Chicago Sports

Billy Donovan did sign a multiyear contract extension with the Chicago Bulls, 

The Chicago Bulls and head coach Billy Donovan agreed to a contract extension before the start of the 2022-23 season, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic.

Donovan, who already had two years left on his four-year deal, will now remain under contract with Chicago for a few years more.

The Bulls confirm that Billy Donovan signed a contract extension before the season, which @ShamsCharania had 1st.

Local reporting from all corners of the beat has been very consistent that the partnership between Donovan and management remains as strong as when it began.

— K.C. Johnson (@KCJHoop) November 29, 2022

Donovan joined the Bulls in September of 2020 following five seasons as the head coach of the Oklahoma City Thunder. Donovan has won 57.8% of his games as a coach in the NBA and helped lead the Bulls to a 46-36 record last season, their first winning season since 2015-16 and first playoff appearance since 2017.

The Bulls are off to a 9-11 this season but have won three of their past four games, including Monday’s 114-107 road victory against the Utah Jazz.

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The Chicago White Sox plan to add a new outdoor bar at Guaranteed Rate Field, according to a building permit issued by the city.

The permit calls for construction “at two existing 500-level locations at Guaranteed Rate Field for a new outdoor bar with premium seating skybox.”

The team did not share more information. A spokesperson said in a statement: “Ballpark projects are underway, but details, including any renderings, will be announced closer to the start of the season.”

The renovation requires demolishing eight rows of seats and rearranging entrance and exit stairs, according to the permit issued Nov. 18. It’s unclear exactly where the bar would be on the 500 level. The estimated cost of construction is $284,500.

The last major renovation at the field was to add a premium seating section in right field, dubbed the Goose Island, in 2019. The area was renamed Miller Lite Landing earlier this year. In 2016, the team installed three HD video boards.

The Illinois Sports Facilities Authority, which manages renovations at the ballpark, referred questions to the Sox.

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Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews’ names are mentioned in the same sentences as often as salt and pepper, but for whatever reason, they’ve never had the greatest results actually playing together.

Even in the preseason this year, when new coach Luke Richardson tried uniting the two cornerstone forwards, their line conceded three goals in less than 10 minutes of five-on-five ice time together before he promptly split them apart again.

But with the Blackhawks mired in as deep and dry a slump as they currently are — having won just twice in their last 15 games, having been outscored 61-32 over that span — it’s probably worth changing something for the sake of changing something. Things can’t possibly get much worse, after all, if the change backfires.

So ahead of Hawks practice Tuesday, Richardson pulled a new idea out of the idea jar, and that idea was to try Kane and Toews together again.

“It’s been done before, but I haven’t done it,” Richardson said, presumably referring to the regular season only. “So let’s try it. I think that makes the most sense.”

Toews now centers the Hawks’ first line with Kane on his right and Andreas Athanasiou on his left. Max Domi has slid down to the second-line center role between Taylor Raddysh and Philipp Kurashev.

“I mentioned it to [Kane and] all the guys this morning, and they’re all good with it,” Richardson said. “They realize there has to be some shuffling and changes just to change things up. Let’s rock the boat and get things going in the right direction.”

Added Kane: “We’ve played together before, so I know his tendencies, of course. And what he likes to do out there, and where he’s good on the ice. Even with Max, we’ve been snakebitten a little bit. We’ve had some looks, we’ve had some chances, it just hasn’t [gone] in for us, so hopefully we can get some bounces and get back on track.”

Richardson has been remarkably patient with combinations this season — much more than predecessors Jeremy Colliton and Derek King ever were. Other than by necessity due to injuries, the Hawks’ attacking lines have barely changed since training camp, and the old first line of Kane, Domi and Athanasiou literally hadn’t changed since camp.

Furthermore, as Kane mentioned, that line actually looked dangerous in Sunday’s 7-2 loss to the Jets. The Hawks surprisingly finished with a 22-21 edge in scoring chances at five-on-five, per Natural Stat Trick, and the first line accounted for an 11-2 advantage, not even including Athanasiou’s overturned first-period goal.

