IOWA CITY – The University of Iowa women’s basketball team will travel to Tallahassee, Fla. to face the Florida State Seminoles as part of the sixth annual ACC/Big Ten Challenge. The game is scheduled for Wednesday, Nov. 28. Start time and television information will be released at a later date. This will be the first meeting between the two schools.

Florida State returns 11 of its 12 players from last year’s squad that finished 14-17 overall and 6-10 in ACC play. The Seminoles will be led by third team All-ACC pick Natasha Howard, who led the ACC in double-doubles with 12. She averaged 12.2 points and 9.1 rebounds per game, starting all 31 contests. Alexa Deluzio, the team’s second-leading scorer, also returns after starting 30 games and averaging 13.2 points per contest.

The Seminoles are coached by Sue Semrau, who just finished her 15th season at Florida State. She is the winningest coach in school history and led FSU to seven straight NCAA Tournament appearances from 2005-11. Semrau is a three-time ACC Coach of the Year and led the Seminoles to its second-consecutive ACC regular season title and a berth in the Elite 8 in the 2010 season.

Florida State’s coaching staff also has an Iowa tie, as director of operations Melissa Bruner graduated from Coe College in 1994 and was a four-sport athlete in softball, basketball, tennis and volleyball. She also served as an assistant athletic director and head women’s basketball coach at Coe College before taking the job at Florida State.

Iowa is 1-4 in the Challenge after picking up its first win last year with a 58-47 victory over Virginia Tech in Iowa City. The Hawkeyes were defeated at home by Georgia Tech (2007) and Boston College (2009) along with road losses at Duke (2008) and North Carolina (2010).

Florida State is 3-2 in the Challenge and the Hawkeyes are 11-6 all-time vs. the ACC.

The ACC/Big Ten Women’s Basketball Challenge matches 12 teams from each conference in head-to-head competition. Last season, the Big Ten and ACC battled to a 6-6 draw, the first tie in the Challenge’s history. The ACC had won the previous five Challenges.

The Big Ten and ACC have long been among the most dominant conferences on the women’s basketball scene. For the first time in league history, the Big Ten had seven teams selected to the NCAA Tournament in 2012. The ACC sent four schools to the NCAA Tournament.

Game times and television information will be released at a later date.

Wednesday, Nov. 28

Ohio State at North Carolina

Iowa at Florida State

Wisconsin at Virginia Tech

Duke at Michigan

Maryland at Nebraska

Georgia Tech at Purdue

Clemson at Indiana

Northwestern at Boston College

Thursday, Nov. 29

Penn State at Miami

Michigan State at North Carolina State

Virginia at Minnesota

Wake Forest at Illinois

Any setup that keeps Iowa and Wisconsin from playing on a yearly basis in football is flawed, as is any setup that keeps Iowa and Illinois from playing for six consecutive seasons and makes Iowa versus Purdue a protected rivalry.

It’s bad enough that the two divisions are called the Legends and Leaders because it sounds more like a board game than a college football conference.

But it wouldn’t have to be that way if Big Ten officials, (read: Big Ten Commissioner Jim Delany), would quit trying to appease Michigan and Ohio State and divide the conference at the Illinois/Indiana border.

That way you could call the six teams west of Indiana the West Division and the six teams east of Illinois the East Division.

This isn’t rocket science.

Using geography would eliminate any confusion over which teams are in each division – it took me until recently to remember the new alignment – and Iowa and Wisconsin would play on a yearly basis because they’d both be in the West Division.

Instead, Iowa and Wisconsin won’t face each other in 2015 or 2016, they didn’t face each other this past season and they won’t the next, either.

What’s now less than a three-hour road trip for Iowa and Wisconsin fans is a journey too far according to the Big Ten.

Why was it okay to form the Big Ten Conference and almost every other conference in the history of professional and amateur sports based on geography, but now Big Ten officials feel it doesn’t work for football?

It’s no secret that they feel that way because they don’t want Michigan and Ohio State in the same division — that would keep them from ever playing in the Big Ten Championship game.

