11-18-2021

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UNIVERSITY OF NORTHERN IOWA CEDAR FALLS, IA THURSDAY, APRIL 5 VOLUME 114, ISSUE 42

CEDAR FALLS, IA

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2021

VOLUME 118, ISSUE 24

OPINION

CAMPUS LIFE

SPORTS Panthers route Dubuque 95-58 Sunday.

OPINION PAGE 3

CAMPUS LIFE PAGE 3

SPORTS PAGE 6

College calculators aren’t precise, but they could easily be made better.

Students celebrate International Educational Week with food and festivities.

‘Theatre is not going anywhere’ Meeting held by administration and students to discuss future of UNI Theatre Department CAROLINE CHRISTENSEN News Editor

UNI theatre students, Northern Iowa Student Government members and members of administration gathered Monday afternoon to discuss the future of the theatre department. Questions of staffing shortages, student recruitment and creative solutions to funding issues were discussed.

To begin the meeting, Provost José Herrera assured that the theatre department would not face closure. “Theatre is not going anywhere,” Herrera said.

“I want to make sure every-

Courtesy/University of Northern Iowa

UNI Provost Jose Herrera discussed the theatre department’s future with students and administration.

one understands that theatre is a very important part of what UNI does and is. We absolutely are going through some financial stressors, but just about every other department is going through financial stresses.”

Herrera also emphasized the importance of attracting new students to the program and working together to find innovative and flexible ways to assist the theatre department through the fiscal challenges faced by the department.

“I’m a little bit worried, and that’s the reason I called this meeting,” Herrera said. “We want more students to be interested in theatre. We want families to see UNI where theatre is thriving.”

Herrera continued, “We have to work together. We are all on the same page that we have to work together. We can craft something that is positive, that will attract students to our institution, that will attract students to theatre to make sure that we can survive this difficult period in our history.”

Staffing shortages, limited resources and concerns

KARLA DE BRUIN/Northern Iowan

The theatre department is facing limited resources and funding, but the department will not experience closure.

about giving students quality education — especially in the Theatre for Youth program and in communication theatre education — were raised.

The program will also continue to accept new applicants.

University of Northern Iowa Theatre Association (UNISTA)

UNI alum named CEO of tax firm KARLA DE BRUIN Managing Editor

UNI Alum Brian Becker (‘89) was recently announced as the next CEO of RSM US LLP (RSM). RSM is one of the largest tax, audit and consulting firms in the country.

Having graduated with a CPA license and a degree from UNI, Becker started as an auditor in 1989 for RSM. “I’m thrilled and honored to have been selected to serve as RSM’s next Managing Partner & CEO. I am truly grateful to Joe Adams, who has served in the role for 10 years, for his outstanding leadership and stewardship to RSM,” Becker wrote.

Becker, originally from Waterloo, felt the decision to attend UNI was a “natural choice.” A first generation college student, Becker and his five siblings attended UNI and he knew getting a college degree was important to him.

After six years of being an auditor, he gained a foundation and an expertise in business that would help in his role as Managing Partner and CEO. He then transferred to build the technology infrastructure from the ground up. Becker worked at Radio Shack in college and felt that the job really sparked his interest in that position.

He then became the regional consulting leader, and that

President Dani Schmaltz addressed the shortage of staff the department is currently facing.

“We are acting like we are operating at 100% with two fewer people than we were before the pandemic. It’s all hands on deck. We love this

work so much and we will do whatever we have to do. We will beat our brains out until we get it done. But it’s not sustainable.

We can’t operate with four, five people when we used to have eleven people. We can’t do that.”

BAILEY KLINKHAMMER

len last weekend, Haire said that two have been recovered. She went on to explain how police departments work collaboratively on recovering stolen vehicles. “Two of the vehicles stolen from campus (were) recovered locally, but also in the last week, UNI PD recovered three vehicles stolen from other parts of the state.”

Haire also stated that UNI PD is investigating the burglaries to help ensure that students and their belongings can remain safe on campus.

Car thefts and burglaries reported on campus Staff Writer

Courtesy/Brian Becker

UNI Alum Brian Becker was announced the next CEO of RSM US LLP, one of the largest tax, audit and consulting firms in the country.

position eventually led him to lead the entire consulting line.

See UNI ALUM, page 2

See THEATRE, page 2

The UNI Department of Public Safety reported multiple burglarized and stolen vehicles last weekend to students in a safety bulletin email.