But only so much patience can be justified given the team’s dire lack of success in November. And in contrast to Sunday, the first line had admittedly been out-chanced by a massive 62-27 margin over its previous nine games.

So when the Hawks host the Oilers on Wednesday, that trio will sport a new look with the captain in the middle.

Coincidentally, that’s the exact same matchup that began this losing spiral for the Hawks back on Oct. 27. And in another coincidence, the Oilers also recently united their two star forwards — Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl — on a rare line together, and they’ve won consecutive games since doing so.

The Hawks engaged in battle drills at game-speed intensity during practice Tuesday and will attempt to carry that energy into Wednesday.

“The biggest thing is competing and making sure that we’re ready to play right when the puck drops,” Kane said. “We’ve had games in here that we could’ve had points or could’ve won those games, but it just hasn’t come through for us. We’ve just got to stay with it and compete a little bit better.”

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PHOENIX – Jerry Reinsdorf will never change.

We’re at the part of the movie where that’s clear.

The chairman of the Bulls and White Sox decided long ago to operate in the petty, especially in how he deals with the Chicago media. That’s his choice, and his success in life has certainly earned him that right.

While other owners of major-market teams such as the Cowboys’ Jerry Jones and the Mavericks’ Mark Cuban have understood trying to use the media for the benefit of their product, Chicago’s media to Reinsdorf is a dirty piece of gum that he takes enjoyment scraping off his shoe.

It doesn’t matter to Reinsdorf that it’s a disservice to his fans, but his latest move was a complete disservice to Bulls coach Billy Donovan.

First, it’s important to note that all major decisions in either organization must get Reinsdorf’s thumbs up or down. Son Michael has been given a huge amount of power in Bulls business, but even Michael admitted several years ago that his father had final say.

Second, the news that leaked Tuesday that Donovan’s contract was secretly extended in the preseason barely registers on the Richter scale, especially with how in sync executive vice president of basketball operations Arturas Karnisovas and Donovan remain since joining forces in 2020.

It was a bigger deal when Reinsdorf hid the news about then-White Sox manager Rick Renteria’s contract extension in 2017.

Unlike Renteria, Donovan was a made man since Day 1, just based on his resume — college and pro — and nothing was changing on that front with the 2022-23 season underway.

So why let it sit in the shadows?

Why not come out during fall camp in September and capture the news cycle by celebrating the decision to keep Donovan beyond next season when his original four-year deal was set to expire?

It’s not like Jerry Reinsdorf has been bashful in the releasing-statement department.

He did so earlier Tuesday, doing his best to say farewell to slugger Jose Abreu, while still trying to save face that an offer was made by the Sox to keep the fan-favorite.

Reinsdorf had no problem releasing a statement on the day Tom Thibodeau was fired in 2015, trying to portray the former Bulls coach in a bad light — knowing Thibodeau couldn’t fire back publicly if he wanted to collect the remaining $9 million still owed on his deal.

But with Donovan’s extension, there was no face to save. No bad light to shine on anyone.

There was a message about “continuity” from the organization with every roster move made last summer, and the chance to put a nice bow on it by also stressing “continuity” with the coaching staff.

A chance now missed.

As for Donovan, he enters Wednesday’s game against the Suns with an 86-88 (.494) record since joining the Bulls, after going 243-157 (.608) with Oklahoma City. He also led the Bulls to their first playoff appearance since 2017 last season, before losing in the first round to the Milwaukee Bucks.

For his part, Donovan did not seek out the extension before this season.

“Very, very humbled,” Donovan said of the extension getting done. “Very appreciative, grateful. Arturas came to me over the summer to talk about it. We had that conversation. For me, it’s really important who I’m working with, who I’m working for. Love the relationships inside the organization.

“I don’t want to use words like alignment, but I think we’re all on the same page as we see things.”

Almost true.

All on the same page except one. And unfortunately, he owns the page, the book, the whole damn library.

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Please send scores and corrections to [email protected].

