Tag: Caitlin Clark

ESPN dubs Caitlin Clark WNBA’s next generational draft prospect

ESPN recognizes Caitlin Clark’s greatness, tabbing her as the WNBA’s next generational draft prospect.

Names like Ken Griffey Jr. for the Seattle Mariners in Major League Baseball, LeBron James to the Cleveland Cavaliers in the NBA, or Andrew Luck to the Indianapolis Colts in the NFL.

What do they all have in common? They were generational, can’t-miss talents coming out of college or high school.

That’s just to name a few, too. ESPN just took a look at the most-hyped draft prospects since 1979 across MLB, the NBA, the NFL, the NHL and the WNBA.

In doing so, it also got ESPN wondering: Who are the next can’t-miss, generational talents in all of the major sports?

Naturally, Iowa Hawkeyes superstar Caitlin Clark was one of the two names selected by ESPN’s M.A. Voepel as the next can’t-miss, generational WNBA talent.

While Clark will be eligible for the 2024 WNBA draft, the West Des Moines product told Dan Patrick back in February that she was mulling spending each of the next two years in Iowa City.

Hawkeye fans certainly hope that’s the case. Whether it’s in the 2024 WNBA draft or the 2025 WNBA draft, Caitlin Clark is sure to come off the board first.

Let’s take a look at what ESPN had to say about Clark as a can’t-miss draft prospect.

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Another piece of really good news for the Pac-12 hits the headlines

Sports Business Journal reports that negotiations on a standalone Women’s NCAA Tournament should occur later this year. #NCAAW

The Pac-12 feels good about where it stands. Why? Something seems to be happening underneath the surface, relative to its media rights negotiations. That’s number one. Another separate piece of good news has emerged for the conference as well.

Sports Business Journal publisher and editor Abraham Madkour wrote the following earlier this week:

“Endeavor’s Karen Brodkin and Hillary Mandel are advising the NCAA on deciding which championships to pull out of the current bundled package and sell on their own. It seems like a certainty that the women’s basketball tournament will be sold as a stand-alone after it drew record ratings this past April. But what else? The women’s and men’s College World Series both rated very well, and women’s gymnastics and volleyball also have audiences. Supporters of these sports are advocating for them to be pulled out and sold individually. The fear is that if the NCAA pulls out too many popular sports, the package will become so diluted it will lose any value and defeats the purpose of maximizing rights fees and distribution. Remember, these are only for the championships — not the regular season or the conference championships. It’s limited inventory and that’s what the NCAA and Endeavor will have to navigate as they go to the marketplace. The NCAA will first negotiate with incumbent ESPN before going to the open marketplace if they don’t agree to terms. Talks are expected to unfold later this year.”

We and Pac-12 insider Jon Wilner have both written multiple stories about this issue, explaining how advantageous it would be to the Pac-12 to get a standalone Women’s NCAA Tournament which is de-coupled from other NCAA sports championships. The Women’s NCAA Tournament would generate a lot of dollars, given how much the sport is rising in popularity right now thanks to Caitlin Clark of Iowa and Angel Reese of LSU and last spring’s record-setting Final Four, a TV ratings smash hit.

The Pac-12 has been very good in women’s basketball for a long time. It put seven teams in the 2023 Women’s NCAA Tournament, including USC. If the Women’s NCAA Tournament becomes a standalone media rights property, the NCAA’s system of win units used for the men’s tournament would be able to be implemented in the women’s tournament.

Imagine the Pac-12 putting three or four teams in the Sweet 16, and one team in the Final Four, as it has often done over the past 10 years. That’s a lot of accumulated win units and a lot of added revenue the conference hasn’t been able to get under the existing system. Revenue growth through women’s basketball would be significant under a standalone Women’s NCAA Tournament. That’s a lot of added cash for the Pac-12 in the future, and not a moment too soon.

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Kirk Ferentz, Caitlin Clark ready for ceremonial pre-race INDYCAR roles

Kirk Ferentz and Caitlin Clark will each perform ceremonial pre-race roles during this weekend’s NTT INDYCAR SERIES doubleheader.

“Drivers, start your engines!”

For racing fans, that’s about as iconic of a phrase as you can get. As the NTT INDYCAR SERIES doubleheader descends upon Iowa Speedway for the Hy-Vee INDYCAR Race Weekend, a pair of Iowa Hawkeyes will get the chance to utter those famous words.

