Indiana
IU vs. Notre Dame a twist for those with dual loyalties in Hoosier State
SOUTH BEND, Ind. — Marcus Freeman spent his first two seasons as the Notre Dame coach chasing the playoff dream.
This year, he’s living it – at home.
ABC7 Chicago is now streaming 24/7. Click here to watch
After closing the regular season on a 10-game winning streak and getting two weeks to prepare for the most meaningful postseason game of his career, Freeman is finally ready to lead the seventh-seeded Fighting Irish against 10th-seeded Indiana on Friday.
“We’ve been in the playoffs since Week 3,” Freeman said, alluding to their postseason hopes following the stunning loss to Northern Illinois. “Every game we play is a version of a playoff game in our minds. We have to continue to understand that you don’t have any more added pressure than you’ve had the previous 10.”
Except the Irish (11-1) know this one is different.
ABC7 Sports Overtime with Dionne Miller
Notre Dame hasn’t made a national championship run since 1988, its longest title drought since winning the school’s first in 1924. And unlike previous playoffs, the Irish will be playing the first game on campus in College Football Playoff history.
Just how unusual will this environment be?
It’s the first time Notre Dame has hosted a postseason game, the first time Notre Dame Stadium has hosted a Friday night game and the first time since 1990 that a Notre Dame home game has not been telecast by NBC.
Still, the Irish are doing what they can to make this seem like just another football week.
“The hardest thing throughout this whole process has probably been finals here at Notre Dame because that’s no joke,” quarterback Riley Leonard said. “Otherwise, it’s like a couple of bye weeks for us. We handle it the same way. Practice has been the same, the same recipe for success.”
But the stakes are significantly higher in this matchup between the two Indiana schools that have met just once since 1959. Notre Dame won 49-27 in 1991.
No. 9 Indiana (11-1) is the most improbable playoff entrant.
Associated Press Coach of the Year Curt Cignetti engineered an eight-game turnaround in his first season with the Hoosiers, setting a new single-season school record for victories while falling just a tiebreaker short of playing for its first Big Ten title since 1967.
The Hoosiers are scoring 43.3 points, the most of any playoff team, and have one of the FBS’ stingiest defenses, too. And even though Indiana failed its only test against a ranked foe, the Hoosiers believe that loss will help them do what most still believe impossible – reaching the Sugar Bowl for a quarterfinal game against No. 2 seed Georgia.
“It was a tough loss, but I think it was really important for us to have a game like that, to be tested and know what it takes to win these games,” quarterback Kurtis Rourke said, referring to the 38-15 loss at then-No. 2 Ohio State last month. “This is a win or go home kind of setup, so we’re going to have to make sure that we come with our best effort.”
They also may have one key advantage – postseason experience.
Cignetti and many of his assistant coaches were together for FCS and Division II playoff teams, and Cignetti also has that national championship ring from his days as Alabama coach Nick Saban’s recruiting coordinator.
“Well, I am kind of used to this routine,” Cignetti said. “But I don’t think it’s a major change for any of the coaches, to be quite honest with you, that are in the playoff.”
Cross talk
Notre Dame’s defense has been one of the best all season despite a rash of injuries, including two that took out preseason All-Americans.
But one of those, defensive tackled Howard Cross III, is expected to return Friday after missing the final three regular season games. There’s little doubt Cross will be fresh, nearly six weeks after suffering the high ankle sprain. The question is will he be rested or rusty?
“I feel physically, fine,” Cross said. “So I’m just happy, blessed to be able to get on the field.”
Staying ahead
Indiana didn’t just win games this season. It dominated opponents.
Ten of the Hoosiers 11 wins were by 14 or more points and they faced deficits in only three games and only once in the second half. But even if that’s not the same story underneath the Friday night lights, the Hoosiers insist they’re ready for any challenge.
“We know we’re supposed to be here, we know we belong, but we’re always going to have that chip (on our shoulder),” Indiana receiver Elijah Sarratt said. “We remember what everyone was saying during the season and remember what everyone is saying now. We’re going to go down there, focus on us and try to handle business.”
Running down a dream
The most telling matchup Friday will be Notre Dame’s ground game against Indiana’s defense.
The Irish offense has centered primarily around a three-pronged running attack that features Leonard, Jeremiyah Love and Jadarian Price.
Indiana, meanwhile, leads the nation in fewest yards rushing per game allowed (70.8) and the 2.46 yards per carry allowed is second best in FBS. Even in their loss, Ohio State rushed 29 times for just 115 yards. So the Hoosiers know where they must begin if they hope to advance.
