The Courier from Waterloo, Iowa • 21

the Courier to watch What: NFL football Teams: Stoelers at Broncos Time: 7:15 p.m., today Channel: KWWL Why: Pittsburgh's last visit to Mile High was an upset ot Denver 21 months ago in the AFC title game. The Broncos, losers of three straight, are surely eyeing their own upset. Full TV sports schedule, page C8 IN THIS SECTION COLLEGE FOOTBALL SUNDAY SCRUM C4 SCOREBOARD C8 PREP FOOTBALL C8 OUTDOORS C9 NFL C10 BASEBALL CIO SUNDAY OCTOBLR 21,2007 SPORTS EDITOR: DOUG NEWHOFF (319) 291 -1 467 sport3doorwcfcourier.com WATERLOO vjww.wcfcourier.comsports CEDAR FALLS COLLEGE FOOTBALL PROGRESS REPORT: UNI MEN'S BASKETBALL El 17 NIL'S 5 iili.LV (j Numbers crunch adds to intensity ByMATTCQSS Courier Sports Writer CEDAR FALLS A year ago at this time, Northern Iowa basket-'ball coach Ben Jacobson had a firm grip on who would account for his starting five. Now, with Grant Stout and Brooks McKovven gone, Eric St Coleman and Jared Josten appear to be the only definitive starters for the Fanthers as they prepare for their exhibition opener in 10 days against Wayne State. Beyond that it's up for grabs.

Ben Jacobson UNI men's basketball coach AP PHOTO Kansas' Anthony Collins (78) celebrates with tight end Derek Fine, Cesar Rodriguez and Ryan Cantrell, clockwise from Collins, after Fine's touchdown reception in the fourth quarter. Jumpin' Jayhawks! KU wins at Boulder No. 15 Kansas continued to roll Saturday, forcing three turnovers in a victory at Colorado. It was the Jayhawks' first win in Boulder since 1995 and KU has won seven straight to start the season for only the second time since 1968. BIG 12, page C2 N.D.

State's high is Gophers' low As the clock ticked toward zero, more than 30,000 North Dakota State fans roared their approval inside the Metrodome. The final score read: North Dakota j-f) State 27, t-Vv Minnesota 21. It was an emphatic statement that the NDSU's oft-questioned move from Division II to Division I was the right one. FULL STGRY, page C3 Knights' Suckow gouges old team Neil Suckow's final stat line was less than impressive W7 against his former team. His impact on the football game was tremendous.

FULL STCRY, page C4 'J 11' MATTHEW PUTNEY Courier Staff Photographer Northern Iowa tight end Austin Howard gets tangled up with Western Illinois' Kevin Almlie as he runs for a first down in Saturday's UNI win. Because of that the opening week of practice has led to several spirited workouts. "As soon as the 12 or 13 guys fighting hard for minutes walk into the gym for practice, they know every day they've got to compete because they are battling for minutes," Jacobson said. healthy. "Our intensity has been good the entire time." Regardless of the names that emerge as starters, the Fanthers, coming off an 18-13 campaign and no postseason play for the first time in four years, will have more experienced depth and balance than in recent seasons.

That was evident at the World University Games in August when five dif ferent players led UNI in scoring in six games. "The first couple of years I was here, there were definite stars and go-to guys on the team," junior Travis Brown said "We still have Coleman, but we've got a lot of guys that can bring a lot of different things to the table. See BASKETBALL, page C9 Panthers turn in near-perfect performance, improve to 7-0 BASEBALL Drew's slam keeps the Red Sox alive with 163 total yards and fell to 5-3 and 2-1 in the Gateway. Meanwhile, Corey Lewis and Darian Williams enjoyed an overpowering performance from their blockers as both topped the 100-yard mark for UNI. lewis, nagged by a slight ankle sprain, finished with 166 See PANTHERS, page C5 ground game that made use of a second tight end in Sam Peterson and even backup offensive lineman Austin Steichen in a power-I formation, top-ranked UNI trampled No.

17 Western Illinois here at Hanson Field, 42-3. The Fanthers controlled the football with time-consuming drives while rushing 66 times for 355 yards and kept their defense fresh as they remained undefeated at 7-0 overall and took over sole possession of the Gateway Conference lead with a 3-0 mark. Herb Donaldsoa Western's star running back ducked and darted for 80 yards, but the leathernecks had virtually no other offense as they finished By DOUG NEWHOFF Sports Editor MACOMB, III. Northern Iowa took a quarterback with a bum shoulder and two gimpy running backs to Western Illinois Saturday. The Fanthers' offense has seldom looked better.

Featuring a bulldozing From the brink of elimination and the depths of a yearlong slump, J.D. Drew helped the Red Sox force a Game 7. The struggling right fielder hit a grand slam to power Boston. FULL STCnY, page C10 BLACK HAWKS Waterloo dominates, then loses mi asm COLLEGE VOLLEYBALL Panthers avenge hitter loss to 'Jays The Northern Iowa volleyball team was not about to let hictnrw rnnont itcoif ISU delivers gritty effort desnite loss as the Panthers rolled to a 30-24, u-30-24, 30-25 road sweep over rival Creighton on Saturday night. FULL STCHY, page C8 By JIM NELSON Courier Sports Writer WATERLOO There are many times F.K.

O'llandley doesn't crack a smile after a Waterloo Black Hawks' victory. 1 le never smiles or laughs following a loss. That is, until Saturday. O'llandley liked almost everything he saw but the final result Saturday when the Tri-City Storm stole a 4-3 overtime victory from the Black Hawks at Young Arena. O'llandley liked how his team skated, lie liked his team's puck movement in the offensive zone, its energy and its feistiness.

ButTn-City's Mike Cichy scored a short handed goal 1 minute and 49 seconds into overtime in a game Waterloo dominated in almost every phase. "That is really a tough one to swallow," said 01 landley with a See HOCKEY, page C9 NFL Are Patriots the NFL's best ever? Six games into the NFL season and New England is being ranked Gene Chizik after his team fell to 1-7 overall and 0-4 in the Big 12. "I didn't think we played well enough to win. 1 didn't think we took advantage of the opportunities we had But I'm proud of the effort" Jason Scales' 2-yard touchdown run in the opening quarter gave ISU its first lead over Oklahoma since the 1998 meeting in Norman five games ago. The Cyc lone defense pitched a shutout It held the Sooners scoreless in the first hall for the only time in 2007.

A 29 point underdog stood just 30 minutes away from a huge upset and Iowa Slate's first See CYCLONES, page C7 By JIM SULUVAN Courier Sports Writer AMES College football's wise men never gave Iowa State a prayer to beat Oklahoma before Saturday's opening kick-off. Then the Cyclones nearly brought the fourth-ranked Sooners to their knees. ISU scored first clung tightly to its lead through the first half and battled OU for 60 minutes. Eventually, though, Oklahoma rose to the occasion and came from behind to edge ISU, 17-7, before a I lomecoming crowd at Jack Tric Stadium "I thought we played well today," said Cyclone head coach among the best football squads ever assembled. After dusting the Dallas Cowboys last week, we're asking: Are the Patriots the best of all-time? Sports writers Kelly Beaton and Sean Hylton clash on the subject.

AP PHOTO Oklahoma's Allen Patrick (23) tries to break a tackle by Iowa State's Jesse Smith in the second half of the Sooners' win..