USA Today - 08.10.2026 — 2026-10-07

Negative attitudes are ruining college football

Columnist: Fans seem obsessed with failure and are missing the beauty of the sport. In Sports

Investment accounts are helping keep some afloat

More top earners are transferring funds into checking accounts, data shows. In Money

USA TODAY

THE NATION'S NEWS | \$3 | THURSDAY, OCTOBER 8, 2026

---

Real-life best friends still on call

The provided image contains no text or visual content to process. It displays a solid purple rectangle with no OCR-able content.

Zach Braff, left, and Donald Faison reunite in Season 2 of the revival of "Scrubs," which has J.D. and Turk in charge at the hospital. In Life

NATHANIAL GARY/USA TODAY

Next steps in Pike case uncertain

Inmate may face second execution attempt

Amanda Lee Myers

USA TODAY

With the astonishing news that Christa Pike is conscious, talking and making a “medically unprecedented” recovery following her botched execution, Tennessee is now facing a critical question: Will the state try to kill her again?

"Against all odds, Christa Pike is conscious, speaking, and continues to receive critical medical care," her attorneys said in a statement on Oct. 6. "Her prognosis remains unclear but, at a minimum, we expect a long recovery."

They said that despite “severe damage” to Pike’s arms, “she is still handcuffed and shackled to the bed.”

“She survived two complete rounds of lethal injection per Tennessee’s protocol, despite her attorneys' warning to the state of specific challenges with her veins," her attorneys said. "She is the only person known to have survived a complete execution attempt in the U.S. Christa is a survivor and will take recovery one day at a time."

So far, Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee has not responded to repeated calls from Pike's attorneys and death penalty observers to commute her sentence to life in prison. That leaves open the possibility that Pike will face a second execution, even after her attorneys said the first attempt on Sept. 30 amounted to unconstitutionally cruel and unusual punishment.

“We’re in uncharted territory,” said Robin Maher, executive director of the nonprofit Death Penalty Information Center, which does not take a stance on the death penalty.

"The U.S. Supreme Court has not decided whether a second execution attempt would violate the constitution since 1947," Maher told USA TODAY.

See PIKE, Page 4A

Pastor has faith as Kansas Senate race tightens

Democrats aim to end

losing streak in state

Jay Stahl and Terry Collins

USA TODAY

In a campaign ad that tugs at the heartstrings, Meischa Zimmerman, a former patient of Sen. Roger Marshall, R-Kansas, recounts being arrested when she was eight months pregnant for missing a \$50 medical payment to Marshall, an obstetrician-gynecologist. Zimmerman is one of 700 patients Marshall sued for medical debt, according to The New York Times.

“I said, ‘Please do not handcuff me in front of my 2-year-old daughter,’” Zimmerman said in the commercial for Democratic Senate nominee Adam Hamilton’s campaign. “Roger Marshall preyed on the low-income families of Kansas.”

The Rev. Adam Hamilton leads Resurrection, a United Methodist church in the Kansas City area which has the largest Methodist congregation in the country.

EVERT NELSON/USA TODAY NETWORK

Marshall's pursuit of patients for unpaid bills, which resulted in 81 arrests, has become a major issue in the unexpectedly close Senate race in the Sunflower State. The 30-second commercial already has been seen more than 1 million times on the social media platform X.

Kansas last elected a Democrat in 1932, the longest active Senate losing streak in U.S. history, but Hamilton holds a 2-percentage-point lead over Marshall in the latest Emerson College-Nexstar Media Kansas poll. President Donald Trump carried Kansas by 16 points in 2024. But with Trump's approval ratings sagging, even some bright-red states such as Ohio and

See KANSAS, Page 6A

0"89505"04005"6

HOME DELIVERY

1-800-872-0001, USATODAYSERVICE.COM

A formerly reliable gauge of spending has shifted since the end of the pandemic, puzzling economists

The latest statistics show the economy and consumers, despite persistent gloom from the latter, remain resilient. JIM YOUNG/REUTERS FILE

Consumer sentiment down despite positive reports

Medora Lee

USA TODAY

Six years after the COVID-19 pandemic, Americans still feel gloomy and no once-a-month economic report seems to make them happy.

Since the pandemic, the economy and jobs market have recovered but consumer sentiment hasn't. While it has ebbed and flowed in the past six years, it has never climbed back to pre-pandemic levels, University of Michigan Consumer Sentiment Index data shows. The Conference Board's Consumer Confidence Index also dropped in September.

The gap between how people feel and the ongoing strength of spending and the economy is a unique post-pandemic phenomenon economists can't quite explain. Historically, consumer sentiment has been a fairly reliable leading indicator of where the economy's headed, based on the idea that if the consumer feels confident and optimistic, they'll spend more. If not, they won't – and the economy's headed for a soft patch. Consumer spending accounts for about 70% of the U.S. economy.

Although Americans and the media spend much time lamenting over consumer malaise and its roots, economists and some policymakers are moving on.

“From our perspective at the Chicago Fed, we were interested in consumer sentiment for a narrow reason, which is it was a good leading indicator of consumer spending,” Chicago Federal Reserve President Austan Goolsbee told journalists at an event discussing the consumer sentiment disconnect. “And over the last six years, it has become a

See CONSUMERS, Page 6A

Tamerah Cooper's son, Maceo, left, has a condition that requires at-home care. PROVIDED BY TAMERAH COOPER

Children in Arkansas wait years for disability care

‘Human issue’ is facing political headwinds

Jayme Fraser

USA TODAY

Surrounded by hundreds of other parents raising children with disabilities, Tamerah Cooper was no longer alone.

People rallied at the Arkansas Capitol in Little Rock to describe the hardships of waiting years for disability services loved ones needed to stay at home rather than live in an institution. Three posters leaned on the lectern in front of the speakers, including one of a child who died while waiting for the government to fund that care.

Cooper stared at the photo of a smiling 7-year-old girl. Her son, Maceo, who has a degenerative neurological condition, is the same age.

“I don’t want to lose my son,” she said.

Cooper joined the Little Rock rally Sept. 16 to demand state officials fully fund programs that allow people with disabilities to live at home as required

See DISABILITY, Page 5A

Cornell retains Yates to lead review

actually been concerned about," he said of the car accident case.

As part of her review, Sally Yates will look into how Cornell University responded to the report made in 2024 by the student, the school said. JACK GRUBER/ USA TODAY FILE

Will look at school's sexual assault protocols

Jeanine Santucci, Karissa Waddick and N'dea Yancey-Bragg

USA TODAY

ITHACA, NY – Cornell University announced on Oct. 6 that it has retained Sally Yates, the former acting attorney general of the United States, to review its sexual assault policies and procedures in the wake of a lawsuit brought by an anonymous former student alleging she was raped by members of a Cornell fraternity.

Yates as part of her review will also look into how the university responded to the report made in 2024 by the student, known only as Jane Doe, the university said.

Cornell is facing widespread criticism over its handling of the investigation into the allegations in 2024

"It is imperative that Cornell be willing to examine itself with the same rigor we expect of others. We want to understand not just what happened in 2024, but how Cornell can become a leader in preventing sexual violence, supporting those who come forward and responding to allegations rigorously, fairly and compassionately," said Anne Meinig Smalling, the chair of a newly formed special committee of Cornell's board of trustees, in a statement.

Yates was hired in 2021 to investigate the National Women's Soccer League following reports of abuse and inappropriate behavior by coaches. Her report found the NWSL and U.S. Soccer failed to take action against “pervasive” and “systemic” abusive behavior and sexual misconduct.

She previously served as deputy attorney general of the United States under former President Barack Obama, and was interim attorney general for just days until she was dismissed by President Donald Trump at the start of his first term in office for refusing to carry out his executive order banning travelers to the United States from certain Muslim-majority countries.

Jane Doe in her lawsuit accused seven members of the Chi Phi fraternity of sexually assaulting her in 2024. All seven denied the allegations during the university's investigation. None was ever charged with a crime, after Tompkins County District Attorney Matthew Van Houten said Jane Doe's statements to police weren't evidence the men had broken the law.

Van Houten said in light of the suit filed in September he would reopen the investigation and present the case to a grand jury. New York Gov. Kathy Hochul then appointed New York Attorney General Letitia James on Oct. 1 to lead the criminal investigation.

When Cornell President Michael Kotlikoff initially announced plans to conduct an independent review on Oct. 3, before Yates was hired, students and faculty criticized the administration for not doing enough.

Risa L. Lieberwitz, a professor of labor and employment law and a member of the faculty senate, said hiring an investigator and creating a task force to review university policies wouldn't necessarily lead to the institutional change community members are pushing for.

Campus stakeholders, including students and faculty, must be brought into formal conversations, too, she said.

"We have experts who've been working for years and years and years on these issues of gender violence," Lieberwitz said. "They know how to do this through education and training."

"We can also bring in experts from the outside who do this kind of work," she continued. "That's not only what's needed to actually make institutional change, but it's needed for the administration of the university to be credible."

David Bateman, president of Cornell's American Association of University Professors chapter, said he was skeptical about the independent review. Past investigations launched by the university for other incidents, including an episode earlier this year when the president bumped into students with his car, felt like cover-ups, he said.

"In, like, less than two weeks, they closed the case without addressing any of the actual issues that ... faculty had

The Yates investigation felt closer to being “genuinely independent,” but still didn’t address faculty and student concerns, Bateman said.

“I don’t know Sally Yates,” he said. “But it doesn’t look like it’s going to be an investigation that is run by people, including faculty, who have a deep understanding of how universities ought to run, rather than simply how a large organization ought to respond.”

Ithaca Mayor Robert G. Cantelmo has slammed the university for failing to loop in local police and adequately discipline the alleged perpetrators, calling the school's response "appalling," in a statement.

"This is a miscarriage of justice and continues to pose a significant threat to students and residents who may be victimized at unsafe and under-monitored on- or off-campus student events," Cantelmo said, calling for a ban on student and special event permits until the school's sexual violence policies are updated.

The university has said it conducted a months-long Title IX investigation, which resulted in “a range of sanctions, which included expulsions and suspensions from Cornell.”

"In addition, the involved fraternity chapter was closed in 2024 and remains barred from campus," Kyle Kimball, vice president for university relations, said in a statement. "Any suggestion that the university did not impose consequential punishments for those involved is false."

The school also launched a task force on campus sexual assault, which issued a report in March. Cornell has said several of the recommendations outlined in the report have already been implemented.

University leadership were set to discuss the case and Cornell's response at a virtual town hall for employees on Oct. 6, according to message sent to faculty and staff viewed by USA TO-DAY.

ANALYSIS

First lady making mark in politics, fashion

the National Archives.

First Lady Melania Trump speaks at a news conference to announce the expansion of her “Fostering the Future Together” coalition in New York on Sept.

22. LEONARDO MUNOZ/AFP VIA GETTY IMAGES

Melania Trump's

humanitarian efforts,

attire well-noted

Swapna Venugopal Ramaswamy

USA TODAY

The first lady's East Wing office may have been demolished but that doesn't mean she's ceding power.

During her second turn as first lady, Melania Trump has made it clear that she marches to her own beat, both in the way she dresses and the way she conducts business.

Dressed in a black Dolce & Gabbana pantsuit and a white cotton Givenchy blouse with an ascot, she hosted an event for her Fostering the Future Together initiative Sept. 15 in New York, attended by the spouses of 57 world leaders.

Held on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly, the event was covered by reporters from outlets including CNN and Politico. Just days earlier, on Sept. 18, President Donald Trump had banned CNN, Politico and MSNOW from the White House.

The president even called out a reporter from CNN when she showed up to cover him at the U.N., telling CNN's Kaitlan Collins, "You shouldn't be here covering me."

Was the first lady portraying herself as a counterweight to her husband? In this relationship, she also wears the pants, her actions and her sartorial choices seem to suggest.

The following day, the first lady rang the opening bell at the New York Stock Exchange, as she launched IMPERIA, a networking forum and economic initiative for female CEOs and C-suite leaders.

This was her third time ringing the opening bell – one more time than her husband. But who's keeping score?

Starting with her official portrait, a dark, single-breasted Dolce & Gabbana tuxedo jacket with satin lapels over a crisp white button-up shirt, many of her outfits in her second innings as first lady have featured menswear-inspired power suits. In March, she wore a tan three-piece pantsuit with a black tie when she made a trip to Capitol Hill as she championed the Take It Down Act, which aims to protect victims of deepfakes and revenge pornography. When her husband signed the bill into law at the Rose Garden, the first lady co-signed the document.

The following month, in a move that caught even the president by surprise, the first lady read out a statement from the White House denying ties to the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein and decrying “fake images” of herself. She was dressed in a gray double-breasted Prada skirt suit – the same outfit she wore as she co-signed the Take It Down Act.

Standing at the lectern April 9, the first lady demanded that “lies” linking her to Epstein stop immediately and declared that she was not “Epstein’s victim.”