According to Helen Haire, the Chief of Police and Director of Public Safety, the thefts occurred at various times and locations.

Haire reported that three vehicles were stolen, along with belongings from other vehicles. Of the three vehicles that were reported sto-

See CAR THEFTS, page 2

PAGE 2

NEWS

THEATRE

continued from page 1

Schmaltz also noted the theatre department’s enrollment has grown in past years compared to some other departments.

“Our numbers continue to grow but our faculty numbers are dwindling,” Schmaltz said. “The resources we have are dwindling. So that’s where our concern is. Not even this year, but next year and two years down the line.”

Herrera cited limited funding as a reason for resource shortages. In addition to the-

NOVEMBER 18, 2021 | atre, departments such as construction management, social work and music have also been struggling financially.

“We are going through a difficult period in our financial forecasting for FY23 (fiscal year for 2023),” Herrera said. “Right now I have all kinds of chairs, all kinds of deans asking ‘can I have another position’ or ‘can I have two more positions?’

And the answer is I don’t know because I don’t want to spend money I don’t have.”

Herrera emphasized it

RSM also has a professorship with UNI. Announced in 2017, the program includes attracting and retaining high quality educators. There are many partners, principals and alumni of UNI involved. The goal is to give back to UNI, Cedar Falls and the accounting profession. RSM has hired many UNI alum for years and Becker is excited to continue that friendship.

“I got a great education at UNI that provided me with a solid foundation, but my education didn’t end at graduation,” Becker said. “Lifelong learning is key.”

NORTHERN IOWAN L011 Maucker Union Cedar Falls, IA 50614 www.northerniowan.com northern-iowan@uni.edu 319.273.2157

NIXSON BENITEZ Executive Editor benitezn@uni.edu 319.273.6826

KARLA DE BRUIN Managing Editor debruik@uni.edu 319.273.6420

NORTHERNIOWAN.COM

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VOLUME 118, ISSUE 24

the tenth degree, are we ever going to get that stuff back?

Are we ever going to get back to 11 full time faculty again to make it as strong as we can?”

The positive reputation of TheatreUNI was addressed, and the unique programs offered by the department were emphasized as a major recruitment tool. UNI hosted the Iowa Thespian Festival which occurred Nov. 12-13 which brought 700 high school theatre students to campus, many of whom have expressed interest in attending UNI. “The (high school students) were so excited about college and about maybe getting into the program,” Schmaltz said.

“It feels a little icky though telling people to come into the department. We don’t know if these certain tracks, which are the lucrative tracks for people, such as Drama and Theatre for Youth or the Com mu n icat ion-T he at re Teaching degree, will continue to exist at least in the versions that we know them as currently in the future. So that was a little twinge. But still, we have great opportunities for theatre teachers.

That’s what sets UNI apart from Drake or Simpson or ISU or Iowa.”

University of Northern Iowa Theatre Technicians (UNITT) P re side nt Justine Williamson echoed

She also explained students can help take p r e c a u t io n a r y measu res to ma ke su re their belongings remain safe. Students can make sure their vehicles are secured by always making sure to lock their vehicle, whether parking on or off-campus.

Along with locking vehicles, remove any Courtesy/iaclea va lu a ble b elo ng i ng s Chief of UNI Police Helen Haire from your car. recommends students keep their Haire explained that vehicles locked to prevent car theft. as it nears the holiday season, taking this mea- cle is extremely impor tsure to secure your vehi- ant. Lastly, remove all

spare keys or key fobs from your vehicle to prevent thefts.

While U NI PD is working extensively to assist students in providing a safe environment on campus, they encourage students to be proactive in the safety of themselves and their belongings. By following the list of precautions above and U NI PD’s advice students can keep their vehicles safe.

If you have any quest ion s or i n for mat ion about t he bu rgla r ies themselves, you can contact the U NI Depar tment of Public Safety at (319) 273-2712.

Courtesy/Theatre-UNI at Strayer Wood

continued from page 1

News Editor

would be necessary for the theatre department and other departments to be innovative and creative with the resources UNI is able to provide.

“Provosts have to be mindful of the institution.

The institution is the ship that holds all these departments and holds all of these faculty and tries to get them to feel fulfilled in their discipline. It’s hard to do when the resources are shrinking,” Herrera said.

Theatre Department Head Eric Lange acknowledged the theatre department would be willing to be innovative with their resources. “We can be creative, and we can keep things going and we can find the path that supports students. That’s at the top of everyone’s mind. The difficulties in the short term is just knowing there are holes that there is no immediate plan for.”