Tuesday, November 29, 2022

EAST SUBURBAN CATHOLIC

Carmel at Marian Catholic, 7:00

Nazareth at St. Patrick, 7:00

St. Viator at Benet, 7:00

LAKE SHORE ATHLETIC

Intrinsic-Downtown at Lycee Francais, 6:00

METRO PREP

Islamic Foundation at Hinsdale Adventist, 7:00

NOBLE LEAGUE – GOLD

Butler at Rowe-Clark, 5:30

Comer at Noble Academy, TBA

RIVER VALLEY

Donovan at Grace Christian, 6:30

Gardner-So. Wilmington at St. Anne, 7:00

Illinois Lutheran at Grant Park, 7:00

Momence at Clifton Central, 7:00

SOUTH SUBURBAN – CROSSOVER

Thornton Fr. North at Richards, 6:30

SOUTHWEST PRAIRIE – EAST

Plainfield Central at Joliet West, 6:30

Joliet Central at Plainfield East, 6:30

Plainfield South at Romeoville, 6:30

SOUTHWEST PRAIRIE – WEST

Oswego at Minooka, 6:30

Plainfield North at Yorkville, 6:30

West Aurora at Oswego East, 6:30

NON CONFERENCE

Alden-Hebron at Leland, 7:00

Ashton-Franklin Center at Oregon, 7:00

Beacon at Latin, 6:00

Bogan at Kenwood, 5:00

Bremen at Mount Carmel, 6:00

Buffalo Grove at Grant, 7:00

Calvary (Normal) at Roanoke-Benson, 7:30

Chicago Math & Science at Lake View, 5:00

Chicago Military at South Shore

Cristo Rey-St. Martin at Lake County Baptist, 7:00

De La Salle at Don Bosco (IN), 6:00

Dixon at Kewanee, 7:00

Elmwood Park at Northtown, 6:30

EPIC at Roosevelt, 5:00

Excel-Englewood at Goode, 5:30

Geneva at Bartlett, 7:00

Genoa-Kingston at Pecatonica, 7:00

Glenbard East at Naperville Central, 7:00

Glenbard West at DeKalb, 7:00

Glenbrook South at Rolling Meadows, 7:00

Golder at Solorio, 5:00

Harlan at Catalyst-Maria, 5:00

Hersey at Maine South, 7:)0

Highland Park at Niles West, 6:30

Hinckley-Big Rock at Westminster Christian, 7:00

Hinsdale South at Glenbard South, 7:00

IC Catholic at Marmion, 7:00

Kelly at Little Village, 5:00

LaSalle-Peru at Hall, 7:00

Leyden at Elk Grove, 6:00

Lockport at Thornridge, 6:30

Lowpoint-Washburn at Greenview, 7:30

Manley at Providence-St. Mel, 5:30

Marengo at North Boone, 7:00

Marquette at St. Bede, 7:00

McNamara at Peotone, 7:00

Metea Valley at East Aurora, 6:30

Midland at Galva, 7:00

Morgan Park at Brother Rice, 7:00

Morton at Neuqua Valley, 7:00

Oak Lawn at Chicago Christian, 7:30

Prairie Central at Dwight, 7:00

Prospect at Lake Zurich, 7:00

Providence at Reavis, 6:00

Rauner at AERCO-Soto, 6:30

Rich at Fenwick, 7:00

Richards (Chgo) at Fenger, 5:00

Richmond-Burton at Williams Bay (WI), 7:00

Rock Falls at Sterling, 7:00

Rockford Christian at Marian Central, 7:00

Sandburg at Lemont, 6:00

Schurz at Agricultural Science, 5:00

Seneca at Morris, 7:00

Serena at Amboy, 7:30

South Beloit at Hiawatha, 7:00

Spry at ACERO-Soto, 5:00

St. Charles North at Bolingbrook, 6:30

Stagg at Tinley Park, 6:00

Streamwood at Glenbard North, 7:00

Taft at Maine West, 6:00

Thornwood at Simeon, 5:00

UC-Woodlawn at Hancock, 5:00

Universal at Morgan Park Academy, 6:00

University High at Evergreen Park, 6:30

Urban Prep-Bronzeville at Lindblom, 5:00

Urban Prep-Englewood at Leo, 7:00

Vernon Hills at Lakes, 7:00

Vocational at Kankakee, 6:30

West Chicago at Kaneland, 7:00

Woodland at DePue, 7:00

Woodstock North at Stillman Valley, 7:00

AURORA CHRISTIAN

Crossroads vs. IMSA, 4:30

Aurora Central vs. Joliet Catholic, 6:00

Harvest Christian vs. St. Edward, 7:30

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The Bears put star safety Eddie Jackson on injured reserve with a foot injury that almost certainly will end his season. They also agreed to a deal with journeyman Adrian Colbert, his agent Drew Rosenhaus said Tuesday.

Colbert, 29, was with the Titans in training camp, but has not played in the NFL this season. The Bears are his 10th organization since the 49ers drafted him in the seventh round out of the University of Miami in 2017.

