Mecca of College Basketball

Strictly geographically speaking, Cincinnati could rightfully call themselves the center of the Universe when it comes to basketball. Problem is, we all know most of the basketball lore from Cincy is via an Indianapolis-native briefly providing his talents in the late 50s. The same man who the NCAA later named their Player of the Year trophy after: Oscar Robertson.
Besides that, there's not much to say about Tri-State Hoops being the capital. Much of the collegiate success over recent decades have spread out to neighboring schools Kentucky, Indiana, Michigan, Louisville, Michigan State... the list goes far beyond just bluebloods and powerhouses - Dayton was a top-5 school just as March Madness was about to begin, until the damn panic shut it down. Creighton was contending for a top-10 spot. Iowa & Illinois were ranked in the top-10. 

I might be so bold as to say that in any given year, at least half the ranked teams are from the Midwest. Yep, that includes NET, RPI, Sagarin, and KenPom rankings. 

So I thought, let's put together a crude lil map and then check every now and then to see how well the prediction holds up.

2021 Update: Naturally, the NCAA chose Indianapolis, and Indiana to host the entire Men's Basketball tournament this March with most games (including all elite8+ games) within covered-walking distance of Circle Center in the Circle City, just south of Carmel aka Roundabout City, which is quick drive to anywhere else around Indy, thanks to Interstate-465 highway, a circle around the city known for driving in circles (ovals). Get it yet? 🎯 

1NDy

2012-2013

• IHSAA football champs (LC Bears)
• NAIA football champs (Marian Knights)
• NCAA Athletic and Academic All-American (Cody Zeller)
• NCAA All-American (Victor Oladipo)
• NCAA Academic All-American (Jordan Hulls)
• WNBA champs and Finals MVP (Fever/Tamika Catchings) 
• B1G Sixth Man of the Year (Will Sheehey)
• #1 Ranking and B1G champs (Hoosiers)
• Brad Stevens and Frank Vogel (b/c why not)
• #1 seed and nation's best guard (Skylar Diggins)
• 7 top awards plus Athletic and Academic All-American (Manti Te'o)
• NCAA D1 football Coach of the Year (Brian Kelly)
• #1 Pick leading team to 11 wins/playoffs (Luck/Irsay)
• NBA All-Star and emerging superstar (Paul George)
• Leukemia Survivor and CoY  (Chuck Pagano)
• NFL Coach of the Year and Coord of the Year (Bruce Arians)
• NFL GM of the Year (Ryan Grigson)
• NCAA men's soccer champs (IU)
• NL Central champs (Reds)
• B1G baseball champs (IU)

Indiana Amateurs #1

Tonight in Brooklyn, the undefeated #1 Hoosiers take on Georgetown, who just upset #11 UCLA last night. Speaking of upsets, Butler spanked UNC Tarheels in the Maui Invitational today after pulling out a miraculous buzzer-beating 3-pointer last night over Marquette. In other Indiana hoops, Purdue's lone win so far is against Hofstra (losing to Bucknell, 'Nova and Oregon St).

Tomorrow night, LC opens the HS bball season against LN. Traditionally, the Wildcats are the perennial powerhouse but the Bears will have something to say about that.  Meanwhile, the LC Bears football team wraps up their season at Lucas Oil Stadium on Saturday in the IHSAA 5A State Title game vs FtWayne Snider. The coveted Mr Football award is up for grabs and some voters have QB Drake Christian on their ballot.

Another football award awaiting a victor is the Heisman, which typically goes to the QB (or RB) of the best team in college football. If Notre Dame can beat Southern Cal on Saturday, I expect LB Manti Te'o to take home the statue, even though no (primarily-) defensive player has won the award since it was named 'Heisman' in 1936. Charles Woodson was a return man and Leon Hart played Tight End as well as DE.

And finally... Purdue hosts IU in the annual Old Oaken Bucket game on Saturday. Despite Rose Bowl hopes just 10 days ago, the Hoosiers football team has nothing left to play for other than ownership of the Bucket. The Boilermakers, however, have a bowl bid on their mind.

