Indiana
Jack’s Take: Omar Cooper Jr. Remained Loyal To Indiana – And It’s Paying Off
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – Before the season, Indiana’s wide receiver room was viewed as perhaps the best position group on the team. The main question was which receivers would become the top options in a deep room.
James Madison transfer Elijah Sarratt leads the group with 22 receptions and 378 yards through five games, but returning Hoosier Omar Cooper Jr. is close behind. The redshirt sophomore’s loyalty to Indiana through the coaching change has paid off, and the potential that many saw out of high school is being fulfilled in the Big Ten.
Cooper has emerged as one of the nation’s top wide receivers this season through five games. He ranks fourth among all qualified wide receivers in the FBS with an 88.3 receiving grade, per Pro Football Focus (PFF). His offense grade of 86.0 is close behind at No. 6 in the nation.
Cooper played a key role in a momentum-shifting drive on Saturday against Maryland. Despite a sloppy first half, Indiana still had a chance to take the lead going into halftime.
After a Mikail Kamara sack, the Hoosiers’ called a timeout and got the ball back on their own 37-yard line with 1:10 left in the second quarter. It faced little adversity throughout four dominant wins to begin this season, so this possession was perhaps the first glimpse at quarterback Kurtis Rourke and the Hoosiers in a pressure-packed situation with the game tied at 7-7.
A nine-yard completion to Ty Son Lawton started the drive, and Rourke found Cooper down the sideline on the next play. Cooper spun past the first Maryland defender, then smartly veered out of bounds to stop the clock after his 27-yard gain.
Facing press coverage on the next play, Cooper made a quick move near the line of scrimmage to get a step ahead of his defender. Rourke looked his way again down the right sideline, and Cooper turned around at the goal line to haul in the touchdown with a defender blanketed over him.
Rourke and Cooper have played just five games together, but the perfect timing looked like a quarterback-receiver duo that had been in sync for years. With back-to-back 27-yard completions to Cooper, Indiana needed just three plays and 32 seconds to score just before halftime and take a 14-7 lead.
“I know that Kurtis will always trust me,” Cooper said postgame. “So I just wanted to make sure that I did my best and made a play when the ball was in the air.”
Rourke threw two interceptions on Indiana’s first two drives, but he bounced back with a pair of touchdown drives in the second quarter.
“I think it was something that we wish would have happened sooner,” Rourke said of the touchdown drives. “But it was definitely really important to have some momentum going into half. Going into the second half, it brought a lot of confidence in me, and I know the rest of the offense, as well as the whole team. Our defense was playing great to that point, and so for us to capitalize finally was really important.”
Indiana’s offense looked past early mistakes and took control of the game in the second half. In seven second-half drives, Indiana scored four touchdowns, punted twice and fumbled once. The 28 second-half points helped the Hoosiers secure a 42-28 win over Maryland and their first 5-0 start since 1967.
Rourke completed passes to 10 Hoosiers on Saturday. Spreading the wealth is a consistent theme this season, but Cooper and Sarratt were his most frequent targets. Sarratt led the team with seven catches for 128 yards and a touchdown, and Cooper was next with four receptions for 83 yards and one touchdown.
Indiana coach Curt Cignetti said both receivers did a good job of winning their one-on-one matchups against press coverage, like on Cooper’s touchdown. Sarratt is beginning to prove himself at the Big Ten level after ranking 11th nationally in receiving yards in 2023 at James Madison, and Cooper is well on his way to a breakout season.
“I like my odds whenever I throw the ball in their area,” Rourke said. “I just gotta make sure they can get their hands on it, because they can make plays like they did today.”
Through five games, Cooper has already surpassed last season’s totals across nine games played. He has 16 receptions for 328 yards and three touchdowns in 2024, compared to 18 catches for 267 yards and two touchdowns this season.
Cooper’s breakout season does not come as a major surprise. It was only a matter of time for the 6-foot, 201-pound receiver.
At Lawrence North High School in Indianapolis, Ind., Cooper finished his career with 132 receptions for 2,856 yards, and 22 touchdowns. He was a two-time IFCA Top 50 all-state selection, and he was named the IFCA position award winner for wide receivers as a senior.
Cooper committed to Indiana under coach Tom Allen in the class of 2022, the highest-ranked class in program history at No. 25 in the nation, according to the 247Sports Composite rankings. As a four-star recruit ranked No. 299 in the nation and No. 43 among wide receivers, Cooper was the third-highest ranked recruit in that class and the 14th highest in program history.
As a true freshman, Cooper appeared in four games as a kick returner and maintained his redshirt eligibility. He showed flashes of potential in 2023, like his acrobatic catch against Michigan and his seven-catch, 101-yard performance against Indiana State.
