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Hoosiers kick off spring practice

The IU football team kicked off its spring football season Wednesday with its first official spring practice. The practice, the team's first of 15 this spring, was far from flawless, with dropped passes and fumbles. But, senior Antwaan Randle El said, practice wasn't all that bad, either. "The first day went OK," Randle El said. "I'm not just looking at offense and defense, I'm looking at the whole team. I think we got out, and we did some good things. We did some bad things, and of course, we've got to improve, but that will come in the next 14 (practices). I think one of the biggest things we did today was we came out and worked on basically technique -- new guys learning different things, changing positions and that kind of thing."

Hoosiers win 1st hockey championship

Adam Federman doesn't score very many goals. In fact, before this weekend, the senior defenseman was still looking for his first of the year. But on the rare occasion that he does dent the twine, the senior defenseman usually makes it one to remember.

How the World Cup works

Silly Americans. Your country is participating in one of the world's biggest sporting events, and the vast majority of you could care less. Well, wake up.

Washington shines as 'John Q'

McDonald named as new assistant

Though men's basketball coach Mike Davis has said finding a former Hoosier to fill his staff would be ideal, Davis drew his latest assistant coach from California. New assistant coach Ben McDonald, an Nike basketball camp director, offers NBA experience Davis couldn't pass up. "He has NBA experience with us that I want because I want to recruit NBA-type players, so my whole staff has NBA experience, so that's one of the reasons," Davis said. "He's a good guy and a really good individual workout guy."

Getting over the air scare

We've all seen the numbers. Northwest Airlines to cut 10,000 jobs; United Airlines to cut 20,000; Boeing to lay off 100,000. In the wake of the tragic terrorist attacks in New York and Washington, D.C., the airline industry is reeling. The three-day grounding of commercial flights by the Federal Aviation Administration, coupled with a newly acquired national apprehension of boarding a plane, has hit the airline industry hard.

History lesson: giants to battle

Since Mike Krzyzewski took over in Durham, N.C., in 1980, Duke has been nearly untouchable. In the last five seasons, Duke has lost 18 games and has never lost more than five games in one season. Only twice since 1984 has Duke finished the season unranked.

'Bad Company' an accurate title

hidden talent

'Ride for Peace'

Many adventurers have thought about traveling across the country. But how many have considered trying it with a bicycle? Just ask the deCycle's bike team how it's done. On Saturday, the group of 72 riders left for a three-week, 1,400-mile bicycle journey from Bloomington to New England.

Mashed potatoes an all-purpose crowd pleaser

You can please some of the people all of the time with chili-lime spiked spareribs, and all of the people some of the time with a decent dose of chocolate, but you can please all of the people, all of the time, with a hearty helping of homemade mashed potatoes. Consider mashed potatoes a winter anchor, your most faithful standby for any meal -- elegant, down home, and everything in between. They are easier to make than you may have imagined, too -- just boil, mash and eat. Perfecting mashed potatoes is another (and highly subjective) story. Some cooks insist on a perfectly smooth mash; others will fight to the quick for a few lumps of texture. Some swear that heated milk is the only way to go; still others vow that it is buttermilk or bust.

Band makes music life's pursuit

The Bouncing Souls never desired nine-to-five office jobs. Good times and music went hand in hand, and that meant too much for them to trade in their instruments for suits and ties or their BMXs for laptops.

The Odds: Part 2

Alumnus Chad Millman tracked a couple of professional bettors and a bookmaker -- all living in Las Vegas -- as their fortunes rose and fell with each game during the 1999-2000 college basketball season. Excerpts of Millman's book "The Odds," which went on sale March 20, appear in today's IDS.

Users ignore fireworks requirements

With every Fourth of July holiday, the use of illegal fireworks always comes to the forefront. If people celebrate with their own backyard fireworks display and they could ignore the law.

Hark! In the morn, a Canadian-Scottish violin

"Cheticamp, a French-Acadian village of three thousand souls, is situated on the northwest shore of Cape Breton Island in Nova Scotia." Thus begins Anselm Cormier's essay about life in Atlantic Canada that appears in The Dances Down Home, a collection of jigs and reels by Anselm's brother, violinist Joe Cormier.

Village Deli surprisingly offers tasty cheeseburger, toppings

After eating at some of Bloomington's finest hamburger establishments, picking the best burger was daunting. In the end, it had to be done, and my choice for best burger in Bloomington goes to the Village Deli, 409 E. Kirkwood Ave.

Hoosiers suffer tough losses over weekend

Another tough weekend for the women's volleyball team leaves the Hoosiers with a 4-12 overall record and a 1-7 record in the conference after hard losses to Michigan State University and University of Michigan. The weekend left the Hoosiers dissatisfied as they search for more victories.

It's Davis: Officials say he earned it

Mike Davis wondered if he was walking out of Assembly Hall for the last time as IU's men's basketball coach following IU's victory over Minnesota Feb. 28. But he was there again Wednesday when IU President Myles Brand removed the interim label from Davis' title and announced Davis' four-year contract worth at least $400,000 per year. "For the next four years, I plan on taking this basketball program to the next level," Davis said. "I look forward to bringing a lot of great players here and having a lot of great memories." Brand called Wednesday a "very important day in the history of IU basketball."

Bill chips away at abortion rights

A bill that would allow criminals who commit a crime against a pregnant woman to be charged separately for violence against a fetus gained approval by a House subcommittee last week.

Repent and be saved