Sports
Indiana edges Michigan to reach 10 wins, likely Playoff and wants more: What is this world?
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — Indiana junior receiver Elijah Sarratt, a zero-star recruit as a high schooler in Virginia, delivered a figurative roasting to Michigan sophomore cornerback and former four-star recruit Jyaire Hill, leaving him behind in the open field and cruising under a 36-yard touchdown pass from Kurtis Rourke.
Indiana junior defensive end Mikail Kamara, a zero-star recruit as a high schooler in Virginia, got between Michigan senior right guard Giovanni El-Hadi and sophomore right tackle Evan Link and right into the face of quarterback Davis Warren. Both of those Wolverines linemen came out of their prep careers with four stars next to their names, and both were needed to deal with Kamara. Eight stars vs. none. None won.
Indiana, the losingest major college football program, beat Michigan, the winningest, 20-15 on Saturday in front of 53,082 reborn ignorers of November basketball at Memorial Stadium. That’s 10 wins for the first time in Indiana history. That’s 11 wins all-time against Michigan in 73 tries. That’s the one that makes it hard to come up with a scenario in which first-year coach Curt Cignetti and his Hoosiers aren’t among the teams selected for the first 12-team College Football Playoff.
And I swear to you, as sure as Bob Knight could chuck a chair, these people were acting like they had to answer for something Saturday.
“I’m glad we won,” Cignetti said. “I’m not happy with the way we played.”
He said that a few ways while commending his defense and his team for being “gutty,” and he did so after he was asked about the little bit of emotion he let show in the on-field interview with CBS after it ended — while Indiana students stood happily in the stands and didn’t rush the field, because apparently beating the defending national champion is just what they do around here now.
Those couple of seconds on the field to take it all in, some of the smiles Cignetti shared with family members and friends as he walked past the massive IU weight room toward the presser, the fact close to 20 family members and friends crowded into the place … these are the hints of a gigantic moment.
Cignetti and his No. 8 Hoosiers (7-0 Big Ten) weren’t going to say it, not after they let a 17-3 first-half lead over the disappointing Wolverines (5-5, 3-4) dissolve into the need to stop a tying two-point conversion and another U-M drive in the fourth quarter, which the IU defense did. Indiana was supposed to roll over this Quick Lane Bowl-looking Michigan team, as Indiana has rolled over everyone, and that’s not what happened.
Have covered 7-8 Indiana football games. Tailgating scene today tops all of them combined. Bad photo that doesn’t tell the story notwithstanding. pic.twitter.com/HqmoweWGmm
— Joe Rexrode (@joerexrode) November 9, 2024
That’s fine, Hoosiers. There’s a Big Ten championship in play. The game of the season up next, at No. 2 Ohio State after a well-timed week off. So the fact that The Athletic’s Austin Mock has the Hoosiers at 92 percent to make the Playoff and their regular-season finale is against wretched rival Purdue needn’t prompt any public exhales. Especially after this version of Michigan outplayed Indiana in the second half.
But we outside the program don’t have to play ball. We can rub our eyes and shake our heads and laugh almost uncomfortably at the fact we are asking as a college football nation in November whether these Hoosiers have quite enough to win a national championship.
We’re wondering how Michigan hung so tough with Indiana. We’re giving the Wolverines a nice pat on the back for doing so, and gee, what if coach Sherrone Moore didn’t forfeit 31 seconds before taking a timeout late or spend much of the second half proceeding as if just trying to avoid a blowout? After the news conferences on Saturday, back up in the press box, people were watching the Alabama–LSU game and talking about how it might affect IU’s Playoff draw like that’s a normal thing to discuss.
Are we in The Upside Down? How far away from Bloomington is Hawkins, Ind., the supernatural setting for “Stranger Things”?
We can be amazed. We can be enthralled, too. Because Indiana football in 2024 reminds us that this sport is not just math and science. If it were, the Hoosiers wouldn’t have dominated play in the first half and searched for answers after a wobbly second. They would have been trucked like most Indiana teams through the decades against most Michigan teams.