But as Indiana’s offense sputtered for most of the season, Cooper would finish the year with just 11 more catches after the Indiana State game. His talent has always been there, and he feels offensive coordinator and wide receivers coach Mike Shanahan has helped him make small but meaningful tweaks to his game.
A big difference this season is his mentality.
“I think my confidence. Last year, at first I wasn’t playing as much so my confidence got pretty low,” Cooper said during fall camp. “This spring, coming into the year, I was just focusing on that and just trying to get better with that each and every day. That’s something that will help me with my role, and then just playing as hard as I can.”
Cooper has significant competition for snaps on a roster that includes plenty of talented wide receivers like Sarratt, Myles Price, Miles Cross, Ke’Shawn Williams, Donaven McCulley, Andison Coby and E.J. Williams Jr.
Part of what’s made that group effective is a rotation that keeps them all fresh, depth that discourages defenses from double-teaming anyone, and versatility that can beat opponents in a variety of ways.
That rotation likely won’t end, and it shouldn’t. But Cooper’s play through five games is making it hard to take him off the field.
Indiana
Severe storm risk into tonight through early Wednesday morning
INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — We are monitoring the potential for severe weather into early Wednesday morning.
Tornado Watch in effect until EDT midnight March 10, 2026, for Benton, Newton, and Jasper counties.
Tuesday night: Please make sure you have your safety plan on standby into tonight through pre-dawn Wednesday morning. There is now a level 4/5 severe risk in northwest Indiana. Much of central Indiana remains in a level 2/5 risk.
The risk for significant tornadoes (EF2+) and very large hail (2″+) is greatest north of I-70 with any discrete cell(s) that maintain their-selves into mainly northern Indiana. There is also potential for a max expected intensity of an EF-3+ tornado within much (if not all) of the level 3 & 4 risk zone.
This does not mean that every storm will produce a tornado of that magnitude. It is simply highlighting area of highest concern for the possibility of such occurrence.
Now, given a modestly unstable environment into the pre-dawn hours Wednesday with stronger wind flow aloft, all hazards will remain possible into central Indiana. The significant severe threat here is much lower.
Overall, you need to have multiple ways of being able to get alerts tonight. Do not be scared, be prepared and you will be ok.
Wednesday: Beyond sunrise Wednesday, we will continue to track more in the way of showers and storms. The main area of the strong-severe storm risk looks to shift mainly southeast of Indy with damaging winds the primary concern through the morning into afternoon hours.
Rainfall amounts through Wednesday may amount to 1-2″ with locally higher amounts.
Highs to occur earlier in the day with numbers in the mid to upper 60s. Non-thunderstorm winds will also be quite breezy with gusts up to 30-35 MPH.
Thursday: Be prepared for quite a temperature shift into Thursday. We will start the day off with temperatures in the low 30 with 20s wind chills. Yeah, that will not feel great considering our recent stretch of more mild days. Highs will only get into the upper 40s.
7-Day Forecast: We look to warm back up into this weekend, but it will come with more active weather and breezy winds. Friday will feature highs in the mid to upper 50s with wind gusts up to 25-30 MPH. Highs look to tick back into the low 60s Sunday with more chances for rain. Then, temperatures really take a tumble into next Monday with highs only in the 30s and a chance for a rain/snow mix.
Indiana
Future of Chicago’s Soldier Field Uncertain as Bears Eye Move to Indiana
Change could be coming to Chicago’s Soldier Field, a historic landmark initially designed as a memorial for American soldiers who died in combat. Opened in 1924, and home to the NFL’s Chicago Bears since 1971, the 102 year old venue’s future is uncertain as the team is exploring a new stadium, possibility across the Illinois state line in Hammond, Indiana.
“The fact that they’re even considering coming to Hammond versus keeping it in their own state says a lot about what we’re going to try to do to tell everyone Indiana is a place move your business,” said Governor Mike Braun (R-Indiana), in a televised news conference Monday, monitored by Military.com. The governor’s remarks addressed a range of issues related to the end of the state’s legislative session.
“We’re proud that we’ve put together a package to attract $2 Billion worth of investment from the Chicago Bears,” said the governor of Senate Bill 27, which he signed last week. “They’re now looking at Indiana as a place to actually bring that franchise.”
With a seating capacity of more than 100,000 spectators. Soldier Field is used not only for Bears games, but as a site for many other sporting events and exhibitions, including numerous Army-Navy games. But without an anchor sports team like the Bears, the stadium will likely be used less and Chicago could see less tax revenue.
Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson telling reporters Monday, the Bears were offered an opportunity to build a new stadium inside the city limits, as a way to stay in Illinois.
