Bill Benner

On Sept. 25, the NCAA’s Hall of Champions was a hall filled with champions. Yes, former Carmel basketball state champion, Purdue bowl champion and Indianapolis Colts quarterback Mark Herrmann was there. So were Justin Snow and a couple of his teammates from the Super Bowl champion Colts. But the champs on this day were athletes such as Sam McNew from Noblesville, Jessica Crook from Logansport, Mitch Johnson from Muncie, Danielle Burgin from Jeffersonville, and Shane Talbert from Attica. Later, at…

Undoubtedly, he was caught up in his “Win-One-For-The-Gipper” moment when New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady said of Bill Belichick, “We play for probably the best coach in the history of the NFL.” We’ll set aside for a moment whether Belichick can be placed above the likes of Vince Lombardi, George Halas, Tom Landry, Chuck Noll, Joe Gibbs or Don Shula, just to name several. And we’ll forget that Belichick wasn’t so great a coach in Cleveland, where he was…

I recall being on the football field at Ball State University in November of 1996, moments after the Cardinals had clinched the Mid-American Conference championship. The head coach, Bill Lynch, was exceedingly thrilled, as you might expect. But he also was exceedingly humble, deflecting the credit and making sure the spotlight was focused not on him, but on his players. Fast forward to 1999, when Ball State was in the throes of a losing streak that was to reach 21…

You leave town for a little vacation, but that doesn’t mean the world of sports is going to stop spitting out news. Therefore, thoughts about this, that and the other while I was away: News item: Barry Bonds breaks Henry Aaron’s home run record. Thought: Yawn. I ceased to care long ago. Major League Baseball has gotten what it deserved for ignoring the steroid issue for so long. News item: Tiger Woods wins his fourth PGA Championship, his second in…

On July 16, I followed a caravan of about 200 motorcyclists from downtown to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. As I climbed out of my car in the IMS parking lot, I heard AC-DC’s “Hell’s Bells” blasting through the loudspeakers. Just another reminder it’s not your father’s Speedway anymore. More to the point, it’s not Tony George’s grandfather’s Speedway anymore. Think about it. No sooner than George and his IMS team bid adieu to Formula One, they said hello to MotoGP,…

It’s just not fair. Life and death aren’t always. Nonetheless, I consider myself fortunate to have been among those on hand this year for what was one of Hep’s last public speaking experiences, at an NCAA function. Per usual, Hep was witty, inspirational and ultra-enthusiastic as he talked about his program. If I didn’t have season tickets already, I would have rushed out and bought some. My last memory of him is a great one. I knew Hep going back…

You know you’re getting old when you outlive buildings. First, it was Market Square Arena. I covered the first and last games there. Now, it’s the RCA Dome. In the summer of 1983, I went along with my then-boss, Indianapolis Star Sports Editor Bob Collins, to the roof of an old warehouse on South Capitol Avenue. From that vantage point, we watched-in awe-as the roof of the Hoosier Dome slowly inflated. While some might have hoped, no one knew for…

Thoughts of this, that and the other: So, just what would a retractable roof over the Indianapolis Motor Speedway cost? I was surprised that Colts quarterback Peyton Manning spent so much time practicing the waving of the green flag (much to the amusement and delight of the crowd) prior to the start of the Indianapolis 500. I figured he already would have studied hours of film of Pat Vidan. If you know who Pat Vidan is, well, you’re old. He…

Recently, I served as a moderator for a panel that included Indianapolis Colts President Bill Polian; Conseco Fieldhouse Executive Director and Indiana Pacers Vice President Rick Fuson; NCAA President Myles Brand; Indianapolis Motor Speedway President Joie Chitwood; and former Indiana Sports Corp. Chairman Jack Swarbrick. Except for the moderator, it was an all-star lineup, convened to discuss the impact sports has had on Indianapolis. It was both informative and inspiring as it captured the essence of the sports initiative and…

But that’s not close to being the case. The Fever are loaded. And maybe-just maybe-they can help whet this town’s appetite for professional basketball again. But at a time when we’re all looking for some feel-good to come out of the fieldhouse and for some local love to flow back in, well, this could be that time. A team that has gone 21-13 and reached the playoffs each of the last two seasons returns all five starters. That group includes…