He played 21 games, including 12 starts, for the 49ers over the 2017 and ’18 seasons. Since then, he has not played more than six games in any season. He spent parts of last season with the Browns and Jets, starting three games for the latter.

Jackson, one of the Bears’ top players, got hurt in a non-contact situation against the Jets. He led the team with four interceptions and two forced fumbles and was the leading vote getter at his position when the NFL released an update Monday.

The Bears also missed rookie Jaquan Brisker last week because of a concussion, and backup Dane Cruikshank left the Jets game with a hamstring injury. The only other safeties on the roster are DeAndre Houston-Carson and Elijah Hicks, plus A.J. Thomas on the practice squad.

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Coming into the 2022 season Nico Hoerner never was able to stay on the field unfortunately for the majority of the baseball calendar year. In 2020 and 2021 Hoerner dealt with multiple injuries that kept him out of the lineup for extended periods of time. During the 2020 shortened season he played in 48 games, and in 2021 only 44 games.

In 2022, Hoerner was able to stay healthy for the majority of the season playing in 135 games and he did not disappoint either. He finished the year batting .281, OPS of .736, 10 home runs, and 55 RBI’s.

Hoerner had a very good year at the dish, but also had a really solid year defensively as well. In 133 games at shortstop he had a .974 fielding percentage with committing only 13 errors up the middle at short.

After this latest season for Hoerner it is time to start working on an extension this winter. Reports as of late say the Cubs will definitely have conversations with Hoerner’s camp to hopefully get an extension done this offseason. The former Stanford Cardinal in Hoerner is still under team control until 2026 when he is a free agent, but in 2023 he will be entering his first year of being eligible for arbitration.

It is also being reported that the newest gold glove winner in Ian Happ is another player that the Cubs will look to engage about a possible long term extension to keep him in Chicago.

The front office should try to lock Hoerner up on a more team friendly type deal. The Cubs did it with Anthony Rizzo years ago to give him security early on his Cubs career. That was almost 10 years ago with Rizzo and his extension, so probably will not be as big of a steal as it was with Rizzo but can still definitely be a team friendly deal.

If the Cubs and Hoerner were to agree on an extension it could be very beneficial for both sides. For Hoerner he gets a significant raise, plus the security as well. While the Cubs get to lock down one of their young players for a couple more years overall.

It also would be smart to lock up Hoerner now then see him go off and have an even better year in 2023 and have to pay him even more if you want to keep him in the Cubs organization for the foreseeable future.

Do the Cubs really need to sign another shortstop if they have Hoerner?

With Hoerner anchoring shortstop and doing it well do they Cubs really need to go shopping for a shortstop this winter?

There are multiple reports out there that the Cubs will be big spenders this offseason. Depending on who you follow in the media they are supposedly major players for the likes of Trea Turner, Xander Bogaerts, Dansby Swanson, and Carlos Correa. Also, he may not be a shortstop but rumors are swirling that the Cubs could be seen as a landing spot for longtime Chicago White Sox first baseman in Jose Abreu.

What is really good about Hoerner as a player is that he is athletic enough to play other positions on the diamond. He would have no issue sliding back over to second, or third if the Cubs were able to land one of the big named shortstops in this years free agent class. Some even think that he could be an above average center fielder if that is where the Cubs needed him to play in the field.

