Former Indiana University Football Player Cam Jones wins a Super Bowl Ring with the Kansas City Chiefs
Former IU linebacker Cam Jones is the 19th Hoosier to win a Super Bowl title after Kansas City defeated San Francisco 25-22 on Sunday evening. Former IU players have now won a total of 21 Super Bowl rings. An undrafted free agent after an All-Big Ten career with Indiana, Jones helped the Chiefs reach Super Bowl LVII. Overall, he was the 29th Hoosier alumnus to reach the Super Bowl. Jones played in all 17 regular season games as a rookie in 2023 and was a staple on special teams. His first career tackle came in Week 2 at Jacksonville, and he made 13 total stops on the season. He saw his most extended action in the Chiefs regular season finale in Los Angeles versus the Chargers with 10 tackles – nine solo – in the 13-12 win that clinched the No. 3 seed in the AFC. Jones had one solo stop in Kansas City’s Wild Card victory over Miami but suffered an injury in the game and missed the Super Bowl.
In all, 29 Hoosiers have made 37 Super Bowl appearance. Of the 58 Super Bowls, 30 have featured an Indiana Hoosier. That total includes 13 of the last 15 games with an IU alum on a Super Bowl roster (practice squad or active). Below is a list of Indiana’s Super Bowl history, which began with All-Pro offensive lineman Bob Skoronski as a part of Vince Lombardi’s Super Bowl I and II championship teams. Most recently, Tegray Scales was a part of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Cincinnati Bengals practice squads in Super Bowl years and Nate Sudfeld won Super Bowl LII with the Philadelphia Eagles. Skoronski and Scales are two of seven Hoosiers with multiple Super Bowl appearances. Skoronski and fellow offensive lineman Doug Crusan are the only two-time world champions, as Crusan won back-to-back titles with the Miami Dolphins, which included the undefeated 1972 season.
Super Bowl Champions (* – appeared but did not win | ^ – practice squad)
Bob Skoronski, OL – Green Bay Packers (Super Bowls I, II)
Tom Nowatzke FB – Baltimore Colts (Super Bowl V)
Doug Crusan, OL – Miami Dolphins (Super Bowls VI*, VII, VIII)
Eric Moore, OL – New York Giants (Super Bowl XXV)
Hurvin McCormack, DL – Dallas Cowboys (Super Bowl XXX)
Eric Matthews, WR – Green Bay Packers (Super Bowl XXXI^, XXXII^*)
Trent Green, QB – St. Louis Rams (Super Bowl XXXIV)
Antwaan Randle El, WR – Pittsburgh Steelers (Super Bowl XL, XLV*)
Aaron Halterman, TE –Indianapolis Colts (Super Bowl XLI^)
Herana-Daze Jones, DB – New Orleans Saints (Super Bowl XLIV^)
Tracy Porter, DB – New Orleans Saints (Super Bowl XLIV)
Courtney Roby, WR – New Orleans Saints (Super Bowl XLIV) James Brewer, OL – New York Giants (Super Bowl XLVI)
Marcus Thigpen, RB –New England Patriots (Super Bowl XLIX^)
Tandon Doss, WR/KR – Baltimore Ravens (Super Bowl XLVII)
Cody Latimer, WR – Denver Broncos (Super Bowl 50)
Nate Sudfeld, QB – Philadelphia Eagles (Super Bowl LII)
Tegray Scales, LB – Tampa Bay Buccaneers (Super Bowl LV^); Cincinnati Bengals (Super Bowl LVI^*) Super Bowl Appearances
Lance Brown, DB – Pittsburgh Steelers (Super Bowl XXX)
Terry Cole, RB – Baltimore Colts (Super Bowl III), Miami Dolphins (Super Bowl VI)
Tevin Coleman, RB – Atlanta Falcons (Super Bowl LI), San Francisco 49ers (Super Bowl LIV)
Cam Jones, LB – Kansas City Chiefs (Super Bowl LVIII)
Babe Laufenberg, QB – Washington Redskins (Super Bowl XVIII)
Bill Malinchak, WR – Washington Redskins (Super Bowl VII)
Andrew McDonald, OT – Seattle Seahawks (Super Bowl XLIX)
Adewale Ogunleye, DL – Chicago Bears (Super Bowl XLI)
Kemp Rasmussen, DL – Carolina Panthers (Super Bowl XXXVIII)
Rodger Saffold, OL – Los Angeles Rams (Super Bowl LII)
Dan Stryzinski, P – Atlanta Falcons (Super Bowl XXXIII)
Indiana University Junior Swimmer Rafael Miroslaw Qualifies for the Finals at the World Aquatics Championships
