Florida
UConn, Dan Hurley will be underdogs vs. Florida, but Huskies still have some fight left
Duke win over Mount St. Mary’s makes coach and son emotional
Mount St. Mary’s coach Donny Lind takes to the podium with tears in his eyes, and let’s his son Silas speak on his experience in March Madness.
Sports Pulse
RALEIGH, N.C. – In the moments after his team survived a 67-59 rock fight of a first-round NCAA men’s basketball tournament game against Oklahoma, UConn coach Dan Hurley boiled the emotions down to the simplest possible terms.
“It feels normal,” Hurley told CBS’ Tracy Wolfson.
Well, yeah. In a way.
UConn, the back-to-back national champions, won a 13th straight NCAA Tournament game. That’s normal.
But the ugly, grinding way the Huskies needed to get it done?
Not normal – maybe in a good way.
“As much as our defense has plagued us throughout the year, it advanced us today,” Hurley said.
Also not normal? On Sunday, 8th-seeded UConn will be an underdog against No. 1 Florida. A big one. And if you read between the lines, it’s perhaps why Hurley was so proud to get out of the first round the way they did Friday.
Most likely, it’s coming to an end. And nobody knows that better than him.
“I think there’s honor in getting to the round of 32 and making someone put you down to end this run we’ve been on,” Hurley said. “If it wasn’t for all my antics and viral moments there would be more focus on what we’ve accomplished. It’s been an amazing run.”
The reason Hurley sounded like he was talking in the past tense is because he understands what he’s up against in Florida. When he watches the Gators, he sees a lot of what UConn had the last two years.
The multiple big men who crush you on the glass. The perimeter depth and waves of shooting. The relentlessness and precision in the way they execute. The aura and swagger of a team that knows it’s peaking at exactly the right time, almost on the exact same timeline as the Huskies two years ago when they were the trendy pick to win the title even though they hadn’t done it yet under Hurley.
Florida and 39-year-old coach Todd Golden still haven’t proven it. Maybe that gives the Huskies a chance. Maybe.
“The championship pedigree is still there for us,” Hurley said. “There’s a belief in the UConn jersey this time of year. Someone is going to have to put us down for us to go away.”
You saw a little of that against Oklahoma. UConn tried and tried to build a comfortable lead, couldn’t quite get it to double-figures, then watched it disappear completely as Sooners freshman guard Jeremiah Fears started to get rolling.
But with 3:39 remaining, one of the last remaining pieces of that championship pedigree made the shot that mattered. A bit earlier, Alex Karaban had passed up a 3-pointer in the corner only to get an earful from Hurley coming back to the bench for a timeout.
“I told him to shoot the (expletive) ball,” Hurley said.
“I wasn’t going to make that mistake again,” Karaban said.
And so with 3:39 left, even though he was a couple of steps behind the 3-point line, Karaban saw an opening and Fears coming a little too late to contest. So he let it fly. It hit the bottom of the net for a 60-56 lead, and that was all UConn needed on a night it went 6-of-25 from deep.
“When you play teams at this level, which is the best of the best in the tournament, the windows are tighter,” Hurley said. “You’re not going to get the perfect shot. The only way we’re going to win the game, especially with the way Liam (McNeeley) was shooting (1-for-8 from three), they were both struggling. We were on life-support and we needed one of them to step up and make some shots, and it was Alex.”
So UConn moves on. Probably just for two more days.
But after a season of angst and “suffering,” as Hurley put it, just to get to this point and win a first-round game was meaningful. Even for a coach whose mind is wired for perfection, it certainly sounded like it was enough.
The number of fatalities because of Brightline train collisions since 2017 unofficially stands at about 214, including 17 in 2026. The company says that is down 30% compared to 2025.
Nearly halfway through 2026, high-speed Brightline trains in Florida have now been involved in over 200 deaths since 2017, even as the company stresses its ongoing safety improvements.
The number of fatalities because of Brightline train collisions since 2017 unofficially stands at about 214, including 17 in 2026 according to media reports, law firms and third-party observers. The company says incidents, which include any contact a train has with another object, have dropped 30% compared with the same time last year.
The company also said it is in the midst of implementing a series of safety improvements using a $45 million federal grant, plus $10 million from Brightline itself. These include fencing, warning and suicide prevention signs and other installations at 327 crossings from Miami to Cocoa.
“These enhancements to the corridor, combined with our education and enforcement efforts, reflect our commitment to continually prioritizing safety and preventing avoidable incidents,” said Brightline Florida CEO Patrick Goddard in a news release.
It’s been well-established that privately owned Brightline, which runs from Miami to Orlando, has the highest death rate per mile traveled of any railroad in the U.S. As of 2025, that figure was 25 deaths per million miles, or about one person every 13 days.
In comparison, that per-mile number is three times higher than Tri-Rail (8.12 deaths per millions miles) and SunRail (8.04) and nearly six times higher than Amtrak (4.20), according to the Florida-based Meldon Law firm.
Where do most Brightline accidents happen in Florida?
In densely populated South Florida, the trains run at speeds of 79 mph or above, with a top speed of about 125 mph in open areas. The vast majority of fatalities occur in the stretch between Miami and West Palm Beach.
