Indiana
College Football Playoff rankings: Ohio State and Indiana on top (again) as SEC teams dominate the top 10
The third College Football Playoff rankings propelled the event closer to an endgame guaranteed to roil the masses.
Are you ready for five SEC teams?
The conference took a giant leap toward gobbling almost half the bids to the 12-team event when the rankings were unveiled Tuesday evening.
Oklahoma vaulted three spots, to No. 8, following its victory at Alabama. But critically, the 10th-ranked Crimson Tide did not drop below the cut line for CFP inclusion despite sustaining their second loss.
Add No. 3 Texas A&M, No. 4 Georgia and No. 6 Mississippi to the Sooners and Crimson Tide, and the SEC would have five participants if the field were selected today: one automatic qualifier (the conference champion) plus four at-large teams.
Last year, in the first year of the 12-team event, the Big Ten led all conferences with four bids (one automatic and three at-large).
With two Saturdays remaining in the regular season, plus championship weekend, there is time for tumult.
But at this point, the SEC has a firm grasp on the pole position — at the expense of everyone else:
— The Big 12 is staring at another disappointing outcome if No. 5 Texas Tech wins the conference championship.
Both No. 11 BYU and No. 12 Utah are precariously positioned given the lack of schedule juice remaining (e.g., no ranked opponents) and the potential for teams just below them to move up.
The likelihood of the Big 12 collecting a single bid, as it did last year (Arizona State), is increasing by the week.
— The ACC faces a comparable fate with No. 13 Miami as the conference’s highest-ranked team.
Notably, the Hurricanes are four spots below Notre Dame even though they have the same record (8-2) and Miami won the head-to-head matchup.
But committee chair Hunter Yurachek, the Arkansas athletic director who took over as chair last week when Baylor AD Mack Rhoades stepped down, said the teams were not close enough for the head-to-head result to be considered.
The difference in resumes, he said, is rooted in the quality of their losses: The Irish lost to No. 13 Miami and No. 3 Texas A&M, while the Hurricanes lost to two unranked teams, SMU and Louisville.
— And what of the Big Ten? The third installment of the CFP rankings wasn’t much more encouraging for the conference than either of the first two.
Yes, No. 1 Ohio State and No. 2 Indiana held their ground and are effectively locks for the CFP. But Oregon is No. 7, a tad too close to the current cut line (between No. 10 and 11) for comfort.
If the Ducks (9-1) lose at home to USC this weekend — or at Washington in the season finale — they could fall out of the field.
ESPN analyst Greg McElroy noted the precedent set by the committee’s treatment of Alabama, which fell six spots after losing at home to Oklahoma.
“If you’re Oregon, you better win out,” McEloy said, “because a six-slot slide will have you out of the field.
“They just did it to Alabama. They can do it to you.”
The Trojans (8-2) are currently on the outside looking in. Yes, they moved up two spots, to No. 15, after beating Iowa, but they are behind six teams with two losses.
A victory in Eugene would polish their resume, but would it be enough to climb five positions and gain a foothold in the field?
Put another way: It’s not difficult to envision the Big Ten as a two-bid conference when the field is announced on Dec. 7.
Add the ACC and Big 12 champions, plus No. 9 Notre Dame and the highest-ranked team from the Group of Five (currently Tulane), and that’s six teams.
If the SEC gets five, there would be one bid remaining for a third team from the Big Ten, a second from either the ACC or Big 12 or … yes, we’ll say it … a sixth from the SEC.
There are too many possible permutations to evaluate at this point.
But the most likely outcome, by far, has the SEC owning the day when the field is announced.
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Indiana
Indiana police find semi trailer loaded up with nearly 400 pounds of cocaine: troopers
CLOVERDALE, Ind. (WKRC) – Authorities in Indiana found a semi trailer loaded up with hundreds of pounds of suspected cocaine.
According to a statement issued by the Indiana State Police (ISP), 27-year-old Harmandeep Singh of Bakersfield, California was taken into custody after nearly 400 pounds of suspected cocaine were reportedly found in the trailer of a commercial truck.
Per the statement, an ISP trooper seized the suspected cocaine during a traffic stop on Interstate 70 in Putnam County, authorities said.
The stop occurred Tuesday morning near the 37-mile marker, just east of Cloverdale, after a commercial motor vehicle was observed exceeding the posted speed limit.
Police said Singh displayed several indicators of possible criminal activity during the encounter. After obtaining consent to search the vehicle, troopers discovered multiple duffel bags and cardboard boxes in the trailer containing approximately 392 pounds (178 kilograms) of suspected cocaine.
Authorities estimated the street value of the drugs at about $9 million.
Singh was taken into custody and taken to the Putnam County Jail, where he is being held on a $30,000 cash bond.
He faces the following preliminary charges, per the post:
- Possession of a narcotic drug
Formal charges will be determined by the Putnam County prosecutor.
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Indiana State Police said drug interdiction remains a priority, with troopers focusing on major highways to disrupt the flow of illegal narcotics into the state.
Indiana
Op-ed: Healthy rural communities strengthen all of Indiana
For many Hoosiers living in rural Indiana, accessing health care can mean driving 30 minutes or even an hour to see a doctor or reach the nearest hospital. As workforce shortages and financial pressures challenge rural hospitals across the country, ensuring access to care close to home has become one of the most important health-care issues facing our state.
About one in four Indiana residents live in a rural community, yet access to health-care services in many of these communities continues to shrink. Across the nation, rural hospitals and clinics report extremely thin operating margins and often say workforce shortages and rising costs make it difficult to sustain services such as primary care, maternity care and behavioral health.
When rural communities struggle to maintain health-care access, the impact doesn’t stay confined to small towns. It ripples across the entire health-care system, contributing to increases in chronic conditions, reduced preventative care for children, and worsening outcomes for the sickest patients.