“We’ve got to stop the run,” all-Big Ten linebacker Aiden Fisher said. “That’s something we’re very prideful in here as a defense and something that they are really good on offense. It’s going to be a really good matchup.”
Tailgating
Fans have been waiting a long time for this kind of game, and some of them got a jump start on the fun Friday morning.
Some set up their tailgates as the snow fell early Friday morning in South Bend.
They’ve been partying all day.
In the shadow of Notre Dame stadium, there’s food, fandom and unparalleled excitement.
“I’ve been coming to games here my entire life. My dad went here, and I would say, like, the atmosphere here right now is more electric and more energized than it’s ever been before,” Notre Dame student and Elmhurst resident Kevin Kelley said.
It’s an early Christmas gift for fans of Notre Dame and Indiana, who are there to witness the history-making game.
“Everybody is just 10 out of 10 excited, 10 out of 10, like, it’s amazing, vibes are amazing. I love it,” Notre Dame student Libby Schuster said.
The Kaplans of Deerfield are cheering for the Hoosiers.
“There’s a huge Chicago population of Indiana fans. There’s a huge Chicago population of Notre Dame fans,” IU alumnus from Deerfield Jeffrey Kaplan said.
It’s almost like the Crosstown Classic East.
“My mom’s rooting for Indiana. My dad’s rooting for Notre Dame. I’ve got Notre Dame. My sister’s got Indiana. It is. It just really is,” Notre Dame fan Jack Carretta said.
And for South Bend businesses used to the season being done in November, the game is a financial windfall. Bars and restaurants along Eddy Street are bustling.
At Hammes Notre Dame Bookstore, folks were snapping up merchandise.
“Today, we were getting all the warm gear, and we’re going to come back tomorrow to get all the fun stuff, the stuff that we can’t take into the stadium, the stuff we’re taking home,” Notre Dame alumnus Meg Dunn said.
ABC7 Chicago’s Dionne Miller and Eric Horng contributed to this report.
Copyright © 2024 ESPN Internet Ventures. All rights reserved.
Caitlin Clark and the Indiana Fever continued their 2026 WNBA regular season with a 100-84 loss against the Portland Fire on Saturday, May 30.
Clark, a former Iowa women’s basketball star, and the Fever are 4-4 after the first eight games of the regular season.
Advertisement
Here’s a look at how Clark fared in Saturday’s game in Portland:
Caitlin Clark stats today in Indiana Fever vs Portland Fire
Former Iowa Hawkeyes star Megan Gustafson scored a game-high 22 points for Portland in the Saturday victory.
Former Iowa State Cyclones star Bridget Carleton scored 14 points for the Fire.
Caitlin Clark, Indiana Fever upcoming games
This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Caitlin Clark’s stats in Indiana Fever vs Portland Fire today
MOORESVILLE, Ind. (WISH) — A Mooresville police officer was involved in a “serious crash,” Saturday afternoon, officials say.
According to a Facebook post made by the Mooresville Fire Department, officers are advising the public to avoid the area of the 200 block of East Main Street due to a “serious crash” involving a Mooresville Metropolitan Police officer.
East Main Street is currently closed between Maple Lane and Franklin Street.
Police say the roads will remain closed while a crash investigation is being conducted.
Police did not provide details on the officer’s condition.
This is a developing story.
The resort area of southwest Michigan along Lake Michigan is wildly popular with Chicagoans in summer and fall for good reason. The coastal stretch offers sophisticated dining and shops, breweries, wineries, beaches, sunsets on Lake Michigan and a vacation vibe wherever you go.
If you haven’t been in a couple of years, you’ll find Indiana’s coast, home of the Indiana Dunes National Park and Indiana Dunes State Park, is worth more than a hiking or gas-station stop.
Though the towns along the lake are small and don’t have centers of commerce, many exciting new places have sprung up on U.S. Route 12, the scenic drive that skirts the lake’s edge.
Beverly Shores and Michigan City, Ind.
Miles from Chicago: 54
Sadly, the orange Studebaker that for years served up excellent wood-fired pizza is no longer parked in Beverly Shores, a small lake community famous for its collection of historic homes from the 1933-34 Chicago World’s Fair. The only way to get a South Shore Ovenworks pie now is to reserve the food truck for a private event.
Console yourself with shopping. The founder and former owner of Cowboys and Astronauts, a men’s store in Andersonville, has opened Blanket Fort (1 E. Dunes Highway), a design studio and shop in Beverly Shores. Matthew Buccilla describes his style as “vintage modern meets-cozy cabin-meets Japanese wabi-sabi.” His bona fides include designing spaces around the world for furniture maker Herman Miller. Blanket Fort, located in a cool midcentury building, is open the first and third weekends of the month.