Indy Diagnosed with Championship Fever

There was Katie Douglas courtside, epicenter of the final couple seconds of Championship-clinching Game 4. She hadn't scored in weeks, but she deserved this moment just as much as Tamika Catchings, who won Finals MVP. When the injured star was out, the rest of the team stepped up and overcame tough obstacles to bring home the championship. This marks the 2nd professional championship won in Indianapolis this year (Superbowl) and first pro basketball title since the ABA championships in the early 70s.

Coach Tom Crean reminds us MSU, UM and O$U are the current champs, and while it's nice to be in the (natl) title conversation the real challenge is improving everyday... Trickle-down leadership, starting with Watford. One reporter asked him to comment on the state of basketball in the Midwest, with Louisville, UK, and Michigan all contending. He then reminded her of O$U, Illinois and the rest of the B1G as well as Cincy, Butler and Notre Dame.

Speaking of ND, for the 4th straight year, Football Irish are #1 in grad rate, and likely top-5 in GPA too (Academic All-Americans Mike Golic and Manti Te'o). ESPN Gameday will be in Norman this Saturday as your Irish take on the Sooners in a  primetime matchup featuring a pair of top10 teams. If only Keith Jackson was calling it... WHOA NELLY!

Coach K, Williams, Pitino... Painter, Brey, Stevens

Do NCAA coaches win games [and Coach of the Year awards] because they're that good or because they recruit Indiana's amateur talent?

Is there any doubt that this is still the mecca of hoops? Indianapolis is tied with L.A. for most consecutive drafts represented (5) and they are still killin it in the pros: EJ, Jeff Teague, George Hill, Mike Conley Jr, Josh McRoberts, Gordon Hayward, Courtney Lee, Rodney Carney and former #1 pick Greg Oden.

It can't be understated how significant a feat it is for Tom Crean to lock up all the Elite talent for the next 4 years; hopefully that translates to the same postseason success as the coaches above.

Football Stars of the Week

Future IU QB Tre Roberson clinched Indiana Mr Football this weekend when Avon visited for a Regionals matchup @ Lawrence Central. Down 15 points late in the game, he racked up half of his 500 all-purpose yards in a 29-point 4th quarter. LC travels south to Bloomington North this Friday for a chance to play Fishers or Valpo for State next Saturday at da Luc'.
Irish's 11-game winless streak vs ranked opponents was snapped as Tommy Rees led the way in his first career start at Notre Dame. Wisconsin RB Monte Bell's first start contributed to an 83-point outburst against the Hoosier defense. I actually rejoice in this loss, signaling the unofficial end of the Bill Lynch era. The Hoosiers basketball team got off to a hot shooting start in their season-opener vs FL Gulf Coast. The crowd (of 15k) at one point chanted "Yo-gi Fer-rell" as he was in attendance, and today he Tweeted his top 6. They play again Sunday and Tuesday. If all goes well, IU could be 6-0 heading to Boston College December 1st.
Colts beat T.Ocho and the Bengals earlier today; that moves them into sole possession of first place in the AFC South Division - even though Indy's without Joe Addai, Gary Bracket, Bob Sanders, Dallas Clark, Melvin Bullit, Clint Sessions, Anthony Gonzales, Blair White, Mike Hart, Justin Tryon, Brodie Eldrige and Austin Collie... to name a few.

Hoosier Hoops Doubleheader

The instra-state rivalries will heat up next year with the Crossroads Classic, featuring Indiana's top four basketball programs going head-to-head in Indianapolis. Starting in 2011, Indiana University will play Notre Dame (after 69 previous contests) and Purdue will match-up against NCAA runner-up Butler. In 2012, IU will play BU and ND plays PU.

RunnerUp Champs

So far in 2010, Lawrence Central has lost to Brebeuf 3 times in County, including runner-up champions in both Golf and Baseball. Sure high school is a much smaller scale than the NFL, Olympics, NCAA basketball, WNBA, Confederation Cup and yes, even minor league hockey - the commonality is they're all teams in the § galaxy that have been to the championship this past year only to lose.