Iowa women’s basketball megastar Caitlin Clark will give drivers the command to start their engines as the grand marshal of the Hy-Vee Homefront 250 presented by Instacart on Saturday, July 22. Hy-Vee CEO Jeremy Gosch will wave the green flag to start that 250-lap race.

Live coverage of the Hy-Vee Homefront 250 presented by Instacart begins at 2 p.m. on NBC and Peacock and 1:30 p.m. CT on the INDYCAR Radio Network.

Clark also has autograph sessions slated for 10:30-11:30 a.m. on Saturday and from 10-11 a.m. CT on Sunday.

Then, on Sunday, July 23, longtime Iowa head football coach Kirk Ferentz will give the command to start engines before the Hy-Vee One Step 250 presented by Gatorade. Ferentz will be joined by music superstar Ed Sheeran who will wave the green flag to start the 250-lap race.

The Hy-Vee One Step 250 presented by Gatorade will be broadcast live at 2 p.m. CT Sunday on NBC, Peacock and the INDYCAR Radio Network.

Clark and Ferentz need no introduction for Hawkeye fans. Clark is the reigning Naismith College Player of the Year and guided the Hawkeye women to the brink of a national championship.

During Iowa’s run to the national championship game, Clark became the first player in women’s NCAA Tournament history to register back-to-back 40-point games. She became the first player in Division I women’s basketball history with more than 1,000 points and 300 assists in the same season.

Meanwhile, Ferentz is Iowa’s all-time wins leader with 186 triumphs during his time in Iowa City. He has also been named Big Ten Coach of the Year on three different occasions and has multiple national coach of the year honors.

Under Ferentz’s direction, Iowa has received 20 bowl invites. Iowa has also had 11 Hawkeyes earn national Player of the Year honors and seen 25 chosen as first-team All-Americans.

A number of other stars will perform over the course of the weekend at Iowa Speedway as well. Country music stars Carrie Underwood, Kenny Chesney and Zac Brown Band will all be in attendance.

On Saturday, Underwood will perform before the Hy-Vee Homefront 250 and Chesney will perform afterwards. Then, on Sunday, Zac Brown Band will perform prior to the Hy-Vee One Step 250.

Ed Sheeran will conclude the weekend’s festivities with a performance following Sunday’s race.

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Smooth as butter! Hello, Iowa State Fair

Sculpted in bronze? Not us. Caitlin Clark’s likeness will be sculpted in butter at the Iowa State Fair alongside Kurt Warner and Jack Trice.

Who else but Iowa?

Seriously folks, what other University do you know that will give you stories involving butter sculptures?

One of the top attractions at the Iowa State Fair held in Des Moines in August is the Butter Cow. This tradition of creating a life-sized cow literally out of butter dates all the way back to 1911 when J.K. Daniels sculpted the first butter cow. According to the State Fair’s website, this is how the traditional cow sculpture is manufactured.

The Butter Cow starts with a wood, metal, wire and steel mesh frame and about 600 lbs. of low moisture, pure cream Iowa butter. Once inside the 40-degree cooler, layers of butter are applied until a life-size butter cow emerges – measuring about 5-1/2-ft high and 8-ft long. Each year, much of the butter is recycled and can be reused for up to 10 years.

A real dairy cow weighs more than 1,000 pounds, but the butter version comes in at around 600 pounds. Did you know the butter cow would butter about 19,200 slices of toast and take an average person two lifetimes to consume? – Iowa State Fair.

The Iowa State Fair is now on its fifth butter sculptor. Sarah Pratt of West Des Moines took over in 2006 after apprenticing for 15 years!

Since 1996, the ol’ butter cow has been accompanied by a number of companion sculptures. Over the years, the butter cow has featured companions such as Elvis Presley, Harry Potter, and Tiger Woods. There’s been nods to American classics such as Dr. Seuss’ “Green Eggs and Ham,” Monopoly, Star Trek and Sesame Street, too.

This year, it was time for some homegrown Iowan flair. One of the three figures being depicted is none other than Iowa women’s basketball star Caitlin Clark!