The Heron, a French restaurant in Michigan City, Ind.
Neighboring Michigan City has seen an explosion of new restaurants, including The Heron (522 Franklin St.) which thankfully has strayed from the usual New American/Italian playbook and instead focuses on French food. A great happy hour from 4-6 p.m. (even Fridays!) features $10 martinis and deeply discounted wine and beer.
Up the street is Rocco’s Tavern (827 Franklin St.) from the family who owns Cafe Farina next door and Farina’s Supper Club in Michiana. Rocco’s makes you feel like you’re in a Rush Street steakhouse.
Interior of Rocco’s Tavern in Michigan City, Ind.
A reservation-only 12-seat Lebanese restaurant, C.12, (132 E. 6th St.) just opened in the lower level of a 100-year-old Masonic Temple. It’s owned by longtime area restaurateur Momahed “Moe” Mroueh. Diners sit around a horseshoe-shaped counter with an open kitchen. There’s one seating a night, offering a prix-fixe tasting menu ($65).
Also below ground is The Nightingale (1108 Franklin St.), a moody spot with small lamp-lit tables, great old-school cocktails, and live music, mostly jazz and blues. It’s open only occasionally so check before you go.
Cellar Door (1901 Franklin St.) opened last year in an historic building that once housed Harmony Bar. Cellar Door is everything you want in a classic neighborhood tavern — friendly service, carved wooden bar, games (10-pin bowling! Vintage pinball!), patio — and then add good wine and creative food. The head bartender and chef came from the well-regarded Hummingbird Lounge in New Buffalo.
A few new shopping options have popped up in Michigan City, too: The Wren (410 Wabash St.), a gift shop with a focus on sustainable, natural products, is across from Lighthouse Place Outlet Mall. Abigail Hayden Interiors & Design (607 Franklin St.) is a charming shop in the Arts District, filled with home accessories and art, as well as the owner’s own line of upholstered furniture.
The Standard 1208 in Michigan City, Ind.
The Standard 1208 (1208 E. Second St. at U.S. 12), formerly called Unsalted No Sharks and located in downtown Michigan City, has opened in an old Standard Oil station across from Burn ’Em Brewing (1215 E. Second St.). In addition to cool gifts and souvenirs, The Standard serves Italian sub sandwiches, great for taking to the beach. A second location just opened in New Buffalo (19 N. Whittaker St.).
Michiana, Ind.
Miles from Chicago: 67
The bar at Tavern on Twelve in Michiana, Ind.
Heading north on Route 12, Swells: A Dive Bar (3201 U.S. 12), cooks up four kinds of pizza: tavern style, Detroit style, deep dish and hand-tossed (New York style) and manages to do it all extremely well. There are soups, salads and sandwiches, too. It’s the sort of place where groups come to watch their team on TV. A dive bar with Veuve Clicquot on the menu? Sign me up.
Just up the road is Tonelli’s Tavern on Twelve (3103 U.S. 12), from the owner of Michigan City’s popular Tonelli’s, which closed a few years ago. This property has hosted a few restaurants in recent years (Blind Pig, Trip’s Tree House), but Tonelli’s seems to have found a groove in its 12 months in business, serving up classic Italian red-sauce fare at decent prices.
New Buffalo and Union Pier, Mich.
Miles from Chicago: 70
Farmette, a provisions store on the outskirts of New Buffalo
Across the border in Michigan, you might think not much changes in the little towns along Red Arrow Highway save for the time change. But many new restaurants and shops have opened, and a couple of longtime favorites have shuttered.
Just past all the new cannabis dispensaries on Route 12 (some 18 or so with more on the way), Farmette (18439 U.S. 12) on the outskirts of New Buffalo has become an instant favorite, with an in-house bakery specializing in sourdough, a coffee and drinks bar, and specialty food shop with a well-stocked freezer and refrigerator case, as well as produce and flowers in season (much of it grown on site). The owner tended Rick Bayless’ garden in Chicago once upon a time.
New Buffalo is home to arguably the hottest restaurant along this coast: PostBoy (207 N. Whittaker St.), which opened in fall of 2024. Heading the kitchen is James Galbraith, who founded Benton Harbor’s foodie favorites Houndstooth and Anemel. Galbraith previously worked under Chicago chefs at Intro, Blackbird, Elske, S.K.Y., Bellemore, and Boka. There’s a hopping patio and indoor/outdoor bar; be sure to reserve ahead. This place gets jammed.
