Latest news with #HoosierState
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Pat McAfee tells John Mellencamp to ‘shut the f–k up' as fiery Pacers fan feud escalates
If you thought Pat McAfee's in-game words for the Knicks' celebrity fans were harsh, his response to John Mellencamp's criticism is a whole new level. 'John: shut the f–k up,' McAfee said during a rant on Friday's episode of the 'Pat McAfee Show.' Advertisement McAfee was given the microphone during the Pacers' Game 4 win over the Knicks and let Spike Lee, Ben Stiller and Timothée Chalamet feel the wrath of Indiana fans, encouraging the Pacers faithful to 'send these sons of bitches back to New York with their ears ringing.' 'Johnny Cougar,' a native of the 'Hoosier State,' then posted a long-winded statement about his disappointment in McAfee and Pacers fans for supporting him. ''Hoosier Hospitality' … I was embarrassed when somebody, under whose direction I don't know, called out some of the people who had made the trip from New York to support their team — and in turn, support our team,' Mellencamp wrote. 'The audience booed these people. I'd say that was not Hoosier Hospitality. One could only say it's poor, poor sportsmanship. I was not proud to be a Hoosier, and I've lived here my entire life. John Mellencamp looks on at Game 4 of the Eastern Conference finals. NBAE via Getty Images 'On behalf of most Hoosiers, I would like to apologize for our poor behavior. I'm sure the Pacers had nothing to do with this smackdown.' Advertisement McAfee, the former Colts punter and current WWE announcer whose self-titled ESPN show is filmed in Indianapolis, defended his actions as typical home-fan behavior. Pat McAfee firing up Pacers fans during a timeout. Charles Wenzelberg / New York Post 'When the Knicks are playing in Gainbridge, I believe there's gonna be some boos, there might be some negative things said towards the other team,' McAfee sarcastically said. 'That is kind of how sports work.' McAfee's words escalated quickly from there. 'What a moment for John Coug' yesterday,' he said in the midst of his rant. 'John: I can't tell you how bad everything you did here was. Everything. The graphic, the quote, the timing — you're two days late, John … [The post] doesn't even say my name.' Pat McAfee did not mince his words when discussing John Mellencamp's call-out of the former Colts punter. The Pat McAfee Show With Game 6 back at Gainbridge Fieldhouse Saturday night, the two's paths could cross in what would surely be a tense interaction. 'You thought you were gonna bury me? I don't think so, John!' McAfee said to conclude the segment. 'Hey Coug'. Suck it buddy. Hope I get the chance to see you real soon, I think we're probably gonna be at the same place pretty soon. I don't want any of your bulls–t, I don't like you.'
CNET
25-05-2025
- Sport
- CNET
Today's NYT Connections: Sports Edition Hints, Answers for May 25 #244
Looking for the most recent regular Connections answers? Click here for today's Connections hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Wordle and Strands puzzles. The purple category in Connections: Sports Edition today is about the biggest sports event of the day. You probably know what it is. Hint: Get behind the wheel in the Hoosier State. Read on for hints and the answers. Connections: Sports Edition is out of beta now, making its debut on Super Bowl Sunday, Feb. 9. That's a sign that the game has earned enough loyal players that The Athletic, the subscription-based sports journalism site owned by the Times, will continue to publish it. It doesn't show up in the NYT Games app but now appears in The Athletic's own app. Or you can continue to play it free online. Read more: NYT Connections: Sports Edition Puzzle Comes Out of Beta Hints for today's Connections: Sports Edition groups Here are four hints for the groupings in today's Connections: Sports Edition puzzle, ranked from the easiest yellow group to the tough (and sometimes bizarre) purple group. Yellow group hint: Get your racket. Green group hint: Pac Northwest player. Blue group hint: Blow that fastball past the hitter. Purple group hint: Gentlemen, start your engines. Answers for today's Connections: Sports Edition groups Yellow group: Tennis grand slams. Green group: An Oregon athlete Blue group: Pitchers to strike out 20 in one game. Purple group: Associated with the Indy 500. Read more: Wordle Cheat Sheet: Here Are the Most Popular Letters Used in English Words What are today's Connections: Sports Edition answers? The completed NYT Connections: Sports Edition puzzle for May 25, 2025. NYT/Screenshot by CNET The yellow words in today's Connections The theme is tennis grand slams. The four answers are Australian, French, US, Wimbledon. The green words in today's Connections The theme is an Oregon athlete. The four answers are Duck, Thorn, Timber and Trail Blazer. The blue words in today's Connections The theme is pitchers to strike out 20 in one game. The four answers are Clemens, Johnson, Scherzer and Wood. The purple words in today's Connections The theme is associated with the Indy 500. The four answers are bricks, cars, Memorial Day weekend and milk.