If the sartorial choice was meant to communicate a message, it appeared to be this: She may not be a victim of Epstein's, but she is a victim of social media.

The day after she rang the opening bell at NYSE, the first lady was dressed in a belted blue pantsuit as she hosted the Chinese President Xi Jinping and his wife, Peng Liyuan, for tea and a trip to

In a move that garnered behemoth media attention and bucked tradition, Melania Trump wore pants to the state dinner she was hosting with her husband in honor of the visiting Chinese guests.

She was dressed in a crisp white Saint Laurent shirt with a dramatic bow paired with a black Dolce & Gabbana silk cummerbund and high-waisted black brocade pants, while Peng Liyuan wore a long red gown. Trump was outfitted in a black tuxedo with a bowtie and Xi opted for a high-collared black Mao suit.

🔗 [系统已自动跨页缝合转版续文：《Disability》]

A

by federal law. The Americans with Disabilities Act and a 1999 U.S. Supreme Court decision affirmed disabled people have a right to care that lets them stay in their community rather than being forced to live in medical facilities.

And yet, more than 2,400 people in Arkansas – and 650,000 nationwide – appear on wait lists for those Medicaid services.

In response to the growing protests, Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders announced on Sept. 15 she would work with legislators to clear the state's wait list. Until a funding solution can be found, the Republican said she would use different Medicaid dollars to provide waiting families with the most-requested type of home care starting in January.

It's not soon enough for Cooper.

"People are dying," she said. "This isn't political. This is a human issue."

Meanwhile, the federal government is retreating from its responsibilities to limit how often people with disabilities are forced into institutions. On Sept. 30, a judge approved a settlement between U.S. health officials and five states that guts federal enforcement of rules that ensure disabled people can live independently, in their homes, whenever possible.

"I'm so worried about my kids' future," Cooper said, afraid her son's wait could become even longer amid the Trump administration's shifting disability policies.

After a long history of bipartisan collaboration, experts say disability rights are facing their biggest threats in decades.

“We still have our rights. It’s just going to be harder to enforce them,” said Maria Town, the president of the American Association of People with Disabilities.

Without allies in the White House, advocates say local leaders could face increased pressure to boost funding, change regulations and enshrine civil rights into state law.

Cooper finds hope among peers fighting for an accessible American Dream.

🔗 [系统已自动跨页缝合转版续文：《Kansas》]

A

Texas have become competitive – a situation exacerbated in Kansas by Hamilton's strengths and Marshall's liabilities.

Marshall's lawyers dispute Zimmerman's account, calling it defamatory, and have requested a cease-and-desist to block the ad's distribution.

Marshall's legal team said the unpaid bill was much larger than \$50. “The amount sought in the collection action was \$3,595. The ‘\$50’ figure appears nowhere in the case as the basis for any arrest,” they wrote in a Sept. 28 letter.

“Those are common, common business practices, we would go a year before we would send someone over,” Marshall said in response to the Times report during a debate in September with Hamilton at the Kansas State Fair, drawing chants of “Shame on you” from the crowd. The Times reporter, Sarah Kliff, said on X that she spoke with patients who said they were sued sooner than that.

Marshall holds a “complete and total endorsement” from Trump, who has won the state three times. But concerns over the struggling economy, high gas and grocery prices, and Hamilton’s name recognition as senior pastor at the country’s largest Methodist parish, have also boosted his campaign.

Kansas has shown a willingness to vote Democratic in certain statewide races before. Although Trump has always won the state by at least 14 percentage points, Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly was elected governor in the 2018 midterms and reelected in 2022. Over the last century, several Democratic governors have served, including Kathleen Sebelius, the Obama-era Health and Human Services secretary.

Kansas was shifted from “likely Republican” to merely “leans Republican” by the nonpartisan Cook Political Report on Sept. 23.

---

A woman on a mission and a parallel power center?

In August 2025, Melania Trump penned a letter to Russian President Vladimir Putin advocating for the return of children affected by the Russia-Ukraine war. The president hand-delivered the letter to Putin during a meeting in Alaska.

So far, the first lady has facilitated the reunification of 34 Ukrainian children with their families through an ongoing humanitarian initiative.

"There is nothing more powerful than reuniting a mother with her child after an extended period of time," she said in a statement.

Her husband lauded her effort during his speech at the U.N. last month. A few hours later, as she hosted the Fostering the Future Together event, U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Mike Waltz suggested she might be in competition for a prize her husband has coveted for a long time.

"I don't know if you're going to be in competition with President Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize, but we'll see," he said.

Swapna Venugopal Ramaswamy is a White House correspondent for USA TODAY. You can follow her on X @Swapna-Venugopal.

Volume 45, No. 19

Customer service

To view important information related to your subscription, visit about your subscription.usatoday.com. You can also manage your subscription at account.usatoday.com.

Contact USA TODAY for questions or to report issues call 1-800-872-0001.

Operating hours are: Monday-Friday: 8:00 a.m.-7:00 p.m. EST

Full access print and digital subscriptions

Subscribe and save today by visiting subscribe.usatoday.com

Contact us

Customer Service ....1-800-872-0001

Newsroom ....703-854-3400, ext. 5

Classified advertising ....1-800-397-0070

National, regional advertising ....703-854-3400

Our goal is to promptly correct errors. Contact Standards Editor Michael McCarter at accuracy@usatoday.com to report a mistake. Describe the error, where you saw it, the date, page number or the URL.

Postal information

USA TODAY, ISSN 0734-7456, is published daily except for Saturday, Sunday, all Federal holidays, Christmas Eve and New Year's Eve by USA TODAY Media Corp. (fka Gannett Media Corp.), 1152 15th St NW STE 700, Washington D.C., 20005-1766. Periodicals Postage at Washington, DC and additional mailing offices. Postmaster: Send all UAA to CFS. (See DMM 507.1.5.2); NON-POSTAL ONE AND MILITARY FACILITIES: Please send address corrections to USA Today, Customer Service, 401 W Main St #600 Louisville KY 40202.

T.S. Isaias could become a hurricane

Downpours and possible flooding loom from Tropical Storm Isaias, which is set to reach the Gulf coast by Oct. 9 or 10. WADE TATANGELO/USA TODAY NETWORK

Officials: Gulf residents should prepare now

Doyle Rice, Jeanine Santucci and Dinah Voyles Pulver

USA TODAY

Tropical Storm Isaias has formed in the Gulf, the National Hurricane Center announced early Oct. 7. It's the ninth named tropical storm of the 2026 Atlantic hurricane season.

Unlike the previous eight storms, this one is forecast to strengthen into a hurricane and take aim at the Gulf Coast by Oct. 9, or early Oct. 10.

Isaias could have winds of over 100 mph by Oct. 9 as it approaches the U.S. coast, according to the center's hurricane specialists.

It's forecast to peak before making landfall, but could still be a “significant” hurricane when it reaches the coast with strong winds and flooding rain, the hurricane center said. It should then dramatically weaken.

Its exact track is not yet certain, but the hurricane center said residents from Louisiana to the Florida Panhandle should monitor closely and make sure they have a hurricane plan in place.

Isaias would be the first hurricane of the 2026 Atlantic hurricane season.

from Alligator Point to Horseshoe Beach.

Some of the heaviest rain, totaling 8 to 12 inches, is expected across southern Alabama and southern Mississippi, near where the storm makes landfall, AccuWeather said. Bands of 4 to 8 inches are forecast across much of Alabama and the Florida Panhandle as the storm tracks north toward the Appalachians.

Heavy rain could also spread into the Ohio Valley as far north as Kentucky and West Virginia before moving eastward into the Carolinas and southern Virginia.

Along the coast close to landfall, the storm is forecast to bring widespread wind gusts of 40 mph to 60 mph, according to AccuWeather.

The rain and wind can lead to power outages, property damage, widespread flooding and mudslides in higher elevations of the Appalachians.

On its current forecast track toward Mobile Bay, Alabama, and the north-eastern Gulf Coast, Isaias could push vast amounts of water onto shore as it moves toward the coast.

Initial storm surge forecast models from the hurricane center show a greater than 6-foot surge possible from the Mississippi-Louisiana state line eastward into parts of Mobile Bay, and also a greater than 6-foot surge across shore where Florida's Panhandle meets the peninsula south of Tallahassee,

Storm surge – a sudden rise of water topped by large and battering waves – is one of the more deadly aspects of a hurricane. It can sweep homes off foundations and flood low-lying areas miles inland along rivers and streams.

The National Weather Service said the time to prepare for the storm is now.

"It is looking more likely that Isaias will be a SIGNIFICANT hurricane when it reaches the coastline late this week," the weather service forecast office in Mobile, Alabama, said in an online forecast discussion on Oct. 7. "Now is the time to prepare. Ensure your preparedness kit is well stocked, fill up or charge your vehicles, and check on your neighbors."

Emergency kits should be prepared well in advance of a storm so they are ready to grab if an evacuation is necessary, the National Weather Service said.

In preparation, Florida Gov. Ron De-Santis has declared a state of emergency in 25 counties, reported the Tallahassee Democrat, part of the USA TODAY Network.

State emergency officials are mobilizing generators, fuel, flood barriers, bottled water, shelf-stable meals, tarps, sandbags and other supplies to staging areas in Tallahassee and Santa Rosa County for rapid deployment.

“Floridians should take this time to get disaster plans in place and ensure their hurricane supply kit is stocked,” DeSantis said.

Contributing: William L. Hatfield, Tallahassee Democrat.

Nobel Prize honors discoveries in chemistry and in physics

Marie Mannes, Simon Johnson

and Johan Ahlander

REUTERS

STOCKHOLM – The 2026 Nobel Prizes in Chemistry and Physics spotlighted breakthroughs at both the smallest and largest scales of science, with chemists Henri Kagan and Kenso Soai honored for solving the long-standing riddle of

Kagan

asymmetric “mirror-image” molecules, a discovery hugely important for pharmaceutical manufacturing, and physicist Francis Halzen recognized for creating an Antarctic observatory of ice to detect high-energy

neutrinos, elusive subatomic particles that can reveal otherwise inaccessible information about the cosmos.

Soai, 76, is Japanese, and Kagan, 95, is French, and their work built on a discovery by the 19th-century French chemist Louis Pasteur.

“This is the most exciting day in my life, I am very glad to share this prize with professor Henri Kagan,” Soai said, speaking by phone to the Nobel Prize press conference, adding he had been out shopping when receiving the news.

The Nobel committee was still trying to contact Kagan, the third-oldest person to be awarded a Nobel Prize, to inform him.

French President Emmanuel Macron congratulated the laureates on X, calling it an immense honor for the country. “A recognition suited to a lifetime of research,” he said.

---

'Right-handed and left-handed molecules'

Many of the molecules essential to life exist in two forms that are mirror images of each other, like left and right hands. Yet living organisms almost exclusively use only one version, a phenomenon known as “homochirality” – from the Greek word for hand – that has puzzled chemists for more than a century.

This year's prize was awarded for discoveries that showed how chemical reactions can be driven to favor a single molecular mirror image, work that has been key for chemists who design reactions for the manufacture of pharmaceuticals.

"The left-handed version of the drug can have one effect, and the right-handed version can have another effect, and then we need methods for selectively preparing them," Peter Somfai, a member of the Nobel Committee for Chemistry, said.

"In developing such methods the findings of this year's laureates are important. They provided powerful tools for that," he said.

The first link in the chain in solving the problem was work by Pasteur, who died a few years before the Nobel Prizes were first awarded in 1901.

He was looking at tartaric acid, important in the production of wine, and noticed that bacteria only ferment one of the two forms of tartaric acid – that which is naturally found in grapes. With the other there is no fermentation.

That proved that some substances occur in two forms and that they have different properties, sometimes very damaging to health.

How to create the right form of a chiral substance was a problem not solved until Kagan and Soai were able to produce asymmetric reactions, creating an excess of one form.

---

Halzen tracks elusive 'cosmic messengers'

Halzen, 82, realized that pristine ice at the South Pole could be used to track neutrinos, sometimes known as “ghost particles” for the way they pass through the Earth without a trace, only interacting with matter extremely rarely.

"The messengers bring information from the cosmos," Eva Olsson, of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, told a news conference. "They open the door to distant galaxies and tell us about the processes of exploding stars."

“It’s a great relief for me because this was not totally unexpected, and around this time of the year I always felt miserable because I didn’t win the prize and thought it was terrible for my collaborators who deserved it so much,” Halzen said at a press conference. “So that problem is finally solved.”

The interactions registered by the IceCube Neutrino Observatory provide information about how high-energy particles are created and may even reveal previously unknown phenomena, the Academy said.

“We could catch them in ice, that was the goal,” Halzen said of the yearslong effort to construct the observatory, which he described as opening “a window on the universe.”

Japanese scientist Kenso Soai said he had been out shopping when he received the news that he was co-winner of the 2026 Nobel Prize in Chemistry. "This is the most exciting day in my life, I am very glad to share this prize with professor Henri Kagan," Soai said.

