Local 5's Jake Brend and Heartland College Sports' Derek Duke team up to dive into the Big 12 conference. In an ever-changing league, Jake and Derek provide a steady hand to cover the most interesting league in college sports.
Born and raised in Shiner, Texas, Derek has had a passion for two things in life: football and beer. Currently, Derek is a writer at Heartland College Sports, which is the largest Big 12 media outlet in the market. Since 2016, Derek has provided some of the best coverage from America’s favorite conference. Don’t be surprised if you see him at your local brewery enjoying a cold one and talking college football.
Jake is a native Iowan, growing up in Indianola and has never moved out of this great state. Jake is a sports reporter and anchor at Local 5 in Des Moines, covering all things from Iowa to Iowa State to prep.
As a proud graduate of Simpson College in 2023, Jake had professional internships with WHO 13 and the Des Moines Buccaneers while becoming the nation’s first-ever D-III tennis player to capitalize on Name, Image and Likeness. Before college, Jake started his journalism career at SB Nation’s Wide Right & Natty Lite, blogging about Iowa State.