The 247Sports Team Talent Composite, which assesses rosters based on recruiting rankings, tells us Michigan, having lost a lot from last year’s Jim Harbaugh-led natty, is still No. 5 in the Big Ten and No. 16 nationally. Indiana is No. 16 in the Big Ten and No. 57 nationally. There’s a talent chasm between these teams.
Go by the starting lineups and Michigan’s offense averaged 3.45 stars — despite zero-star quarterback and former walk-on Warren — and its defense averaged 3.73 stars. Indiana’s offense averaged 2.81 stars, and its defense averaged 2.0 stars. So, yeah, Michigan is nearly one star per player better with its defense on the field against Indiana’s offense — even without its best player, injured cornerback and five-star Will Johnson — and we’re asking how the Wolverines got all these stops.
Eight of Indiana’s starting 22 on Saturday, Sarratt and Kamara among them, played for Cignetti at James Madison. Players elevate from Group of 5 programs to Power 4 leagues and make a mark frequently. But a whole slew of James Madison players, and a former Mid-American Conference quarterback, threatening a hostile takeover of the Big Ten?
Recruiting rankings mean something, of course, and correlate in bulk with program success, but they say nothing of how a player will grow and work and fit into a scheme. These evaluations say nothing about how people will get along. Or how they will be coached and developed. They can’t predict choices made in a dorm room on a Thursday evening when happy hour beckons but a young man hits the squat press or the books instead.
It’s not just science and math, it’s art. And an Indiana program known for bad replicas of “Dogs Playing Poker” is getting calls from the folks at the Guggenheim.
Yes, Saturday might have offered a glimpse of potential struggles ahead against the best in the sport for this team, which still hasn’t played a great one. The loss of left guard Drew Evans — another zero-star recruit turned excellent player — to an Achilles injury in practice last week can’t be ignored in Michigan’s four sacks and frequent second-half pressures. The math says Indiana’s depth is tenuous.
Yet the way Saturday’s game went should be good for Indiana. For one thing, no one will be screaming disrespect on behalf of the Hoosiers when Tuesday’s rankings come out. More likely, they will question why Indiana is as high as it is. There’s no doubt Cignetti will love and use that.
And he just saw his players face unwanted pressure and respond to it. The defense did it over and over again. The special teams made an enormous play, Ke’Shawn Williams’ 22-yard punt return to the Michigan 39 to set up a Nicolas Radicic field goal for breathing room. Rourke made a crucial throw to get IU close enough and later ran for the first down on a read-option keeper that finally enabled victory formation.
“We knew eventually we’d come to a game that would be close and we’d have to see what we’re made of,” Rourke said.
“When you’re a good team and you stay confident, stay poised in those moments, you know, no moment is too big,” Williams said.
Enjoy it for 24 hours. Watch the film. Make improvements. The Hoosiers sounded like any other winning team involved in any other championship chase Saturday. Williams did, however, acknowledge that he looked around in the final seconds at that crowd and thought: “This is crazy.”
It was. And it is.
“I can’t say enough about these guys,” Cignetti said. “I don’t throw many bouquets out there; you guys know that. But these guys have accomplished quite a bit.”
No, he doesn’t throw bouquets. He takes clay that is not supposed to be of premium quality and molds it into something very much of premium quality. Leonardo da Cignetti said he’s going to take a much-needed day off Sunday. Then it’s back to the masterpiece.
(Photo of Zach Horton and Elijah Sarratt: James Black / Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
Sports
Dawn Staley gives classy answer after Geno Auriemma question following national title loss: ‘It’s UCLA’s day’
NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!
South Carolina head coach Dawn Staley was disappointed how the Gamecocks’ season ended on Sunday afternoon in Phoenix, a 79-51 loss to the UCLA Bruins in the national championship game.
During her post-game interview, Staley was asked about what happened in the Gamecocks’ prior Final Four matchup against UConn, where she and head coach Geno Auriemma had a tense exchange after South Carolina advanced to the title game for the third year in a row.