Associated Press
17-05-2025
- Business
- Associated Press
Houzeo Enters Indiana with Cutting-Edge Homebuyer Platform
Home buyers across the Hoosier State can now find their dream home on Houzeo, schedule a tour, and submit offers. INDIANAPOLIS, IN, UNITED STATES, May 17, 2025 / / -- Houzeo, America's #1 home selling website and app, is now launching its buyer platform and mobile app. Houzeo's new Real Estate Super App offers a collection of cutting-edge tools designed to cater to the modern homebuyer. From browsing to closing, the new Houzeo mobile app provides a seamless, efficient, and personalized experience every step of the way. 1. Houzeo's Extensive Home Database: Houzeo gives buyers access to over 1.5 million listings across the U.S., including 33,700 homes for sale in Indiana. This is similar to platforms like Zillow and Redfin. All listings have high-quality photos and detailed listing info—floor plans, pricing, property history, street views, virtual tours, must-have filters, and neighborhood insights. 2. IntelliSearch: Finding the right home in Indiana is easier with Houzeo's search tools. Buyers can narrow down options by city, price range, property type, and more. The platform even understands natural phrases like 'pet-friendly Carmel homes for sale under $200K' or 'new single-family homes in Fort Wayne,' making searching simple and intuitive. 3. Intuitive Map Filters: Houzeo's map view makes the search experience even easier. Buyers can spot homes with open houses, price drops, new builds, or no HOA fees—all at a glance. It's a great way to focus on listings that matter the most. 4. Book a Home Tour: Once a buyer finds a home they like, scheduling a tour is just a few clicks away. Houzeo makes it easy to lock in a convenient time to see the place in person. 5. Save Favorite Homes: Buyers can save their top picks using Houzeo's Favorites feature as they explore different areas across Indiana. It's a great way to stay organized and compare options, especially helpful for couples or families making decisions together. 6. Contact Agent: Whether buyers want more details on homes for sale in Indianapolis with large yards or want to make an offer on a townhouse in Bloomington, this feature makes instant and transparent communication with agents easy. Houzeo's 'Contact Agent' tool helps Indiana homebuyers get the answers they need with just one click. And you can do this on the web, via the Houzeo website, or via the Houzeo mobile app! Houzeo is on a mission to create a one-stop shop for residential real estate. It has launched 9 different tools for home sellers and is now just getting ready to cater to home buyers. By providing simple discovery and transaction tools, Houzeo aims to simplify buying and selling homes in the US. If it's related to your house, Houzeo has you covered. Download the Houzeo mobile app on the Apple App Store or the Google Play Store for free. Jai Chavan Houzeo Corp. +1 844-448-0110 [email protected] Visit us on social media: LinkedIn Instagram Facebook YouTube X Legal Disclaimer: EIN Presswire provides this news content 'as is' without warranty of any kind. We do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information contained in this article. If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the author above.