'Neutrino Man'

In 2014, Smithsonian magazine dubbed Halzen “Neutrino Man” when giving him one of its Ingenuity Awards, acclaiming him for an “amazing experiment [that] heralds the beginning of a new era in astronomy.”

Neutrinos are electrically neutral, undisturbed by any magnetic field, which means that, in contrast to electromagnetic waves such as visible light, the direction from which they arrive points directly back to their source.

The IceCube Neutrino Observatory – in effect a telescope that shows neutrinos instead of light – is set in a cubic kilometer of Antarctic ice, which extends to a depth of 2,500 meters below the surface near the Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station.

More than 5,000 sensors await blips from the nearly massless high-energy neutrinos, which unlike other particles do not lose energy or change direction, in the hope of tracing their paths back to exploding stars, gamma-ray bursts, and cataclysmic phenomena involving black holes and neutron stars. They can expect to register about one per day.

Halzen, a professor at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, first presented his idea in 1988 for capturing neutrino traces at the South Pole, but the project was not completed until 2011.

"I have to emphasize how lucky I was because, when we started this project, everybody realized this was maybe a good idea, but very few thought it would work, including myself," Halzen told the press conference by telephone.

All 2026 Nobel laureates will receive their medals from Sweden's King Carl XVI Gustaf at a ceremony in Stockholm on December 10, the anniversary of Alfred Nobel's death. The awards are followed by a lavish banquet at Stockholm City Hall. Recipients will also receive 12 million Swedish crowns (\$1.2 million).

Trump approves execution of Fort Hood mass shooter

Amanda Lee Myers

USA TODAY

President Donald Trump has approved the military execution by firing squad of former Army Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan, who carried out the 2009 mass shooting at Fort Hood in Texas that killed 13 people.

Trump approved the firing squad execution for Hasan at the recommendation of Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell announced in an Oct. 5 post on X.

The U.S. military hasn't carried out an execution since 1961, according to data kept by the nonprofit Death Penalty Information Center. That year, Army Pvt. John Bennett was hanged at a Kansas prison for the rape and attempted murder of an 11-year-old girl.

Parnell said that Army Secretary Adam Telle will set the time and place of the execution. It's unclear how soon that could happen, but Army Lawyer magazine reported in May that a president's approval of a death sentence is the beginning of a potentially lengthy post-appellate court process.

A military execution involves putting to death a member of the U.S. armed forces. Hasan was a U.S. Army major who became radicalized and turned his gun on fellow soldiers at Fort Hood on Nov. 5, 2009. He was sentenced to death in 2013 following a court martial.

The development comes less than a week after the botched execution in Tennessee of Christa Pike, who was hospitalized in critical condition after two doses of pentobarbital failed to kill her on Sept. 30. The failed execution is shining a spotlight on the lethal injection method, which accounts for the vast majority of botched executions in the United States.

Some states have turned to firing squads as the answer, and Pike's failed execution could have helped sway federal officials to choose the method, said Columbia Law School professor Bernard Harcourt, who is writing a book about a botched lethal injection in Alabama involving an inmate he represented.

“Part of me thinks this might be a Tennessee effect,” Harcourt told USA TODAY. “They just want to stay away from lethal injection because the method seems so defective right now.”

The last military execution by firing squad appears to have been during World War II, according to the Death Penalty Information Center. The Air Force Times reports that it was on Jan. 31, 1945, when a U.S. Army firing squad executed Pvt. Eddie Slovak for desertion.

APPRECIATION EVA MARIE SAINT (1924-2026)

Star of film classics was the last of an era

Eva Marie Saint had her first film role opposite Marlon Brando in 1954's "On the Waterfront" and won the Oscar for best supporting actress.

PROVIDED BY COLUMBIA PICTURES

Oscar-winning actress balanced stardom, fame with family life

Charles Trepany

USA TODAY

Eva Marie Saint, the elegant blond actress in such classic films as Elia Kazan's "On the Waterfront" and Alfred Hitchcock's "North by Northwest," died

Saint

Oct. 6. She was 102.

She died of natural causes at her home in Los Angeles, “surrounded by family and loved ones,” her representative Jeff Sanderson said in a statement.

Saint was one of the

last figures of a bygone era, with a seven-decade career that paired her with Hollywood's biggest names. After Olivia de Havilland's death in July 2020, Saint held the title of oldest living Oscar-winning actor.

As an ingenue, Saint held her own opposite legendary heartthrobs, including Marlon Brando, Cary Grant, Henry Fonda, Paul Newman and Warren Beatty. But as her star was on the rise, Saint made the surprising decision to step back and focus on raising her family, limiting herself to a film a year.

The actor, who won both an Oscar and an Emmy, didn't always strive for stardom. Born to Quaker parents in Newark, New Jersey, on July 4, 1924, Saint originally had her sights set on becoming a teacher. That plan changed when she won the leading role in a play at Bowling Green State University. Upon graduating, Saint moved to Manhattan, where she was determined to make a name for herself.

"I had such a desire to make it and make it on my own and make my own money," she told the Ventura County Star, part of the USA TODAY Network, in 2018. "It was a time when you could get on a sheet of paper all the different people who were casting, all the agents and so forth. I just walked the streets. I'd get up early, I'd be out by 9 and I'd rat-tattat on the doors because I had all the addresses, and I would go see people, I would make appointments."

That strategy paid off, and Saint worked steadily in TV in the late 1940s and early '50s. In 1954, she catapulted into icon status starring opposite Brando in "On the Waterfront." It was her first film role.

At the 1955 Academy Awards ceremony, Saint accepted best supporting actress for “On the Waterfront” while nine months pregnant. She was determined to claim her trophy in person, quipping, “I may have the baby right here!” It was a close call: Her first child, Darrell Hayden, arrived two days later.

Saint cemented her glamorous image with her turn as the sly and seductive Eve Kendall in Hitchcock's 1959 thriller "North by Northwest." Saint described to Vanity Fair in 2014 how the director focused on her appearance to transform her into a femme fatale.

“We never talked about emotion,” she said. “He told me not to use my hands, I have a habit of doing that, and to lower my voice. And always, in my scenes with Cary Grant, look directly into his eyes, which was not difficult.”

As her star grew larger, Saint stayed true to herself – even if it meant going against Hitchcock's wishes. In 2010, the actor recalled the director's advice for her in an interview with the Santa Barbara Independent: Ditch the plain roles and take on more glamorous parts.

"I told him I couldn't promise anything, because I take parts that I like, not by how I'll look," she said.

Though her onscreen love interests were many, only one man captured Saint's heart in real life: film and television director Jeffrey Hayden. They met in the subway corridors under Rockefeller Center in 1949 and were married for 65 years until his death in 2016. They had two children and four grandchildren.

Saint recalled to CBS News in 2014 that when she pulled back from acting after “North by Northwest” to focus on her family, her agent wasn’t thrilled:

"He said, well, I guess you won't be a superstar. And I said, well, I guess not."

Contributing: Brian Truitt, USA TO-DAY; Ventura County Star

Pike

Continued from Page 1A

"These are questions that have never needed to be asked before and no one knows the answers."

Tennessee was supposed to execute Pike, 50, by lethal injection on Sept. 30 for the brutal and prolonged 1995 murder of 19-year-old Colleen Slemmer. The execution failed after Pike survived two doses of pentobarbital injections and was taken to a Nashville-area hospital.

A timeline of the chaos in the death chamber compiled by USA TODAY shows that the state tried to kill Pike for over an hour before rushing to save her.

Photographs are set up in memory of Colleen Slemmer, the woman Christa Pike was convicted of murdering in 1995, on Sept. 30, the day Pike was scheduled to be executed at a Tennessee prison. DENNY SIMMONS/USA TODAY NETWORK

"We will never know exactly what physical pain and what mental pain she was going through, but that was her biggest fear as the survivor of sexual abuse – that she would be pinned down, prodded, poked, cut for a prolonged period of time," one of Pike's attorneys, Stephen Ferrell, told reporters the day after the botched execution. "That was cruel and unusual punishment."

---

Governor hasn't ruled out second execution

The botched execution was the second in the state in four months and drew immediate criticism. Lee has ordered an independent investigation into what happened and called off the one remaining execution in the state this year. He also announced the upcoming resignation of Department of Correction Commissioner Frank Strada, who oversaw the botched executions of Pike and Tony Carruthers in May.

Carruthers survived after executioners failed to establish a second IV line required under the state's execution protocol. After Carruthers spent more than an hour strapped down waiting to die, the state abandoned the execution. Lee granted Carruthers a rare one-year reprieve, leaving open the option to try to execute him again.

In a lawsuit filed in July, his family said that they believe Carruthers suffered a brain stroke and that the entire right side of his body was left paralyzed. His attorneys argue that he's suffered enough and that the governor should commute his sentence. He has not.

Lee has not granted Pike a reprieve similar to Carruthers' and has not indicated what the future holds for her. He hasn't spoken publicly about the matter since Oct. 1, the day after the botched execution.

Lee called the failure a deeply disturbing “tragedy” that should never have happened. He also reiterated his commitment to the death penalty.

"My responsibility is to uphold the sentences that Tennessee juries have handed down, even when it's difficult, and that is exactly what we intend to do in the days ahead," Lee said. "The people of Tennessee have determined that the death penalty is the appropriate penalty for the most heinous crimes in the state. The people of Tennessee make that decision, and my job is to make sure then that those sentences are carried out."

---

Supreme Court weighs 1947 case

The last time the Supreme Court addressed whether an inmate who survived an execution would face another one was nearly 80 years ago in 1947.

The case involved Willie Francis, a 17-year-old Black teen convicted of murder by an all-white jury for a crime committed when he was 16. His first execution inside the local parish jail in St. Martinville, Louisiana, was halted when a portable electric chair failed to deliver enough current. It was widely reported that the electrical mechanism malfunctioned due to improper setup by a drunken prison guard.

Witnesses said Francis screamed "Take it off! Take it off! Let me breathe!" from behind his leather hood. The execution was aborted, and an appeal was filed to the Supreme Court. Francis spent the next year back on death row awaiting a decision from the Supreme Court about whether a second electrocution would be unconstitutional cruel and unusual punishment, according to the Death Penalty Information Center.

The court justices ruled that the state could put Francis back in the electric chair, writing that “accidents happen for which no man is to blame.”

"Even the fact that (Francis) has already been subjected to a current of electricity does not make his subsequent execution any more cruel in the constitutional sense than any other ex-"Christa Pike wasn't an accident. ... They had information from her lawyers, who told them, 'You're going to have a hard time getting to her veins.' "

Bernard Harcourt

Columbia Law School

ecution," the Supreme Court concluded. "The cruelty against which the Constitution protects a convicted man is cruelty inherent in the method of punishment, not the necessary suffering involved in any method employed to extinguish life humanely."

Francis was successfully executed in the electric chair on May 9, 1947.

---

Experts: Pike's case differs from 1947

There's a huge difference between what happened to Francis in 1947 and what happened to Pike, said Columbia Law School's Bernard Harcourt, who is writing a book about a botched lethal injection in Alabama involving an inmate he represented.

“What’s interesting about that case is that the Supreme Court said it was an accident and, ‘You get to do it again,’ ” Harcourt told USA TODAY.

“Christa Pike wasn’t an accident. They knew. They had information from her lawyers, who told them, ‘You’re going to have a hard time getting to her veins.'

Nearly 10 months before Pike's botched execution, her attorneys warned Tennessee that personnel would have trouble with her unusually small veins and would struggle to deliver a fatal dose of pentobarbital. They repeated those warnings up until her execution.

Because of that, Harcourt said, if Tennessee seeks to try to execute Pike again, it would “arguably violate double jeopardy.”

Maher of the Death Penalty Information Center said a second attempt would “likely be unconstitutional.”

“Of all the unknowns we have at the moment, the only thing I’m certain of is that she should not be subject to a second one,” Maher said.

“She has already endured a torturous experience in that execution chamber.”

Pike's attorneys say they believe her IV lines were improperly placed or that Pike's veins had blown, causing some or all of the pentobarbital to enter her arm rather than her bloodstream.

They said establishing intravenous access for Pike took about an hour and required multiple attempts.

Pike's botched execution began nearly 10 hours after it was originally scheduled because a federal appeals court granted her a last-minute stay of execution over arguments about Pike's traumatic childhood, which included years of sexual assaults. The execution was able to proceed after the Supreme Court overturned the stay in a 6-3 decision.

Contributing: Kelly Puente, Nashville Tennessee

ACLU blasts Trump's mass deportation agenda

Says policy is breaking

American democracy

Michael Loria

USA TODAY

The American Civil Liberties Union released a report on Oct. 6 slamming President Donald Trump's mass deportation agenda.