Rather than hash out more of her thoughts, Staley had a classy response.
Head coach Dawn Staley of the South Carolina Gamecocks watches during the first half of the NCAA women’s basketball championship game against the UCLA Bruins at Mortgage Matchup Center in Phoenix, Ariz., on April 5, 2026. (Ben Solomon/NCAA Photos)
“I don’t want – this is UCLA’s day, right? Let’s keep it UCLA, them winning the national championship,” Staley told reporters, via The Athletic. “… We’re not going to damper UCLA’s day with it.”
Before this national title contest, Staley was spotted having a cordial experience greeting UCLA Bruins head coach Cori Close — a much different experience than how Friday night ended with Auriemma.
UCLA WINS FIRST WOMEN’S BASKETBALL NATIONAL TITLE IN PROGRAM HISTORY WITH DOMINANT WIN OVER SOUTH CAROLINA
After the Gamecocks defeated the Huskies, Staley and Auriemma went viral with their interaction at midcourt, where Auriemma appeared to enrage Staley before walking off.
This time, Staley and Close hugged and shared a few words. During the exchange, Staley “looked around afterward like, ‘see??’”, per NBC Sports.
Staley was showing a bit of sarcasm, as she noted Auriemma didn’t shake her hand before the Final Four tipped off between the two teams on Friday night.
After the Gamecocks’ victory over the Huskies, Staley was asked what exactly happened with Auriemma, though she tried to explain her focus in helping her team lock in for the national title game. If they won, it would’ve been the fourth national championship in the last 10 years for South Carolina.
Head coach Cori Close of the UCLA Bruins watches during the first quarter against the South Carolina Gamecocks in the NCAA women’s basketball national championship at Mortgage Matchup Center in Phoenix, Ariz., on April 5, 2026. (Christian Petersen/Getty Images)
“For me, no distractions at this time. I’m concentrating on winning a national championship, that’s it,” Staley said at the time. “That’s a little disheartening. This is sports, sometimes things like this happen. Continue to focus on my team and ability to advance in this tournament and hopefully win another national championship.”
UCONN’S UNDEFEATED SEASON CRUMBLES AS SOUTH CAROLINA GETS SWEET REVENGE AGAINST REIGNING CHAMPS
Auriemma later released a statement, apologizing for his behavior after the loss.
“There’s no excuse for how I handled the end of the game vs. South Carolina. It’s unlike what I do and what our standard is here at Connecticut,” the Hall of Fame coach said in a statement on Saturday. “I want to apologize to the staff and the team at South Carolina. It was uncalled for in how I reacted. The story should be how well South Carolina played, and I don’t want my actions to detract from that. I’ve had a great relationship with their staff, and I sincerely want to apologize to them.”
Staley added she had “no idea” why Auriemma was angry after the game, though she guessed perhaps he was ticked off by the lack of handshake before the game on his own end. Either way, Staley was moving forward.
UCLA Bruins head coach Cori Close shakes hands with South Carolina Gamecocks head coach Dawn Staley after defeating South Carolina 79-51 in the NCAA women’s championship game at Mortgage Matchup Center in Phoenix, Ariz., on April 4, 2026. (Ronaldo Bolaños/Los Angeles Times)
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP
“I don’t know what he came with after the game, but, hey, sometimes things get heated. We move on,” she said.
For UCLA, it was the first time the women’s basketball program has won the national title, as their emotional celebration ensued following the game in Phoenix.
Follow Fox News Digital’s sports coverage on X and subscribe to the Fox News Sports Huddle newsletter.
DALLAS — The Lakers are as shorthanded as they can be, their dynamic starting backcourt of Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves out with injuries at a pivotal time of the season.
They’re the offensive engines for a Lakers team battling for the No. 3 playoff seeding in a competitive Western Conference.