Lange continued, “There has been a lot of frustration expressed. Right now those holes that need to be filled seem numerous. But, what holes do you fill first?”

Schmaltz brought up concerns about cutting back programs that could theoretically be brought back in the future.

“When we actually have the funding after we’ve already taken some steps back, and after we’ve made cuts and gotten innovative to

UNI hosted the Iowa Thespian Festival Nov. 12-13 which brought 700 high school theatre students to campus.

UNI ALUM

CAROLINE CHRISTENSEN

CAR THEFTS

continued from page 1

EDITORIAL STAFF

PRODUCTION STAFF

CAROLINE CHRISTENSEN News Editor chriscbi@uni.edu

KARLA DE BRUIN

CATHERINE CROW Campus Life Editor catherine.crow@uni.edu COLIN HORNING Sports Editor chorning@uni.edu ERIN KAMP Copy Editor kampe@uni.edu

Webmaster Graphic Artist

ADVISORS

ANELIA DIMITROVA anelia.dimitrova@uni.edu

CHRIS MARTIN

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CIRCULATION

DORI CLAUSEN Circulation Manager

The Northern Iowan is published semi-weekly on Monday and Thursday during the academic year, except for holidays and examination periods, by the University of Northern Iowa, L011 Maucker Union, Cedar Falls, IA 50614-0166 under the auspices of the Board of Student Publications.

Advertising errors that are the fault of the Northern Iowan will be corrected at no cost to the advertiser only if the Northern Iowan office is notified within seven days of the original publication. Publisher reserves the right to refuse any advertisement at any time.

The Northern Iowan is funded in part with student activity fees.

All material is © 2021 by the Northern Iowan and may not be used without permission.

Schmaltz’s sentiments regarding the Thespians.

“I had so many questions from students who stopped and said, ‘we appreciate everything you are doing and we can’t wait to look into UNI and wear that purple shirt someday.’ The work we are doing is important. So to hear that it just pushes further for why we are fighting for this because we want students to be able to be in the positions we are in.”

Herrera acknowledged the students’ concerns and emphasized administration was there to help in any way possible.

“We want to create a theatre for the next decade. It’s very important that the students come to the table and tell us the gaps,” he said.

UNI Chief of Staff Andrew Morse concluded the meeting by noting the importance of everyone working together and coming up with solutions.

“I think each one of us students, staff and faculty alike care deeply about the experience of our students and the quality of the education they get. I think that’s what we are commonly fighting for across disciplines,” Morse said. “We need to remember we are all fighting for the same thing here. That’s really important and I want to convey that. It’s important that we continue working together.”

CORRECTION In the last issue of the Northern Iowan, a story entitled “Cedar Falls prepares for contested mayoral, city council runoff races” reported mayoral candidate David Sires as a councilman serving ward four. Sires actually serves as councillor at-large for Cedar Falls.

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Letters must be less than 300 words in length and are subject to editing. Not all submissions will be printed. Send submissions to northern-iowan@uni.edu.

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Tell us what’s happening on campus. Email submissions to northern-iowan@uni.edu.

Do you want to have an event listed here? Email us at northern-iowan@uni.edu with information about the event to have it featured.

PAGE 3

OPINION

NIXSON BENITEZ Executive Editor

NOVEMBER 18, 2021 |

NORTHERNIOWAN.COM

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VOLUME 118, ISSUE 24

Disclaimer: The following opinion articles featured do not reflect the opinion of the Northern Iowan newspaper or staff as a whole.

College calculators aren’t precise, but they could easily be made better

– the most recent data available.

AARON ANTHONY LINDSAY PAGE

Iowa Capital Disptach

Editors Note: This article is from Iowa Capitol Dispatch from Nov. 7, 2021.

The best way to figure out how much you have to pay for college is not to go by the sticker price. Instead, it’s to go by a college’s net price, which is often much lower. That’s because the net price tells you how much you have to pay to attend a particular school after you get your financial aid.

One way to speed up how fast you can calculate the net price for a school is to use an online tool called a net price calculator. As its name suggests, a net price calculator is meant to give you a better sense of the actual price you have to pay to go to a particular college. The net price calculator does this by providing a more individualized price estimate based on you or your family’s financial circumstances.

You might think all net vprice calculators are created equal. As researchers who study the economics of higher education, we can tell you they are not.