"In the past 20 months, the Trump administration has taken hundreds of actions to consolidate the president's grip on power, execute a radical redefining of who belongs in America, and enact the largest rollback of civil rights and liberties in recent history," the ACLU report says. "Deportations have provided a pretext, a distraction, and a legal justification all at once, as the administration attacks our individual constitutional rights – impacting all Americans."

The ACLU is a civil rights organization founded to defend rights enshrined in the United States Constitution.

The new 139-page report outlines 76 steps it says Trump has taken to fundamentally undermine American freedoms and democracy. Among its findings, the Trump White House has used immigration policy to silence journalists, surveil political opponents and trap thousands in a punitive immigration detention system that sees people sent to prisons in countries they have never known before.

USA TODAY has reached out to the White House for comment on the ACLU report.

"If the AMERICAN Civil Liberties Union is this committed to the cause of criminal illegal aliens, it should change its name," the Department of Homeland Security said in response to the report. "Nationwide our law enforcement is targetting public safety threats – including murderers, rapists, gang members, pedophiles, and terrorists."

According to the Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse, an immigration data project founded at Syracuse University, about 71% of the nearly 65,800 people in immigration detention in July had no criminal convictions. A November 2025 report from libertarian think tank the CATO Institute found 5% of ICE detainees had violent convictions.

The report comes out as the nation is gearing up for the midterm elections, in which control of Congress for the rest of Trump's final term is at stake. Top Democrats are warning the president and his loyalists are putting a plan in motion to potentially steal ballots and ultimately the election.

"As the administration's resources and reach grow, no one is safe from its ever-widening net of abuse," the report says.

The sweeping report covers some of Homeland Security's most high-profile moments, including the fatal shootings of Alex Pretti and Renee Good in Minneapolis, to less-publicized moments, among them the use of license plate readers to track people nationwide.

But the report is broken down into three categories: 25 attacks on civil liberties, 40 attacks on government institutions and 11 attacks on pluralistic democracy, as in attacks on society's tolerance of minorities.

The report also offers solutions, including immigration reform, banning Homeland Security's aggressive tactics and strengthening public oversight of government authorities, including the White House.

A full copy of the report is available on the ACLU website.

🔗 [系统已自动跨页缝合转版续文：《Consumers》]

A

much less good leading indicator of consumer spending."

What do the Fed and economists look at?

When subjective measures such as consumer sentiment inexplicably stray from their historic roles, Chicago Fed economists lean more on quantifiable, objective statistics including inflation, spending, hiring and economic growth to make forecasts, Goolsbee said.

The latest statistics show the economy and consumers, despite persistent gloom from the latter, remain resilient. The Fed's preferred gauge of inflation, the Personal Consumption Expenditures Price Index, showed price increases stabilized and that consumers continued to spend heavily.

Consumer spending in August surged 0.9% from July, and it wasn't just because they paid higher prices or had to buy essentials. Adjusted for inflation, spending grew 0.6%, its strongest monthly gain since March 2025.

“Americans are still ramping up their discretionary spending across both goods and services, suggesting consumers are increasing their spending because they want to and not because they have to,” Bank of America said in a September analysis of card spending.

The Labor Department's monthly jobs report showed September payroll growth softened and wages didn't keep up with inflation, but economists said that was more reflective of a “low hire, low fire” situation rather than layoffs.

“Companies are not adding many people, and they are not laying many off either,” said Ken Mahoney, chief executive at Mahoney Asset Management. “A lot of firms already right-sized earlier, and AI may be taking a little of the edge off new hiring, but this is not a wave of firings. The 12-month average gain going into this report was only about 45,000 jobs a month, so September fits a slow trend more than a break in the economy.”

---

'I have love'

So much of Cooper's life has not gone to plan.

She left an abusive relationship and moved into a shelter with her two boys, including Maceo, who has a rare genetic condition and uses a wheelchair. She dropped out of college to work more hours so she could afford a place for her family to live. She moved back home to Arkansas but said even her relatives struggled to understand the persistent demands of caring for a disabled child.

After Maceo had surgery in January, she had to stop working entirely to take him to countless appointments and to deal with sudden medical emergencies. Maceo needs hours of daily nursing care that his mother provides despite not being a trained professional.

One day, as Cooper loaded her boys into the car, Maceo soiled his pants. She called the school to say they'd be late. Desperate, she again asked if they knew of resources that could help her family.

"I don't know what to do. I have nothing," she said. "I'm overwhelmed caring for Maceo."

Her words appeared in a school official's report to state child welfare services, asking them to investigate Cooper for possible neglect. Angry and defiant at first, Cooper started to doubt her parenting: Could she really care for Maceo, poor and on her own?

"If you're better than me at it, then go ahead," she remembered thinking. "Please. He deserves better."

The caseworker who visited Cooper's home reassured her that she was doing the best she could with what she had. The case was closed. No one told the exhausted mother where else she could turn for help.

“We shouldn't be forced to think the foster care system or a complete stranger can care for our children better than we can,” Cooper wrote in a September Facebook post reflecting on the incident.

Months later, Cooper still struggles to sleep as she worries how to provide everything her boys need. She wonders how much longer she can lift Maceo, who weighs 100 pounds, over her shoulder to carry him from the house to the car. From the car to his wheelchair. From the wheelchair to the bath. Cooper's four older brothers ask her how she does it.

“I have love,” she told them. “And I hope God is around here somewhere.”

---

Why at-home care matters

Eventually, Cooper learned about a Medicaid program that helps disabled people with daily tasks like bathing, using the bathroom and transportation so they can remain at home. It also could help pay for a medical lift to safely move Maceo in and out of his wheelchair. The care would follow him into adulthood, so he could live and work on his own.

Cooper applied, imagining how these “supportive living services” could change her family’s future. She’d be able to sleep, avoid back injuries and return to work, earning money to stabilize their future. She wouldn’t need to send her son to a nursing home in November after yet another surgery. He could recover at home with his family, thanks to visits from a skilled nurse and specialized equipment.

In response to the growing protests, Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders, left, announced on Sept. 15 she would work with legislators to clear the state's wait list. EVAN VUCCI/REUTERS FILE

Someday, Maceo could be independent even as his condition worsens. He could fulfill his dream of being a train conductor.

State officials agreed Maceo needed the at-home care – but the boy would have to wait years to get it.

Congress does not require states to cover home-based care. States need a Medicaid waiver to use federal funds for those programs and can arbitrarily cap how many people they serve. The only other place Maceo could find the care he needs is a nursing home or intermediate care facility. If Cooper chose to send him there, federal rules require Arkansas to pay for it without delay.

Plus, care at home and in the community is, on average, three times cheaper than institutional treatment, research shows.

But in Arkansas, legislators budgeted only enough money to provide Medicaid waivers to 8,233 people. Maceo is among thousands more waiting. About two-thirds are children.

Children account for about two-thirds of the people on Arkansas' wait list for Community and Employment Services, a Medicaid program providing disability aid to keep people at home instead of in institutions.

PROVIDED BY BLAKE LANDERS

Each year the list grows by about 500 people, said Melissa Weatherton, who oversees specialty Medicaid services for the Arkansas Department of Health. The number increases with births, new injuries and the deaths of caregivers who looked after a loved one with a disability.

Arkansas admits everyone on the wait list needs these services, which is why Weatherton said it's unclear when someone can jump to the front of the line.

“Their diagnosis means they’re at risk,” she said.

By state rules, services are prioritized for people who want to leave an institution and those who are at immediate risk of entering one. When those definitions fit everyone, how do officials choose?

Advocates like Cooper say no one should have to.

She is frustrated that some people focus on the money when talking about Medicaid disability services. She doesn't see any better use for tax dollars than ensuring everyone can “thrive and become contributors to their communities.”

“We’re not gonna invest in my son and his education and the support he needs. ... We’re just gonna walk away,” she said, stumbling on her words as anger turned to tears.

“What kind of humans are we?” she said.

---

U.S. government shifts enforcement

In June, the Trump administration shifted the way disability rights were protected.

The Department of Justice issued a memo questioning the federal government's own authority to enforce the right to community-based care.

It also argued states might have more power to keep people in institutions.

“Isolation could, under some circumstances, amount to discrimination,” government lawyers said in the document. “But accepting that proposition does not require a state to move institutionalized patients to ‘the most integrated setting appropriate to their needs.’”

The interpretation runs counter to decades of case law designed to protect people such as Maceo, numerous legal experts said.

Since June, federal attorneys have cited the memo in several court filings.

The document laid the foundation for the Department of Justice to settle with suing states by erasing civil rights rules guiding federally funded health programs.

Federal attorneys also have asked courts to vacate decisions they previously won. That includes seeking to reverse a ruling that found Florida violated the rights of such children as Maceo by placing them in nursing homes rather than providing home-based care.

The Trump administration's shift on disability rights has drawn condemnation from some elected officials.

Governors from 18 states, all Democrats, signed a letter saying they would defend the right to community-based care, which also is known as the “integration mandate” of the Americans with Disabilities Act.

More than 100 members of Congress, including four Republicans, wrote letters and introduced resolutions affirming the right of disabled people to live in their communities.

Disability advocates say that until Trump reverses course or a friendlier administration is elected, they will re-double efforts at the state level.

"One of the most important things that advocates can do is actually focus on getting their states to commit to the integration mandate," said Jennifer Mathis, deputy director at the Bazelon Center for Mental Health Law and a former federal prosecutor leading the defense of disability rights.

That will hinge on the work of people like Cooper.

---

Parents unite to fight

In August, Cooper recognized her own frustration in another Arkansas mom's Facebook post.

Paige McCammon's 2-year-old son had been admitted to the hospital after seizures caused by a neurological condition doctors say will worsen with age.

"I have fought so hard to make people understand that children like Turner cannot sit on waiting lists for years while everyone acts like their needs will stay the same," she wrote.

“His disease does not pause while we wait for help. He is already sick, and his needs are already increasing.”

McCammon, a school counselor, asked her followers to call and email the governor to demand a special legislative session “for the more than 2,000 Arkansans with disabilities still waiting for the services they need to safely live in their homes and communities.”

Cooper sent a Facebook message to the stranger. She understood her aching heart so well.

Soon she was joining group calls to organize a rally. Until people with disabilities truly have equal opportunity in America, Cooper said advocacy will be “my job.”

"I'm gonna fight," she said.

Standing among other parents at the Arkansas Capitol, Cooper finally saw a path forward for her son and thousands of others like him.

---

'Kansas can do better'

Hamilton leads Resurrection, a United Methodist church in the Kansas City area with the largest Methodist congregation in the country, boasting about 25,000 members. It includes satellite locations in neighboring Missouri.

Hamilton and Texas state Rep. James Talarico, the Democratic Senate nominee in the Lone Star State and a Presbyterian seminary student, are part of a group of left-leaning faith leaders seeking higher office across the country.

Like Talarico, Hamilton has presented himself as a moderate and infused faith into his push to unseat Marshall. Kansas Democrats hope Hamilton, a 62-year-old minister, can upset nearly a century of losses.

Bob Beatty, the political science chair at Washburn University in Topeka, said it's harder for Kansas Democrats to win Senate races than governor races because of the way federal races are nationalized.

Kelly, a moderate Democrat, first won election to the governor's mansion in 2018, when she succeeded Sam Brownback, who was known nationally for his staunchly socially conservative stances such as saying he believes homosexuality is immoral due to the doctrine of his Catholic faith. Brownback previously served in the Senate, where he replaced former Senate Majority Leader Bob Dole, a stalwart Republican who was the only former GOP presidential nominee to endorse Trump in 2016 and 2020.

The billionaire Koch family, nationally known for their conservative activism, is deeply rooted in Kansas.

Former Republican Gov. Bill Graves is breaking ranks to support Hamilton and recently applauded the candidate's message of “Kansas can do better” in an interview with PBS. Graves said Marshall has been pretty much “a yes vote” for anything the Trump administration wants, but Republicans, who have also enjoyed full control in Congress, are nearing a wake-up call.

"It's like the morning after the frat party, and they're going to wake up and understand that, gee, we are having all that fun, and we might have overplayed our hand a little bit," Graves told PBS.

Kyle Kondik, the managing editor of Sabato's Crystal Ball, a nonpartisan election-forecasting newsletter run by the University of Virginia Center for Politics, said Kansas will be a close race.

“Seems like there’s some weakness in farm country now. But are those folks actually willing to vote Democrat? That’s the great guess,” Kondik told USA TODAY. “Hamilton could run a perfect race, and Marshall could run a horrible race, and Marshall could still win.”

---

'Pretty weak and pretty woke'

Hamilton has been a respectable fundraiser in his challenge against Marshall, amassing \$1 million within four days of launching his campaign and \$4 million in total, according to his most recent Federal Election Commission filings. Marshall has raised \$6.2 million, according to his recent FEC filings.

But Kansas Democrats have previously raised millions of dollars and still lost. For example, Marshall beat former state Sen. Barbara Bollier by 11 points in 2020, even though Bollier, a fellow physician, raised more than \$25 million.