It’s for that reason more than anything else why we have this impractical setup. Delany also doesn’t want to have the conference’s three traditional football powers – Michigan, Ohio State and Penn State – in the same division.

We as a society have learned to live without drive-in theaters, Elvis Presley, the Grateful Dead and more Rocky sequels — at least, I hope no more Rocky sequels. We can learn to live without Michigan and Ohio State playing for a Big Ten championship in football and we can learn to live with the big three traditional powers being in the same division.

Dividing the conference by geography would put pressure on the teams in the west to sustain success because tradition indicates there would be an imbalance of power in favor of the east. But what’s wrong with having a little pressure to succeed?

This era of conference realignment is making it harder to keep using geography to divide conferences, as evidenced by Missouri now being in the SEC, West Virginia being in the Big 12 and Colorado being in the Pac-12.

The Big Ten, on the other hand, has a well-defined area that starts in the west with Lincoln, Neb., and stretches east to State College, Pa.

Splitting the conference at the Illinois/Indiana border would create more of a rivalry atmosphere because it would match East versus West.

Big Ten officials should give geography a try just to see if it works. Give it five years to see if the teams in the west could hold their own.

If not, then switch back to the current setup and Iowa fans would learn to accept playing the Badgers on a limited basis.

Notre Dame joining the Big Ten would complicate things unless another school west of Indiana was added to provide balance. Missouri seemed a likely choice until it bolted for the SEC.

Another reason to use geography is it would put an end to those sappy commercials on the Big Ten Network in which a Big Ten football coach talks about the importance of honoring legends and developing leaders. Legends already have enough honors or they wouldn’t be legends; and isn’t the purpose of college to build leaders in the first place?

But since the Big Ten likely won’t budge on this issue, my next request would be to re-name the two divisions after Michigan and Ohio State. They’re all that matter anyway.

Earlier in the day, Winslow told SiriusXM radio that first-year coach Greg Schiano was “kind of upset” that Winslow has not been working out with the team during the offseason.

“That’s kind of shocking, but that’s what it is,” Winslow said, adding that Schiano told him the coach “would help me out with a trade.”

Winslow has been one of Tampa Bay’s best offensive players since being acquired from Cleveland in a trade three years ago. He had 77 receptions for 884 yards and five touchdowns in 2009, 66 catches for 730 yards and five TDs in 2010 and 75 receptions for 763 yards and two TDs in 2011.

Tampa Bay received a conditional 2013 draft pick in the deal.

Winslow will join a tight end unit that already includes Zach Miller, who Seattle gave a big contract last offseason, and promising young prospect Cameron Morrah, who has struggled with injuries early in his career. The Seahawks lost tight end John Carlson in the offseason after he signed with Minnesota.

Tampa Bay gets a player who was one of Peyton Manning’s favorite targets.

Clark, who turns 33 next month, spent nine seasons with Indianapolis and had 427 career receptions for 4,887 yards and 46 touchdowns. Last season, without Manning and limited by injuries to 11 games, Clark had 34 catches for 352 yards and two touchdowns.

Winslow, despite a history of injuries and undergoing several knee surgeries during his career, appeared in every game over the past three seasons for Tampa Bay.

The 28-year-old was the sixth overall pick in the 2004 draft by the Browns, who sent him to Tampa Bay in exchange for second- and fifth-round draft choices. Winslow has 437 career receptions for 4,836 yards and 23 touchdowns.

Winslow said he has been working out near his home in San Diego and missed last week’s initial set of organized team activities in Tampa. He said he was planning to join the team on Monday, but that he got a call from Schiano on Saturday.

“He was kind of upset that I wasn’t there working out with the team in the offseason and for the first week of OTAs,” Winslow said during the interview with SiriusXM.

“But I’ve been there the last three years and I’ve had a successful career so far,” he added. “You don’t just get rid of one of your best players because of that. … I don’t have nothing bad to say about coach Schiano. It was just a disagreement on why I’m not there yet.”

Let’s say Big Ten Conference officials someday pull out their Rand McNally atlas and figure out that the football stadiums of Iowa and Wisconsin are  just a smidge more than 170 miles apart.