Update: Chalk up 2 more: Notre Dame LaX just lost to Duke in the Natl championship and LC Boys Track placed runner-up at State - but hey, at least the Girls won!
Update #2: LC football lost the State Championship to Fishers Tigers. The curse continues!

§ Galaxy of Stars Spring Report Card: A-

Lawrence Central won the Marion County Boys Track meet last night @ North Central, edging out Ben Davis and Warren Central, and set the meet-record in the 4x800 relay (7:53.30) This meet is generally regarded as the second-toughest Track&Field competition in Indiana, behind the State Finals which are held @ IUPUI in June.
The baseball Bears play @ Victory Field tomorrow night in the County Championship versus Brebeuf. The game will add to the fierce rivalry between the two schools this year: Brebeuf eliminated both the basketball Bears (by 1 point) and the golf Bears (by 4 strokes) to win the County Championship last week.

The 2011 class juniors are showcasing their hoop skills this summer in hopes of wooing top national programs for scholarship offers. Michael Chandler (LN), Cody Zeller, Branden Dawson, and Jeremiah Davis are all undecided, while Marquis Teague (UK), Ryan Taylor (UL), Darwin Davins (XU), and Austin Etherington (IU) are other Indiana stars ranked in the Rivals top100. Although it doesn't appear so, Indiana is actually the 2nd best state (behind Ohio) when it comes to retaining talent from high school to college.

The BigTen has remained quiet leading up to their meeting in Chicago May 17-19 to discuss possible conference expansion. The latest rumors are that Missouri, Nebraska and Rutgers are being invited to join and that Notre Dame, Syracuse and Pittsburgh are also candidates. Speaking of Notre Dame...
Fourteen Irish teams were honored for their classroom performance, including football and mens basketball. Butler basketball also finished in the top 10%, along with two other Final Four teams MSU and WVU (surprisingly, Duke did not make the cut.) If a team's APR consistantly falls below 925, they face possible sanctions from the NCAA. Speaking of Hoosier Hoops...
IU finished 11th nationally in average attendance (15,296) with just a 10-21 overall record; no other team in the top 25 had a losing record. For the 34th consecutive year, the BigTen was the best conference in the land at 12,591 per game.

And finally, the Cincinnati Reds have been on bit of a roll lately, with their last two starting pitchers both throwing complete game shutouts. On Monday, Bronson Arroyo allowed only 5 hits and a run, then Johnny Cueto and Homey Bailey followed that performance by allowing just five hits combined. In other baseball news, my fantasy team is still in first place. Booyah!

2010 § Bracketology

Two classic Bracket Buster games tonight: Conference USA has Memphis@UAB fighting for a 2nd conference bid (UTEP) and the mighty Big East features UConn@Notre Dame, vying for an 8th conference bid. And even better match-ups tonight: Duke at College Park and Kansas State at Lawrence. 
Mississippi State has the SEC West on lock due to the season-opener win in Oxford Jan 9th. The 2nd place Rebels would need to win at least 2 more games to have a chance: LSU and @Ark. Isn't it weird how they beat IU in Puerto Rico, then Kansas St and almost beat another top-10 Villanova in November?  But no quality conference wins? ouch.
These teams are in: Florida, Clemson, Louisville, G.Tech, FSU, Wake Forest, Marquette, Notre Dame, OK St, Illinois, Saint Marys
The Last 4 in: UAB, Dayton, Va Tech and San Diego State
Which means these teams will probably not get an invite: UConn, Mississippi St, Rhode Island, Ole Miss, Charlotte, Seton Hall, Minnesota, Memphis, ASU.

Galaxy of Stars update

Here is a rundown of the previous week's news:

First, former Notre Dame head coach Charlie Weis got the axe. Then the Colts win their 21st consecutive regular season game against the white-hot Titans. Then Greg Oden is done for the season and All-Star Danny Granger tears his plantar fascia. Then Jimmy Clausen and Golden Tate announce their plans to enter the NFL draft. Then Tom Crean gets his 200th win, and first "big road win" by defeating Pittsburgh @ MSG in the Jimmy V Classic. Finally, Notre Dame hires 2009 Coach of the Year Brian Kelly as the new coach.

Now I'm left contemplating this site's new banner.