Communities such as Greater Lafayette serve as a regional hub for care, with hospitals like IU Health Arnett caring for patients from surrounding counties across north-central and west-central Indiana. That role is something we are proud to fulfill. But when rural residents must travel long distances for care that should be available closer to home, it places increasing pressure on emergency departments, specialty clinics and inpatient services at larger regional hospitals.
In many cases, what might have been a routine appointment, preventive screening or early diagnosis in a local clinic becomes far more serious by the time a patient reaches a larger hospital. A missed screening can escalate into a medical emergency.
That reality makes strengthening rural health care more important than ever — not just for rural communities, but for the health of the entire state.
One of the most important steps we can take is investing in the next generation of health-care professionals who will care for these communities.
At IU Health, we are working directly with local schools and community partners to help build that workforce pipeline. Across the region, IU Health has partnered with the Greater Lafayette Career Academy and area school districts to introduce students to health-care careers earlier and provide hands-on learning opportunities that bring those careers to life.
Through these programs, students explore health-care pathways and earn certifications such as certified nursing assistant, medical assistant or emergency medical technician while still in high school. Many participate in job shadowing opportunities, clinical experiences and mentorship programs, giving them valuable exposure to the field before they graduate. In fact, since the first cohort in 2023, IU Health has extended job offers to more than 70 students.
The goal is simple but powerful: help students see that meaningful careers in health care exist in their own communities and create pathways that allow them to stay and serve those communities.
For rural health care, this approach is critical. Students who train and develop personal mentorship connections locally are far more likely to remain in the region after completing their education. By helping young people build skills and connections early, we can create a sustainable workforce that strengthens health-care access in both rural communities and regional centers, including Greater Lafayette.
Since launching the $200 million Community Impact Investment Fund in 2018, IU Health has invested more than $40 million in community grants supporting workforce development, education and school-based programs that build Indiana’s health-care talent pipeline. This includes funding for the Indiana Latino Institute, which placed Latino students in health-care internships, supported career pathways, and provided medical interpreter training and college coaching to communities across the state.
Our goal is to make Indiana one of the healthiest states in the nation, and this is one way we work toward that in partnership with our communities.
But workforce development is only part of the solution.
Strengthening rural health care will also require continued collaboration between health-care providers, educators, community leaders and policymakers. Expanding telehealth access, supporting rural hospitals and investing in primary care and behavioral health services are all critical steps toward ensuring patients can receive care close to home.
Greater Lafayette will always play an important role as a regional health-care center, providing specialized care and advanced services for patients across a broad region. But the long-term health of Indiana’s health-care system depends on maintaining strong local access points for care in rural communities.
When rural clinics and hospitals can provide preventive care, manage chronic conditions and connect patients with the services they need early, the entire system works better.
Patients receive care sooner, communities stay healthier and larger hospitals can focus on the complex cases they are designed to treat.
Healthy rural communities do not just benefit the towns where they are. They strengthen Indiana’s entire health-care system by ensuring that every Hoosier — no matter where they live — has access to the care and resources they need to live healthier lives.
When rural health care succeeds, all of Indiana benefits.
Gary Henriott is a lifelong resident of Lafayette and the retired CEO and Chairman of Henriott Group. He is the chair of the IU Health West Region board of directors and the Wabash Heartland Innovation Network, and president of Lafayette’s Board of Public Works and Safety.
Indiana
Indiana mother charged with neglect after baby’s co-sleeping death
INDIANAPOLIS (WKRC) — An Indianapolis mother is now facing criminal charges after her 2-month-old baby died in an apparent improper co-sleeping environment, according to investigators.
According to a probable cause affidavit obtained by FOX 59/CBS 4, police were called to an area hospital on Sept. 19, 2024, following the death of 27-year-old Brooklyn Davis’ son. The boy had been found unresponsive in his family’s home early that morning, and Davis attempted CPR before he was rushed to the hospital.
The affidavit says the boy had been sleeping on Davis’ bed with his 6-year-old brother. Davis later showed investigators a video showing the baby sleeping chest down on the 6-year-old’s chest.
An autopsy concluded the baby’s cause of death was “sudden explained death of an infant” with an intrinsic factor, which included being “placed to sleep in a queen-sized mattress being shared with a 6-year-old sibling, along with numerous blankets and other miscellaneous items; discovered unresponsive in a prone position with his face turned to the side and partially covered with a blanket.”
A report from the Department of Child Services (DCS) indicated the boy had no known health issues and that Davis ran an FSSA-licensed day care and has “extensive training on child care and safe sleeping environments.”
Davis had been known to DCS prior to the baby’s death. The boy had been born marijuana-positive and, on July 2, 2024, Davis had reportedly signed a “Safe Sleep Safety Plan,” acknowledging she understood that the safest places for her baby to sleep were in a crib, pack-and-play or bassinet and warned that co-sleeping places the baby at risk of suffocation and sleeping areas should be kept free of blankets, pillows and other items. The plan also included a provision that Davis not use marijuana while caring for her children, but she told investigators during an interview that, the morning of her baby’s death, she had gone downstairs to smoke marijuana and left the children alone upstairs.
Davis’ two other children were removed from the home, and interviews with them revealed that co-sleeping with the infant happened often.
Investigators say they attempted to contact Davis several times after talking to her children.
“She called me on February 18, 2025, and said she didn’t do anything wrong, her baby died of SIDS,” the detective wrote in the affidavit. “Brooklyn never came in for an additional interview.”
Court records indicate the case was filed in March 2026. Davis was booked into jail on April 1 on three counts of neglect of a dependent. An initial hearing was held on April 7, and a bail review hearing is planned for Monday.
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