Let’s assume they someday determine that the Badgers, not Purdue, should be the Hawkeyes’ protected Leaders Division football rival.

As you’ve seen on the schedules released by the Big Ten Monday, they haven’t figured that out yet. Iowa and Wisconsin start a two-season home-and-home in Iowa City in 2013. After the Camp Randall Stadium game in 2014, the Badgers and Hawkeyes leave each other’s schedules.

Let’s say fans get a chance to decide who should be Iowa’s protected rival.

And speaking of polls:

For now.

And for fans crazy about Iowa and Nebraska meeting annually on the Friday after Thanksgiving — that possibility will be discussed.

“I’m anticipating it will be under discussion,” Iowa athletic director Gary Barta said Monday after the Big Ten Conference released football schedules for the 2015 and 2016 seasons.

While Hawkeye-Cornhusker games will be played annually, either on the Friday after Thanksgiving or on traditional Saturdays, the biggest news is that no Hawkeye-Badger games will be played in 2015 or 2016.

“That’s one of the downsides when we went to divisions,” Barta said. “We lost Wisconsin as an annual rival.”

The border rivals, with campuses 175 miles apart, will play a two-year home-and-home series starting at Kinnick Stadium in 2013, but after that, no go until at least 2017.

“We talked about making sure we gave the new setup enough time so it has some brand awareness — there would be no knee-jerk reactions, Barta said. “Looking at getting Wisconsin back as an annual opponent is something we could discuss down the road, but it won’t happen immediately.”

Purdue, not Wisconsin, was selected to be Iowa’s cross-over Leaders Division rival when the conference added Nebraska and went to divisions before last season.

The Hawkeye-Boilermaker game is annual, while Iowa-Wisconsin isn’t.

“We knew when we entered into this that there would be positives and negatives,” Barta said. “The positives are keeping Minnesota and adding Nebraska. The downside is that we don’t get to play Wisconsin on a yearly basis.

“The positives far outweigh the negatives. We’ll get the opportunity to compete (against Wisconsin), but not on an annual basis.”

Iowa and Nebraska, Legends Division rivals, will compete annually, but for now they’re sticking to the script. Games beyond this season are scheduled on Saturdays.

“We agreed last year to play in 2011 and 2012 on the Friday after Thanksgiving, and then re-evaluate,” Barta said.

The Cornhuskers won last season’s game 20-7 before the customary Memorial Stadium sellout of 85,585.

This season’s game is Friday, Nov. 23, at Kinnick Stadium.

“When we made the agreement to play the first two on Fridays, Nebraska had a history of playing on their campus the Friday after Thanksgiving,” Barta said.

“We didn’t, and for that reason, it was important to see how we could logistically manage a game that close to Thanksgiving.

“Assuming all goes well — and I think everybody anticipates that it will — I assume we’ll revisit … playing it on Friday (after Thanksgiving).”

2013 Iowa Football Schedule:

Aug. 31 — NORTHERN ILLINOIS
Sept. 7 — MISSOURI STATE
Sept. 14 — at Iowa State
Sept. 21 — WESTERN MICHIGAN
Sept. 28 — at Minnesota
Oct. 5 — MICHIGAN STATE (HC)
Oct. 12 — bye
Oct. 19 — at Ohio State
Oct. 26 — NORTHWESTERN
Nov. 2 — WISCONSIN
Nov. 9 — at Purdue
Nov. 16 — bye
Nov. 23 — MICHIGAN
Nov. 30 — at Nebraska

2014 Iowa Football Schedule:

Aug. 30 — NORTHERN IOWA
Sept. 6 — BALL STATE
Sept. 13 — IOWA STATE
Sept. 20 — at Pittsburgh
Sept. 27 — Open
Oct. 4 — at Wisconsin
Oct. 11 — Open
Oct. 18 — OHIO STATE
Oct. 25 — PURDUE
Nov. 1 — at Michigan
Nov. 8 — at Northwestern
Nov. 15 — MINNESOTA
Nov. 22 — at Michigan State
Nov. 29 — NEBRASKA