Yahoo
30-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Indiana Economic Development Foundation releases annual audits on Gov. Braun's demand
Former Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb, former IEDC leader David Rosenberg and the Hoosier State's delegation meet with Flanders Minister-President Jan Jambon on June 4, 2024 in Belgium. The agency's foundation footed the bill for this and other economic development trips. (From Holcomb's official Flickr) The Indiana Economic Development Foundation has poured more than $13 million into travel, administrative and other expenses across six years, according to audited financial reports released Thursday under Gov. Mike Braun's orders. The little-known foundation is charged with raising private funds to boost the controversial Indiana Economic Development Corp. But the nonprofit is on a spending freeze. State freezes funding for economic development affiliate, promises audit Indiana had a traditional commerce department until 2005. That's when, under former Gov. Mitch Daniels, lawmakers created the IEDC: 'a body politic and corporate, not a state agency but an independent instrumentality exercising essential public functions,' per Indiana Code. They allowed its board to create a subsidiary: the foundation. 'Everybody always thinks that the tax dollars are going in one direction: they're going out to nonprofits to subsidize nonprofit activity,' said Indiana University Professor Beth Gazley, a nonprofit management specialist. 'But actually, there's a lot of money coming back from nonprofits to subsidize government activities,' she continued, noting that the federal definition of a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt nonprofit includes 'lessening the burdens of government.' The IEDC's furtive efforts to secure water, land and more for a contentious technology park have made it plenty of enemies since 2022. But now, its problems go beyond public relations. Braun said Thursday that he's ordered a forensic audit and reported 'impropriety, or even the appearance of it' to Indiana's Office of Inspector General amid allegations of self-dealing and more, first reported by Indiana Legislative Insight. And he's taken aim at the foundation. In an April 9 news release, his administration called out the foundation for not filing six years of required audited financial reports with the State Budget Committee. Two weeks later, the lapses were cured and the reports available online. A spokesperson for the quasi-public agency didn't immediately answer Capital Chronicle questions, including why those records weren't submitted. The newly released reports show that the foundation spent $13.2 million from the 2019 through 2024 fiscal years, which begin July 1 and end June 30. The bulk of that, $10.9 million, went to travel, meals and entertainment. Years worth of news releases indicate the foundation has paid for virtually all of the international economic development trips taken by prior governors. The independent auditor used for the most recent three reports — Indianapolis' Katz, Sapper & Miller — also included conferences in this category, while the previous one — Missouri's former BKD — did not. 'Is that a lot of money to be spending on conferences, travel, meals and entertainment? That really depends on the programmatic goals of the organization, the mission of the organization,' Gazley said. 'And only the board can decide: is that the best use of our funding?' The IEDC and its foundation share the same staff and 12-member board. Gazley also said it's 'best practice' to change auditors over time. Get too 'close and clubby' and risk the auditor 'not being honest anymore about the financial status of the organization,' she warned. Another $1.8 million was logged for administrative expenses, plus more than $200,000 for sponsorships. Nearly $300,000 was categorized as 'other' spending. The foundation didn't immediately answer a question about what kinds of expenditures would fit within this category. The reports also disclose about $11.7 million in donations. But they offer no clues as to the identity of those donors. Indiana Code forces the foundation to redact donor names out of public records if they request anonymity at any point in time. Most do. The groups behind 14 of 16 transactions from 2020 through 2022 were shielded from records obtained in 2023 by the Capital Chronicle. Two didn't request anonymity: District of Columbia-based think tank The Urban Institute donated $5,000 in 2021, and the Battery Innovation Center in Newberry gave $12,000 in 2022. Between 2015 and 2025, the center nabbed six incentive contracts that total $18 million, according to the IEDC's transparency portal. At the time, spokeswoman Erin Sweitzer wrote that private donations 'allow more flexibility in how we use the funds and how quickly we're able to access them.' For Gazley, that doesn't add up. 'I don't see how you can defend privacy as a programmatic priority, or a mission-related priority. You just can't,' she said. 'But privacy does make a lot of organizations more viable if their donors are concerned about having their (donation) choices on the front page of the newspaper.' 