In a 2021 peer-reviewed study, we found that the prices determined by net price calculators vary by an average of $5,700 per student for students from families with the same or similar economic situations.

That means the price determined by a net price calculator can be off by plus or minus $5,700. That’s pretty significant because – over the course of four years – that adds up to $22,800 and can determine whether and how much you need to borrow in student loans.

Differences in calculators Some net price calculators are more user-friendly than others.

Some of them ask students to provide financial information that is hard to access. For others, the calculators might provide cost of attendance information – as well as grant aid information – that could be outdated.

Since all net price calculators don’t work the same way,

Karla DeBruin/Northern Iowan

College expenses determined by net price calculators can vary by an average of $5,700.

it can also be hard to compare prices from different schools.

The U.S. Department of Education provides a free net price calculator template.

It doesn’t require that much information, and most student users can provide the information on their own.

Proposed improvements There’s a bill in Congress that aims to improve net price calculators. It’s called the Net Price Calculator Improvement Act. Introduced in April 2021

by Sen. Charles “Chuck” Grassley, a Republican from Iowa, the bill would create a minimum set of requirements for net price calculators. It would also allow for the U.S. Department of Education to create a universal net price calculator that would have students answer one set of questions and get net price estimates for several schools.

The bill has only a 3% chance of becoming law, according to a website that scores bills based on their chances of being passed.

The federal net price calculator template requests information about a student’s household income. This is reportable in increments of $10,000 that range from $30,000 to $99,999. It also asks what your family size is, whether you plan to live in a

college dorm or off-campus and how many family members are in college. This in turn allows the federal template net price calculator to generate identical financial aid estimates for similar students attending the same postsecondary institution. However, actual aid awards may be very different.

In search of a fix Since figuring out financial aid is not easy to do, we identified three simple changes that would make the federal net price calculator template more accurate.

1. High school GPA Even though a lot of colleges and universities award merit-based aid – basically scholarships – the current template does not request any academic information. A simple change like asking students for their high school GPA could help better predict merit-based grants. On the user-facing side of the calculator, students would just enter their GPA. On the back end, where colleges enter their aid information, colleges could set up GPA requirements for students to get various scholarships offered through the school.

2. Anticipated financial aid Application timing

Different colleges have different deadlines for financial aid from within. If net price calculators could capture the date when a student plans to apply for financial aid, the calculator could include only aid the student would be eligible to receive. For example, if a student submits an application after a college’s institutional aid deadline but before a state or federal deadline, then the school’s calculator would include only state and federal aid in the net price estimate.

3. Expanded income bracket The current income categories top out at $99,999, meaning that a family earning $100,000 is treated identically to a family earning 10 times that amount. An additional option of $100,000-$150,000 would help to distinguish upper-middle-income families from upper-income families.

According to table A-2 on this Census website, 15.3% of the 129.9 million households in the U.S. – or 19.9 million households – have incomes between $100,000 and $150,000.

The average undergraduate student from a family with a household income between $100,000 and $150,000 receives more than $4,400 in grant aid. This is according to a National Postsecondary Student Aid Study from 2016

Better estimates Our study included 7,600 students at 900 different colleges and universities. We had an even mix of public and private colleges.

We found that information collected on the current version of the federal template net price calculator accounts for 70% of the variation in actual aid awards for students attending the same university. In other words, the inputs these calculators require can account for 70 cents of every dollar in aid awarded.

Our proposed changes can help net price calculators do a better job of estimating aid for similar students. With these additions, we found that the information that net price calculators use would predict 86 cents of each dollar in aid awarded.

Even if these changes were adopted, there would still be a lot of variation in the prices determined by net price calculators. The variation changes based on the type of college in question. For instance, at private, four-year institutions, amounts varied by nearly $11,000. By contrast, within community colleges, it was about $2,400.

Taking these figures into account, a federal net price calculator template could also help prospective students estimate high and low ends of their expected grant awards.

Our proposed modifications are straightforward to implement and require only basic information from student users. They also allow for a universal federal template that colleges and universities can adapt to their own financial aid award processes.

As Congress considers legislation to improve how net price calculators look and function, keeping the tool simple to use is one of the most important aspects to consider.

Choosing a college is among the most consequential financial decisions that students and their families will ever make.

More accurate and easy-to-use tools should make the decision easier than it would otherwise be.