Indiana University Junior Rafael Miroslaw will compete in the Finals of the Men’s 200 Meter Freestyle at 11am this morning Bloomington Time at the World Aquatics Championships in Doha Qatar. Miroslaw respresents Germany finished second in the 200 Meter Freestyle Heats with a time of 145:89 and finished 6th in the Semifinals with a time of 145.95 to make the finals on Monday. Junior Kai Van Westering who represents the Netherlands finished 9th in the Men’s 100 Meter Backstroke Heats with a time of 53.84 and then he missed the final by finishing 9th in the semifinals with a time of 53.80on Monday. Van Westering will compete on Thursday in the Men’s 200 Backstroke.
Sunday Junior Ching Hwee Gan who represents Singapore finished 19th in the Women’s 400 Meter Freestyle Heats with a time 4:14.54 and Monday she finished 14th in the Women’s 1500 Meter Freestyle Heats with a time of 16:29.74. Freshman Mikkel Lee who represents Singapore in the Men’s 50 Meter Butterfly heats did not start the event. Lee did compete in the Men’s 4X 100 Freestyle Relay as Singapore finished 14th with a time of 3:18.52. Indiana University Junior Carson Tyler and his partner Joshua Hedberg finished 14th in the Men’s 10 Meter Synchronized Diving event with a score of 324. 51.
There are Ten former and current Indiana University Swimmers and Divers along with two coaches that are representing Four Countries in Qatar. Indiana University Junior Mariah Denigan has booked her trip to the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris France in July by finishing in 6th place overall in the Open Water Swimming Event. The Competition which began on February 2nd features Swimming, Diving, Open Water Swimming, Artistic Swimming High Diving and Water Polo will have 75 medal events that in six disciplines that runs through Sunday February 18.
Former Indiana University Water Polo players Shae (Fournier) La Roche and Jessica Gaudreault are representing Canada in the Women’s Tournament in Doha. Canada beat South Africa 24-2 and Great Britian 20-5 before losing to Italy 12-8 to finish 2-1 in Group D Play. Canada beat New Zealand 14-12 in the Playoffs and lost to Spain 12-9 in the Quarterfinals. Canada will play Australia on Wednesday in the 5th place bracket with Italy taking on the Netherlands on the other side of the bracket. The fifth and seventh place games will take place on Friday. La Roche has started all five games and scored 9 goals along with 15 assists and averaging 21 minutes per match. Gaudreault has started all five games in goal for Canada facing 65 shots with 34 saves in 132 minutes giving up 34 goals.
Indiana University Men’s Tennis holds off Middle Tennessee State 4-3
Indiana Men’s Tennis earned their seventh straight win in thrilling fashion, taking down Middle Tennessee State, 4-3, on Sunday afternoon at the IU Tennis Center. The Hoosiers once again displayed a strong performance in doubles. Facundo Yunis and Luc Boulier would strike first, taking the win at No. 3 doubles, 6-4. Illya Tirapolsky and Michael Andre would capture the doubles point with a win at No. 1 doubles, 6-4. In singles play, Indiana would find themselves in a tight race to secure the match. Facundo Yunis would swing momentum into the Hoosiers favor with a win at No. 2 singles, 6-4, 6-4. Sophomore Sam Landau would earn himself a monumental win, taking down No. 18 Leo Raquin at No. 1 singles, 6-2, 2-6, 6-4. Senior Jagger Saylor would clinch the match victory for Indiana with a win at No. 4 singles, 4-6, 6-1, 7-6 (7-4). Middle Tennessee State came into the match recieving votes for a top 25 ranking. With the win, Indiana improves their record to 9-2 on the season. The Hoosiers will be back in action on Saturday as they travel to Houston to take on Rice.