The 41-year-old LeBron James is now driving the Lakers, and despite falling just a rebound shy of a triple-double, he couldn’t save the Lakers from a 134-128 loss to the Dallas Mavericks on Sunday at American Airlines Center.
James had 30 points, 15 assists and nine rebounds. Luke Kennard delivered his first career triple-double with 15 points, 16 rebounds and 11 assists.
Dallas rookie Cooper Flagg, coming off a 51-point performance against Orlando on Friday, finished with 45 points, nine assists and eight rebounds. He scored 19 points in the first quarter.
“Obviously, Cooper is in a zone over the last couple of games,” James said. “But [he] also has been playing consistent basketball all year so it’s great to see him from early in the season to where he is today.”
For the Lakers, finding ways to win without two of their best players will be their challenge over the final week of the season.
“We’ve got to have the commitment to do it on both ends and that’s the reason that we’ve put ourselves in the position to be in the playoffs,” Redick said, “because we became a really good offensive team and a really good defensive team.”
Doncic was diagnosed with a Grade 2 left hamstring strain and will be out the remainder of the regular season — maybe even longer.
Doncic’s agent, Bill Duffy of WME Sports, confirmed to The Times that his client will seek specialized treatment for his injury in Europe with the hopes of speeding up his recovery.
Reaves was diagnosed with a Grade 2 left oblique muscle injury and will be out for the rest of the regular season, and likely into the playoffs. The time frame for Reaves’ return is more like four-to-six weeks, according to a person with knowledge of the situation not authorized to speak on the matter.
Dallas Mavericks forward Cooper Flagg, left, drives against Lakers guard Bronny James during the second half Sunday.
(LM Otero / Associated Press)
“I took my nap after practice and I woke up with that news and it was like another shot to the [head],” James said about Reaves’ diagnosis. “It was a shot to the heart, obviously, and to the chest and to the mainframe with Luka, understanding that.”
Even Marcus Smart, known for his competitiveness and defensive tenacity, missed his seventh straight game with right ankle soreness.
With Doncic and Reaves out, the Lakers lose a combined 56.8 points per game and 13.8 assists per game. Doncic is fourth in the NBA in assists, with 8.3 per game, and he’s second on the Lakers in rebounding, at 7.7 per game.
“We knew that Austin was likely going to be out for a little bit of time,” Redick said. “Obviously, disappointed and devastated for him to have his regular season finish this way. … Both those guys are going to try to come back and it’s our job to extend the season so that they can come back.”
The Lakers have four regular-season games left, starting with Oklahoma City on Tuesday at Crypto.com Arena. They play at Golden State on Thursday before facing the Phoenix Suns in L.A. on Friday.
The Lakers are tied with the Denver Nuggets for third in the West at 50-28, although the Lakers own the tiebreaker. The NBA playoffs starts the weekend of April 18.
With that in mind, Redick was asked if he had an optimistic view of Doncic being back for the playoffs.
“I just know that he’s gonna do everything he can to try to be back,” Redick said. “I talked to him Friday. I talked to him again yesterday. I talked to him again this morning. He’s going to go through all the necessary things to be back at some point, and it’s our job again to extend the season so both those guys can get back.”
NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!
The Chainsmokers, the electronic music duo, performed in between Final Four games on Saturday night at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, marking the first-ever Final Four concert for the NCAA Tournament.
However, some fans, including prominent figures in sports, were not happy with the NCAA’s decision to have the performance happen in the first place.
Barstool Sports’ Dave Portnoy, ESPN’s Scott Van Pelt and others took their frustrations to social media, as they saw The Chainsmokers take the stage following UConn’s victory over Illinois in the first Final Four matchup at Lucas Oil Stadium.
The Chainsmokers perform between games during the Final Four of the 2026 NCAA men’s basketball tournament at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, Indiana, on April 4, 2026. (Patrick Smith/Getty Images)
“This Chainsmokers concert in between games is playing off like somebody lost a bet,” Portnoy tweeted on Saturday night. “I like the Chainsmokers but nothing has ever made less sense than this.”
