Northwestern coach says there was no Pearl Harbor sneak attack against IU football Have you ever seen a more bizarre start to a college football game than Northwestern at Indiana on Friday night? Before the first play from scrimmage, IU was whistled for two penalties related to “illegal snaps” by center Bray Lynch. 1st-and-10 became 1st-and-20. A furious Curt Cignetti called a timeout eight seconds into the game in an attempt to receive an explanation he says he was never given. And then of course Turbo Richard ran for 33 yards on the first play from scrimmage to deem the whole affair irrelevant. But Cignetti wasn’t finished with the sequence.
He opened his postgame press conference accusing Northwestern and the Big Ten of conspiring against his team in a sneak attack. The IU head coach believes the Wildcats turned in a notice to the league about something Lynch was doing with the ball pre-snap. “Was kind of a weird start,” Cignetti said. “We got Pearl Harbored the first two offensive plays, you know, when they called the penalty on the center. Obviously Northwestern must’ve turned something in none of us were aware of.” If Northwestern turned something in, the protocol is for the league to make Indiana aware. But Northwestern coach David Braun says not so fast my friend.
At his regular Monday press conference, Braun pleaded ignorance of any awareness of potential illegal snap tendencies by Lynch, or any communication with the Big Ten about it. “I’m not sure what was going on,” Braun said of the penalties. “We try to do our best as a coaching staff to educate our players. Now it’s a rule in college football that you can’t clap before the snap on defense because that’s used as cadence (by the offense). I don’t know if it was just a result of our linebackers and D-line just doing a really good job of communicating some of the calls.” While delivering a bit of a backhanded compliment, Northwestern head coach says he takes it as flattery Cignetti thought the Wildcats were that dialed into Lynch’s pre-snap tendencies. “That was a very un-Indiana-like to have those two false starts,” Braun said. “I appreciate coach Cignetti giving us credit, but I don’t know if we deserve that credit.”
Indiana University Wrestling Announces the 2026-27 Season Schedule The Indiana Wrestling program announced the team’s schedule for the 2026-27 season on Tuesday. The Hoosiers will compete in 14 dual matches and three tournaments in the regular season before the Big Ten and NCAA Championships in March. Indiana will hold its annual intrasquad match (wrestle-offs_ to unofficially start the 2026-27 campaign on Friday, October 30 at Wilkinson Hall.
The Hoosiers will officially open the regular season with a loaded weekend in Pennsylvania from Nov. 7-8. Indiana will face Lock Haven and Lehigh in dual matches as part of Journeymen WrangleMania on the 7th in Bethlehem, Pa. before competing in the Journeymen Collegiate Classic tournament the next day. Following that weekend, Indiana will head north for a dual at Central Michigan on Nov. 15 before hosting Oklahoma on Nov. 20 on the following Friday. Indiana will compete in SIUE’s Cougar Clash tournament on Dec. 6 and then head east for two duals as it heads to Rider (Dec. 20) and Brown (Dec. 22). The Ken Kraft Midlands Championships from Dec. 29-30 in Evanston, Ill. will be Indiana’s last event before getting into the Big Ten portion of the schedule.
Indiana will start Big Ten duals with a home match against Illinois on January 10 and also host the following schools throughout the winter: Ohio State (Jan. 22), Wisconsin (Feb. 5) and Michigan (Feb. 7). Indiana’s conference road duals include Rutgers (Jan. 17), Nebraska (Jan. 29), Northwestern (Feb. 12) and Purdue (Feb. 14). The Big Ten Championships will take place from March 6-7 in Columbus, Ohio and the 2027 NCAA Championships will be held from March 18-20 in St. Louis, Mo. All Indiana home duals are held at Wilkinson Hall and are free admission.
Indiana Hoosiers Men’s Golf Tie for Fifth in Lake Forest The Indiana men’s golf team shot an 846 (273-291-282; +6) to tie for fifth at the Windon Memorial Classic at the Onwentsia Club on Tuesday. Second-year Jake Cesare finished as the low-scoring Hoosier for the second-consecutive tournament. He shot a 209 (66-71-72; -1) with birdies on 10 holes. His first-round 66 (-4) marked the lowest single-round score for an Indiana men’s golfer this season. Fourth-year Nick Piesen climbed up the individual standings after a strong final round to finish at 213 (71-73-69; +3). He ended the tournament with nine birdies. Fourth-year Cole Starnes compiled a score of 215 (69-73-73; +5) in his return to the Indiana lineup. He played six birdies. Third-year Jamison Ousley performed best in the final round and shot a 216 (74-74-68; +6). Six of his nine birdie conversions came in Tuesday’s round. Third-year Bradley Chill Jr. shot a 218 (67-77-74; +8) with eight birdies. Fourth-year Alec Cesare, who played as an individual, turned in his scorecard at 231 (76-75-80; +21). The Hoosiers will have a busy start to the month of October with team events at the Fighting Irish Classic (Oct. 4-5) and the Purdue Fall Invitational (Oct. 12-13). Indiana will also send a group of individuals to the Golfweek Invitational (Oct. 5-6) hosted by Ball State.