PAGE 4

CAMPUS LIFE NOVEMBER 18, 2021 |

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CATHERINE CROW Campus Life Editor

Panther Portrait: International Educational kickoff NORTHERNIOWAN.COM

VOLUME 118, ISSUE 24

Northern Iowan / CATHERINE CROW

The kickoff for International Education week was held in the Maucker Union Ballrooms hosted by International Engagement. The event had a couple guest speakers as well as a belly dancer. The belly dancer had the audience get up and interact with her by teaching them a few dances. In additon to the kickoff for International Education week, there were cooking events at the beginning of the week. There is going to be an open house Thursday, Nov.18 from 9:30-11 a.m. in Maucker Union room 113.

PAGE 5 CATHERINE CROW Campus Life Editor

CAMPUS LIFE NOVEMBER 18, 2021 |

NORTHERNIOWAN.COM

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VOLUME 118, ISSUE 24

Learn to cook Badrijani Nigivit KARLA DE BRUIN Managing Editor

International Education Week has something for everyone! On Tuesday, Nov. 16, students could participate in ‘Learn to Cook,’ an event held in the basement of Maucker Union. International student Nino Omatee, who is originally from Georgia prepared a traditional Georgian appetizer, a Badrijani Nigvit or eggplant with walnut.

Omatee also talked about her home country and its culture, including the language, religion and location. She shared many pictures of her homeland.

If you want to learn more about events going on for international education week visit internationalengagement. uni.edu

Students got to learn how to cook Badrijani Nigvit with Nino Omatee in the basement of Maucker Union on Tuesday, Nov. 16.

Northern Iowan/KARLA DE BRUIN

PAGE 6

SPORTS MEN’S BASKETBALL

NOVEMBER 18, 2021 |

NORTHERNIOWAN.COM

COLIN HORNING Sports Editor

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VOLUME 118, ISSUE 24

Panthers dominate Dubuque 95-58, notch first win HUNTER FRIESEN team never took their foot off

the pedal, totaling nearly the same amount of points in the second half. They were still After dropping their first able to do it with the same level two games of the season, the of high efficiency. Another 19 UNI Panther basketball team shots were scored, six from was able to get their first notch behind the arc. Dubuque was in the winning column as they able to put up 35 points, but it dominated the Spartans from was too little too late.

The commanding lead Dubuque University, 95-58.

It was all Panthers all the allowed for UNI to dip into time as they opened the scor- their bench and spread the ing with a Tywhon Pickford wealth. Every player on the layup 1:25 into the game. The team got at least six minutes Panthers never looked back of play, with sophomore guard from there, as they led the Noah Carter leading the scorgame for 38:42 out of the pos- ing with 20 points. Carter also sible 40 minutes. Throughout led the team in rebounds with the first half, the team shot seven, with Trae Berhow and 19-28 from the field, includ- Tytan Anderson right behind ing eight three-pointers. Their him with five each. Four other efficiency right out of the Panthers were able to score gate was in stark contrast to in the double-digits, with the Dubuque, who could only con- highlight being freshman forvert three out of their 20 three- ward Drew Daniel getting 10 point attempts. By the time points and three assists in only the buzzer signified halftime, 10 minutes of action.

Freshman Bowen Born got the Panthers had amassed a 26 point lead with the score at his first taste of gameplay this season after being sidelined 49-23.

Despite that huge lead, the with an injury. He was able to Sports Writer

convert both of his field-goal attempts and dish out three assists. A.J. Green is still working his way back to his usual productivity after last season’s injury. He was only able to tally five points on six attempts but did have four assists.

This gaudy victory was just what the Panthers needed as they look to get into peak fighting shape before the Missouri Valley Conference-only portion of their schedule. They’ll have plenty of opportunities until then, the first of which will be against the Razorbacks of Arkansas on Wednesday, Nov. 17. Arkansas made last year’s Elite Eight of the NCAA Tournament and will come into the matchup ranked No. 16 in the nation, proving to be a tough challenge for the Panthers. They will then face another top-25 opponent on the road in Olean, N.Y. on Saturday, Nov. 27 against Saint Bonaventure, before returning home to the McLeod Center on Dec. 5 against the University of Richmond.

TONI FORTMANN/Northern Iowan

UNI picked up their first win of the season with a 95-58 route of the Dubuque Spartans. Their next home game will be Dec. 5 against Richmond.

VOLLEYBALL

UNI pulls out close series with Evansville, winning 3-2 DREW HILL

Sports Writer

The UNI volleyball team faced the Evansville Purple Aces on Saturday, Nov. 13, in their last road game of the regular season. The Panthers entered the game with a 6-9 record in conference play and an 11-17 record overall.