One of the main reasons fans had an issue with the concert was the starting time for Michigan-Arizona, which was written as 8:49 p.m. ET. However, tipoff didn’t come until around 9:20 p.m., which was an hour after UConn-Illinois finished.
UCONN’S DAN HURLEY HEARS BOOS AFTER FINAL FOUR WIN OVER ILLINOIS
Portnoy is a well-known Michigan fan, so he was very glad to see the delay didn’t hurt his Wolverines in the end. But Van Pelt was also shocked to see the performance take place.
“Who asked for this?” he wrote on social media. A fan followed up in the comments, asking what he had against the Chainsmokers.
The Chainsmokers perform between games during the Final Four of the 2026 NCAA men’s basketball tournament at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, Indiana, on April 4, 2026. (Patrick Smith/Getty Images)
“Not one thing. Just an odd spot,” Van Pelt replied.
Michigan handled Arizona easily in its 91-73 win, leading by 30 points at one moment in the contest. They will take on UConn in the national championship game on Monday night at Lucas Oil.
Wolverines senior star Yaxel Lendeborg was injured in the victory, though he’s battling through a sprained MCL and an ankle injury. He was asked if there was any chance he would miss the national title game, to which he replied, “Absolutely not,” per Yahoo Sports.
Lendeborg played only 14 minutes, scoring 11 points with three rebounds and one assist.
The Chainsmokers perform between games during the Final Four of the 2026 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, Indiana, on April 4, 2026. (Patrick Smith/Getty Images)
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP
It was Aday Mara leading the charge for the Wolverines on the offensive end, as he drilled 11 of his 16 shots for 26 points with nine rebounds and three assists. Trey McKenney also added 16 points off the bench for Dusty May’s squad, including four made three-pointers.
Michigan makes a return to the national championship game for the first time since 2018, which they lost to Villanova, 79-62.
How a Family of 3 Lives on $25,000 in Corona, Queens
Trick Trick joined Waka Flocka onstage at ‘The Boys 4 Life Tour’ stop in Detroit – Detroit Metro Times
NFL Experts Continue to Link Former 49ers WR Back to San Francisco
What we learned in FC Dallas’ win vs DC United
Dolphins 7-Round 2026 NFL Mock Draft: Miami could catch the wave just right and get a monster draw in the top-50 picks
Florida High School Football Rankings: Top 25 teams – Oct. 21
How old is Bo Nix? What to know about Oregon quarterback ahead of 2024 NFL Draft
Cleary's 21 help Le Moyne down Central Connecticut State 69-64 in OT
99th annual Pony Swim held in Virginia
Indiana Members Credit Union announced as new anchor tenant at Bottleworks District
Trump threatens Iranian infrastructure over Strait of Hormuz | BBC News
GOP races to pass ICE, Border Patrol funding bill as priorities pile up, divisions emerge
Jet fuel crisis: Rationing triggered at four airports in Italy
NASA’s Artemis II crew readies for Monday’s lunar flyby. Here’s what you need to know
Tax day is next week: Avoid these 5 common mistakes that can cost you money
-
South-Carolina1 week agoSouth Carolina vs TCU predictions for Elite Eight game in March Madness
-
Atlanta, GA2 days ago1 teenage girl killed, another injured in shooting at Piedmont Park, police say
-
Vermont1 week agoSkier dies after fall at Sugarbush Resort
-
Movie Reviews4 days agoVaazha 2 first half review: Hashir anchors a lively, chaos-filled teen tale
-
Politics1 week agoTrump’s Ballroom Design Has Barely Been Scrutinized
-
Atlanta, GA1 week agoFetishist ‘No Kings’ protester in mask drags ‘Trump’ and ‘JD Vance’ behind her wheelchair
-
Entertainment4 days agoInside Ye’s first comeback show at SoFi Stadium
-
Politics1 week agoJD Vance says he was ‘obsessed’ with UFOs, believes aliens are actually ‘demons’