Here’s how former IU football players did in week three of the NFL season Week 3 of the NFL season is in the books, and several former Hoosiers saw the field. D’Angelo Ponds dressed for game day for the first time in his career. Here’s a summary of how everyone performed: Fernando Mendoza, QB (Las Vegas Raiders) – Did not play, backup quarterback. Ian Thomas, TE (Las Vegas Raiders) – Played 14 offensive snaps. Cumulative season stats: 3 games. 76 offensive snaps. 1 reception, 11 yards. Micah McFadden, LB (New York Giants) – 16 special teams snaps, 1 tackle. Cumulative season stats: 2 games. 27 special teams snaps. 1 tackle. Riley Nowakowski, TE (Pittsburgh Steelers) – Played 4 offensive snaps and 15 special teams snaps. Cumulative season stats: 3 games. 14 offensive snaps, 50 special teams snaps. 2 tackles, 1 solo. Ke’Shawn Williams, WR (Cincinnati Bengals) – 9 special teams snaps. 5 kick returns, 131 yards. 1 punt return, 0 yards. Cumulative season stats: 1 game. 9 special teams snaps. 5 kick returns, 131 yards. 1 punt return, 0 yards. Kurtis Rourke, QB (San Francisco 49ers) – Did not play, inactive. Kaelon Black, RB (San Francisco 49ers) – Played 8 offensive snaps. 4 carries, 17 yards. Cumulative season stats: 3 games. 53 offensive snaps. 25 carries, 107 yards, 1 reception, 5 yards. CJ West, DT (San Francisco 49ers) – Inactive, on injured reserve. Cumulative season stats: 2 games. 49 defensive snaps, 5 special teams snaps. 5 tackles, 1 solo. Myles Price, WR (Minnesota Vikings) – Played 4 offensive snaps and 14 on special teams. Had 5 kick returns, 132 yards, 4 punt returns, 106 yards, 1 TD. Cumulative season stats: 3 games. 33 offensive snaps, 29 special teams snaps. 12 kick returns, 353 yards, 6 punt returns, 130 yards, 1 TD Pat Coogan, OL (Tennessee Titans) – Played 2 special teams snaps. Cumulative season stats: 3 games. 8 special teams snaps. Aiden Fisher, LB (Houston Texans) – 11 special teams snaps. Cumulative season stats: 2 games. 21 special teams snaps, 1 tackle. Kahlil Benson, OL (Kansas City Chiefs) – Played 52 offensive snaps, and 5 on special teams. Started at left tackle. Cumulative season stats: 3 games. 201 offensive snaps, 18 special teams snaps. Omar Cooper, Jr., WR (New York Jets) – Did not play, on injured reserve Cumulative season stats: 1 game. 5 offensive snaps. 1 reception, 30 yards. D’Angelo Ponds, DB (New York Jets) – Played 2 defensive snaps, and 2 on special teams. Cumulative season stats: 1 game. 2 defensive snaps, 2 special teams snaps. Marcelino McCrary-Ball, LB (New York Jets) – Inactive, on injured reserve. Cumulative season stats: 3 games. 5 defensive snaps, 26 special teams snaps. 1 tackle, 1 forced fumble. Luke Haggard, OL (Tampa Bay Buccaneers) – Did not play, inactive. Cumulative season stats: 1 game, 5 special teams snaps. Dan Feeney, OL (Tampa Bay Buccaneers) – Did not play, reserve offensive lineman. Cumulative season stats: 3 games. Elijah Sarratt, WR (Baltimore Ravens) – Did not play, inactive Cumulative season stats: 1 game. ON NFL PRACTICE SQUADS Cam Jones – Kansas City Chiefs Roman Hemby – Las Vegas Raiders Nick Westbrook-Ikhine – Indianapolis Colts Raheem Layne – New York Giants
Caitlin Clark and Kelsey Mitchell post big games to help the Indiana Fever even series with 99-89 win over the Las Vegas Aces Caitlin Clark finished with 27 points and 15 assists while reaching another milestone Tuesday night, and Kelsey Mitchell added 26 points to keep the sixth-seeded Indiana Fever’s postseason alive with a 99-89 victory over the defending WNBA champion Las Vegas Aces. Clark helped Indiana even the best-of-three series at 1-1 as she became the first player in league history to produce a points-assists double-double in the first half of a playoff game. She had 14 points and 11 assists in the first 20 minutes. Game 3 will be played Thursday at Las Vegas.