Evansville entered the game with an 8-7 record in conference play and an 18-8 record overall.

After an early tie at 3-3

in the first set, Evansville pulled away and led by as many as six. UNI battled back and tied the score at 23-23, but Evansville scored the two points they needed for a 25-23 win to go up 1-0 in the series. The second set also saw Evansville lead early, but UNI’s comeback did not come up short this time. When the Purple Aces were up 13-10, UNI went on a 4-0 run to go ahead. After Evansville tied the score up at 20, UNI went on a 5-1 run to win the set

25-21 and tie the series 1-1.

After UNI got down 1-0, they pulled ahead and never trailed in the rest of set three.

Evansville did tie up the game at 21, but UNI went on a 4-0 run to win the set 25-21 and take a 2-1 lead in the series.

Set four was the longest set.

The Panthers took a 24-19 lead, but could not put the Purple Aces away, who scored on five straight match points to tie the set up at 24. Both sides had opportunities to win the game, but Evansville ulti-

mately won the set 35-33 to tie the series up 2-2.

The final set saw Evansville get the first chance with a match point at 14-13.

However, UNI tied the game at 14. Another Evansville match point was matched by UNI, and UNI pulled out a 19-17 win to win the set and series 3-2.

UNI reached season highs in kills and assists with 82 kills and 70 assists. Four players reached double digits in kills, led by Kira Fallert,

who got 25 of those kills for a career high. Tayler Alden picked up a double-double with 15 kills and 31 assists.

The other two players to reach double digits in kills were Emily Holterhaus with 14 and Carly Spies with 11.

Payton Ahrenstorff reached a career high in digs with 23 to lead the Panthers.

UNI finishes the regular season at home against Valparaiso and LoyolaChicago on Friday and Saturday, Nov. 19 and 20.

OPINION

Men’s basketball should learn from women and play in-state games DAVID WARRINGTON

Sports Writer

College basketball is back and this time with a significant number of fans for the first time since March 2020. I was fortunate enough to be in attendance this past Sunday when UNI hosted the ninth-ranked Iowa Hawkeyes for an in-state women’s basketball matchup.

The atmosphere was fantastic, with plenty of Hawkeye fans making the short trip from Iowa City to join the rabid UNI faithful.

It was a win for all involved, as Iowa got a good early season test from a tough UNI team, the Panthers got to face a legit

top-10 team in the country, a game that will undoubtedly make them better, and the fans were treated to a great basketball game, one that those in the black and gold didn’t have to travel across the country to see.

Sites like this are a regular in women’s basketball, as all four of the major in-state teams, UNI, Iowa, Iowa State and Drake, all play each other every year. However, for whatever reason, the men’s teams representing these schools don’t play each other every year. Iowa and Iowa State always have their big rivalry game, and UNI and Drake play twice a year due to both being in the Missouri Valley Conference, but you

rarely see matchups between Iowa and UNI, Iowa State and Drake, and so forth.

Every Power 5 college basketball team has to fill their early schedule with lesser teams before they begin conference play. Names like Longwood, North Carolina Central and Alabama State appear on Iowa’s early schedule, while Iowa State takes on teams like Grambling State, Arkansas-Pine Bluff and Jackson State. These games certainly have their purpose.

The bigger teams get to play in front of their home fans, work out early season wrinkles against a less talented team, and give young players a chance to get acclimated

to big time college basketball without diving in headfirst against a Big 10 or Big 12 opponent.

While these games should certainly occur in moderation, there are several problems with them. These games are not exciting to the fans. Everyone knows the outcome before the game starts, there are few if any visiting fans outside of family members, and if you do somehow lose, your season is seen as tainted before it really gets started. All of these problems are solved by playing in-state opponents early in the season.

Alabama State beating Iowa is something nobody thinks will happen. However, UNI beating Iowa is not only a

possibility, but it has happened five of the 12 times the teams have met. Due to the short drive necessary to attend these games, the crowds are packed with fans from both teams, and if an upset does occur, not only does it give a huge boost to the winners, but it also doesn’t ruin the season of the losers by any means.

There are many reasons why Iowa, Iowa State, UNI and Drake should all play each other every year. The women have been doing it for a while, and it always makes for high quality basketball in front of a packed stadium with fans from both teams. There’s no reason why the men’s teams shouldn’t replicate this formula.

KARLA DE BRUIN Managing Editor

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