Do I feel the Cubs sign a shortstop this winter? I really do but could not tell you which one I think they end up getting on their end. The Cubs getting another shortstop is not because they do not believe in Hoerner, but just that they feel that getting one of the big names out there can really help the Cubs compete in 2023 and beyond. Adding one of those said free agent shortstops and having Hoerner up the middle would be a great duo.

Hopefully the Cubs and Hoerner can both agree to keep him on the north side for the next few seasons at minimum with an extension.

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The acquisition of wide receiver Chase Claypool didn’t drop “difference-making weapon for Justin Fields” from the top of the Bears’ 2023 want list. But the demise of the Bears’ defense might have.

The Bears still need a dynamic wide receiver to accelerate the development of Justin Fields. And they still need a major upgrade at offensive tackle. But with a withering defense that struggles to pressure a quarterback, let alone sack him, defensive line arguably has jumped to the top spot of the Bears’ need list for 2023.

After allowing 31 points and 466 yards in a 31-10 loss to the Jets on. Sunday, the Bears have allowed 173 points (34.6 average) in the last five weeks — the most in the NFL in that span. Even if you subtract the four touchdowns scored against them on special teams (two) and offense (two), the 145 points scored against the Bears still are tied with the Cardinals for the most overall points allowed in that span — just on defensive points allowed alone.

Through 12 games, rookie safety Jaquan Brisker leads the Bears with three sacks — a glaring indictment of a defense that is philosophically disdains leaning on the blitz to pressure the quarterback. “We believe in the four-man rush,” coach Matt Eberflus said in Week 3.

At that point, Eberflus had reason to state that so resolutely — rookie defensive end Dominique Robinson had 1.5 sacks against the 49ers in the opener; defensive end Trevis Gipson had two sacks against the Packers in Week 2. But since then, the Bears’ defensive line has just five sacks in the last 10 games. Armon Watts’ sack of Jets quarterback Mike White on Sunday was the first sack by a defensive lineman in six games — since Al-Quadin Muhammad’s sack against the Commanders in Week 6.

It’s not only sacks. The Bears have just 34 quarterback hits this season — by far the fewest in the NFL (the Rams’ 45 quarterback hits are the second fewest).

Lack of opportunity — obvious passing downs — is one culprit. The Bears’ defense has put opponents in third-and-seven or longer situations 5.4 plays per game this season — 30th in the NFL.

The Bears’ 27th-ranked run defense (24th in yards per carry) is a big reason for that. The Jets had 32 carries for 158 yards (4.9 average) against the Bears on Sunday. With leading rusher Breece Hall out with an injury and Michael Carter leaving in the first quarter with an injury, Ty Johnson (5-62) and Zonovan Knight (14-69) combined for 131 yards on 19 carries. They came into the game with a combined nine carries for 30 yards this season — all by Johnson. Knight is an undrafted rookie who had never played in a regular-season NFL game.

Circumstances can’t be ignored. The Bears traded Khalil Mack and did not resign Akiem Hicks in the offseason. They traded Robert Quinn in Week 8 and Roquan Smith in Week 9. They’re starting four rookies. Two of them, cornerback Kyler Gordon and safety Jaquan Brisker, are in concussion protocol and did not play against the Jets. Safety Eddie Jackson suffered a season-ending foot injury in the first half.

But the defense’s production hasn’t met even lowered expectations. And it starts up front, where a difference-making defensive tackle or end moves to the top of the Bears’ offseason want list.

2. At 3-9, the Bears currently are second in the 2023 draft order. If they lose out, they would finish no worse than third. The Rams and Broncos are 3-8 and would win strength-of-schedule tie-breakers against the Bears. But the Rams and Broncos play each other in Week 16, so one of them (or both in the event of a tie) would fall behind a 3-14 Bears team in the draft order.

In that scenario, the Bears’ best option might be to trade down with a team desperate for a quarterback to acquire more picks. But Alabama defensive end Will Anderson and Georgia defensive tackle Jalen Carter — both rated worthy of a top-five pick — would be tempting as potential difference-making players.