Clark joins both Jack Trice and Kurt Warner in a celebration of iconic Iowa athletes. Warner is the only person inducted into both the Pro Football Hall of Fame and the Arena Hall of Fame. The Super Bowl championship-winning quarterback was a 1993 Northern Iowa graduate.

Jack Trice was Iowa State’s first African American athlete and the Cyclones’ stadium is named after him. The butter sculpture for Trice is part of a series of 100-year commemorations honoring his life and legacy.

Bryon Houlgrave/The Register via Imagn Content Services, LLC

Then, there’s Clark. Hawkeye fans are well acquainted with all of the records that the West Des Moines product has been breaking. Just this past spring, Clark became the first player to register a 40-point triple-double in the NCAA Tournament. She followed it up with another 40-point performance to end South Carolina’s perfect season in the Final Four. Clark was the first women’s player to post back-to-back 40-point scoring efforts.

Here’s what the Iowa State Fair had to say about why Clark is the perfect choice to be immortalized in butter sculpture fame.

Has added countless accolades and awards to her points and assists records, but nothing is more iconic of her impact as an Iowan than being recognized with a likeness in butter at the Iowa State Fair. – Iowa State Fair.

The butter cow along with butter versions of Caitlin Clark, Kurt Warner and Jack Trice, will be featured in the John Deere Agriculture Building from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m., during the Best Days Ever at the Iowa State Fair on Aug. 10-20.

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LOOK: Jahan Dotson representing college basketball star Caitlin Clark

Clark won an ESPY this week as the best female college athlete.

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Caitlin Clark is one of the most famous athletes in the country. Clark recently led the Iowa Hawkeyes to the NCAA women’s championship game after a historic NCAA Tournament performance. Iowa upset the dominant South Carolina Gamecocks in the Final Four before falling short to LSU in the title game.

The three-time All-American, two-time Big Ten player of the year and 2023 national player of the year was in the news again this week as she won the ESPY for Best Female College Athlete.

Apparently, one of Clark’s biggest fans is Washington Commanders wide receiver Jahan Dotson. Working out with his teammates this week ahead of training camp, Dotson was spotted wearing a Clark t-shirt.

Check it out:

Dotson played college football at Penn State, a Big Ten rival of Clark’s Hawkeyes. Clark led Iowa to two wins over Dotson’s Nittany Lions last season by a combined 85 points.

Dotson and the Commanders report to training camp in less than two weeks.

Social media reacts to Caitlin Clark winning Best Female College Athlete ESPY

Chalk up another win for Caitlin Clark! Twitter reacted as the Iowa superstar was honored with the Best Female College Athlete ESPY.

Caitlin Clark wins again. This time, it was the ESPY for Best Female College Athlete.

Clark received the honor over Oklahoma softball’s Jordy Bahl, Northwestern lacrosse’s Izzy Scane and Florida gymnastics’ Trinity Thomas.

It has been a record-setting year for the West Des Moines superstar. Clark took the Iowa Hawkeyes to the brink of the program’s first national championship behind a string of performances unlike any the sport has seen before.

In the Hawkeyes’ 97-83 Elite Eight win over Louisville, Clark registered the first 40-point triple-double in NCAA Tournament history (men’s or women’s). She finished with 41 points, 12 assists and 10 rebounds in that contest.

She backed that game up with another 40-point performance in the Final Four against South Carolina. Clark’s 41 points, eight assists and six rebounds helped the Hawks topple the previously unbeaten Gamecocks, 77-73.

During the course of the NCAA Tournament, Clark broke the single-tournament records for most 3-point field goals made (24) and most points scored (191).

It’s the latest honor in a well-deserved parade of them for Clark. Unfortunately, fans didn’t get to see the ESPY for Best Female College Athlete presented on TV.

Instead, viewers saw LSU‘s Angel Reese capture the ESPY for Best Breakthrough Athlete over Clark and former Iowa State quarterback and now San Francisco 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy.

That naturally opened up some old wounds for Hawkeye fans. Still, it was another banner night for Clark. As always, Hawkeye Twitter and the sports world had plenty of reactions.

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Best photos from Caitlin Clark’s Pro-Am round at the John Deere Classic alongside Zach Johnson

Caitlin Clark didn’t miss a beat swapping basketball shoes for golf spikes. The best photos of her round at the John Deere Classic Pro-Am.