2015 Iowa Football Schedule:

Sept. 5 — ILLINOIS STATE
Sept. 12 — at Iowa State
Sept. 19 — PITTSBURGH
Sept. 26 — NORTH TEXAS
Oct. 3 — NORTHWESTERN
Oct. 10 — MICHIGAN STATE
Oct. 17 — at Purdue
Oct. 24 — at Minnesota
Oct. 31 — ILLINOIS
Nov. 7 — at Penn State
Nov. 14 — bye
Nov. 21 — MICHIGAN
Nov. 28 — at Nebraska
Dec. 5 — Big Ten Championship Game

2016 Iowa Football Schedule:

Sept. 3 — NORTH DAKOTA STATE
Sept. 10 — IOWA STATE
Sept. 17 — CENTRAL MICHIGAN
Sept. 24 — TBA
Oct. 1 — MINNESOTA
Oct. 8 — at Michigan State
Oct. 15 — PURDUE
Oct. 22 — at Northwestern
Oct. 29 — at Illinois
Nov. 5 — PENN STATE
Nov. 12 — bye
Nov. 19 — at Michigan
Nov. 26 — NEBRASKA
Dec. 3 — Big Ten Championship Game

Gene Keady is known mostly for his famous scowl, his oily comb-over and the six Big Ten titles that he won as the Purdue men’s basketball coach.

But I think more about the person behind the scowl, the person who treated reporters, even ones who weren’t national in stature or covering his team, with respect instead of trying to intimidate them with his power and influence.

I think about the person who not only returned my calls, but also made me feel as if I was on his level while we spoke.

And I think about how different Keady was compared to his in-state coaching rival Bob Knight at Indiana. Keady also had a tendency to blow his stack and could look just as scary as Knight when protesting a call. But away from the court, they were like night and day, no pun intended.

Keady returned my calls, whereas with Knight you didn’t even bother because he was inapproachable outside of the scheduled press conferences where he was mostly just mean.

Keady is one of my all-time favorite coaches because of how he treated people, at least those that weren’t dressed as officials. I wasn’t around Keady on a regular basis but enough to see that he was just a nice guy.

That’s what this column is about; nice people in my little world of sports.

I came up with the idea while watching the Philadelphia 76ers compete against the Boston Celtics in the NBA Eastern Conference semifinals.

Philadelphia is coached by Doug Collins, to whom I’ll always be grateful for how he treated me at the 1997 NBA pre-draft camp in Chicago.

We only spoke for about three or four minutes, but our brief exchange left a lasting impression.

I was at the NBA pre-draft camp to report on Iowa all-Big Ten point guard Andre Woolridge, who was among the camp’s participants. Collins was there as the coach of the Detroit Pistons.

I was nervous and apprehensive when I approached Collins for an interview because another former NBA star guard turned head coach had just denied my request and was very dismissive about it.

Collins, on the other hand, was polite and engaging. He made it seem as if my interview was all that mattered to him as we spoke.

That meant a great deal to me and still does.

It’s easy for celebrities to be nice and cooperative when the cameras are rolling because they know the world is watching and ready to judge them.

My interaction with Collins was sort of a character test because character is supposed to be how a person acts when nobody is watching. Collins could’ve blown me off like his aforementioned colleague and nobody would’ve cared or noticed but me.

My guess is that most of his colleagues probably would’ve turned down my interview request that day.

But for some reason, probably just because he’s a nice guy, Collins granted my request.

Two decades of covering Iowa Hawkeye athletics has exposed me to hundreds of student-athletes, with some friendlier than others.

None were friendlier than former all-Big Ten quarterback Brad Banks.

His improbable rise from backup quarterback in 2001 to the Heisman Trophy runner-up in 2002 would’ve been fun to cover regardless of Banks’ personality. The fact that he was humble, down-to-earth and willing to engage the media added so much to the experience.

Banks once said that his mother was happy just hearing the birds sing each morning. He seems to have inherited his mother’s outlook on life.

Former Iowa men’s basketball coach Tom Davis also deserves praise for just being a nice guy. Davis didn’t always give the quotes you wanted to spice up a story, especially if it was a controversial story, but he always gave you respect.

