7 Sports Headlines You Might Have Missed

1. Freshman football players suspended after arrest, 3 teammates named in probable cause affidavit

Three IU football players were named in a probable cause affidavit stemming from a robbery Dec. 17, resulting in IU freshman cornerback Cortez Smith’s arrest.

Freshmen IU football players Dennis Zeigler, Darius Johnson and Jarrell Drane were all named in the probable cause affidavit filed Dec. 19.

According to the affidavit, Smith and another suspect, Lazell C. McClellon, knocked on the victims’ front door, entered and stole IDs, wallets, an iPod, marijuana and an Xbox game system.

Since the incident, Smith and Zeigler have been indefinitely suspended from the football team.

IU coach Bill Lynch released nearly identical statements about both Smith and Ziegler, saying their allegations of misconduct are serious and require immediate action.

2. Basset discusses 07-08 Hoosiers downfall; Gordon said drug use split team

In an interview with the Indianapolis Star on Dec. 17, former IU shooting guard Eric Gordon said drug use caused a rift among last season’s turmoil-ridden Hoosier basketball team.

Gordon, who now plays for the NBA’s Los Angeles Clippers, said the team was split between drug users and non-users.

“It was really tough for us to be around each other all the time off the court because we were so separate,” he said.

“Sometimes it felt like it wasn’t even a real basketball team because of all the turmoil that went on. I was just thinking about that the other day. It was so crazy that all that stuff threw off a good season and made it a waste, basically.”

Gordon said former IU coach Kelvin Sampson tried to stop the drug abuse, but had a more important agenda: winning.

Shortly after, former point guard Armon Bassett responded to Gordon’s comments in an interview with the Bloomington Herald-Times.

Bassett, who recently transferred from Alabama-Birmingham to Ohio, said he didn’t want to rehash the issues around last year’s squad, but added, “There wasn’t anybody involved in last year who didn’t make a mistake.”

“Everyone would take something back. But they can’t,” he said. “And, you know, we paid our debt. Look at the situation. No one got out without suffering.”

3. Men’s basketball drops 5

The men’s basketball team has hit its longest losing streak since the Mike Davis era as it embarks on conference play.

Following a blowout loss to Kentucky before the break, the Hoosiers hoped to rebound at home against Northeastern. But IU managed to score only 18 points in the first half, and Northeastern won its first game over a Big Ten team in over 17 years. Junior guard Devan Dumes’ 3-pointer with 26 seconds left helped the Hoosiers avoid their first sub-40 point game since 1951.

IU coach Tom Crean’s team came out with vengeance against Lipscomb six days later, but suffered another heartbreaking loss. After leading big before halftime, the Hoosiers were outscored by 15 in the second half and lost, 74-69.

The New Year brought much of the same. The Hoosiers lost their Big Ten season opener to Iowa, 65-60, on Jan. 3. Once again, the Hoosiers played well but failed to put together a comprehensive 40-minute effort and left Iowa City on a four-game losing streak.

The slippery slope continued at home against Michigan in the conference home opener. The Hoosiers led by 17 at the half and played arguably their best basketball of the season against a team that upset UCLA and Duke earlier in the year. But the Wolverines exposed IU’s inexperience, coming back from six down with 1:23 left to send the game into overtime.

In overtime, the Hoosiers went cold from the free-throw line. Through regulation, the team was perfect from the charity stripe (4-4). But in the extra period the Hoosiers shot 3 of 9 from the line and lost in heartbreaking fashion to Michigan, 72-66.

The Hoosiers play their final game during winter break Saturday when they travel to Champaign, Ill., to face the Fighting Illini (tip-off at 3:00 p.m.).

4. Yeagley leaves IU for head job at Big Ten foe Wisconsin

Former IU assistant men’s soccer coach Todd Yeagley accepted the head coaching position at Wisconsin on Dec. 18.