3. The Bears trading their own second-round pick to the Steelers for Claypool — instead of the second-round pick they got from the Ravens in the Roquan Smith trade — is looming larger with every loss. Their original second-round pick is currently 34th overall. The pick they got from the Ravens is 56th.

4. The Bears are at a low-point with Fields injured and Jackson and Darnell Mooney out for the season. But while they need a lot of help — likely more than general manager Ryan Poles envisioned when he revamped the roster — the idea that they need wholesale changes on both lines is a little overwrought. Difference-making players turn liabilities into assets. With a high draft pick and a ton of salary-cap space, Poles needs to hit home runs instead of a bunch of doubles.

5. It’s hard to believe the Bears wouldn’t have been better off had Matt Eberflus named Trevor Siemian the start last Monday, given Siemian the full complement of starters reps in practice and the entire week to prepare mentally as the starter — instead of Siemian literally not finding out that he was the starter until Sunday morning.

The juice of keeping the Jets in the dark wasn’t worth the squeeze of that charade. It almost never is. The Jets named Mike White the starter last Wednesday. Maybe it was just a coincidence he had a 149.3 passer rating and Siemian’s was 75.2, but it worked out well for Robert Saleh.

6. Did You Know? Undrafted rookie linebacker Jack Sanborn has more tackles in his first four starts for the Bears (43) than Roquan Smith had in his last four starts for the Bears (37). In fact, after his 14 tackles against the Jets, Sanborn’s average of 10.8 tackles per game is better than Smith’s season average of 10.4, when he was leading the NFL in tackles.

7. Jackson going on injured reserve with a foot injury is another major blow to a defense still reeling since Quinn and Smith were traded. The Bears were tied for seventh in points allowed, 12th in yards allowed and 15th in yards allowed per play in seven games with Quinn and Smith. They now are 27th in points, 20th in yards and 29th in yards per play.

The Jets’ White (149.3) was the fifth consecutive quarterback with a 100-plus passer rating against the Bears — following Marcus Mariota (100.2), Jared Goff (113.6), Tua Tagovailoa (135.7) and Dak Prescott (114.5). Prior to that, the Bears were second in the NFL in opponent’s passer rating (74.6).

And while they’ve faced better passers recently — Tagovailoa (first) and Prescott (eighth) are in the top 10 in passer rating and Goff is 12th — White is a back-up who was starting for the first time in more than a year. His 149.3 rating against the Bears is the sixth highest in the Super Bowl era for a quarterback with fewer than four career starts coming in.

8. Mooney had at least one catch in his first 44 games with the Bears before getting shut out prior to his injury Sunday. That’s the second-longest streak in franchise history to start a career — behind Harlon Hill’s 61.

9. Josh McCown Ex-Bears Player of the Week –Panthers kicker Eddy Pineiro was 3-for-3 on field goals (42, 26 and 36 yards) and 2-for-2 on PATs in a 23-10 victory over the Broncos. Pineiro has made 22-of-24 field goals and 18-of-20 PATs this season.

10. Bear-ometer: 4-13 — vs. Packers (L); vs. Eagles (L); vs. Bills (L); at Lions (W); vs. Vikings (L). You know the Bears are going to surprise somebody.

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Parents of St. Ignatius hockey players wondered for nearly an hour if their children died when a truck driver plowed into their team’s bus after a tournament in Indiana this month.

“None of the boys answered their phones… For 50 minutes we tried to figure out if these boys were alive,” Wendy Cook said Tuesday about her child and 15 others who were injured.

Several parents were at a restaurant ordering dinner, not far from the tournament, when they first heard about the Nov. 12 crash in a phone call from one of the players.

“People were standing up screaming, ‘The bus has rolled over! The bus has rolled over!'” Cook said.

They learned the boys were alive when they arrived at an Indiana emergency department another parent described as a “war zone,” filled with the injured teens.

Three junior varsity players who were seriously injured — one of whom is still receiving treatment — had been transferred to another hospital, adding to the confusion, parents said.

Cook recalled the horrifying experience Tuesday during the announcement of a lawsuit against the truck driver and trucking companies that allegedly allowed the convicted sex offender to get behind the wheel.

