Midwest

Illinois police identify 5 people, including 3 children, killed in school bus crash

Published

2 years ago

March 14, 2024

Illinois police identify 5 people, including 3 children, killed in school bus crash

Five people, including three children, were killed in a fiery crash when a school bus and a semitruck collided along a highway in western Illinois.
The bus from Schuyler-Industry Schools crossed the center line into the path of a semitruck carrying sand.
Both vehicles became engulfed in flames upon collision in Rushville, a community about 60 miles west of Springfield.

Authorities have identified the five people killed in a fiery crash, including both drivers and three children, when a school bus and a semitruck collided along a highway in western Illinois.

The eastbound bus from Schuyler-Industry Schools crossed the center line “for an unknown reason” Monday into westbound U.S. Route 24 and into the path of a semitruck carrying sand, Illinois State Police said, citing preliminary findings.

Both vehicles “became engulfed in flames” when the truck slammed into the bus around 11:30 a.m. in Rushville, a Schuyler County community of about 3,000 roughly 60 miles west of Springfield, state police said. All four people aboard the bus — three children and the driver — were killed, as was the semitruck driver.

3 CHILDREN, 2 ADULTS DEAD IN ILLINOIS AFTER SEMITRUCK HITS SCHOOL BUS

The three children were identified by the Schuyler County coroner as 5-year-old Maria Miller, 3-year-old Andrew Miller and 3-year-old Noah Driscoll, all from Rushville, state police said. The school bus driver was identified as Angela Spiker, 57, of Rushville, and the truck driver as David Coufal, 72, of Browning, Illinois.

Illinois State Police Capt. Jody Huffman speaks during a news conference about the five people, including three children, who were killed on March 11, 2024, after a school bus and semitruck collided on a highway in western Illinois. (Illinois State Police Troop 6 via AP)

The county coroner said autopsies would be performed on the victims’ bodies in Springfield.

Schuyler County Sheriff Bill Redshaw told reporters Monday that the tragedy had hit the small, close-knit community particularly hard.

“There’s not really words at this time that can be said,” he said. “When you have a loss of life like this, it’s devastating.”

6 DEAD, 15 INJURED IN OHIO CRASH INVOLVING BUS CARRYING BAND STUDENTS

Schuyler-Industry Schools canceled classes Tuesday and Wednesday because of the crash.

“It is with a heavy heart that we announce our school community has lost both staff and students in the traffic incident involving one of our school buses this morning,” the school district said in a statement.

The cause of the crash is under investigation by a National Transportation Safety Board team and state police, the Illinois agency announced.

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Indiana

Indiana’s Curt Cignetti cashes in on title run with 8-year extension worth $13.2 million per year

Published

1 minute ago

March 2, 2026

Press Room

Indiana’s Curt Cignetti cashes in on title run with 8-year extension worth .2 million per year

Indiana coach Curt Cignetti is cashing in on his first national championship run — even more than initially expected.

Athletic department officials announced Monday that the two-time national coach of the year has signed a memorandum of understanding on an eight-year contract extension, paying him an annual average of $13.2 million — or an increase of about $1.6 million per year from what school officials said Cignetti would earn when he first agreed to the extension in October.

School officials released the document Cignetti signed Feb. 4.

He joins Georgia coach Kirby Smart and LSU coach Lane Kiffin as the only active Football Bowl Subdivision coaches to receive paychecks of $13 million or more. The payouts could be even higher if Cignetti earns bonuses for winning Big Ten or national coach of the year honors in addition to playoff appearances and conference titles. The 64-year-old Cignetti already has said he hopes to retire at Indiana.

The new deal calls for a base salary of $500,000 per year through the 2033 season and a $1 million retention bonus on Nov. 30 of each year, starting this fall. The remaining portion of the $105.6 million will be collected from outside, promotional and marketing income.

Cignetti initially agreed to an eight-year extension worth $92.8 million — an annual average of $11.6 million — but university officials agreed to modify the deal as the Hoosiers remained undefeated and pursued the first football national championship in school history.

It’s the third time Cignetti has received a raise since he took over the losingest program in FBS history in November 2024. All he’s done since arriving is produce the two best seasons in school history while becoming one of college football’s fan favorites for his quick quips and unique facial expressions. Players have embraced him, too, telling many of their favorite Cignetti tales.

Just ask tight end Riley Nowakowski, who recounted his favorite Cignetti story during the recent NFL scouting combine in Indianapolis.

“I think (Alberto Mendoza) was in the game, and he pulled like four runs in a row,” Nowakowski said, referring to last season’s victory over Illinois. “He kept pulling it, kept pulling it, kept pulling it, and then after the fourth time, it was a terrible read. So in the middle of the game, (Cignetti) tells our coach, ‘Get (Alberto) over here.’ Bert’s like, ‘What, it’s the middle of a game, what are you doing?’ And (Cignetti) goes, ‘We’re not paying you to run the ball, hand the ball off, right? We’re up like 70 points, but he’s pissed off, yelling at Bert, and (Cignetti) just turned back at me and gave me one of his little smiles, and he was just like, ’You like that now?’”

Cignetti wasted no time delivering on his promise to win after leading James Madison to the most successful transition from the Football Championship Subdivision to the FBS.

The son of Hall of Fame coach Frank Cignetti and a former Alabama assistant led Indiana to a school record 11 wins and its first College Football Playoff appearance in his first season with the Hoosiers.

Last season, he outdid that mark by producing the first 16-0 mark in major college football since the 1890s. The Hoosiers also won their first outright Big Ten crown since 1945, beat Miami on its home field to claim the national title and shed the label of having the most all-time losses in FBS history.

Mendoza’s older brother, Fernando, also became the first Indiana player to win the Heisman Trophy and is expected to be the No. 1 overall pick in April’s NFL draft.

The reward: A record nine players, including Mendoza and Nowakowski, attended the recent combine in Indianapolis while Cignetti got another pay raise and school officials continued to invest heavily in keeping the coach’s staff together.

Offensive coordinator Mike Shanahan and defensive coordinator Bryant Haines each agreed to three-year contract extensions worth about $3 million per year in December, making them two of the highest-paid assistants in the FBS. Haines won this year’s Broyles Award, which goes to the nation’s top assistant coach.

Indiana will begin next season with the longest winning streak (16) and longest home winning streak (15) in the FBS. Cignetti has never lost a home game with the Hoosiers, who open defense of their league and national titles at home against North Texas on Sept. 5.

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Iowa

Where Iowa State basketball stands in NCAA Tournament bracketology

Published

7 minutes ago

March 2, 2026

Press Room

Where Iowa State basketball stands in NCAA Tournament bracketology

We’re heading down the homestretch.

Iowa State men’s basketball has two regular-season games left, followed by the Big 12 Tournament.

Iowa State enters the final week of the regular season with a 24-5 overall record and an 11-5 mark in Big 12 action.

The Cyclones have a NCAA Tournament resume-bolstering opportunity on Monday, March 2 with a road game against Arizona, before wrapping up the regular-season on Saturday, March 7 against Arizona State.

Plenty can still change with bracketology from now until Selection Sunday on March 15, but here is where experts are projecting Iowa State to land in the NCAA Tournament entering the final week of the regular season: