Repub. Daniels proposes Colts license plate \nINDIANAPOLIS - Republican gubernatorial candidate Mitch Daniels wants Indiana to join other states that offer professional sports license plates, saying one for the NFL's Colts could help keep the team in Indianapolis.\nDaniels said his proposal was "not earthshaking but could make a contribution," with a Colts plate generating what he estimated to be $1 million a year. The city would decide how to spend the money, but Daniels suggested that it could be used to pay some interest costs for a new stadium.\nIt would be a modest portion, he said, "but it could make a contribution to an important project that is very important and one in which every dollar will help." He announced the proposal at the Pan Am Plaza, across the street from the RCA Dome.\nGov. Joe Kernan's campaign mocked the proposal. The governor, a Democrat seeking a full term this year, was in southern Indiana on Thursday promoting previously announced proposals on health care and prescription drugs.
Tiller, Boilermakeres wary of another MAC foe\nINDIANAPOLIS - No. 25 Purdue doesn't have to be told how dangerous its game against Ball State on Saturday can be.\nThe Cardinals (0-1) play in the Mid-American Conference, and that's all the Boilermakers (1-0) need to know. They are all too familiar with getting surprised by teams from the lesser-known of the Midwestern conferences.\nLast year, the then-No. 16 Boilermakers were shocked at home in their season opener by MAC power Bowling Green.\nThey are not alone. Schools like Northern Illinois and Miami-Ohio have also delivered wins over traditional powers recently, leading some to believe the days of dominance by the six Bowl Championship Series conferences might be coming to an end.\nPurdue coach Joe Tiller thinks he knows why.\n"The first reason is the 85 scholarships," Tiller said. "That spreads the talent out."\nBefore 1978, colleges could offer as many as 105 scholarships for football. That meant traditional powers like Michigan, USC and Oklahoma got the lion's share of the country's most talented football players.\nThat number was reduced to 95 in 1978, then was gradually cut to 85 between 1992 and 1994.