Yeagley spent six seasons on staff with the Hoosiers. In that time, IU won two national championships and tallied a 91-25-23 overall record. Yeagley, the son of legendary IU coach Jerry Yeagley, played at IU as a student. Before leaving the University for a career in the MLS, Yeagley earned All-American honors in each of his four years, helped lead the Hoosiers to a 75-9-5 and was named the Missouri Athletic Club’s National Player of the Year in his senior season.

Todd Yeagley will replace former Badgers coach Jeff Rohrman, who resigned Nov. 18 after seven seasons and a 61-63-12 record, with no teams ever making it to the NCAA Tournament.

“He has been groomed to be a head coach all his life,” IU head coach Mike Freitag said. “He’ll always be a part of IU soccer.”

Freitag said he is happy for Yeagley, but is also saddened by his departure.
Last season, Todd Yeagley was named one the top 12 assistant coaches by College Soccer News.

“It’s hard for me to be objective because he’s my son,” Jerry Yeagley said, “but I’ve seen a lot of my former players move on to coach, and I couldn’t be any more confident than I am for Todd.

“He has the ‘it’ factor that separates championship-caliber coaches from good coaches.”

5. Alston passes on senior year, enters MLS draft

While his assistant coach left for Wisconsin, IU men’s soccer junior Kevin Alston announced on Dec. 22 he would leave the Hoosiers to pursue a professional career.
In what would be his last season at IU, the Silver Spring, Md., native put together his most successful campaign yet, earning first-team All-Big Ten honors. 

Alston was a part of a backline this season that helped the Hoosiers record 10 shutouts, with eight of those coming against teams in the nation’s top 25.

The defender also contributed offensively with three goals and an assist on the season.

One score came in a 2-1 win against Duke on Aug. 29. Alston’s unassisted goal came from six yards out and was a loft over the Duke keeper. The score gave IU a 1-0 lead in the season’s first regular season match.

Another goal came in a 3-1 upset victory against Notre Dame on Oct. 16. Alston’s strike from 25 yards out opened the scoring in the victory, with senior Kevin Noschang’s goal three minutes later putting the game away.

“I’m just so pleased to see his growth over the years,” Freitag said. “He’s going to have great success at the next level.”

Alston will likely sign with an MLS team. The 2009 MLS Superdraft will take place on Jan. 15.

6. Football team loses four-star prospect

Seven stars worth of recruits left the IU football team’s prospect list for next season.
Jeremy Gainer, a 4-star outside linebacker ranked No. 15 in the country at his position by Rivals.com, and his cousin Kenneth Watkins, the No. 42-ranked safety, were two standouts on the IU football team’s prospect list. But during break both recruits broke their verbal commitments to the program and headed for different pastures inside the Big Ten.

Gainer chose the greener in Michigan State, while Watkins landed at Minnesota.

Questions around the strength of Gainer’s verbal commitment began after Rivals.com reported the 6-foot-1, 215-pounder took an unofficial visit to Penn State on Nov. 15, the same Saturday the Nittany Lions pounded IU 34-7.

Gainer and Watkins reopened their commitments on Dec. 12. Watkins committed to the Gophers two days later and said at the time Gainer would be deciding between Minnesota and Michigan State – not IU.

On Dec. 18, Gainer officially announced he would be a Spartan next season.

7. Hagerup named to All-American teams

In the 2008 IU football season’s beginning, freshman punter Chris Hagerup was erradic at best.

But as the season progressed, the Whitefish Bay, Wisc. native calmed down and established himself as a valuable weapon.

Sporting News and Rivals.com took note and named Hagerup to their Freshman All-American Second Teams.

Hagerup received an honorable mention to the All-Big Ten team.

He averaged 42.4 yards, recorded a conference leading 67-yard boot and dropped 14 punts inside the 20-yard line, with five landing inside the 10.

In nine of the team’s 12 games, Hagerup recorded at least one 50-yard punt, earning the Hoosiers’ special teams player of the week honors nine times.

Hagerup’s Hoosiers finished the season with a 3-9 record, winning only one Big Ten contest and losing 62-10 in their final game of the season on the road at Purdue.