Golden Tate wins Biletnikoff

Golden Tate had another amazing game (3 TDs, 10 catches for 200 yards) but Notre Dame's season fell incomplete at 6-6, with all but two games coming down to the final play. The Halloween game in San Antonio versus Washington State wasn't really a contest and the season opening shutout over Nevada is an indication Charlie can execute a great gameplan, when given more than a few weeks of prep time. The Wolfpack had an NCAA-record THREE 1,000-yard rushers this year. Does Irish AD Jack Swarbrick accept a bowl bid?

Shoppers turned out in droves this weekend looking for bargains in a rough economy. Police had to breakup a fight at Castleton and Greenfield malls. In Muncie, hundreds of Toys-R-Us shoppers waited in their warm cars before rushing the doors right at 5am, cutting everyone in line. Speaking of getting screwed, the Indiana State 5A Championship at Lucas Oil stadium went into a first overtime after the Warriors scored a game tying TD with :01 second remaining. If IHSAA allowed instant replay the catch would have clearly shown the receiver's foot was out of bounds, but the game went on and eventually into double OT before Warren Central outlasted Carmel, 42-36. Speaking of Warren Central... a 26-yr-old substitute teacher has been arrested for sexting a HS student. This is the thousandth reported case of a similar incident in the past few years yet the IndyStar commentors have an uproar over government intrusion issues. She was 16 and the male teacher admitted to having sex with her.

Golden Tate for Heisman

after 10 games...

74 catches for 1,172 yards

14 TDs (2 rushing, 1 punt return)

Autumnal Equinox

Charlie Weis gets to keep his job another week as Notre Dame barely escaped consecutive last-minute meltdowns from an inferior BigTen Michigan team. The Irish head to Purdue this Saturday after the (1-2) Boilers recently lost to Northern Illinois of the MAC.

The football Hoosiers are still undefeated after rolling over Akron in the 2nd half, 38-21. This is the 3rd time in 5 years IU has started 3-0. Should they beat Michigan Saturday, it would mark the first 4-0 start since 1990. But IU hasn't won at the Big House since 1967 (our last Rose Bowl) and has just a lone victory in the past 31 meetings with the Wolverines.

The Colts return to Miami's LandShark Stadium for the first time since winning SB XLi. Peyton Manning and the Colts will hopefully be back in February for SB XLiV, possibly en route to winning a 4th MVP and solidifying himself as the greatest ever. Since 1999, the Colts have the most regular-season wins (115, the Patriots have 111) and they also have the best win percentage on Monday Nights (.750 in 12 games). After tonight's game, they have another primetime matchup on Sunday on NBC vs the NFC champion Arizona Cardinals. Kurt Warner just set an NFL record with the best completion percentage (92.3%) in a single game. Rookie CBs Jerraud Powers and Jacob Lacey will likely have their hands full with Larry Fitzgerald, Anquan Boldin and Steve Breaston.

Hoosiers Announce new AD: Fred Glass

It looks like the hometown hero Fred Glass beat out OregonSt's AD Bob DeCarolis and Varsity Club Dir. Scott Dolson.

► Zeke's Suicide attempt = FAIL
► Colts lose their divisional reign on MNF
► Irish Send Ty Willingham to early retirement after blowing out the Huskies
► Basketball Hoosiers are preseason-ranked 11th by everyone, which means zero expectations for a whole year. That being said, I think Pritchard and Dumes could reach All-BigTen level, but question is how soon? I'll be witnessing that sitting courtside flossin my new IU jacket
► Football Hoosiers defeated #22 ranked Northwestern during Homecoming in Bloomington this Saturday, consisting of a glorious tailgate featuring dozens of former housemates, hundreds of familiar faces, thousands of drunk coeds, an appearance by the GIN Bucket, a few hot cups of my new favorite cider: wassail, some pretty good seats and best of all: my new gf, Melissa.
More shenanigans expected this weekend with Spear, Tian, J-Dub, Jilly, Linds, and Somey all coming back to Indy to join MelD, Deter and I @ the Pacers game, the Blues Traveler concert, some drunk bowling, trick-or-treating, video games... maybe even some Denny's - I dunno if we're gonna have enough time!!