Hamilton's website outlines policy proposals on affordability, agriculture, health care, corruption, housing and labor, but steers clear of social issues such as LGBTQ+ rights, which have proved challenging for Democrats in red states.

Among his go-to talking points, Hamilton speaks passionately about health care access and food security. This includes, he said, an estimated 63,000 Kansas residents who have lost their health insurance since early 2025. He attributes this drop to the expiration of enhanced Affordable Care Act premium tax credits and Medicaid cuts.

Hamilton has also said there are an estimated 18,000 children in the state whose families no longer have Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits.

“That’s enough to provide macaroni and cheese, and a hot dog for a kid for dinner, but we took those away from 18,000 people," Hamilton told MS NOW on Sept. 27. "I mean, folks are just looking at this and saying, 'This is not OK. This is not who we are.'"

Supporting abortion rights, which Hamilton does, is not a problem in Kansas; the state's voters decisively upheld the right to an abortion in the country's first state-level vote on abortion access after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022.

"I am an independent-minded, independent-thinking Democrat, and I'm a centrist," Hamilton told USA TODAY in a Sept. 29 phone interview.

Republicans take issue with that self-description. When asked for comment about the race by USA TODAY, Marshall's chief of staff, Brent Robertson, sent a Fox News article with the headline, "Woke megachurch pastor, Dem nominee called on congregation to repent for driving, eating beef."

Robertson wrote, "This was the news of the day yesterday – hope you cover it."

The Marshall campaign did not respond directly to an interview request, but John Whitmer, a former Republican state representative who now hosts a conservative talk radio show, said he's still betting on Marshall.

"We're a Republican state. It's been, what, going on 100 years since Kansas elected a Democrat to the Senate," Whitmer told USA TODAY. "I don't foresee us doing it this year, so I think Doc [Marshall] will be fine. But it's going to be closer than what we'd like, I'm sure." Whitmer also called Hamilton "pretty weak and pretty woke."

Hamilton dismissed the criticism in his interview with USA TODAY. “I think if Jesus were here today, Roger Marshall would say he was woke,” he said.

"The idea that having compassion for people, that trying to care for people, that you're standing up for people that have been bullied and marginalized is somehow bad," Hamilton added. "If that's what he thinks, I just, it's sad. It's a reflection on his own character."

---

Candidates' views on data centers

In El Dorado, Kansas, Danica Dickson's recently cofounded "Protect the Heartland – NO DATA CENTERS" group is pushing back against high-impact data centers and battery energy storage systems from overtaking rural towns without their input. Opposition to data centers has given Democrats running in red states a potent weapon in some races.

"We're seeking a state moratorium on data centers, and we're praying we can

The Rev. Adam Hamilton, left, shakes hands with Republican incumbent Sen. Roger Marshall during a debate Sept. 12 at the Kansas State Fair.

EVERT NELSON/

USA TODAY

NETWORK

get good leadership, especially on the federal and state levels, that would actually fight with us on this," Dickson said. "We're looking to see who supports our views."

Hamilton and Marshall both told KSHB-TV in September that they support Kansas towns saying no to data centers, but Dickson is “very disappointed” with Trump’s enthusiastic commitment to data center expansion. She thought the president’s “America First and making America healthy again mentality” included preserving the nation’s farmland.

“I voted for him. I didn’t even know what a data center was when I cast my vote two years ago,” Dickson said about Trump. “I totally did not expect to hear all of the things he’s said and why he’s pushing so hard for data centers. I’m not bashing the president, but I’m strongly questioning his motives when it comes to this issue.”

---

Will Kansas follow Hamilton's lead?

This cycle is an anti-establishment election season with incumbent Democrats being knocked out by progressive primary challengers, according to Don Haider-Markel, a political science professor at the University of Kansas. In states like Kansas, a rare opening for Hamilton could exceed the Bollier hype from six years ago.

Hamilton is the perfect anti-establishment candidate for this moment, Haider-Markel said.

Kansas native Robert Wuthnow is a sociologist whose latest book explores religious liberalism, “The Religious Left: What It Does and How It Can Do Better.” He told USA TODAY that “Kansas is a little bit more split on some issues than its reputation as one of the main red states in the country would suggest.”

While Kansas has strong ties to the conservative right, Wuthnow pointed to Hamilton's Resurrection and Village Presbyterian Church, one of the nation's largest Presbyterian congregations with 4,600 members, that supported Black Lives Matter in 2020.

"The religious left is stronger than the legacy media has usually acknowledged," Wuthnow said.

Hamilton told USA TODAY that he met one such voter recently in Halstead, a town of just more than 2,000 people.

"He said, 'I will not vote for anybody who doesn't believe we should love our neighbors as we love ourselves,' "Hamilton recalled.

Contributing, Jason Alatidd, Topeka Capital-Journal

---

Consumer gloominess doesn't matter?

Consumer sentiment as a leading in-

Consumer spending in August surged $0.9\%$ from July, and it wasn't just because they paid higher prices. Adjusted for inflation, spending grew $0.6\%$ , its strongest monthly gain since March 2025.

indicator for spending is less useful for economic analysis and Fed decisions nowadays, but digging deeper into the data could be useful, researchers at the event said.

Surveys often report the median, or the halfway point of all responses, but the real story may be in the distributions, researchers said. Distributions encompass all the responses and can show patterns on the edges that medians can hide.

A distribution could reveal, for instance, if a small group is responsible for the vast majority of spending. That information could be helpful, researchers said.

"If we got into a world where 90% of the spending was done by 10% of people, we have to think about what does it mean for overall GDP [gross domestic product] growth and what is it going to mean for overall employment," Goolsbee said.

Deeper dives into subsections of consumer sentiment surveys such as inflation expectations also interest him.

"There are some measure of expectations in those data, and let's expand out some of those measures as being, perhaps, better indicators of where we are in the business cycle than just sentiment," Goolsbee said.

Jerome Powell, the previous Federal Reserve chairman, often emphasized the importance of keeping long-term inflation expectations “well anchored.”

While Goolsbee said he prefers financial market-based measures of inflation expectations, such as signals from Treasury yields, he said some economists argue that survey-based expectations are better.

“I put out the call for research” on that, Goolsbee said. “Tell me if that’s a good measure.”

I've witnessed executions. End death penalties

Death row inmate Christa Pike enters criminal court in Knoxville, Tennessee, on Dec. 4, 2007. Pike, on death row for three decades after a conviction for her role in the 1995 torture and murder of a classmate, survived two doses of a lethal injection drug last week during a botched execution and is now conscious and speaking, her lawyers said in a statement on Oct. 6.

J. MILES CARY/KNOXVILLE NEWS SENTINEL/USA TODAY NETWORK

Pike's botched execution is a moral stain on U.S.

Rex Huppke

USA TODAY

I understand the shock over the botched execution of convicted murderer Christa Pike in Tennessee. She apparently survived what should have been two lethal doses of pentobarbital, complained of pain and could still be heard snoring as witnesses were rushed away from the execution chamber. She wound up in a hospital late on Sept. 30.

On Oct. 1, Gov. Bill Lee called it "deeply disturbing" and said: "This is a tragedy. There is no one that wanted what happened last night to happen. It shouldn't have happened."

Calling it deeply disturbing is a vast understatement, and saying “it shouldn’t have happened” is spot-on, though certainly not in the way Lee meant it.

---

Christa Pike shows us the death penalty is wrong

Simply put, state and federal governments should not be in the business of killing people. Killing is messy, and things can go grotesquely wrong, as they did in Pike's case.

More important, though, killing is wrong. (I shouldn't even have to type those words.) And the state deciding who among convicted criminals lives and who dies is morally obtuse.

On the morning of June 11, 2001, I was an Associated Press media witness to the federal execution of Oklahoma City bomber Timothy McVeigh. I had volunteered to cover the execution in part because I wasn't sure how I felt about the death penalty, and there was arguably no better candidate for such a thing than McVeigh, who blew up a federal building in 1995, killing 168 people, including 19 children.

In my gut, I believed he deserved to die. If not him, then who? There was certainly no universe in which I'd mourn a mass murderer.

---

As Timothy McVeigh was being killed, I changed

The federal execution chamber in Terre Haute, Indiana, was small. We media witnesses, once the curtains were pulled, were behind a pane of glass just inches from McVeigh's feet. He was fastened to a gurney, awaiting the multistep lethal injection process.

The setting was sterile, like a hospital room. Everything ran on time, with precision. First, his eyes closed as the initial drug sedated him. But then the almost mechanized formality of what was happening changed.

McVeigh's breathing slowed, and we could tell he was dying. He made a few light gasps for air. It wasn't gruesome at all, but in my mind, everything changed. The warden was standing next to a man who was dying, a man who was being killed right in front of me. And the warden was doing nothing. Just standing to the side.

---

As a society, we shouldn't be in the business of killing

As human beings, we react to people in pain. We respond reflexively. To see that not happening, to see that fundamental instinct inhibited, was jarring. It felt wrong, even though the subject was a monster. It wasn't the person on the gurney who mattered to me, it was what the people around him were doing, or not doing.

For all the pain McVeigh unleashed on this world, there's no part of me that's sad he's dead. But the fact that it was our government that killed him has never left me.

Drug kingpin's execution showed penalty is not used uniformly

About a week later, I witnessed another federal execution, a drug kingpin named Juan Raul Garza. He was a convicted murderer who had also ordered the killing of other people.

But one of the differences between him and McVeigh was that Garza's legal team could point to, as I reported at the time, "26 cases involving crimes similar to Garza's where prosecutors did not seek the federal death penalty."

So the issue of how fairly the death penalty is administered was glaring. But the government killed Garza on the same gurney where officials killed McVeigh eight days earlier.

Gregory Wiercioch, one of Garza's attorneys, said after the execution: "Some day this precise savagery will end, but not today."

---

Will we ever come to our senses and abolish the death penalty?

It still hasn't ended. There is no evidence the death penalty acts as a deterrent, yet there have already been 29 prisoners executed in the United States since January.

We still haven't reckoned with the fact that not wanting our government to kill criminals isn't the same as wanting a murderer to live. The murderer is the one who did wrong, so what good comes from us doing wrong as well?

I hope that the horror of what happened to Pike at our hands shifts some thinking on the morality of the death penalty.

For me, it just solidifies the beliefs I've carried since watching our government kill two men in quick succession: The death penalty shouldn't exist. It fixes nothing. And slowly, surely and inevitably, it erodes our souls.

You can follow USA TODAY columnist Rex Huppke on Bluesky at @rexhuppke.bsky.social and on Facebook at facebook.com/RexIsAJerk.

What if I don't want AI agents to do everything for me?

Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei looks to President Donald Trump and Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg during a news conference at the White House on Sept. 29 in Washington, DC. KEVIN DIETSCH/GETTY IMAGES FILE

Nicole Russell

USA TODAY

When I watched “The Jetsons” as a kid, I envisioned a future with a robot maid and flying cars.

Now, 40-odd years later, I'm living in the future. There are no robot maids cooking dinner, just a Roomba picking up dog hair and DoorDash delivering food for double the cost. And there are no flying cars, just self-driving Waymos.

Still, Big Tech gurus constantly tell me the future we are in is infinitely better than the future promised because artificial intelligence has arrived. AI is at once our savior, our maid, our assistant, our boss and – if all goes topsy-turvy – our undertaker, too.

Even President Donald Trump has embraced AI. At a summit with tech titans on Sept. 29, they signed an agreement to use safeguards with AI to avoid a potential AI-related apocalypse. Most, if not all, of the tech gurus believe that AI will be an intimate part of everyone's everyday lives in under a decade:

\- In an episode of “The Next Big Thing” podcast, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg predicted that in five years, “everyone is going to have an (AI) agent that really intimately understands your goals and everything around you and can help you get stuff done.”

\- In a CBS News interview, Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei predicted that AI could reduce entry-level white-collar jobs by half, spiking unemployment in five years or less.

\- Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk, who also attended Trump's summit, has said that within 10 to 20 years, work will be optional, just like people who grow vegetables because they like gardening, even though buying vegetables at a grocery store is more convenient.

I can see the political and economic advantages of Trump forging an alliance with technology CEOs. But it seems as if, in their excitement to build artificial intelligence, they have never considered this: What if I don't want to live in a world where technology does everything for me?

---

We're online 'almost constantly'

AI accessibility is supposed to make everyday tasks better, but it seems like it's just going to chain everyone to technology even more. Pew Research Center reports 41% of adults say they're online "almost constantly."

One NBC News poll found that the majority of voters say the risks of AI are beginning to outweigh the benefits.

According to Columbia University research, addictive use of smartphones and social media is creating mental health issues in adolescents. Today's youth are battling smartphone and social media addiction. A Stanford Medicine psychiatrist says teens shouldn't be befriending AI chatbots, but they are in droves. Some chatbots have talked to users about committing suicide, prompting lawsuits.