And finally before wrapping up, I have to mention University of Iowa athletic trainer John Streif because he epitomizes what it means to be a nice person. In more than 20 years of covering Iowa athletics, I’ve yet to hear anybody say the slightest thing negative about Streif.

That says a lot.

It was the first time the Big Ten regular season champions had lost a league series this season.

Iowa had 17 hits, with 14 coming from seniors. Iowa (23-27, 10-14) finished one game out of a four-way tie for sixth place in the standings.

“I’m extremely proud of the way we played today,” Iowa coach Jack Dahm said. “I’m very happy for our seniors.”

Seniors Phil Keppler, Chett Zeise, Mike McQuillan and junior Dan Sheppard combined for 14 of Iowa’s 17 hits.

McQuillan had four hits including a home run. He finishes his career second on the Iowa career hit list with 242.

Senior Jarred Hippen got the win on mound, striking out five.

Senior Nick Brown got the four-out save.

Purdue (41-12, 17-7) is the top seed in the Big Ten Tournament, which starts Wednesday in Columbus, Ohio.

Purdue 000 000 501 — 6 8 2

Iowa 321 001 00x — 7 17 4

Connor Podkul, Calvin Gunter (2), Blake Mascarello (3), Brett Andrzejewski (5), Nick Wittgren (7) and Kevin Plawecki; Jarred Hippen, Nick Brown (8) and Dan Sheppard. W – Hippen (4-7). L – Podkul (2-3). S – Brown (7). 2B – Eric Chalres (P), Plawecki (P), Ryan Bridges (P), Angelo Cianfrocco (P), Phil Keppler (I), Dan Sheppard 2 (I), Andrew Host (I). HR – Mike McQuillan (I). SB – McQuillan (I), Chett Zeise 2 (I). CS – Sean Flanagan (I).

The two-time NCAA champion coaches youth wrestlers in the Peoria, Ill., area and spent the past three seasons as an assistant at Lincoln College. Inevitably, young wrestlers want to know how Williams suffered his only loss at Iowa — a 3-1 overtime defeat against Boise State’s Larry Quisel in the 2000 NCAA quarterfinals at 157 pounds.

“Every time I talk to kids I tell them he didn’t beat me, I beat myself, and that means I didn’t go out there and execute my shots and stay on the attack like I always did,” he said. “When you go out there and get off track and do something you’re not used to doing, bad things happen.”

Williams said the lessons he learned from that defeat 12 years ago gave him an ability to relate better with his pupils now. He currently works with a couple dozen wrestlers ranging from elementary to high schools, including Dylan Reel, a three-time Illinois state champion who signed with Minnesota.

“What I really love is watching these kids grow, watching them come in with two left feet and leaving the practice room after hitting nice, crisp shots, turning guys, escaping, the whole nine yards, that’s what I like most about helping kids,” he said.

Williams moved to the Peoria area in 2008, four years after an abrupt end to his competitive career. He was training for freestyle in 2004 when he contracted a staph infection in his chest.

“I don’t know how I got it, where I got it, but it almost killed me,” Williams said. “I really felt like I was dying.”

Williams said doctors told him they might need to remove his collarbone. They scraped part of it away during surgery.Williams never competed again.

“In the back of my mind, I wanted to compete — I still feel that way,” Williams said. “Right now it would be tough. I’m married, I’ve got a family and for me to go back and compete, it would mean I’d have to be selfish. I’d be worried about what T.J. Williams could do to get better today and the following day. It would be me, me, me, me, and I don’t see myself being that way right now.

In the Bowling Green, Ky., regional, Iowa State’s Nate McCoy closed with a 71 and became the first Cyclone to make the NCAA finals since 1953 when he qualified individually.

The NCAA finals will be May 29-June 3 at Riviera Country Club in Pacific Palisades, Calif.

Vandersee, a former West Des Moines Valley prep, had six birdies and one bogey on his card and turned in his low round as a collegian.

“This is the first day I put it all together,” Vandersee told the Register after his round today. “I putted well and chipped well all week. Today, I finally started to knock it close. That led to success.”

