Oregon
‘Sexy’ wins are no fluke: Indiana football projected as top-4 College Football Playoff team
Indiana football was a feel-good story in 2024 and a curiosity entering this season. The Hoosiers are now being taken seriously after winning at then-No. 2 Oregon on Saturday.
College football experts have come to think of them as a genuine national contender, with many projecting them as top-4 College Football Playoff team even if they reach the Big Ten championship game and lose to Ohio State.
College Football Playoff projections for Indiana after win over Oregon
“The Hoosiers were big movers this weekend after beating Oregon on the road. Indiana is now 6-0 and the No. 3 team in the country and CBS’ No. 3 seed in the College Football Playoff.
“Even as projected Big Ten runners-up, Indiana should still get a first round bye at this rate. That’s how good Curt Cignetti’s crew is playing right now.”
David Cobb, CBS Sports: Curt Cignetti is national Coach of the Year
“Cignetti has guided Indiana to a 6-0 start and its highest-ever ranking in the AP poll while proving that last season’s 11 wins and CFP appearance were anything but a fluke. The Hoosiers’ Week 7 triumph at Oregon is in the running for best college football victory of the season, and it brings the possibility of 12-0 campaign closer to reality. This isn’t just the best coaching job of the season; what Cignetti is doing at Indiana may be the best coaching job of the 21st century.”
A panel of nine on CBS Sports ranked IU as high as third and as low as eighth.
Dan Wolken, Yahoo: IU is the nation’s biggest surprise
“I didn’t think the Hoosiers were a fluke last year, but I was skeptical that Curt Cignetti could do it again because Indiana wasn’t going to be overlooked by any opponent this time around. But I was wrong not to believe in him and Fernando Mendoza, who is probably the Heisman frontrunner at this stage.”
“Any questions raised about Indiana’s CFP viability from last year have no bearing this year. The Hoosiers are better in every area this fall and proved it at Oregon.”
“After beating down previously undefeated North Texas on Friday, USF inches ahead of Tulane as the favorite to take home the American crown. That could set up a trip to Bloomington, Ind., if the Hoosiers aren’t able to sneak past a few conference champions.”
“No team has a more sexy pair of wins than the Hoosiers and if the selection committee put Indiana higher than this, it wouldn’t be a shock. A 50-point beatdown of Illinois, which was ranked inside the top 10 at the time, preceded Saturday’s mammoth victory at Oregon. That’s a signature moment for Curt Cignetti’s program and essentially guarantees another playoff appearance. Over their final six games, the Hoosiers play one team with a winning record (at Maryland on Nov. 1). It looks like you can punch Indiana’s ticket to Indianapolis already.”
Josh Pate, On3: IU will be the No. 5 seed, hosting South Florida
“There certainly will be a race for the Group of Five spot. Memphis is another candidate but Pate is giving the edge to USF at the moment, sliding them in as the 12-seed.
“Indiana losing the Big Ten title game is Curt Cignetti‘s first loss of the year. This gives them the top at-large spot, giving Bloomington the opportunity to host.”
“Indiana has been a playoff contender all season long. The Hoosiers just moved up a tier into the group of possible title contenders with their 30-20 win over Oregon on Saturday. And the Indiana defense is a big reason. Oregon had just 267 yards and 4.2 yards per play. After Old Dominion rushed for 218 yards against the Hoosiers in Week 1, Indiana has given up just 303 rushing yards over its succeeding five games.”
Indiana football remaining regular-season schedule
(with date, location, opponent, opponent’s record, time, TV)
- Oct. 18, vs. Michigan State (3-3 overall, 0-3 Big Ten), 3:30 p.m. ET, Peacock
- Oct. 25, vs. UCLA (2-4, 2-1), TBA, TBA
- Nov. 1, at Maryland (4-2, 1-2), TBA, TBA
- Nov. 8, at Penn State (3-3, 0-3), TBA, TBA
- Nov. 15, vs. Wisconsin (2-4, 0-3), TBA, TBA
- Nov. 28 (Fri.), at Purdue (2-4, 0-3), 7:30 p.m., NBC
Want more Hoosiers coverage? Sign up for IndyStar’s Hoosiers newsletter. Listen to Mind Your Banners, our IU Athletics-centric podcast, on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts. Watch the latest on IndyStar TV: Hoosiers.