'The kinds of accountability tools that we have for the public with, if I ordered them in priority, transparency would be at the top of the list. And I think it should be at (the) top of everybody's list,' she added later. But there are indications of who other foundation givers may be — and evidence several have dealings with the IEDC. Organizations can donate money, sponsor events or provide in-kind services. CONTACT US A webpage for the foundation identifies the state's 'big five' investor-owned utilities — AES Indiana, CenterPoint Energy, Duke Energy, Indiana Michigan Power and the Northern Indiana Public Service Company — as 'contributors.' AES logged $10 million in professional services contracts that expired in 2023 and about $2.8 million in incentive contracts from 2014, according to the portal, while Duke earned about $150 million in an incentive contract from 2010. Incentives are performance-based, so a recipient may not earn the full amount if its targets aren't met. Nine other organizations are dubbed 'sponsors' on the webpage. They include Old National Bank, Pure Development, Rolls-Royce, Hoosier Energy, Solv Energy, Doral Renewables, railroad giant Norfolk Southern, workforce development consultant TPMA, and Indiana University's Ventures startup affiliate. Pure Development holds a $94.4 million contract for development work. Rolls-Royce received $21,000 after co-sponsoring a Northwest Stadium suite with IEDC for an Army-Navy football match in December and racked up 14 incentive contracts — worth $74.6 million — between 2011 and 2022. Doral Renewables, meanwhile, is the recipient of two pending incentive contracts totaling $1.5 million. TPMA was recorded as having three service contracts — for almost $190,000 — expiring between 2019 and 2025, and two 2015 incentive contracts worth nearly $400,000. There's also more information on the way. Though the foundation secured an exemption from the Internal Revenue Service in 2012 for future filings of the Form 990, Braun has directed it and other state-affiliated nonprofits to file them annually, regardless of any exemptions. The form describes funding sources and amounts, and how much has been spent on programming versus administrative expenses. All required reports going back 10 years are due by the end of 2025 under his executive order. They must also be 'clearly posted' online 'for Hoosiers to read for themselves,' according to a news release. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
Forbes
28-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Forbes
Pluto's Big Bang: Plotting A Street And Golf Culture Collision Course
Boy Pluto, the Indianapolis based brand's mascot tees off Indianapolis is better known as a Midwest motorsports mecca and basketball bastion than a city built for golf sickos. It's home to Brickyard Crossing, where four holes are plotted inside the track that hosts the Indy 500 and Brickyard 400, and where Larry Bird's legend began and where Caitlin Clark currently packs Gainbridge Fieldhouse with her long-range swishes. But a pair of smooth-swinging diehards—Quentin Purtee and Leen Dhillon, the brain trust behind Pluto Golf—are determined to expand their hometown's sports narrative, building a golf brand aimed squarely at sneakerheads like themselves while uplifting Hoosier State creative talent along the way. Purtee and Dhillon became instant friends as freshmen at Indiana University in Bloomington, bonding the moment they crossed paths and realized they were basically dressed as each other's reflection. 'Literally, the first week we get to campus, we see each other and we're both just wearing clothes that people in Indiana don't normally wear—Supreme, Bape, Jordans,' Purtee said. 'That was in 2012 at the peak of that era. I was into shoes and super into streetwear.' Their shared taste in sneakers wasn't just a casual hobby—it bordered on obsession. They shared a mutual appreciation for Nike SB Dunks, retro Jordans, and the signature kicks Kobe Bryant, Tracy McGrady and Allen Iverson sported in their primes. They can nerd out at great length over toe box design or low top ankle support with the verve and gravitas of an art critic waxing deep on fauvism. Purtee jokes that his future Pluto co-founder was way more invested than anyone he knew.'I think he had $500 in his bank account and maybe $100,000 worth of sneakers,' Purtee said. 'I didn't have 200 pairs of shoes like Leen had, I was in the 15-to-20 range.' While the monetary heft of Leen's collection might be hyperbole, Dhillon doesn't deny that his paychecks were basically spoken for before they even cleared. Since he was a teenager, Dhillon was driven to get a foot in the door of the footwear industry. At 16, he landed his dream job when the Indianapolis location of Nike's House of Hoops—a joint retail venture with Foot Locker—opened up shop. 'At the time I didn't think it was a big deal,' Dhillon recalled. 'But in hindsight, looking back, it was a big moment for me. I got to see how the retail side of footwear worked and understand a lot about insoles, shoe sizes and seeing buyers come in and what their eyes are drawn too—which inevitably played a part in how we view shoes today.' Even though they both shared expensive taste, both had modest means. 