The game was marred by an incident between A’ja Wilson and a fan who appeared to say something to Wilson after Sophie Cunningham was called for a foul. Wilson walked toward the fan, pointed at him and appeared to say something as two teammates; an assistant coach and security tried to separate everyone. Wilson was assessed a technical foul but was not ejected. The man was escorted out by security with Indiana leading 90-79 with 4:10 to play. A spokesperson for the Fever said the fan was later allowed to return to his seat. “Following a report of a comment directed toward a player, arena security spoke with the fan involved and witnesses. Security determined there was no violation of the Fan Code of Conduct, the fan was not removed from the arena. We consider the matter closed,” the spokesperson said.
Las Vegas rallied to within 92-87, but even after Clark fouled out the Fever managed to hang on. It wasn’t just Clark’s scoring that impacted this game. She put on a dribbling clinic, made nifty pass after nifty pass, became a harassing presence on defense and repeatedly encouraged the crowd to get louder. It was a complete turnabout from Game 1 when Wilson dominated the middle and Las Vegas controlled the game. This time, Jackie Young scored 31 points while Wilson had 22 points and nine rebounds and passed Rebekkah Brunson for fourth on the league’s career playoff list. The Aces looked poised for a second straight blowout when they closed the first quarter on a 9-2 spurt and started the second with a 3 to take a 29-18 lead.
But Clark had something else in mind — like tying up Wilson for a jump ball, then grabbing the ball and walking into the baseline corner and pumping her arm toward the crowd. It was that kind of emotion that allowed Clark to start creating fast-break opportunities by winning the race to loose balls. The resulting confusion and turnovers spurred a 20-6 second-quarter run that ended with Raven Johnson’s short jumper that gave Indiana a 46-39 lead. Indiana still led 48-43 at halftime and extended the margin to 69-54 late in the third quarter. But with Clark on the bench with four fouls, Vegas answered. They opened the fourth quarter on a 11-4 run that cut the deficit to 76-71. A rematch between these teams in Las Vegas on Thursday night with the winner advancing to the league’s semifinal round.
Taylor University Women’s Soccer Goalkeeper Ava Callaway Named Crossroads League Defensive Player of the Week Junior goalkeeper Ava Callaway has been named the Crossroads League’s Women’s Soccer Defensive Player of the Week, the league announced Monday. The award is the second weekly honor of the season for the No. 20 Taylor women’s soccer team, its first on the defensive side, and the first of Callaway’s collegiate career. Callaway helped the Trojans open league play at 1-0-1, posting a clean sheet in Wednesday’s 2-0 home win over Bethel before holding No. 4 Indiana Wesleyan to a single goal in Saturday’s 1-1 draw in Marion. She made three saves in each match. Across 180 minutes in net, Callaway finished the week with six saves, an .857 save percentage and a 0.50 goals-against average. One goal allowed, against a top-five opponent on the road. Callaway’s award follows senior forward Leah McQuade’s Offensive Player of the Week honor two weeks ago. TU Athletics has now collected 17 Crossroads League and MSFA Mideast League Player of the Week honors this fall, along with one NAIA National Player of the Week award. The TU women’s soccer team returns home this week to host Goshen on Wednesday and No. 16 Spring Arbor on Saturday at Turner Stadium.
Chip Ganassi Racing Signs Christian Lundgaard to replace Scott Dixon in the famed No. 9 car Christian Lundgaard will be replacing six-time IndyCar champion Scott Dixon in the famed No. 9 car for Chip Ganassi Racing. The team announced Tuesday that the 25-year-old Lundgaard had signed a multiyear deal. He will join Alex Palou and Kyffin Simpson as part of a full-time, three-car lineup for the 2027 season, which opens March 7 at the Streets of St. Petersburg. “It is an honor and a privilege to join Chip Ganassi Racing beginning next season,” Lundgaard said. “The fact that it is in the iconic No. 9 PNC Bank Honda makes it even more special. CGR has set the standard in IndyCar for decades, and the opportunity to be part of that legacy is something I’ve worked toward my entire career. I’m incredibly excited about what’s ahead.”
Lundgaard made his IndyCar debut in 2021, spent his first four seasons with Rahal Letterman Lanigan and won his first race in the series two years later in Toronto. The Danish driver moved to Arrow McLaren for the past two years, winning the road course race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway and the race at Road America this past season. Lundgaard also had three second-place finishes and was third in points behind new teammate Palou and Kyle Kirkwood. The 46-year-old Dixon and Chip Ganassi Racing parted ways after 25 seasons, 59 wins and a victory in the Indianapolis 500. Dixon and reigning Indy 500 champion Felix Rosenqvist will be joining Pato O’Ward at Arrow McLaren for next season.
“We’re looking forward to helping him reach that next level with the No. 9 team,” Chip Ganassi said of Lundgaard. “He’s already proven he can win races, and it isn’t often a driver of his caliber becomes available. Throughout our history, one of the things we’ve done best is identify young talent, help them maximize their potential and develop them into championship contenders. “We believe Christian has all the talent to be the next driver to do that.”