If you’re looking for food to take to your Airbnb or vacation home, Angela’s Provisions (225 N. Whittaker St.) has homemade soups, pastas, breakfast and lunch sandwiches and salads, made to order or stocked in the fridge/freezer case.
Bookshore in New Buffalo, Mich.
The perfect hostess gift for discerning hosts is at Bookshore, which features big, gorgeous art books meant for a coffee table — or any surface. It’s owned by the same family that runs the popular tourist draw Stray Dog restaurant.
Harbor Country’s biggest news lately was the closing of Greenbush Brewing Company in Sawyer, a popular spot for 12 years. But beer lovers have other options.
The newest of the lot, which opened last fall, is Mangata Beer Co. (15936 Red Arrow Highway) in Union Pier, a sister operation of the award-winning Transient Artisan Ales (4229 Lake St.) in Bridgman. This tasting room focuses on easy-drinking, lower-alcohol beers such as pilsners, lagers, saisons and Belgian ales, all created at Transient’s brewhouse.
Sawyer and Three Oaks, Mich.
Miles from Chicago: 80
Longstory, a restaurant in Three Oaks, Mich.
Fulcra Brewing Company (13400 Red Arrow Highway) opened last July in a two-room bungalow in Sawyer, the dream of two home brewers (one a Dark Matter Coffee alum.) Fulcra focuses on balanced, drinkable brews. A beer garden has just opened; look for live music, food trucks or restaurant pop-ups, the owners say.
Three Oaks saw the closing of its popular pizza take-out, Patellie’s, last winter. But while pizza lovers mourned the loss, the owners used the space to expand their wine and beer store. P.+E. Bottle Shop (28 N. Elm St.) now carries cheese, bread, crackers, olives and prepared food — all the stuff that goes great with wine. And speaking of wine, there’s now a much-expanded selection of wine and craft beer.
For breakfast or lunch, two Chicago transplants have reopened the popular Viola Cafe (102 N. Elm St.), which was closed for a few years. Along with their chef, former Chopping Block owner Shelley Young, they’ve put a Southern twist on it. Think po’ boys, beignets, meat loaf, greens, fried green tomatoes and mac ’n’ cheese alongside breakfast classics.
Three Oaks had not had a stylish dinner spot for dinner until recently, with the opening of Longstory (8 Maple St.) in December 2024. The restaurant has had some bumps, with chef changes and the like, but is popular with locals, who gather for happy hours and order from the New-American-with-an-accent menu of chicken shawarma, Tuscan kale salad, polenta torte, grilled fish, New York strip, roasted beets and more.
Inside the popular boutique Goods & Heroes (7 Maple St.), a former clearance room has become a store within a store, GH Yarn Haus, which specializes in natural fibers and holds knitting get-togethers and classes.
Dreihart Winery, a wine tasting room, in Three Oaks, Mich.
A small wine tasting room (capacity: 25) opened in spring 2025 just off Three Oaks’ main drag. Dreihart Winery (6 Linden St. E.) is an offshoot of 6 Linden, which sells local meat, produce, eggs and cheeses, along with imported pastas and such. Winemaker Gottfried Hart, a charming man with a few stories to tell, is usually pouring. A former co-owner of Hickory Creek Winery in Buchanan, he’s one of several area winemakers who understands that Michigan can produce dry, complex wines similar to those from Austria and his native Germany. Grab some smoked trout rillette to pair with your wine.
Jan Parr, a former Chicago journalist, lives in the middle of the Indiana Dunes, in Beverly Shores. She writes about local happenings at DunesDiva.com.
-
Tennessee3 minutes agoNashville’s Eastpoint Neighborhood groundbreaking marks largest affordable housing project in Tennessee
-
Texas10 minutes agoAndy Beshear says ‘Texas is in play’ for Democrats after Ken Paxton’s Senate GOP primary win
-
Utah13 minutes agoA Utah Utes coach was ‘too negative’ with his players. Here’s how he’s changing his approach now.
-
Vermont18 minutes agoCheck out the 2026 Vermont Principal’s Association softball playoff pairings for the Franklin County!
-
Virginia25 minutes agoMass. family, Worcester woman identified as victims in deadly Virginia bus crash
-
Washington28 minutes agoWorkers killed in chemical vat implosion at Washington paper mill identified; 11 dead
-
Wisconsin33 minutes agoSmith: A celebration of wild turkeys and the people who brought them back
-
West Virginia40 minutes agoStarting Lineups + Live Score Updates for West Virginia vs. Wake Forest
