Indiana
BREAKING: LSU Baseball Lands Commitment From Indiana State Pitcher Luke Hayden
Jay Johnson and the LSU baseball staff continue their hot streak in the NCAA Transfer Portal after adding their fourth pitcher this offseason: Indiana State’s Luke Hayden.
Hayden, a right-handed pitcher who shined for the Sycamores in 2024, is Baton Rouge bound with a chance to become a pivotal relief pitcher for the Tigers next season.
During the 2024 season, Hayden tallied 91 strikeouts in 78 innings pitched with a 3.81 ERA. The Indiana State stud adds to the Tigers’ impressive Transfer Portal haul, becoming the fifth addition in the last seven days.
Johnson and Co. have now reeled in Indiana State’s top two players from a season ago in both Hayden and slugger Luis Hernandez.
Hernandez revealed his commitment to LSU earlier in the week with the Tigers adding the electric power-hitter.
Hayden is the fifth transfer to announce his commitment to LSU.
BREAKING: Here come the Tigers… Jay Johnson and the Tigers land another Transfer Portal commitment: Luke Hayden.
The Indiana State star is Baton Rouge bound with a chance to make an impact for #LSU.
The 2024 Numbers: The Tigers are rolling. pic.twitter.com/dIwyrNbKMP — Zack Nagy (@znagy20) June 15, 2024
78 IP
3.81 ERA
91 strikeouts
47 BB
A dive into the five Transfer Portal commitments:
Chandler Dorsey: South Florida
On Monday, LSU secured its first portal commitment after South Florida relief pitcher Chandler Dorsey announced he would be taking his talents to Baton Rouge.
The right-handed relief pitcher announced on social media:
“Blessed to announce my commitment to LSU to further my academic and baseball career,” Dorsey said via Instagram. “I want to thank God, my family and coaches who helped me throughout this journey! Geaux Tigers!”
Dorsey announced his intentions to depart South Florida after two years with the program.
During the 2024 season, the prized righty went 2-1 with eight saves and a 3.60 ERA (12 ER/30.0 IP) with a 1.20 WHIP. He also racked up 41 strikeouts on the season during year two with the Bulls.
Now, he’s Baton Rouge bound as the first commitment for LSU during the offseason after seeing nine departures over the last eight days.
Luis Hernandez: Indiana State
Hernandez revealed his commitment to Johnson and Co. on Tuesday with LSU adding a key piece to the lineup for the 2025 season.
After three years with the Sycamores, Hernandez entered the portal with a chance to find a change of scenery.
Now, he’s Baton Rouge bound with Johnson finding a talented power hitter to replace the likes of Tommy White and others.
The utility slugger finished his career with Indiana State batting .315 across his three years with the program. In 578 career at-bats, Hernandez tallied 182 hits, 118 runs, 32 home runs, 120 RBIs and has drawn 48 walks.
In 2024, he pieced together his most impressive year yet. Hernandez raked in 23 home runs with a .359 batting average and 76 runs batted in.
He has the chance to be a key component to what the Tigers do in 2025. A player who has played in the infield, catcher and served as designated hitter, Hernandez is a utility piece for LSU come next season.
Zac Cowan: Wofford
The All-SoCon right-handed pitcher went 10-2 with 124 strikeouts and 29 walks in 110 innings at Wofford this spring. Cowan also boasts a 3.35 ERA after dismantling opponents during the 2024 season with the Terriers.
It’s another big-time addition to the pitching rotation for Johnson and Co. as he continues working through Transfer Portal evaluations.
Now, he brings in an ace who’s proven he can compete at the highest level.
Cowan, who was one of the most sought-after transfers in the portal, will now head to Baton Rouge with the chance to earn a starting slot alongside several prominent arms.
Cowan is the third addition for LSU this offseason, joining South Florida right-handed pitcher Chandler Dorsey and Indiana State slugger Luis Hernandez.
Deven Sheerin: Mount St. Mary’s Pitcher
Jay Johnson and the LSU baseball staff remained hot in the NCAA Transfer Portal on Friday night after adding a commitment from Mount St. Mary’s Deven Sheerin.
The electric right-handed pitcher is fresh off of a dominant first season of college baseball after dismantling opponents in year one.