There's already proof that AI is dulling our minds.

One study looking at the paradox of AI in education said overreliance on artificial intelligence causes a process called cognitive offloading. Essentially, even though AI enhances personalized learning at the touch of a button, “excessive reliance may reduce cognitive engagement and long-term retention.”

If society is already suffering from online overuse, I struggle to see how life would improve if I were totally dependent on my own AI agent to function.

Most of the conversations about the risks of AI focus on privacy concerns, security measures or even anxiety that it will take our jobs. Baby boomers, Generation X and even millennials worry about AI because a future reliant on a techbot naturally sparks fear of the unknown. But I think something deeper explains the innate, yet growing, resistance to AI. Many of us do not want to give over even more of our bodies and minds to technology.

Remember Pixar's "WALL-E?" In one scene, WALL-E discovers that the humans who have abandoned Earth and live in space are pampered, fat and lazy, and robots do everything for them. Musk suggests AI will work for us so we can choose to do things instead of having to do them, such as growing vegetables. But I don't see evidence that humanity will choose "relaxing" work over real work, once AI does all our work.

---

Being productive is good for us

Work is good for me spiritually, physically and mentally – and it's good for us as a society. A myriad of studies show that humans thrive when we receive the dopamine that comes from effort.

Work without effort and pleasure without productivity don't sound like utopia; they sound like laziness that will breed depression, anger, even chaos. I've joked in the past that the only thing I'd be fine with AI doing is cleaning. But of course, even menial tasks like cleaning are good for our mental health.

A lot of us already know this, and that's why the AI revolution is meeting so much resistance.

Tech gurus keep pitching AI agents as the futuristic solution to all of society's problems, a pathway to a utopian existence without work, only pleasure. But is that the goal? To live in utopia, like sloths, gagging on bonbons and letting AI think, work and produce for us?

I don't want that.

Nicole Russell is an opinion columnist with USA TODAY. She lives in Texas with her four kids.

USA TODAY

“USA TODAY hopes to serve as a forum for better understanding and unity to help make the USA truly one nation.” – Allen H. Neuharth, Founder, Sept. 15, 1982

Chairman and CEO

USA TODAY Co.

Michael Reed

Chief Financial Officer

USA TODAY Co.

Trisha Gosser

President

USA TODAY Media

Kristin Roberts

Senior Vice President

USA TODAY

Monica Richardson

Vice President of News

USA TODAY

Jamie Stockwell

Vice President of Multimedia

USA TODAY

Michael McCarter

\*Get 15% off plus up to an additional 35% based on project size and product selected. Discount is applied to the regular price of select styles of carpet and flooring, basic installation, standard padding, and materials. Excludes upgrades, stairs, take-up of permanently affixed flooring, non-standard furniture moving, other miscellaneous charges, and prior purchases. Product may not be sold separately from installation. Residential installations only. While supplies last. Ends 10/19/2026. Subject to change.

©With agreed credit. Details at EmpireToday.com/financing

In-Home Consult

Personalized in-home guidance to give you the look you want and the performance you need.

EMPRE TODAY® CARPET & FLOORING

Anniversary Sale

UP TO 50% OFF\*

YOUR ENTIRE

PROJECT!

Select Installed Styles

Schedule a FREE In-Home Estimate!

Shop Floors From Your Home

Call 888-910-3137

Visit EmpireToday.com/newspaper

HOME FLOOR ADVANTAGE

All-Inclusive Pricing $^{▲}$ No surprises, no hidden fees - just clear pricing.

Flooring Expert

Our experts specialize in one thing: floors.

Schedule-Friendly Installation

Your floors on your schedule.

Market tightrope

How wealthy Americans keep spending in a shaky economy

The image is too blurry to recognize any text content.

---

Daniel de Visé USA TODAY

Checking account running low? Prices running high? Time to sell some stocks. ●Wealthy Americans increasingly tap investment accounts for cash, leveraging the massive stock market gains of recent years to cover the rising costs of everyday life. ●The share of Americans moving money from investment accounts to checking accounts has nearly quadrupled since 2015, from 2.4% to 8.2%, according to a new report from JPMorganChase Institute. The analysis looked at account activity between February and April in each year. ●High-income Americans, in particular, tap investment gains to support their spending. Among the top 10% of earners, the report found, the share pulling money from investment accounts into checking accounts rose from 6.6% in 2015 to 20.3% in 2026. ●Wealthy people and those over 65 “are leading the rise,” the report said, “but withdrawals have increased across all age and income groups.”

The analysis covers checking-account data for more than 20 million Chase customers since 2015.

The report supplies hard data to support persistent talk of an emerging K-shaped economy, with high-income Americans pulling ahead as low-income households lag behind.

Middle-income and lower-income Americans tend to rely on income from work, rather than stocks, for their spending. And “real” hourly earnings, after inflation, declined by 0.3% between August 2025 and

See ECONOMY, Page 2B

The S&P 500 index has more than tripled in value since its low ebb in the COVID-19 downturn of 2020. BRENDAN MCDERMID/REUTERS FILE

PHOTO ILLUSTRATION BY GETTY IMAGES; AND ABEL MUNIZ MONTENEGRO/USA TODAY NETWORK

Winter heating prices could rise

🔗 [系统已自动跨页缝合转版续文：《Economy》]

B

August 2026. “Real income growth has been kind of low for a while,” said George Eckerd, wealth and markets research director at JPMorganChase Institute.

Consumer sentiment has been running low. Americans aren't saving much. Household debt stands near an all-time high.

Yet wealthy Americans continue to spend. In fact, the top 10% of earners accounted for 45.5% of spending in the first quarter of 2026, according to Mark Zandi, chief economist of Moody's.

The top 20% of earners accounted for roughly 60% of personal outlays. Those figures sit near record highs.

"The well-to-do are doing very well and thus spending with gusto and providing the key tailwind to economic growth," Zandi said.

Older Americans tend to be wealthier and are also big spenders. People 55 and older did $46\%$ of the spending in the first quarter of 2026, according to Moody's.

The stock market has driven an unprecedented rise in American wealth, especially for people who were already wealthy. The S&P 500 index has more than tripled in value since its low ebb in the COVID-19 downturn of 2020.

Total household net worth rose \$13 trillion to \$196 trillion in the second quarter of 2026, according to the Federal Reserve. Corporate equity holdings – stocks – rose \$10.7 trillion to \$74 trillion from the first quarter to the second.

The top 10% of American earners now control 69% of the wealth.

Stock wealth increasingly drives consumer spending, especially for wealthier Americans, according to the JPMorganChase report. Lower-income consumers are selling stocks to fund their spending as well, but on a much smaller scale.

Older and wealthier Americans are more likely than younger and less affluent people to have stock wealth. The typical stockholder in the top 10% by income owned \$1.1 million in stock in the third quarter of 2025, up from \$624,000 at the end of 2022, according to the Surveys of Consumers from the University of Michigan. The JPMorganChase study found that the oldest and wealthiest Americans were the most likely to tap investment wealth for their spending.

The share of top earners over 65 who drew money from their investments rose from 24% in 2019 to 37% in 2026.

"People who are sitting on decades of gains and are later in life and maybe not working any more, they are the ones who are showing up the strongest in this," Eckerd said.

Rising stock prices have insulated top earners from a cash crunch that has hobbled the less affluent.

Consumer prices have risen by about 30% since 2020, federal data shows. Many wealthy Americans can easily cover that spread with their stock earnings, high income and comparatively ample savings. But if wealthy Americans stop spending, economists say, the economy could falter.

"Markets are volatile," Eckerd said.

A brief stock swoon in 2022 prompted top earners to slow withdrawals from investment accounts. A longer downturn could more seriously hamper their spending.

---

For some, increases ‘can mean falling behind on another bill’

Medora Lee

USA TODAY

Americans like to imagine cuddling up inside their homes on a cold winter's night, but doing that this year could cost them big time – about \$3.8 billion more than last year for families in the Northeast that rely on heating oil, a study suggests.

Families that heat their homes with oil face a much more expensive winter. Heating oil costs will be about 50% higher than last winter, the National Energy Assistance Directors Association estimated.

That forecast is up from a projection just a few weeks ago for a 31.3% increase, said the nonprofit that represents state directors of the federal Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program, which assists low-income Americans with energy needs.

Sharply higher costs will affect all 4.79 million households that use heating oil as their primary heating fuel, but may hit hardest among seniors and others on fixed incomes as well as low-income Americans, NEADA said.

It forecasts low-income families in the Northeast alone will spend about an additional \$1.1 billion on heating oil this winter.

"Winter is just around the bend, and we are very concerned about what this means for low-income families that use heating oil," said Mark Wolfe, NEADA's executive director.

"A 50% increase in heating costs is simply too much for a family living pay-check to paycheck to absorb. Families are already paying more for electricity, food and rent. Now, they are looking at another big increase just to keep their homes warm."

For those on Social Security, an estimated 3.5% cost-of-living adjustment expected in January “would not come close to covering an increase of this size in heating oil costs,” he said.

Heating oil is basically the same as diesel gasoline. Both are distillate fuels made from the same part of the refining process and are nearly chemically identical. In a pinch, diesel can safely burn in a heating oil furnace or boiler and engines may run on heating oil, experts said.

So, when the price of diesel rises, as it has done amid fighting in Iran and Ukraine, the price of heating oil generally follows, NEADA said. Diesel climbed to a record high just above \$6.50 per gallon the week of Sept. 21, according to the Energy Information Administration.

Across the United States, the average cost of heating a home with oil is expected to increase by about \$878, to about \$2,627 this winter, up from about \$1,749 last year, NEADA said. Costs could rise

See HEATING, Page 2B

In AI era, skilled trades workers in high demand

Need for laborers exists across nation, but varies

Rachel Barber and Jessica Guynn

USA TODAY

White-collar workers in AI-exposed fields are looking at the skilled trades and asking themselves whether they made the right career choice.

New research suggests it may be reasonable for them to wonder. Americans fear AI could lead to job losses, so they're looking to fields they think are more secure.

Demand for workers in the skilled trades remains substantial and the pipeline of new entrants is not keeping pace as older workers retire, according to a new national report from the Alliance for America's Skilled Trades.

If that demand is not met, Ford CEO Jim Farley said Americans may start to notice the worker shortage. It'll start small. A local highway may take longer and cost more to build. An auto technician shortage could mean drivers face longer wait times when getting their car repaired.

But when a plumber or electrician is needed at a water-treatment plant, or to keep an ambulance running in an emergency, their absence could have “life or death” consequences, he said.

Farley is one of several industry leaders trying to “break this myth” that attending college to prepare for a corporate 9-to-5 is superior to a career in the skilled trades. Hands-on work “awakens something that’s kind of pretty self-evident that we’ve lost as a society,” Farley said in an interview with USA TODAY.

After Farley's teenage son Jameson told his dad he didn't see a need to go to college, the pair landed on a solution: Jameson would learn to weld in the summer and go to college. On the weekends, he's working as a race mechanic – something he probably looks forward to more than his business administration classes, Farley said.

“Let’s treat the uncertainty that these kids have now with getting a job after college the right way, which is to reconfigure things,” he said.

🔗 [系统已自动跨页缝合转版续文：《Heating》]

B

if fuel prices jump again, it added.

Exact costs will vary by region, NEADA noted. For example, families in the Mid-Atlantic should prepare to spend about \$779 more than last year, while families in New England could spend about \$1,000 more than last winter.

Among states in those regions, those living in Maine will pay the most, averaging \$2,939 this winter, up from \$1,664 last year.

Maine has the highest proportion of homes that use heating oil [59%], followed by the rest of New England and Alaska, said Pavel Molchanov, a Raymond James investment strategy analyst.

For low-income or fixed-income households, these large increases “can mean falling behind on another bill, cutting back on food or medicine, or turning the thermostat down to unsafe levels,” Wolfe said.

To keep low-income and fixed-income households safe and warm, NEADA is requesting additional funding for the federal Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program.

"Winter is almost here, and families have very little time to prepare," Wolfe said. "We are looking at a $50\%$ increase in heating costs for families that depend on heating oil while electric bills are rising rapidly across the country. That is why we have asked Congress for \$3 billion in supplemental emergency LI-

Across the United States, the average cost of heating a home with oil is expected to increase by about \$878, to about \$2,627 this winter, according to the National Energy Assistance Directors Association.

KEITH BEDFORD/REUTERS FILE

Meanwhile, the high prices could

HEAP funding. Families need help now, before the bills start arriving."

tions faced by consumers, this issue could play a role in the midterms," Molchanov said.

Trades

"Amid other cost-of-living frustra-

B make these costs a midterm election issue, analysts said.

"There's a lot of workers moving to certain parts of the country where there's more projects or more growth in employment. That's an old story. It makes sense. It bears out in skilled trades just as much as elsewhere," Sigelman told reporters, adding that "these fast-growing states are essentially importing the workers that they're failing to train."