ND Irish confidence highest in 20+ moons

The Domers gained their third win in September after winning just as many games overall last season.
Sophomore Armando Allen led the ground attack and Freshman Michael Floyd emerged as a go-to receiver, all while Jimmy Clausen and Golden Tate both gave dazzling performances. The defense held Purdue's Kory Sheets to just 87 yards rushing and #12 Robert Blanton even returned one of Curits Painter's passes for a TD. Coach Charlie Weis called this win "huge... even bigger than the steak I had last night".

33 Olympians with Indiana ties, including 15 from IU and ND

DIVING

David Boudia
• Age: 19.
• Hometown: Noblesville
• Note: Performing world's most difficult list, he won World Cup bronze medal in February.
• Schedule: Synchro platform Aug. 11, platform prelims and semifinals Aug. 22, platform final Aug. 23.

Kelci Bryant
• Age: 19.
• Hometown: Carmel
• Note: Illinois native was state champ for Harrison High. She and Ariel Rittenhouse won World Cup bronze in synchro springboard.
• Schedule: Synchro 3-meter Aug. 10.

Mary Beth Dunnichay
• Age: 15.
• Hometown: Elwood
• Note: Youngest U.S. Olympian won Pan Am Games bronze in synchro platform with Haley Ishimatsu.
• Schedule: Synchro platform Aug. 12.

Thomas Finchum
• Age: 18.
• Hometown: Indianapolis
• Note: Nearly made Olympics as tiny 14-year-old. He has grown (to 6-1), and so has his skill.
• Schedule: Synchro platform Aug. 11, platform prelims and semifinals Aug. 22, platform final Aug. 23.

Haley Ishimatsu
• Age: 15.
• Hometown: Indianapolis
• Note: Californian is internationally experienced despite age. Medal contender in platform and synchro.
• Schedule: Synchro platform Aug. 12, platform prelims and semifinals Aug. 20, platform final Aug. 21.

Christina Loukas
• Age: 22.
• Hometown: Bloomington
• Note: IU diver nearly medaled at World Cup, finishing fourth on springboard.
• Schedule: 3-meter prelims Aug. 15, semifinals Aug. 16, final Aug. 17.

Ariel Rittenhouse
• Age: 17.
• Hometown: Indianapolis
• Note: Californian is upholding family tradition. Her mother and uncle were Olympians.
• Schedule: Synchro 3-meter Aug. 10.

TRACK & FIELD

Amy Yoder Begley
• Age: 30.
• Hometown: Kendallville
• Note: East Noble and Arkansas grad made courageous run to qualify in 10,000.
• Schedule: Final Aug. 15.

Amber Campbell
• Age: 27.
• Hometown: Indianapolis
• Note: Pike grad was second in hammer throw at U.S. trials. She is a personal trainer in Myrtle Beach, S.C.
• Schedule: Prelims Aug. 17 and final Aug. 20.

Leroy Dixon
• Age: 24.
• Hometown: South Bend
• Note: Former state champ won 400 relay gold at 2007 worlds. He is in relay pool again.
• Schedule: 400 relay prelims Aug. 21 and final Aug. 22.

David Neville
• Age: 24.
• Hometown: Merrillville
• Note: Ex-IU 400-meter sprinter trains under coach John Smith in Los Angeles. Could win gold medal in 1,600 relay.
• Schedule: 400 heats Aug. 17, semifinals Aug. 19 and final Aug. 21; 1,600 relay heats Aug. 22 and final Aug. 23.

Kara Patterson
• Age: 22.
• Hometown: Vancouver, Wash.
• Note: Purdue javelin thrower's 202-foot toss ranks No. 2 in U.S. history. She won U.S. trials.
• Schedule: Prelims Aug. 18 and final Aug. 21.

Aarik Wilson
• Age: 25.
• Hometown: Fallon, Nev.
• Note: Former NCAA indoor champ at IU. Ranked No. 4 in world in triple jump in 2007 and won U.S. trials in 2008.
• Schedule: Prelims Aug. 17 and final Aug. 21.