Sheerin logged a 4.76 ERA in 2024 with 109 strikeouts, 32 walks, 10 HBP and 37 earned runs in 70 innings pitched. The numbers speak for themselves, but Sheerin’s arsenal pitches has proven to be what makes him so lethal.
As just a freshman, his fastball has been clocked at 98mph while hovering in the 95mph range routinely.
The addition is another impressive one for Johnson and the Tigers, but the key factor here is that Sheerin won’t be eligible for the MLB Draft until 2026, meaning he’ll be in Baton Rouge for at least two seasons.
It’s a dynamic piece for the Tigers, and now with Sheerin in the mix, LSU has now secured a trio of immediate impact pitchers for the 2025 season.
Other LSU News:
LSU Baseball: Tigers Secure Commitment From Wofford Ace Zac Cowan
BREAKING: LSU Lands Commitment From Indiana State Slugger Luis Hernandez
LSU Baseball: Jay Johnson Reacts to Paul Mainieri Being Hired By South Carolina
Join the Community:
Follow Zack Nagy on Twitter: @znagy20 and LSU Country: @LSUCountry_FN for all coverage surrounding the LSU program.
Indiana
Bears consider move to Indiana with effort to secure public funding for stadium in Illinois stalled
CHICAGO — The Chicago Bears say they’re mulling a move to Northwest Indiana with their efforts to secure public funding they say they need to build an enclosed stadium in Illinois stalled.
Team president Kevin Warren insisted Wednesday in an open letter to fans that the team still prefers to build a new home on a tract of land it owns in suburban Arlington Heights, Illinois. He also said the Bears are not using the threat to cross state lines as leverage.
“This is not about leverage,” Warren said. “We spent years trying to build a new home in Cook County. We invested significant time and resources evaluating multiple sites and rationally decided on Arlington Heights. Our fans deserve a world-class stadium. Our players and coaches deserve a venue that matches the championship standard they strive for every day.”
Warren did not say where in Northwest Indiana the Bears would look to move.
The letter comes just days before Chicago hosts rival Green Bay in a game with heavy playoff implications. The Bears (10-4) hold a slim lead over the Packers (9-4-1) in the NFC North. In their first season under coach Ben Johnson, they are trying to secure their first postseason appearance since 2020.
“The Bears have called Chicago home for more than a century,” Warren said. “One certainty is that our commitment to this city will not change. We will continue to provide unwavering support to the community. We need to secure a world-class venue for our passionate fanbase and honor the energy you bring every week.”
The Bears’ focus for a new home has fluctuated between a tract of land they own in Arlington Heights to the Chicago lakefront, and then back to the suburb. They have said they plan to pay for the stadium construction on the site of a former racetrack about 30 miles northwest of their longtime home at Soldier Field, though they would need assistance to complete the project.
According to a team consultant report released in September, they are seeking $855 million in public funding for infrastructure in order to build a stadium in Arlington Heights that could host Final Fours and Super Bowls. The Bears were also hoping the Illinois legislature would pass a bill in October that would freeze property taxes for large-scale construction projects such as the stadium, allowing them to begin construction this year. But that didn’t happen.
“For a project of this scale, uncertainty has significant consequences,” Warren said. “Stable timelines are critical, as are predictable processes and elected leaders, who share a sense of urgency and appreciation for public partnership that projects with this level of impact require. We have not received that sense of urgency or appreciation to date. We have been told directly by State leadership, our project will not be a priority in 2026, despite the benefits it will bring to Illinois.”
In September 2022, the Bears unveiled a nearly $5 billion plan for Arlington Heights that also called for restaurants, retail and more, when they were finalizing the purchase of that site 30 miles from Soldier Field. Their focus moved toward building a new stadium next to Soldier Field after Warren was hired as president two years ago to replace the retiring Ted Phillips. The plan to transform Chicago’s Museum Campus got an enthusiastic endorsement from Mayor Brandon Johnson but a tepid reception from Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker and state legislators when it was announced in April 2024.
Last spring, the team announced it was turning its attention back to Arlington Heights, citing “significant progress” with local leaders.
Since moving to Chicago in 1921, the Bears have never owned their stadium, whether playing at Wrigley Field from 1921 to 1970 or Soldier Field since then.
Are Christmas cards going extinct?
Fewer Christmas cards are being sent these days — a 2024 poll found 6 in 10 adults received fewer, and 3 in 10 planned to skip sending them altogether. Gen Z may be moving away from the tradition, but many still keep cards as sentimental keepsakes.