---

Demand for skilled trade workers

While the definition of “skilled trades” can vary, Matt Sigelman, president of the Burning Glass Institute, said researchers define it as work that is hands-on and physical, and requires meaningful preparation.

Of 124 occupations that fall into that category, demand for workers in 86 is expected to either grow or hold steady over the next decade, the Alliance for America's Skilled Trades report said. It estimates that employers will need to fill about 1.7 million openings each year through 2035.

Researchers estimate there will not be enough workers to meet that demand. Roughly 55 people are being prepared for every 100 workers needed nationally, they said. A Labor Shortage Index included in the research found that workers are most in demand for jobs including mechanics, maintenance workers, millwrights, electricians, carpenters, HVAC mechanics and installers, plumbers and automotive service technicians.

Demand for skilled trade laborers exists across the country, but it varies based on the number of currently available workers, training pathways and local labor market conditions. Florida and Arizona face the highest demand pressure, while West Virginia and Michigan face the lowest, the research found.

See TRADES, Page 2B

---

Interest, but a lack of follow through

Worker shortages in the trades may not be due to a lack of interest, but a lack of follow through.

At 71% and 81%, respectively, most teens and parents said they would be proud if they or their child pursued a skilled trade, and 95% of counselors view trade school as valuable and credible, the research found.

Yet it also revealed that a minority (28%) of counselors recommend apprenticeship. Even if a person starts one, only 48 out of 100 complete it and just 29 enter a trade occupation within five years of leaving the apprenticeship. Among those who enter a related post-secondary program, 48 out of 100 finish, and 34 go on to work in a skilled trade.

"The central implication is clear: strengthening the skilled trades workforce requires more than growing the pipeline," Maria Flynn, president and CEO of Jobs for the Future, said in the briefing. "It requires making the pathways, the systems, the guidance, and the investment around that workforce better."

---

Go to college or enter the trades?

The report lands as some question whether a four-year degree is still worth the cost. Nearly 3 in 5 parents said AI is making school “a worse investment” in a WalletHub survey earlier this year. It also comes as recent college graduates are having a tough time squeezing their way into a labor market economists describe as “low-hire, low-fire.”

"For the first time in modern history, a bachelor's degree is failing to deliver on its fundamental promise: access to professional employment," Sigelman wrote alongside researchers Gad Levanon, Mariano Mamertino, Mels de Zeeuw and Gwynn Guilford in a Burning Glass Institute report last year. "The traditional pathway from college to career is becoming less reliable."

Demand for skilled trade laborers exists all across the country. GETTY IMAGES

As of August 2026, the unemployment rate for people ages 25-34 with a bachelor's degree was $3.4\%$ . For high school graduates of the same age, it was $6.2\%$ , according to federal government data.

Meanwhile, the unemployment rate among workers of the same age with an associate degree in occupational programs that prepared them for a specific job was 2.2% – nearly half the national rate of 4.1%.

However, while it does not guarantee job security, it may still pay off to go to college in the long run. Americans' median weekly earnings rose in line with their level of education in 2025, according to Labor Department data.

---

Demand doesn't equal an instant job offer

In high-demand markets across the country, experienced plumbers, electricians and HVAC technicians are fielding aggressive calls from recruiters. The shortage of skilled technicians in those areas has sent starting salaries soaring into the mid-six figures.

For those entering the trades, the long-term career outlook offers job security and a stepping stone. Certified apprentices who master their craft can eventually launch their own businesses.

"There's no doubt in my mind that this is going to be a growing need. We get calls every day from companies looking for talent," said Troy Latuff, founder and CEO of the Blue Collar Recruiter, a Texas-based recruiting firm and virtual trade school.

Industry experts warn that entry-level candidates still face a challenging hiring environment. Getting a certification or completing an apprenticeship does not guarantee a job offer.

Equipping and training workers represents a significant financial investment so employers are taking a cautious approach to hiring, according to Latuff. "You might have the certification, but if you don't show up for your interview, or you're late, or you're not responsible or reliable, you're still not going to get the job."

---

Skilled trades aren't for everyone

The shiny promises of a career in the trades do not always match the hype.

Frustrated by a tight corporate job market, Will Ryan, a 24-year-old with an MBA from the University of Nevada, Reno, decided to switch gears. With skilled trade careers touted as AI-proof alternatives to increasingly elusive entry-level white-collar jobs, he set his sights on becoming an electrician and eventually opening his own electrical contracting business.

The reality of working on a major data center project as a union apprentice proved far different. The pay was decent, but working conditions were grueling. The schedule was relentless with 10- to 12-hour shifts six days a week and little time for the training he'd need to launch an independent company.

Despite two professional degrees and a dual income, the region's soaring cost of living meant all he and his wife could afford was a studio-sized converted barn on a friend's property.

After six months in the union apprenticeship and a brief stint with a non-union contractor, Ryan walked away from the trade.

“My wife is a biomedical engineer. I have my MBA. I think we probably would have both been art majors if we knew either way we would end up living in a barn,” he said.

---

How will AI affect the trades?

While the emerging technology has been painted as a threat primarily to white-collar workers, blue-collar jobs will be affected as well, according to Microsoft co-founder and billionaire Bill Gates.

“Although robots are not as far along as AI, eventually their cost will be dramatically lower, too,” Gates wrote in an August essay. “I think ‘smart’ robots will begin to compete with people on some physical tasks – in the construction and hospitality industries, for example – by the end of the decade.”

But Sigelman said one of the things that make him confident the demand for skilled trades will continue is that much of the work still requires human judgement.

"The more that we are enabling them to take on highly varied and complex tasks, the more resistant these jobs will be to displacement over time," he said.

50★States

ALABAMA Troy: Several students at Troy University are suing the school for allegedly quietly discontinuing the artificial intelligence master's program in which they were enrolled, recent court filings show.

ALASKA Juneau: The Department of Energy on Oct. 5 announced \$150 million in funding for electrical transmission lines that officials said will serve three-quarters of Alaska's population of 735,000.

ARIZONA Phoenix: Two people are safe after a small plane had a “harrowing” crash landing at Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport. The plane, a Piper PA-44 Seminole, had a problem with its landing gear on Oct. 3, a Mesa Fire and Medical Department spokesperson said. As a result, it was forced to touch down without it.

ARKANSAS Little Rock: Arkansas Attorney General Tim Griffin said the state has reached a settlement of at least \$32 million and up to \$80 million with three companies over PCBs causing environmental contamination. Griffin said the settlement was with Monsanto Company, Solutia Inc. and Pharmacia LLC.

CALIFORNIA Sacramento: Nearly three decades after California established Native American Day, the annual observance will now come with paid time off for state workers under a new law signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom. The law marks the latest step in the state's efforts to recognize Native American communities and their role in the state's history.

COLORADO Larimer County: Northern Colorado mountains fared better than most of the state when it comes to drought, making it a go-to for the fall color show, which is peaking now. The latest Colorado drought monitor map shows western Larimer County and nearly all of Jackson County in the two lowest drought categories.

CONNECTICUT Norwich: About 3 acres of wetlands would be permanently affected by Amazon's proposed 1 million-square-foot shipping facility in Norwich, with plans calling for roughly 9 acres of new wetlands to be created to offset the impact.

DELAWARE Wilmington: New construction in the Barley Mill Plaza will bring 80 units of luxury apartments to Greenville. Wedged in between Wegmans and neighboring town-homes, framing has gone up for a 156,300-square-foot residential building named The Plaza.

DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA Washington: DC Water rates are increasing by nearly 6 percent, which would be about \$9 a month for an average residential customer, WUSA reported.

FLORIDA Miami: Former U.S. Rep. David Rivera was sentenced to 10 years in prison on Oct. 2 for illegally lobbying U.S. officials to ease pressure on ousted Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro's government. Rivera, a Republican who represented southern Florida from 2011 to 2013, was convicted at trial in May of lobbying U.S. officials on Venezuela's behalf in 2017 without registering as a foreign lobbyist as required by the Foreign Agents Registration Act.

GEORGIA St. Marys: In August, Architectural Digest released a list of the prettiest towns in each state, looking for those that are “both stunning and abundant in culture.” St. Marys took the crown in Georgia.

HAWAII Honolulu: The Honolulu Liquor Commission recently began a pilot program for a new license that allows establishments to stay open until 4 a.m. instead of 2 a.m., Hawaii News Now reported.

IDAHO Caldwell: On Oct. 5, City Council approved a \$6.7 million, 10-year contract with Axon to expand the city's surveillance network and consolidate police equipment under a single vendor, KTVB reported.

ILLINOIS Chicago: A Chicago woman has been charged with first-degree murder in the fatal stabbing of a 7-year-old girl who was attacked while walking on a South Side neighborhood sidewalk, authorities said. Shavon Gayden, 48, was charged in the death of Edi Mari Hernandez Chacon.

INDIANA South Bend: A new locally owned golf range and entertainment venue was approved for a five-year tax abatement by the Mishawaka Redevelopment Commission. Developer Ryan Kring introduced Dogleg Social as a part of the Juday Creek Business Park to the commission as a venue that “draws people in” during its recent meeting.

East Lansing Police Department Capt. Adrian Ojerio said the SafetySticks will help deter illegal downtown parking. MATTHEW DAE SMITH/USA TODAY NETWORK

East Lansing: Parking enforcement in downtown East Lansing is about to get tougher due to solar-powered cameras driven by artificial intelligence to catch vehicles parking in no parking zones. The city's seven "SafetySticks" are about a month away from going live. "They have the technology to recognize a vehicle and a license plate," said Capt. Adrian Ojerio of the East Lansing Police Department. A camera will snap an image of the vehicle if it hasn't moved and that image will get uploaded to Municipal Parking Services Inc. where a human with the company will confirm a violation.

IOWA Lee County: The incentive package for Mesabi Metallics' proposed Lee County steel plant will be one of the priciest efforts at job creation in Iowa history. If the plant hires 1,750 employees as promised, the \$1.36 billion in tax credit rebates Iowa is offering will cost the state about \$777,000 per job.

KANSAS Topeka: The airmen of the 190th Air Refueling Wing may get new tankers to replace the aging fleet. The Air Force named Forbes Field Air National Guard Base as one of four candidate locations for a KC-46A Pegasus conversion.

KENTUCKY Goshen: A portion of a historic Goshen working farm and hospitality hub has new owners. Steve Wilson and Laura Lee Brown sold about 160 acres of their nearly 700-acre Hermitage Farm to an investment group that's aiming to keep the site's focus on thoroughbreds, conservation and farmland.

LOUISIANA Baton Rouge: Louisiana is one of two states to show a statistically significant decrease in its adult obesity rate, according to a new national report released by Trust for America's Health. Louisiana's adult obesity rate fell from 39.2% in 2024 to 35.6% in 2025, according to the State of Obesity 2026: Better Policies for a Healthier America report.

MAINE Hallowell: The state's Public Utilities Commission denied Central Maine Power's request for a temporary rate increase that would help cover costs of upgrading equipment, WMTW reported.

MARYLAND Annapolis: Defense tech firm Anduril said on Oct. 6 it will invest \$3.7 billion to develop a new shipyard in Maryland to build critical components for the Navy's Virginia-class submarines. Subsequently, the Navy awarded Anduril a contract worth up to \$2.9 billion to manufacture components.

MASSACHUSETTS Boston: Gov. Maura Healey has called on the Trump administration to expedite federal review of the expansion of the Algonquin Gas Transmission pipeline, known as the Reliable Affordable Resilient Enhancement project. It is expected to provide gas supply to 600,000 customers and lower gas bills by \$40 million a year.

MINNESOTA Apple Valley: The Minnesota Zoo is once again hosting the Jack-O-Lantern Spectacular, where visitors can walk along a trail lit by more than 5,000 glowing carved pumpkins. The event runs now through Nov. 1.

MISSISSIPPI Jackson: A proposed multi-million dollar Mississippi Athletic Center appears to be back on track, with former NBA player Erick Dampier expecting to break ground at the former Jackson Square Promenade next spring. The latest news comes three years after Dampier and business partner Karla McCullough first announced plans for the project originally scheduled to be built earlier this year.

MISSOURI Springfield: Coffee drinkers can once again explore dozens of local cafes through the Ozarks Coffee Trail, which began its sixth season Oct. 1 with new rewards and chances to earn points.

MONTANA Hamilton: The Bitterroot Valley Youth Sports Foundation is looking into bringing a new indoor recreation facility to Hamilton, KPAX reported.

NEBRASKA Lincoln: Nebraska Cornhuskers fans are taking their passion for the team to new heights and snapping up game-used urinal troughs from Memorial Stadium for \$3,000 each. The troughs' sale comes as Nebraska's iconic field prepares for a major renovation.

NEVADA Sparks: A former Lowe's hardware store took one more step in its transformation into an art and innovation campus as it celebrated the opening of its business park. The 232,000-square-foot Oddie District project in Sparks held a grand opening on Oct. 1, for its Innovation Center, the latest phase in the massive facility's transformation.