GYMNASTICS

Samantha Peszek
• Age: 16.
• Hometown: McCordsville
• Note: Member of 2007 world champs. Fourth in all-around at nationals and Olympic trials.
• Schedule: team prelims Aug. 10 and final Aug. 13.

Bridget Sloan
• Age: 16.
• Hometown: Pittsboro
• Note: After being alternate at 2007 worlds, she made team at final selection camp.
• Schedule: team prelims Aug. 10 and final Aug. 13.

FENCING

Kelley Hurley
• Age: 20.
• Hometown: San Antonio
• Note: Notre Dame female fencer is NCAA and junior world champion in epee.
• Schedule: Individual epee Aug. 13.

Gerek Meinhardt
• Age: 18.
• Hometown: San Francisco
• Note: Notre Dame recruit has Chinese mother. In 2006, at 16, he became youngest U.S. foil champion.
• Schedule: Individual foil Aug. 13.

Mariel Zagunis
• Age: 23.
• Hometown: Beaverton, Ore.
• Note: Defending women's gold medalist in sabre sat out at Notre Dame this year to prepare for Olympics.
• Schedule: Individual sabre Aug. 9 and team sabre Aug. 14.

SOCCER

Shannon Boxx
• Age: 30.
• Hometown: Redondo Beach, Calif.
• Note: Notre Dame graduate is among world's top defensive midfielders.
• Schedule: Aug. 6 vs. Norway, Aug. 9 vs. Japan, Aug. 12 vs. New Zealand, Aug. 15 quarterfinals, Aug. 18 semifinals, Aug. 21 medal round.

Lauren Cheney
• Age: 20.
• Hometown: Indianapolis
• Note: UCLA forward from Ben Davis replaced injured Abby Wambach. A potent scorer near the goal.
• Schedule: Aug. 6 vs. Norway, Aug. 9 vs. Japan, Aug. 12 vs. New Zealand, Aug. 15 quarterfinals, Aug. 18 semifinals, Aug. 21 medal round.

Kate Markgraf
• Age: 31.
• Hometown: Rochester Hills, Mich.
• Note: Three-time Olympian from Notre Dame gave birth to son in 2006.
• Schedule: Aug. 6 vs. Norway, Aug. 9 vs. Japan, Aug. 12 vs. New Zealand, Aug. 15 quarterfinals, Aug. 18 semifinals, Aug. 21 medal round.

VOLLEYBALL

Lloy Ball
• Age: 36.
• Hometown: Woodburn
• Note: IPFW graduate didn't expect to be around so along. This will be his fourth Olympics, and he wants first medal.
• Schedule: Aug. 10 vs. Venezuela, Aug. 12 vs. Italy, Aug. 14 vs. Bulgaria, Aug. 16 vs. China, Aug. 18 vs. Japan, Aug. 20 quarterfinal, Aug. 22 semifinals, Aug. 24 medal round.

FIELD HOCKEY

Kayla Bashore
• Age: 25.
• Hometown: Shoemakersville, Pa.
• Note: The 5-2 midfielder was Big Ten Player of the Year and All-American at IU. Born in South Korea.
• Schedule: Aug. 10 vs. Argentina, Aug. 12 vs. Japan, Aug. 13 vs. Germany, Aug. 15 vs. New Zealand, Aug. 18 vs. Great Britain, Aug. 20 pool classification, Aug. 22 medal round.

BASKETBALL

Tamika Catchings
• Age: 29.
• Hometown: Indianapolis
• Note: Fever forward rounding into shape from Achilles injury. She won gold medal with 2004 team.
• Schedule: Aug. 9 vs. Czech Republic, Aug. 11, vs. China, Aug. 13 vs. Mali, Aug. 15 vs. Spain, Aug. 17 vs. New Zealand, Aug. 19 quarterfinal, Aug. 21 semifinals, Aug. 23 medal round.

