On Iowa Daily Briefing 6.4.12 -- Thankful Dolphin cancer free

Gary Dolphin didn't want to make a whole big thing out of being cancer free.

It is, however, another chance to get the message out to a decidedly set-in-their-ways demographic, men aged 50 and up: Fellas, get the PSA (Prostate-Specific Antigen Test), stay vigilant of prostate cancer.

"I know there are many more debilitating and serious cancers than what I had," Dolphin said in a telephone interview last week. "If the publicity surrounding my deal can help somebody maybe get an earlier checkup than normal or keep an eye on the PSA count, that's really the main reason why I was out there and up front in the public, particularly with guys my age but men of all ages to have that PSA checked. That's what I'm most pleased about out of this whole deal."

"Had" is a keyword for the 61-year-old radio play-by-play voice of Iowa football and men's basketball. On May 28, 2011, doctors told Dolphin he had prostate cancer. Nearly a year later, he's cancer-free.

There was a series of at least 42 radiation treatments at Wendt Regional Cancer Center at Finley Hospital in Dubuque. Dolphin works at U.S. Bank in Dubuque and lives in nearby Peosta. Last weekend, Dolphin served as the honorary chair for the Dubuque County Relay for Life.

"I'm just trying to move on with my life, just like everybody," said Dolphin, who's called Iowa sports since 1997.

He also wanted to thank everyone for "thousands upon thousands" of well wishes.

"It's impossible for me to answer every card and every phone call and letter, but I do want to thank thousands upon thousands of not just Hawkeye fans, but I've also heard from hundreds of Iowa State fans and just Iowans in general, who have a passion for college football and basketball but who also have a passing interest in athletics and who just happen to listen to the radio," he said.

"There have been so, so many people to send along their well wishes. I want to thank everyone. I don't take any of that lightly and I very much appreciate all the support."

Iowa is already winning in 2012.

HLINKS

-- As most residents of Hawkdom know, Iowa quarterback James Vandenberg recently hunted down a big bear in Canada. Now here's more on Vandy and the Bear, courtesy of Susan Denk of the Burlington Hawk-Eye.

James Vandenberg's great grandfather, Lewis James, killed a bear in the 1940s. He became famous for the feat as he was asked to speak about it by organizations throughout the area, earning the nickname 'Bear.' The elk mounted at the Elks Club in Burlington was killed by "Bear" Vandenberg, Toby said.

Toby Vandenberg is James' father. James, Toby, sister Olivia Vandenberg, Hawkeyes wide receiver Nick Nielsen, and Dr. Brandon Beauchamp all harvested bears on the trip. "Harvested" means "killed." Denk wrote:

James and (sister) Olivia are not even the first of their siblings to come home with a bear. Brother Elliott killed a bear in another part of Saskatchewan when he was in middle school.

-- Former Iowa safety Tyler Sash got a Super Bowl ring in his first NFL season. Now he wants a bigger role on the team.

“One thing that Tyler has done is that he's actually taking classroom (work) a little more seriously,” Giants safeties coach David Merritt said. “He is growing up and understanding that he has to make the calls and the adjustments, so that right there alone from his rookie year to where he is right now has been a big improvement."

-- Rebecca Hodge, former Iowa Hawkeyes cheerleader, was Miss Iowa this year. Sunday at the Miss USA 2012 pageant in Las Vegas, she was named Miss Congeniality.

-- Kirk Bohls of the Austin American-Statesman had a Sunday column on new Big 12 Commissioner Bob Bowlsby, Iowa's former athletic director. Bohls wrote:

Whereas (interim Big 12 commissioner Chuck) Neinas has a bombastic style, Bowlsby's manner seems more quiet and understated.

The quality that strikes people the most about Bowlsby? "Intelligence," Neinas said. "And he knows how to use it. Plus, he's much more erudite in addressing the media than I am."

"Strength," Texas athletic director DeLoss Dodds said.

"Statesman," a high-level Pac-12 source said.

And how would friends and associates describe Bowlsby?

"I think what they would say is I under-promise and over-deliver," he said.

-- Who does Wisconsin Athletic Director Barry Alvarez want to be part of a selection committee to help determine college football playoff teams starting in 2014? The media.

"The ideal thing would be to get some media people involved," Alvarez told the Wisconsin State Journal. "That is really important because they then can communicate to the public what the criteria are, how difficult decisions were made and why they were made."

-- This item isn't On Iowa-related in the least, I guess. But since it talks about we, the people, that includes Iowans.

Matthew Yglesias of Slate.com suggests that America's apathy toward the San Antonio Spurs reveals this is a nation of hypocrites.

Yglesias writes:

Not for a single moment amid the glorious 15-year run with coach Gregg Popovich and big man Tim Duncan have the Spurs captured the imaginations of the American people or even its basketball fans. That's because we are, ultimately, a nation of hypocrites that prefers drama queens, bad boys, and flukes to simple competence and success.