LAFAYETTE, IN — Hopes for a white Christmas are fading quickly in Indiana.
“I know earlier in the month we were thinking we might have a higher chance of a white Christmas,” National Weather Service meteorologist Cody Moore said, “but unfortunately, I have some bad news for you. A lot of long-range guidance has been consistent showing a pattern on Christmas Day featuring much warmer than normal temperatures for the region and the chance for some rainfall.
“It does look like we’ll be above average, temperatures at least in the 40s, maybe 50s,” Moore said on Wednesday, just three days after subzero temperatures pummeled the area.
With still eight days until Christmas, the forecasts closer to Dec. 25 might bump the expected high temps up even into the 60s, Moore said.
Normal temperatures this time of year for Lafayette are 36 for a high and 22 for a low.
“It looks like you might be able to keep your heavy winter jackets in the closet for now,” Moore said.
How will a Christmas with temperatures in the 40s, 50s or even 60s compare to Christmases past?
In 1982, Lafayette’s record-warm Christmas was 64 degrees. Its record cold temperature was 12 below zero in 2000.
So now that the dreams of a white Christmas appear dashed, what about January or February?
The Climate Prediction Center published a three-month forecast in November, and an update is expected in the next couple of days.
But last month, center’s forecast for January, February and March was for Hoosiers to have an equal chance of above and/or below average temperatures.
“We’ll see how that translates with the storm track,” Moore said.
The Climate Prediction Center forecasts warmer than normal temperatures in the southern United States and below normal temperatures in the Northern Plains.
“That puts the storm track right through Indiana, which makes sense because the Climate Prediction Center has Indiana as a bullseye for a pattern favoring above-normal precipitation,” Moore said. Temperatures will decide whether that precipitation falls as rain or snow — or ice or freezing rain.
Reach Ron Wilkins at rwilkins@jconline.com. Follow on Twitter: @RonWilkins2.
Former UConn forward, NBC Sports broadcaster Donny Marshall knows a thing or two about talented UConn guards.
The former Husky played for legendary coach Jim Calhoun and was teammates with the fifth pick in the 1996 NBA Draft, 10-time NBA All-Star Ray Allen. Watching UConn play against Butler on Tuesday night, Marshall said he sees a lot of Allen in reigning Indiana Mr. Basketball Braylon Mullins.
Mullins made the second start of his career against the Bulldogs. The former Greenfield-Central star missed UConn’s first six games of the regular season with an injury, but the 6-foot-6 guard is quickly coming into his own and showing why he’s a projected lottery pick in the 2026 NBA Draft.
Against Butler, Mullins showed off his sweet jump shot, going 2 for 5 from 3-point range. He finished with 12 points, three rebounds, two assists, two blocks and one steal.
“He’s a scorer,” Butler coach Thad Matta said of Mullins. “He’s got a scorer’s mentality. He gets his shot off quick. They move him around and create some angles for him. Obviously, he’s a heck of a player.”
Mullins did most of his damage in the first half, scoring eight of his 12 points before halftime. The former five-star recruit was the highest-ranked player in UConn’s 2025 class. Butler’s top-ranked recruit, Azavier “Stink” Robinson isn’t the NBA prospect Mullins is, but he held his own after a shaky start to the game.
Robinson has been thrust into the starting lineup with starter Jalen Jackson out for the season with an ankle injury. Robinson looked out of sorts at times in the first half, going scoreless with two assists and a turnover. In the second half, Matta moved him off the ball, giving him catch-and-shoot looks, and opportunities to drive to the basket without worrying about running the offense.
The former Lawrence North star responded with one of the better halves of his career, scoring 10 points on 3 for 6 shooting, including 2 for 5 from 3 to go along with two rebounds, one assist, one steal and one turnover.
Facing a veteran team like UConn, nothing comes easy. UConn’s guards harass ball handlers and getting into an offensive set is not easy. This time last year, Robinson was still in high school and, on most nights, the most athletic player on the court. Playing a UConn team where the goal is a national championship, Robinson was forced to grow, and he did not back down from the challenge in the second half.
“He’s coming along,” Matta said of Robinson. “That’s the first Big East road game of his career against maybe the best team in the country. It tells you how tough he is. He’s resilient. He keeps going.”
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