Some are suicides. Some are people in vehicles or on bicycles trying to beat the trains or stuck at a crossing. Others are people simply walking on the tracks, apparently unaware a speeding train approaches.
In two recent incidents, a 68-year-old bicyclist was killed May 26 after he was struck by a Brightline train in Stuart. On May 24, two people died when their car was hit by a train in West Palm Beach even though the crossing gate arms were down.
In urban Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach counties the trains run at grade level, meaning no elevation above the ground. There are also numerous “quiet zones” along the route where the trains do not sound their horns to avoid disturbing residents and businesses.
Where are the least amount of fatal Brightline train accidents in Florida?
The route from Cocoa to Orlando goes through a more rural area, with fewer crossings and 6-foot fencing along the tracks. In 27 months since that section opened, no fatal accidents have been recorded, according to an Orlando Sentinel analysis.
In the long term, Brightline hopes to connect Orlando with the Tampa Bay area. The timing for that proposed extension is uncertain.
What is Brightline’s financial situation?
As deaths continue to mount, so does debt.
The rail line lost more than $233 million in 2025 despite higher revenues than 2024, according to its annual financial statement, prepared by consulting firm Ernst & Young and released April 30.
“Substantial doubt exists about the company’s ability to continue as a going concern,” the firm wrote. Brightline acknowledged it lacks the money to pay off more than $5 billion in debt and interest on schedule.
At the same time, Brightline passengers’ average fares fell during first three months of this year compared to the first quarter of 2025, another company report shows, and its trains carried a quarterly record of more than 900,000 passengers.
Credit-rating agencies have said the company needs either much higher fares or ridership to stay solvent.
The Miami-to-Orlando train company made $214 million in 2025, an increase from about $188 million in 2024, the audit shows.
Palm Beach Post Staff Writer Chris Persaud contributed to this report.
Curt Anderson is the Policy and Politics Reporter for The USA TODAY NETWORK-FLORIDA. You can get all of Florida’s best content directly in your inbox each weekday day by signing up for the free newsletter, Florida TODAY at https://tallahassee.com/newsletters.
Push for Elevate Florida funding
Almost two years after Hurricane Helene, some people are still waiting to get back into their homes. They’ve been on hold waiting for help from the Elevate Florida program. FOX 13’s Kylie Jones reports.
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. – Some homeowners in St. Pete are still waiting for funding to raise their home after it flooded during Hurricane Helene.
One couple is still waiting for an update on their application to the Elevate Florida program — after about a year with no progress.
PREVIOUS: Thousands denied in first round of Florida’s new home elevation program
Elevate Florida program delays
What we know:
Jason and Carrie Nash’s home in Shore Acres had about four feet of water inside after Hurricane Helene. It solidified their decision to raise their home.
The Florida Division of Emergency Management opened the Elevate Florida program following Helene. The program is expected to cover approximately 75% of the costs to lift homes using federal grant money from FEMA. The homeowner would be expected to cover the remaining 25% of the cost.
The couple applied to the program and received an email last summer from Elevate Florida, saying the state had sent their application to FEMA for further review. Jason Nash says in November, they still hadn’t heard anything.
Mixed reactions as Shores Acres awaits ‘Elevate Florida’ decisions
He says they got an email from Elevate Florida in March, explaining that FEMA processing has been repeatedly delayed by factors outside the control of the Florida Division of Emergency Management and Elevate Florida. Last week, Pinellas County state lawmakers signed a letter to congressional leaders, calling on them to urge federal agencies to expedite the grant approval process.
“To put some more staffing, expedite the awards of these programs,” Rep. Lindsay Cross said.
Cross says that because the grant money being awarded is coming from federal funding, they don’t have direct control at the state level.
“Once that award comes, there’s still the stages of designing and permitting and getting people temporary housing in some cases,” she said.
According to the Elevate Florida website, federal grant requirements added extra review steps in June of last year, which could impact the timeline of the program.
St. Pete housing gridlock
What they’re saying:
Nash and his wife haven’t been able to live in their home for almost two years. The couple has been renting, while they wait to hopefully get awarded a grant from Elevate Florida.
“We not only have double rent, double bills, double everything, but on top of that, we’re paying for a storage unit to house all of our belongings in,” Nash said.
Nash says he’s reached out to leaders on the local, state and federal level, but feels like he isn’t getting answers.
“The worst thing that somebody can tell you in life is ‘Maybe’, because it still gives you hope,” he said. “And that’s all we’re getting, is ‘Maybes.’”
Stalled federal grant awards
What we don’t know:
It remains unclear exactly when FEMA will finalize the remaining applications. Nash says they received an email from Elevate Florida last week, saying 16 projects had been awarded funding, and that FEMA was continuing to award grants and would update homeowners.
FOX 13 reached out to the Florida Division of Emergency Management and is waiting for a response.
The other side:
On Monday night, a FEMA representative shared the following statement:
“FEMA obligates Hazard Mitigation Grant Program funds to the state, not homeowners directly. Elevate Florida is a state-managed mitigation program. Questions should be sent to the Florida Division of Emergency Management.”
FEMA also directed people to its latest updates on funding awarded in Florida here.
The Source: The information in this story was gathered from an interview with a St. Pete homeowner, an interview with Rep. Lindsay Cross, a letter written by state representatives from Pinellas County, the Elevate Florida website and a statement from FEMA.
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