'Neither of us come from any sort of money and have never taken a dime from our parents. We were just broke and thought we got to figure this out, and just grinded. It wasn't with the end goal of starting Pluto but with an eye to getting out of the rat race,' Purtee explained. Both gravitated toward tech sales straight out of college. Purtee, who moved to L.A. for a stretch, worked for PatientPop and ServiceTitan, while Dhillon held sales and marketing roles at Angie's List and Salesforce before eventually starting his own roofing company. When they'd raised enough capital to build the foundation for a brand, they punched in the launch sequence to get their golf fashion label off the ground. In the same way Eastside Golf's hoodie and flying Cuban-links-clad emblem made an instant statement on the scene, Pluto's Boy Pluto logo—which feels like Hebru Brantley's Flyboy character collided with Elroy Jetson's retro-futuristic mug and then crash-landed somewhere between a clubhouse and the halfpipe—blends street and fairway culture into spikeless golf shoes as comfortable stepping into a bunker as they are flipping a board. But Pluto isn't just a footwear concern; it's evolving into a full head-to-toe apparel name—their latest drop was rain gear. 'We're not competing with brands who make breathable polos,' Purtee explained. 'If that's what you like, more power to you—but there are 25 companies doing a great job of that. What differentiates us isn't just the product—it's the perspective. We're our own customer.' 'We're not trying to impress fashion designers,' he added. 'We're trying to make clothing that we want to wear and our friends want to wear. And with that mindset, I think there are more possibilities in what we can do.' The spacy upstart has been leaning into storytelling and creative to carve a niche as well as reaching out directly to a large cast of smaller influencers—including Hood Hood Golf, Zion Wright, Sushiboy Mexico and Indiana University alum and PGA Tour Americas player Noah Gillard, all drawn to Pluto's style and eager to be part of the growing' brand's narrative. Celebs who have posted Pluto include retired New York Giant Victor Cruz and actor Ross Butler. Closeup of Pluto's P1 sneakers Pluto Golf quickly realized that bypassing intermediaries and reaching out to influencers personally was crucial for building momentum, all while keeping their marketing budget in check. 'I talked to a PR agency who told me it's going to be a $7500 a month retainer, and with influencer and NIL agencies it was the same thing' Purtee explained. Instead, they set about creating a brand that would attract authentic partnerships organically—a lesson they believe most D2C upstarts in their space could benefit from. "Focus on something really cool that you like, that your friends like,' Purtee . 'If it is really cool, it's going to come to you—you don't have to be too eager. If you've got millions of dollars to blow, be my guest. But if you're coming to this industry cold, be personable. All these people are friendly, they all like cool stuff, they all like golf.' Leen adds, 'being in sales has taught us to be comfortable being uncomfortable—reaching out to new people and knowing how to build real connections.' After some trial and error themselves, they moved away from agencies altogether. Leen said it became clear that intermediaries, aside from being expensive, often muddied the process. 'If you're bootstrapping a business, the more you can do yourself and the more outbound you can do without bringing in outside agencies, the more benefit you'll have long-term,' he said. In their experiences with middlemen, they also found it simply too easy to get cut out of the mix—whether it's never getting properly introduced to an influencer or even not getting genuine feedback on product. 'A lot of them gatekeep relationships in fear of themselves getting cut out,' Leen explained. Forging those direct lines of communication has helped the brand create more authentic partnerships. 'We're transparent behind the scenes,' says Purtee. 'We tell people what's going on and they're excited for the future. It's like this perfect concoction that's definitely hard to tap into.' Still, Leen emphasizes the hustle behind their content creator outreach is a grind: 'It's a lot of weekend work, a lot of evening work. Maybe somebody else is watching TV and you're doing this instead." While the small-influencer capture strategy hasn't sparked a viral moment yet, it has helped fuel steady growth. 'It's more of a compound effect than any specific micro-instance that we can point to so far,' he explained. Pluto Golf isn't just a passion project—it's a moonshot. They're not content to play around the fringes of golf fashion—they feel they have an irreverent, youth culture focused brand that they can scale into major player in the game in the space of a decade. Pluto may currently be a dwarf planet on the golf apparel sales leaderboard, but if the brand stays on the current trajectory, the future could be stellar. They're swinging big, aiming high, and betting that style, storytelling, and beast-mode level hustle can put them into orbit.