FOREIGN OLYMPIANS

Those with Indiana ties on other countries' Olympic teams (with their age and the nation they are representing):

Player	Comment
Tully Bevilaqua, 36, Australia	Fever point guard was on Aussies' 2006 world championship team.
Mariangee Bogado, 24, Venezuela	Former IU softball pitcher will open against Team USA on Aug. 12.
Thomas Chamney, 24, Ireland	Ex-Notre Dame runner, who was sixth in 800 at 2006 NCAAs, had popular blog on Internet.
Candace Chapman, 25, Canada	Former Notre Dame midfielder, born in Trinidad, won soccer bronze medal at 2007 Pan Am Games.
Sergiy Fesenko, 26, Ukraine	Third Olympics for distance freestyler. He was five-time swim All-American at IU.
Victoria Mitchell, 26, Australia	Butler graduate was NCAA champion in steeplechase, an event making Olympic debut.
Ria Percival, 18, New Zealand	Soccer midfielder for FC Indiana is based in West Lafayette.
Melissa Tancredi, 26, Canada	Former Notre Dame soccer All-American was Canada's top scorer in Olympic qualifying tourney.
Kateryna Zubkova, 20, Ukraine	IU's NCAA runner-up in 200 backstroke won two medals at swimming's short course worlds. Also Olympian in 2004.

Cut & Paste via IndyStar

I feel like ranting so here it is

Notre Dame football will always be on national TV in America and most people don't like it. You either hate em or love em. Without sounding like an obvious homer (South Bend is upstate, my parents are from Elkhart County), they ring true excellence academically... less than a handful of BCS schools can claim that (Stanford, Duke... UCLA?). Their definition of a student-athlete is so far beyond any BigTen or SEC school it hurts (Northwestern? Vandy?). They refuse to join a conference in football, so now you hate them more. Those cocky bastards. Then they got Bellicheat's former protègè and he eats a lot. A lot. And they haven't won a bowl game for a decade and a half. Nevermind that they were Vegas' underdog in 7 of those 9 matchups dating all the way to their back to back Cotton Bowl wins in '93/'94 . The Cotton Bowl, the 5th member of the BCS Series, which is IU football's next step, after they install new turf of course. And get a real Head Coach. Chances that will happen with a lame duck Athletic Director? I've seen a lot of chaos since being 22-4 and whipping Purdont, well actually since I was a rioting student the week Kent Harvey's arm was grabbed by Knight. Before then, being a Hoosier fan was like being a Pacers fan. Nowadays being a Pacers fan is the more humbling than Notre Dame's current plight. This was my team growing up... Reggie Miller posters wall to wall... wearing the shorts and jerseys to school... waiting for autographs after games. Today tickets are basically free and management has turned over for the first time in 24 years. I'm 26. I cannot recall the Hoosiers winning it all in '87 or the Irish doing so in '88 but I do remember the Reds sweep of Oakland in '90. Then there was a huge gap til 2007, when Colts clinched their first in Indy. But that made it even moreso rewarding as a fan, or fanatic in my case. A team that was 10 years removed from 1-15 turned into 3 straight years of being undefeated in November... Colts are synonymous with AFC SOUTH CHAMP, literally, they're the sole owner of such a title. Holy shit I can't wait to see Lucas Oil.

Everyone's thankful we're Hoosiers

A.Starr and EJ respectively earn Players of the Week, celebrating THE greatest weekend in Bloomington of 2007. The football team will be playing their first Bowl game since '93, the basketball team is undefeated and atop the BigTen, and the Men's Soccer squad is ranked #4 overall headed into the Sweet16.
Non-Btown News: The Indiana Pacers, Notre Dame Irish AND Superbowl Champion Indianapolis Colts all halted their 2-week (too weak?) losing streaks. The problem is the Irish are on a good note, at 2-and-whatever. With Freeney done for the year and more nagging injuries for Jim O'Brien's frontcourt, it's still amateurs over pros (...amateur's overprose!).

ROX/SOX World Series?

► Pacers pick up options on Forwards Danny G#33, Ike D. and Shawne Williams
► Reds hire Dusty Baker(?!?) as skipper
► Bowl-bound Hoosiers lose bid/Old Brass Spitoon
► Heisman hopefull Matt Ryan and #4 BC beat #119 Irish (above)
► Colts had bye, my fantasy team suffered
► Sampson punished for receiving 3-way calls