Oregon
Former corrections officer sentenced in major Oregon poaching case spanning multiple counties
UMATILLA COUNTY, Ore. (KTVZ) — A yearslong investigation by the Oregon State Police (OSP), in addition to the Fish and Wildlife Division, has resulted in significant penalties for an Umatilla man accused of illegally killing wildlife across Oregon, in what prosecutors describe as one of the most damaging serial poaching cases tied to a single individual.
Christopher George Matson, 48, was sentenced in two separate cases in June following an investigation that began in 2024, when authorities received information he was unlawfully taking big game animals. Matson is a former Oregon Department of Corrections officer.
In February 2025, investigators served a search warrant and seized multiple big game animals and firearms as evidence. In total, 67 criminal charges were referred for prosecution, spanning multiple counties and including allegations such as unlawful take and possession of black bear with the aid of bait, unlawful take of buck deer and antlerless elk, and hunting during prohibited hours. Additional charges included falsely applying for tags, loaning or borrowing big game tags, and unlawful possession of silencers and a short-barreled rifle.
The case was prosecuted by the Oregon Department of Justice’s Wildlife Anti-Poaching Resource Prosecutor.
On June 18, 2026, Matson pleaded guilty in Grant County Circuit Court to seven counts, including unlawful take of buck deer and black bear. He was sentenced to 18 months of probation, a lifetime hunting license revocation, 300 hours of community service, forfeiture of firearms and seized property, and a $52,500 fine payable to the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife.
Less than two weeks later, on June 29, Matson pleaded guilty in Umatilla County Circuit Court to additional charges, including unlawful possession of a short-barreled rifle, unlawful possession of a silencer, unlawful possession of multiple wildlife, and unlawful take of mule deer. In that case, he was sentenced to 24 months of probation, a lifetime hunting ban, 300 hours of community service to run concurrently, forfeiture of property, and a $62,000 fine.
Combined, the penalties include probation, a lifetime revocation of hunting privileges, 300 hours of community service and more than $114,000 in fines.
“This is another example of serial poaching which rises to the level of felony conduct based solely on the repeated poaching conduct and impact of one individual on Oregon’s game mammals,” said Jay Hall, the Oregon Department of Justice’s Wildlife Anti-Poaching Resource Prosecutor. “The conduct across the several counties amounts to one of the highest damage amounts done to Oregon wildlife by any singular actor.”
Oregon State Police credited the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife for assisting with interviews and evidence collection, along with multiple witnesses who came forward during the investigation.
WILSONVILLE, Ore. (CNN) – Under the cover of the night sky, a bear took a jaunt around an Oregon town. Its presumed search for a snack was interrupted by a police officer’s bright spotlight.
For the next few minutes, the officer followed the bear as it sauntered down the road, even making sure the animal didn’t dart into the road.
Eventually, video shows the officer corralled the black bear and escorted it to a nearby river where it would be safer.
Copyright 2026 CNN Newsource. All rights reserved.
PORTLAND, Ore. (KATU) — The summer solstice, which marks the astronomical beginning of Summer, is also considered the longest day of the year– meaning daytime hours are longer while nighttime hours are shorter.
WEATHER | Latest Storm Tracker 2 Forecast
This is because the summer solstice marks when the Northern Hemisphere is closest to the sun.
In Washington and Oregon, we will lose about 50 minutes by the end of July. But in the southern United States, that change is reduced.
For example, in Florida, they will lose about 20 minutes by the end of the month.
As Earth continues to orbit around the sun while rotating on its axis, the Northern Hemisphere will eventually be faced away from the sun as we approach winter solstice on December 21, 2026.
While we are losing daylight, we will not be losing any sunshine. High temperatures on Sunday will end in the lower 80s and Tuesday’s high could be closer to 90.
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