“We had an entire press conference, with a proposal on the lakefront two years ago,” Mayor Johnson said in a news conference. “How do you have an entire proposal with the Bears, with the city of Chicago, with labor, with the notion that somehow the greatest, the most fruitful, economic viable prime real estate anywhere in the state, anywhere in the region is somehow not suited?”
There’s another proposed site on the table. Illinois lawmakers in the House have advanced House Bill 910, which would lock in property tax rates at the former Arlington Racetrack, in Arlington Heights about 30 miles from Soldier Field. The Bears already own the land, but the bill is still in its early stages and already has some critics.
“It would shift [tax] liability directly onto homeowners and small businesses,” said Brian Costin, deputy state director of the Illinois chapter of Americans for Prosperity, in a statement to Military.com. “It could double or triple the effective property tax rates over the next few decades.”
For now, the Bears have not made a commitment to move to Indiana or stay in Illinois.
The Bears said in a statement, “Indiana has taken important steps over the last few months, and we are grateful for the leadership reflected by Governor Braun signing SB 27 establishing the framework for a stadium development in Northwest Indiana. We continue to work on the necessary due diligence and appreciate the .”ongoing engagement with Indiana state and local leaders.”
The team also addressed Illinois efforts to keep the team from leaving Soldier Field or Illinois altogether.
“We recognize and appreciate the advancement of mega project legislation by the Illinois House Revenue and Finance Committee,” said the statement from the Bears. “We look forward to continued engagement as the lawmakers determine the legislative path forward.”
In Indiana, Governor Braun hopes the better deal will be for the Bears to abandon Soldier Field for new digs across the Illinois border, in Hammond.
“We’ve identified a promising site near Wolf Lake in Hammond and established a broad framework for negotiating a final deal,” Braun said in a statement obtained by Military.com. “We have built a strong relationship with the Bears organization that will serve as the foundation for a public-private partnership, leading to the construction of a world-class stadium and a win for taxpayers.”
Indiana
Indiana Pacers Slide as 2026 NBA Draft Lottery Odds Rise
The Indiana Pacers are making a real argument to be the worst team in the NBA this season.
The Pacers could become the first team in the Eastern Conference to reach 50 losses this season if they don’t beat the Sacramento Kings tomorrow night. Power rankings across the internet have the Pacers and Kings as the bottom two teams in the league.
NBA.com, John Schuhmann (30, no change)
“With the Jazz beating the Wizards on Thursday and the Nets’ incredible comeback in Detroit over the weekend, the Pacers are the only team without a win (they’re 0-9) since the All-Star break. Seven of those nine losses have come against other teams with losing records,” Schuhmann wrote.
“The Pacers and Kings are now tied for the fewest wins (15), and they’ll meet for the second (and final) time on Tuesday, with the Pacers having won the first meeting (Dec. 8) behind 28 points and 12 assists from Nembhard. That’s the end of the Pacers’ four-game trip, and they’ll then return home and begin their only stretch of five games in seven days.”
The Athletic, Law Murray (30, no change)
“The Pacers are the only team in the league without a win since the All-Star break, so they’re comfortably nestled at the bottom of these rankings. Indiana was only regular bad for the third quarter of the season overall, though the interior defense has been slammed like brakes,” Murray wrote.
“If they don’t win Tuesday in Sacramento in the Tyrese Haliburton trade bowl, then they’ll have to go and upset a team that is trying to secure wins for the rest of the March schedule.”
Clutch Points, Brett Siegel (29, down 1)
“As soon as Tyrese Haliburton went down with his Achilles injury, everyone knew that the Indiana Pacers would be taking a step back. The decision for this to be a gap year and completely tank was made after several impactful players, like Obi Toppin, Aaron Nesmith, and Andrew Nembhard, all went down with injuries,” Siegel wrote.
“After all, a team that found success through its depth is nothing when all of its key talents are injured.
“The Pacers own the second-worst record in the NBA right now, giving them a real shot at getting the No. 1 pick in the 2026 NBA Draft. Remember, Indiana will keep their selection this season if it falls inside the top four, which have a 52.1 percent chance of happening.”
Overview
It’s hard to argue the Pacers not being in this position because they’ve only won 15 games so far this season. On top of that, their last victory came on February 11, which was the final game before the All-Star break.
This isn’t exactly a bad thing for the Pacers, however, because they need that first-round pick to return to them in the draft. If they get the wrong shake in the lottery, the Pacers could be forced to give up their first-round pick in this year’s draft to the Los Angeles Clippers as part of the Ivica Zubac trade.
The Pacers should use the rest of the season to figure out who fits in their system and develop their young players in hopes of some of them cracking the rotation for next season and beyond.
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