Police said the driver was drunk, swerving and speeding before he crashed into the bus, flipping it on its side in Warsaw, Indiana, about 50 miles south of South Bend.

The lawsuit was filed in Kosciusko County, Indiana, by the 16 injured players, their parents and two coaches who were on the bus.

“We’re going to find out why this man who had a prior criminal conviction for rape … was driving,” attorney Tim Cavanagh said. “What responsible trucking company would allow this man to drive?”

The truck driver, Victor Santos, 58, of Brooklyn, New York, has already been charged with felony criminal counts of causing serious bodily injury while operating a vehicle and criminal recklessness while armed with a deadly weapon.

He remains in custody in Indiana on a bond that his lawyer tried to reduce earlier this week. Parents of the players said they don’t want to see him out from behind bars. They plan to attend the driver’s next criminal court hearing in January.

“I would never want to see that man out of jail, nor would I ever want to see him behind the wheel of any vehicle again,” parent Eileen Murphy said.

Police have said Santos was seen swerving across a highway and traveling more than 90 mph before he crashed into the school bus.

Santos briefly tapped the brakes as he approached an intersection on U.S. Route 30 in the town of Warsaw, then barreled through a red light and knocked the school bus on its side, officials said.

His blood alcohol level was 0.13%, almost twice the legal limit in Indiana, police said.

The lawsuit alleges counts of negligence and seeks punitive damages. The lawsuit names the companies N&V Trucking Express, B&W Cartage Inc. and B&W International as defendants.

Representatives for the companies and driver did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Parents of two of the seriously injured players spoke with reporters Tuesday. Wendy Cook said her son Alex fractured two bones in his face, suffered a concussion and was having a seizure on the bus when responders found him.

Her son worried that his friend wouldn’t survive. “The first thing he said to me was, ‘Is Jack OK? I don’t think Jack is going to live,'” Wendy Cook recalled.

A photo shared with reporters showed Alex Cook and Jack Rogers lying injured outside the rolled-over bus.

“These boys, they’re tough hockey players. But they are emotionally rocked by this,” Wendy Cook said.

The other boy, Jack Rogers, fractured his skull, ribs and injured his pelvis, his father Jeff Rogers said.

“He’s coming along, I guess, just like the rest of his teammates. It’s a day-by-day process. He’ll have a long road to recovery,” said Rogers, who also coaches the varsity hockey team, but whose son was on the junior varsity bus involved in the crash.

Karl D’Cunha recalled seeing the driver arrive in the ER in cuffs, red-eyed and realizing this man was the truck driver who crashed into the bus with his child.

He looked “cold, robotic, like nothing happened,” D’Cunha said. “We want this guy put away from a long time. He should never have been put on the road.”

D’Cunha said he and other parents are now trying to protect their kids from the fallout of the crash, including the new lawsuit.

“They have so much on their plate right now,” he said. “One, they won’t understand the full extent of it until they’re older. But I know, as parents, we’re unified. We all want to do what’s best for our kids.”

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The Chicago Bears placed both WR Darnell Mooney and S Eddie Jackson on the IR

Chicago’s season was already bad, but now we have to go through the rest of the season without Darnell Mooney and Eddie Jackson. Mooney is undergoing season-ending ankle surgery while Jackson is dealing with a Lisfranc injury. He is getting more opinions but his season is done.

Mooney finished the season with 40 catches for 493 yards and two touchdowns. He was the Bears No. 1 WR all season long and had a strong connection with Justin Fields. Chase Claypool will now have to step up in Mooney’s absence.

Jackson was in the midst of bounce back season, recording 59 tackles, two forced fumbles, four interceptions, and six deflected passes. Moreover, he was the veteran voice of the defense after the trades of Roquan Smith and Robert Quinn. The Chicago Bears will miss his presence on the field.

Chicago made a signing in the secondary while also promoting A.J. Thomas from the practice squad. It will be hard to replace Jackson’s production both on and off the field.

Wishing for a speedy recovery to both Mooney and Jackson.

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