have a few topics to discuss despite the lack of games. Those include a look at the Cedar Rapids Washington girls, Lansing Kee boys and other teams on the rise, takeaways from last Saturday’s MVC-CIML Shootout and revisiting conference realignment possibilities.

The first weekend of Iowa high school wrestling tournaments in 2024 gave the Pinning Combination podcast plenty to discuss this week. Tune in for takeaways and a look at the week ahead with The Gazette's K.J. Pilcher and Hall of Fame coach Dick Briggs.

The Call It Both Ways podcast with The Gazette's Jeff Linder and Jeff Johnson is back from the holiday break with its first episode of 2024. They discuss Jim Dostal's legacy, the IHSAA's first basketball rankings and games to watch this week (including a full Saturday).

Gazette sportswriters Jeff Johnson and Jeff Linder talk about some high school football coaching moves, and discuss the high school basketball scene as the December portion of the season winds down.

Calling it both ways: Jeff Johnson and Jeff Linder talk area high school basketball and current rankings for girls and boys basketball. They also dive into insights on the current state for area teams, game formats, the use and non-use of the shot clock and Caitlin Clark's enduring influence on the game for young players.

Host KJ Pilcher and Hall of Fame coach Dick Briggs discuss high school wrestling .We talk weekend results and upcoming tournament, including the Battle of Waterloo dual tournament.

On this week's Iowa high school wrestling segment of the Pinning Combination podcast, The Gazette's K.J. Pilcher and Hall of Fame coach Dick Briggs have takeaways from the Dan Gable Donnybrook, Cliff Keen Independence Invitational, Dubuque Hempstead's big week and more from last week. Catch the full show, talking all things college and high school wrestling in Iowa, on The Gazette's YouTube page .

The Gazette's K.J. Pilcher and Hall of Fame coach Dick Briggs have a class-by-class preview of the 2023-24 Iowa high school boys' wrestling season on this week's Pinning Combination podcast.

There’s one week left in the Iowa high school football season. The Gazette's K.J. Pilcher and Jeff Linder talk about what to expect in the seven state championship games and what happened in last week’s semifinals on this episode of the Prep Football Huddle podcast.

The Prep Football Huddle podcast is Dome bound. So are 28 Iowa high school football teams. The Gazette's K.J. Pilcher and Jeff Linder review last week’s quarterfinal games and preview this week’s UNI-Dome semifinals on this episode.

Who will advance to the UNI-Dome? Those 28 state semifinal spots will be determined this week. The Gazette's Jeff Johnson and K.J. Pilcher preview the Iowa high school state football quarterfinals on this episode of the Prep Football Huddle podcast.

It’s all about the playoffs now on the Prep Football Huddle podcast. After quickly reviewing the Round of 32, The Gazette's Jeff Johnson, K.J. Pilcher and Jeff Linder preview the Round of 16 in all seven Iowa high school football classes on this week’s episode. Plus, their picks for the 28 teams that will advance to the UNI-Dome.

It’s playoff time in Iowa high school football, at least for Class 2A, 1A, A and 8-Player. K.J. Pilcher, Jeff Johnson and Jeff Linder preview the Round of 32 in those classes and looks at what’s at stake in the final week of the regular season for 5A, 4A and 3A teams on this episode of the Prep Football Huddle. Plus, stick around for our trivia game of “Who Wants More?” and a prep football edition...

It’s getting down to crunch time on the Prep Football Huddle podcast. This week’s show with The Gazette's K.J. Pilcher, Jeff Johnson and Jeff Linder delves into eye-opening Week 7 wins from Solon, Marion and more, the updated playoff picture and Week 8 games to watch. We take time to remember Wally Sheets, the former Cedar Rapids Washington coach who died last week. At the end of this episode we p...

Cedar Rapids Kennedy and West Branch started the 2023 Iowa high school football season 0-2 against tough schedules but have won every game since, including a pair of eye-openers last week. The Prep Football Huddle podcast with The Gazette's Jeff Linder, Jeff Johnson and K.J. Pilcher discusses those teams and more noteworthy resurgences this week. Plus, a look around the area for Week 6 takeaways,...

Parity has been one of the main storylines of this Iowa high school football season. What were the most surprising developments in Week 5? The Gazette's Jeff Johnson and Jeff Linder discuss on the Prep Football Huddle podcast. Plus, a look at the updated rankings, both from The Gazette and the Iowa High School Athletic Association, our midseason MVPs and Week 6 games to watch.

The Iowa high school football regular season is basically halfway over and still surprising us. This week’s Prep Football Huddle podcast includes reactions from The Gazette's K.J. Pilcher, Jeff Linder and Jeff Johnson to eye-opening wins for Starmont, Solon West Delaware and more. We have a full look back at Week 4 takeaways and also look ahead to the best Week 5 games. Don’t miss the end of this...

Another week of turmoil in the Class 4A Iowa high school football top 10. Among a big group of really good teams, which ones are set to emerge as the best? That’s how this episode of the Prep Football Huddle podcast with The Gazette's Jeff Linder, K.J. Pilcher and Jeff Johnson kicks off. Also included this week: Cedar Rapids Jefferson’s resurgence continues, Marion opens its new stadium and Mount...