Whether it is draining 3-pointers from the logo or draining putts from 30 feet out, Caitlin Clark seems to be able to do it all. The Iowa Hawkeyes women’s basketball star teed it up yesterday at the John Deere Classic Pro-Am at TPC Deere Run and all indications point to the day being a smashing success.

Clark played alongside known Iowa supporter and PGA Tour golfer and two-time major champion Zach Johnson. Throughout their round, the pair was followed by one of the biggest galleries on the course. The crowds that followed the two speak volumes to the draw that Caitlin Clark brings in whatever arena it may be in.

Caitlin Clark spent most of her day smiling, laughing, and enjoying her time out on the course next to some of the world’s best golfers in an event designed to be fun for those taking part and those watching. She made time to sign plenty of autographs for her young supporters, too. Take a look at some of the best photos of the day.

Caitlin Clark lights up social media during John Deere Classic Pro-Am round

Caitlin Clark lit up social media as she took part in the John Deere Classic Pro-Am alongside two-time major champion Zach Johnson.

Once a star gets big enough, it has gravitational pull and the solar system orbits around it. The same thing can be said for Caitlin Clark. The Iowa Hawkeyes women’s basketball superstar has become one of the biggest stars in the sports solar system and everything orbiting around her includes fans, news, and even other sports stars appreciating her greatness.

The most recent athlete to spend time with Caitlin Clark is Iowa supporter and PGA Tour golfer and two-time major champion Zach Johnson. The two played together in the John Deere Classic Pro-Am at TPC Deere Run. Clark was expected to receive a hefty turnout of supporters and that didn’t disappoint.

The crowds following the two of them were massive and the social media attention that their round drew was even bigger. Here are some of the best social media reactions to Caitlin Clark’s incredible day out on the course hanging out with her supporters and Iowa fans.

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Iowa’s Caitlin Clark and golfer Zach Johnson delivered a hilarious press session at John Deere Pro-Am

Two Iowa sports legends got to spend some time on the green together for the John Deere Classic Pro-Am.

Iowa women’s basketball superstar Caitlin Clark traded one sport for another on Wednesday for the John Deere Classic Pro-Am as she golfed with PGA pro Zach Johnson.

Johnson, an Iowa native, spent some time on the links with Clark, and the two had some hilarious banter with each other during the day’s media availability. Among the topics discussed were Clark’s remaining eligibility with Iowa and if Johnson is actually funny or not.

Judging by the tenor of this very enjoyable interview session, we’re guessing both of these Iowa sports legends can bring the laughs while competing at the height of their respective sports.

It’s great for Iowa fans to see Clark and Johnson spending some time together as luminaries for their state, and it’s always fun with an athlete like Clark takes a chance by trying their hand at another sport.

It was a very Hawkeye-friendly day at this golf tournament, that’s for sure.

Florida, Oklahoma, LSU, and Iowa athletes nominated for ESPY awards

LSU and Iowa will battle it out again, but this time they won’t be wearing basketball shoes or playing on the hardwood.

2023 ESPY award nominations have been announced and Florida, Oklahoma, LSU, and Iowa all have athletes nominated for awards. The 2023 ESPYs will air live on Wednesday, July 12, at 8 p.m. ET on ABC from Los Angeles.

LSU and Iowa will battle it out again, but this time they won’t be wearing basketball shoes or playing on the hardwood. Iowa’s Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese of LSU will vie for position against Brock Purdy of the San Francisco 49ers, and Julio Rodríguez of the Seattle Mariners for the Best Breakthrough Athlete award.

Gymnast Trinity Thomas of Florida is nominated for Best Play for her perfect 10 which tied the All-Time NCAA record. She is the only Florida athlete represented in the nominations. She competes for the award against UCLA soccer player Ally Lemos with the perfect corner to tie the National Championship game and two other professional athletes.

Oklahoma Sooners softball and LSU women’s basketball are nominated for Best Team. The Sooners will also be represented as softball player Jordy Bahl is nominated for Best College Athlete, Women’s Sports along with  Caitlin Clark, Izzy Scane of Northwestern Lacrosse, and Trinity Thomas.

Recipients of the Arthur Ashe Award for Courage, the Jimmy V Award for Perseverance, and the Pat Tillman Award for Service will be announced next week.