Indiana State University Men’s Basketball is ranked for the first time since the Larry Bird Era in 1979
Indiana State’s balanced scoring, free-flowing offense and its goggle-wearing big man have the program off to one of its best starts in years. Now the Sycamores have something that hasn’t happened since Larry Bird played in Terre Haute: a spot in the AP Top 25. Riding a nine-game winning streak, Indiana State debuted at No. 23 in The Associated Press men’s college basketball poll Monday, the Sycamores’ first ranking since reaching No. 1 in 1978-79. “It’s a group that the community can really wrap their arms around and I think they have. That’s just great to see,” Indiana State coach Josh Schertz told reporters recently. “I know Terre Haute. They love basketball. I know there’s a great history and tradition, from Larry Bird to John Wooden to Clarence Walker.”
Connecticut and Purdue kept the top two spots in the AP Top 25. The defending national champion Huskies received 45 first-place votes from a 61-person media panel and the Boilermakers had 16. Schertz took over the Indiana State program during the pandemic, inheriting a depleted roster with no chance to get players to visit campus. Schertz cobbled together a team that won 11 games his first season and the Sycamores improved to 23-13 last season.
Indiana State (22-3) has been on a roll in Schertz’s third season, winning all 11 home games while taking a two-game lead over Drake in the Missouri Valley Conference at 11-1. The Sycamores have five players scoring in double figures, led by dynamic 5-foot-10 guard Isaiah Swope’s 17.7 points per game. Big man Robbie Avila has become a fan favorite with his goggles, averaging 16.4 points and 7.4 rebounds. Indiana State is fifth nationally in scoring at 85.6 points per game, ninth in 3-point percentage (39%) and is No. 1 in adjusted field goal percentage, according to KenPom. The combination has the Sycamores eyeing their first NCAA Tournament berth since 2011. “Our goal is we want to get to the NCAA Tournament and advance,” Schertz said. “You never want to put ceilings on yourself. You want to get to the tournament and win games and go as far as you can. You saw what happened last year with Florida Atlantic and San Diego State playing in the Final Four — there’s nothing outside of your reach.”
Ball State University Women’s Basketball takes down James Madison Sunday Afternoon in Muncie
The Ball State women’s basketball team (21-3) wasted no time getting back on the winning track after displaying an impressive 72-57 victory over James Madison (17-8) on CBS Sports Network Sunday afternoon in Worthen Arena. It was the second game of the MAC-SBC challenge with Ball State winning both after defeating Troy on the road earlier in the season. The Ball State “Crashers” had quite the game today for the Cardinals as Marie Kiefer led BSU inside the paint with 19 points which came of off 6-of-7 shooting from the field. Alex Richard put on a display for Ball State with 11 points and nine rebounds. The Cardinals had two more players reach double figure scoring as Madelyn Bischoff finished the game with 14 and Ana Barreto had 10.