The Hawkeyes, in 11th place starting the final round, finished fifth with a 54-hole total of 866, 14 over par. Iowa finished one shot ahead of New Mexico for the final spot to the finals. Two-time defending NCAA champion Augusta State finished two shots behind the Hawkeyes.

This will be Iowa’s third finals appearance in the last four years under coach Mark Hankins, who had to replace Vince India and Brad Hopfinger, who own the two lowest stroke averages in school history, from a team that tied for 10th nationally a season ago. Vandersee, a redshirt freshman, took the lead role Saturday.

“Ian is really dedicated to golf,” Hankins said. “When he gets in that zone, he hits it as good as anybody. Today he played better than everyone in the field. He’ll use this as something to draw upon the entire summer, and the future. It’s a defining moment for anyone, to shoot the low round the final day of regionals.”

The Hawkeyes had a 1-over 285 in today’s final round. Sophomore Steven Ihm shot an even-par 71 while seniors Barrett Kelpin and Chris Brant and freshman Joseph Winslow all shot 74s. The low four scores count each day.

Alabama, ranked fourth nationally, won the regional with an 828 total, 24 under par and 15 shots clear of the field. East Carolina (853), North Florida (858) and host Georgia (866) also advanced.

McCoy, a Dowling Catholic prep who has already qualified for the Canadian Tour when his college career ends, shot 73-68-71 to tie for sixth at 4-under 212. All the players who finished ahead or tied with McCoy qualified with their teams, giving him the wildcard spot. McCoy avoided a playoff for that spot when Ethan Tracy of Arkansas missed a 10-foot birdie putt on the final hole.

This is the first time an Iowa State golfer has made the NCAA finals since the regional format was incorporated in 1989. The Cyclones made the NCAA finals as a team in 1953.

Iowa State tied for ninth at the Bowling Green regional at 886, 22 shots over par. In addition to McCoy’s 71 today, Scott Fernandez posted a 73, Borja Virto a 74 and Duncan Croudis and Sam Daley 75s. This was the Cyclones’ first NCAA appearance as a team since 1999.

In addition, sophomore guard Kathryn Reynolds tore her ACL in early April and is expected to miss the season.

Iowa coach Lisa Bluder said Friday that Reynolds has not had her ACL surgery yet. Doctors had to repair her previous ACL injury she suffered in high school.

Of the other 12 players expected to compete next fall, a few still have questions about their status.

Bluder said senior guard Jaime Printy is on track to return in the fall after ACL surgery in February. Incoming freshmen Claire Till and Nicole Smith still are question marks after knee injuries suffered as high school seniors.

The four freshmen and junior college point guard Kathryn Thomas are expected to arrive for summer classes in a few weeks.

“We were fortunate we found Kathryn Thomas at this point,” Bluder said. “She’ll come in and help us fill a role and add depth at point guard.”

The loss of Johnson and Rogers wiped out Iowa’s depth chart at power forward. Bluder said Iowa can run a four-guard offense, if necessary.

“That’s the beauty of our offense,” Bluder said. “The defensive end has me concerned a little bit against big power forwards. But there are fewer and fewer of those back-to-the-basket big power forwards.

“We’ll just have to figure out ways as a coaching staff to adjust to a lack of height at that position.”

All the injuries will have an effect on who fans will see at the Game Time League this summer. Printy, Smith and Till are not expected to play.

Bluder didn’t think senior post Morgan Johnson or junior guard Theairra Taylor would participate either.

Johnson may try to save the wear and tear on her knees, and Taylor — who has had three ACL surgeries — is recovering from a surgery to repair a torn meniscus after the season.

Bluder also said sophomore guard Melissa Dixon is a maybe. She is recovering from a stress fracture.

“It might be easier to say who will play, rather than who won’t,” Bluder said.

The loss of Johnson and Rogers also alters recruiting for the Hawkeyes. Iowa has gotten verbal commitments from two players in the 2013 class and may add to that.

“We are still trying to find an additional player for 2013,” Bluder said. “But we’re not going to take just anybody. If we save it, the 2014 class is pretty good.”