After Ball State lost their first contest in over 14 games Wednesday you could tell that the Cardinals were ready to redeem themselves against the James Madison Dukes. Ball State came out of the gates strong in the opening quarter putting together a 10-2 run in the first five minutes of play. The Cardinals were unstoppable especially on offense shooting 80 percent (4-of-5) at the midway point. The term nothing-but-net came to mind when Ally Becki drained a 3-pointer to put BSU up 18-7 with 2:39 left in the quarter. JMU moved to a zone defense that caused BSU some frustration, but the Cardinals still found a way to score and would take a 27-11 advantage over the Dukes to end the first quarter of play. Although the scoring spree wasn’t as prevalent in the second period for the Cardinals, BSU was still able to hold its own regardless of what defense the Dukes threw at them. The second quarter was a defensive battle with low scoring from both squads but of course Brady Sallee used his bench for some fresh legs and Barreto came through with back-to-back baskets to put the Cardinals up 38-19 just under the two-minute mark. Ball State was able to close out the first half with a 39-21 lead over James Madison at intermission.
After the break, James Madison looked as if it may be on the brink of a possible comeback, but Ball State quickly put an end to its momentum with some hard-fought baskets in the paint from Kiefer and Richard to go back up by 10 (45-25). All-in-all great defense and some great shot selections helped propel the Cardinals to take a 54-33 advantage over JMU into the final 10 minutes of competition. The fourth quarter was heated after JMU went on a 10-2 run to make it a 10-point (56-46) ball game with 6:05 left in the contest. The Dukes intensified its defense which made some possessions challenging for BSU. But Ball State does what it does best and that’s score. The Cardinals put together an impressive 14-7 scoring spree in less than a minute span which was capped off by layup from Nyla Hampton. After that, Ball State never looked back and went on to win the ball game by 15. The Ball State women’s basketball team returns to MAC action on the road at Ohio Saturday for a 1 pm tipoff at the Convocation Center in Athens, Ohio.
Indiana Pacers take down the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden
Myles Turner scored 23 points and Tyrese Haliburton added 22 to lead the Indiana Pacers to a 125-111 victory over the New York Knicks on Saturday night. Pascal Siakam added 19 points and T.J. McConnell finished with 16 for Indiana, which shot 61% (50 for 82) in the game, including 48.3% (14 for 29) from 3-point distance. Aaron Nesmith finished with 13 points and Isaiah Jackson had 12. “I contribute, I do what I can, but we have a lot of different guys who can contribute, and tonight was a total team effort,” Haliburton said. “We just want to keep building on that.”
Jalen Brunson returned to the Knicks’ lineup after missing Thursday’s loss to Dallas due to a sprained right ankle and scored 39 points. “It was a game-time decision,” Brunson said. “When I feel that I can do the things I do, making sure I can go out there and be who I am for as long as I am out there, when I feel that type of confidence, that is when I know I’m ready to play.”
Alec Burks returned to New York as part of a deal with Bojan Bogdanovic from the Detroit Pistons before Thursday’s trade deadline. Burks, who was with the Knicks from 2020-22, scored 22 points and Bogdanovic scored all 11 of his points in the first half of his New York debut. Precious Achiuwa scored 15 points and Donte DiVincenzo 14 for the Knicks, who have lost three of four following a season-high nine-game winning streak. New York is playing without starters Julius Randle and OG Anunoby, and the center tandem of Mitchell Robinson and Isaiah Hartenstein. “We’re short-handed and we’re going to have to play a lot harder and a lot tougher,” Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau said. “I’m disappointed in the result, but I’m not disappointed in our team.
Neither team was able to extend a lead beyond five points in a tight first half. The Knicks led by a point at 51-50 when the Pacers went on a six-point run to take a lead they never relinquished. Indiana led 61-58 at the break and extended its lead to nine points at 79-70 on a 3-pointer by Obi Toppin with 4:36 left in the third quarter. The Knicks closed within six before Haliburton hit a long 3-pointer just before the buzzer that gave the Pacers a 91-82 lead heading into the fourth quarter. Toppin opened the final quarter with a 3-pointer and the Knicks were never able to get within single digits the rest of the way. “We played with a little more of an edge. Tyrese was being special and I had my imprints on the game,” Turner said. “It was an all-around team win and we asserted ourselves more when it needed to be done.” Jackson’s three-point play extended Indiana’s lead to a game-high 22 points, 114-92, with 5:40 remaining.
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