NEW HAMPSHIRE Hampton: Residents and business owners can weigh in on whether the town should begin charging commercial entities for curbside trash collection during a public hearing on Oct. 19. For decades, Hampton has been the only community in the region that offers free curbside trash pickup for businesses.

NEW JERSEY Stafford: The windows gleamed and the paint was spotless inside Ocean County Library's newest branch as officials and community members gathered Oct. 5 to watch the opening of a building that took years to complete. The Stafford branch celebrated the most recent addition to New Jersey's largest public library system.

NEW MEXICO Doña Ana County: The New Mexico Environment Department appointed an independent hearing officer to replace Max Shepherd for the Project Jupiter air quality permit application proceedings. In an Oct. 2 order, NMED Cabinet Secretary James Kenney appointed retired federal judge James O. Browning to oversee the permit process for Yucca Growth Infrastructure LLC, one of the developers for the Oracle- and OpenAI-backed artificial intelligence data center campus under construction at the Santa Teresa Industrial Park.

NEW YORK Albany: Gov. Kathy Hochul declared a statewide disaster emergency on Oct. 5 over a measles outbreak, the first such declaration by a state since cases began surging in 2025. New York also expanded the pool of health professionals allowed to administer vaccines as cases rise in rural areas. The state has reported 108 measles cases this year through Oct. 3.

NORTH CAROLINA Chapel Hill: Basketball legend Michael Jordan made a \$10 million commitment to the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in honor of his mother, Deloris P. Jordan. With the largest gift in the university's history, Jordan is investing in the School of Social Work.

NORTH DAKOTA Fargo: A 35-year-old man who climbed a light tower and refused to come down for hours was arrested on Oct. 5, KVRR reported.

OHIO Columbus: Motorists can now face a fine if they refuse to identify themselves to police during traffic stops in Ohio. House Bill 492 increases penalties for those interfering with an arrest and makes it illegal to not disclose certain information to officials. The bill took effect Oct. 6.

OKLAHOMA Oklahoma City: A new study shows Oklahoma's aerospace and defense industry is set to overtake energy as the state's top economic driver. The 2026 Aerospace and Defense Industry Economic Impact Study, released Oct. 6, reports a statewide economic impact of \$52.5 billion, up from \$43.7 billion shown in the prior study released in 2017.

OREGON Salem: The city is introducing a new Beep Beep Salem app for people to pay for parking downtown, near the Capitol building and at the airport. The old parking app will be fully discontinued by Dec. 31.

PENNSYLVANIA Kennett Square: Longwood Gardens will reach new heights with its “A Longwood Christmas” exhibit this holiday season, featuring a theme inspired by the cosmos. The display will be on view from Nov. 20 to Jan. 10, 2027.

RHODE ISLAND Warwick: Warwick police are deep into a complex project to give local officers drone support. However, they've faced a unique challenge: The city is home to the busiest airport in Rhode Island. Warwick's police chief, Col. Michael G. Lima, said he hopes a "Drone as First Responder" program can launch within the next two months.

SOUTH CAROLINA Greenville: Design plans for a downtown conference center were recently unveiled by the city and are headed to the Design Review Board for review on Oct. 15. The conference center is set to become a landmark destination for meeting attendees and residents, according to the city.

SOUTH DAKOTA Sioux Falls : A Sioux Falls property manager has been charged with embezzling more than \$500,000 after his business partner reported him to the police, court documents reveal. Joshua Thomas Utterback, 32, is the co-owner of J&L Property Management.

TENNESSEE Nashville: Southwest Airlines announced its largest summer schedule ever out of Nashville International Airport on Oct. 2, including three new destinations. Starting in June 2027, Southwest will debut seasonal flights to Nassau, Bahamas; Providenciales, Turks and Caicos Islands; and Boise, Idaho.

TEXAS Corpus Christi: Gov. Greg Abbott recognized a Corpus Christi police officer with an award at the Convention of the Combined Law Enforcement Associations of Texas in San Antonio on Oct. 3. Senior officer Kyle Simmons was named a recipient of the 2026 Officer of the Year Award.

UTAH Salt Lake City: About 3.26 billion gallons of water that was drained from Pineview Reservoir will be released from Willard Bay to the Great Salt Lake and surrounding wetlands, KUTV reported.

VERMONT Stowe: Noah Kahan's second annual Folk & Fairways Benefit Concert & Golf Tournament in Stowe raised \$3 million for mental health initiatives.

VIRGINIA Petersburg: Fifteen more firefighters could be added to the Petersburg payroll between now and 2029. Petersburg Fire, Rescue & Emergency Services announced it was receiving a SAFER grant totaling about \$3 million from FEMA.

WASHINGTON Bremerton: Bremerton's Stephenson Canyon will soon be the home to a new dog park, with construction expected to begin as soon as spring 2027.

WEST VIRGINIA Charleston: A study by Food & Water Watch found that West Virginia has the highest average drinking water bills in the nation, WV News reported.

WISCONSIN Madison: A Canadian oil giant is once again facing scrutiny on its Line 5 re-reroute project, this time due to the breach of an aquifer near the Marengo River. Enbridge Energy is working to address the breac, which took place as the company drilled underneath the river.

WYOMING Cheyenne: The regional airport is adding an additional daily flight to Denver four days a week, Wyoming News Now reported.

From USA TODAY Network and wire reports

Watchdog: Fed's Powell did not break law

Trump wants former

chairman to resign

Rachel Barber

USA TODAY

President Donald Trump once again called for Jerome Powell to resign from the Federal Reserve after the central bank's internal watchdog said it found no evidence that a multibillion-dollar project at the Fed's headquarters violated federal law.

In a 120-page report, the Fed's independent inspector general said that although poor project management likely increased the renovation's \$2.5 billion price tag, "at no point during our evaluation did we find reasonable grounds to believe that a violation of federal criminal law had occurred."

"While our report outlines deficiencies in the management of the renovation project, resulting in our recommended corrective actions in accordance with the Inspector General Act, we did not identify administrative misconduct during our evaluation," the report stated. The pricey overhaul of the Fed's headquarters drew scrutiny from Trump and led to an ultimately short-lived Department of Justice criminal investigation into the central bank and its former Chair Powell, who remains on the Fed's Board of Governors.

In a Truth Social post reacting to the inspector general's findings, Trump said he asked Attorney General Todd Blanche to study the report, and “make a determination as to what to do about a relatively small Building Complex that is Hundreds of Millions of Dollars over budget.”

"The Building is over budget, at a Record Setting rate and, at a minimum, 'Too Late' Powell should be forced to resign from the Board," Trump continued. "He can't manage a Building, and he certainly shouldn't be allowed to manage his High Interest Rate Policy."

The Federal Open Market Committee, which includes Powell, recently voted unanimously to raise the federal funds rate to a range of 3.75% to 4%. It was the first rate hike in three years, and the first time the Fed voted to change rates at all under new Chair Kevin Warsh. In January, former Fed chairs criticized the criminal inquiry into Powell as “an unprecedented attempt to use prosecutorial attacks to undermine” the institution’s independence. In a rare video statement, Powell himself said he viewed the probe as a “pretext,” implying it was a response to the Fed’s unwilling ingness to set monetary policy based on the president's preferences.

The DOJ dropped the investigation in April after Sen. Thom Tillis, R-North Carolina, cited it as the reason he was withholding his support for Warsh's confirmation to replace Powell as the central bank's leader. After it was dropped, U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeanine Pirro said the Fed's inspector general would look into the building cost overruns instead. Tillis voted in support of the nomination, and Warsh was sworn in in May.

Powell's term as a Federal Reserve governor – where he is one of 12 committee members who vote to set a benchmark for short-term interest rates – ends on Jan. 31, 2028. He told reporters in March that he planned to remain on the Board of Governors until the investigation is “truly over.”

Medicare unveils rates for 2027 private, Part D plans

🔗 [系统已自动跨页缝合转版续文：《Hayes》]

C

\- it was how in blue blazes did that Oklahoma State team lose to Tulsa a week earlier?

That may cost them down the road in the College Football Playoff race!

Black Monday after every single college football weekend is an absolute cesspool of whining, complaining and second-guessing. Nothing's good, nothing works – even after a win.

If Ohio State can't run the ball better, what happens in the CFP? Forget that the Buckeyes rolled into a wild environment against a hot Iowa team, and named the score.

How does BYU score 17 lousy points against a team that's getting ready to fire its coach?!

Yeah, some Notre Dame defense. North Carolina scored 26 points, and something named Billy Edwards had three touchdown passes!

The Tennessee defense is an absolute hammer, but for the love of all things Big Orange, Vols coach Josh Heupel made the wrong decision at quarterback. Again!

And will the USC Trojans ever play a complete game under Lincoln Riley? (OK, that one's fair.)

As ugly as it looks now, it will only get worse as the season progresses and the fire/hire process begins. If there's one thing that fuels a fan base more than winning it all, it's firing the guy who can't.

Just how utterly ridiculous is the sick ecosystem? We're now comparing coaching records in the binary, win-lose world.

If you think I'm kidding, let me introduce Mike Elko and Jimbo Fisher. Texas A&M is struggling in Elko's third season, and high-priced quarterback Marcel Reed is slumping.

Elko's team won 11 games in 2025 and earned a CFP first-round home game, losing to Miami in front an electric environment – after scoring all of three points. The Aggies are 2-3 in their past five games against Power Four opponents, and Elko's record after 31 games in College Station in 22-9.

So naturally, the failure brigade has turned to Fisher, who was given an unholy \$70 million gift to stop coaching the Aggies prior to Elko's arrival. He was 21-10 after 31 games at Texas A&M.

"The people who support this program," Elko said, "They're going to be behind this team."

Not without slogging through failure first.

Matt Hayes is the senior national college football writer for USA TODAY Sports Network. Follow him on X @MattHayesCFB

---

Experts say to check coverage to see if still meets patient needs

Ken Alltucker

USA TODAY

Millions of older Americans could see lower monthly prices on their private Medicare plans in 2027 while those who have a standalone prescription drug plan could see monthly premiums increase less than \$1, according to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services.

The CMS said the average monthly premium for stand-alone Part D prescription drug plans will be \$36 in 2027, up less than \$1 from \$35.09 in 2026.

Monthly premiums for Medicare Advantage plans, which combine medical and prescription drug coverage, will be an average \$12 in 2027, down from \$14.37 in 2026, the CMS said.

Insurers that offer privately administered Medicare Advantage plans and Part D prescription drug plans had to notify Medicare enrollees by Sept. 30 about changes to monthly premiums, prescription drug coverage and provider networks. Enrollees can change plans during Medicare open enrollment, which runs from Oct. 15 through Dec. 7 for coverage that begins Jan. 1, 2027.

The CMS said about 8 in 10 Medicare Advantage enrollees will be able to keep their current plan with the same or a lower premium in 2027.

The agency said 97% of Medicare enrollees will have access to 10 or more Medicare Advantage plan options.

The total number of Medicare Advantage plans offered nationwide remained stable at 5,553 in 2026 and 5,532 in 2027.

The CMS did not immediately say what percentage of Medicare Advantage enrollees are in a plan that won't be offered in 2027.

Medicare experts said it's important for enrollees to scrutinize their plan offering to make sure it still meets their needs.

Some Part D plans might seek to reduce costs by trimming drug formularies, the list of prescription drugs a plan will cover for enrollees.

Consumers find Medicare Advantage plans appealing because the monthly premium can be inexpensive, said Juliette Cubanski, vice president and director of the program on Medicare policy for KFF, a health policy nonprofit.

Enrollees can change plans during Medicare open enrollment, which runs from Oct. 15 through Dec. 7 for coverage that begins Jan. 1, 2027.

GETTY IMAGES

“Insurers may be bending over backward to try and keep premiums as low as possible,” Cubanski said.

“Other changes underneath the hood is the coverage they offer. If they need to decrease costs, that might come in the form of higher cost sharing for prescription drugs or reducing the number of prescription drugs they cover."

In July, the CMS announced it would end a Medicare prescription drug plan subsidy implemented by the Biden administration to lower prices because of changes ushered in by the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act.

As of February, about 25 million people were in a stand-alone Medicare Part D plan, which is often paired with traditional government-run Medicare insurance.

Another 31 million were in a Medicare Advantage plan – Medicare plans administered by a private insurance company that typically include prescription drug coverage.

Trump administration officials previously said the Inflation Reduction Act increased costs for prescription drug coverage.

The climate and health care law imposed a \$2,000 cap in 2025 on what Medicare enrollees paid out of pocket for prescription drugs. That cap increased to \$2,100 in 2026.

In a news release, the CMS said there are “encouraging signs that, as expected, the Part D program is returning to normal market conditions.”

THE 25TH ANNIVERSARY IN A COMMEMORATIVE BOOK

---

Twenty-five years ago, the world changed in a single morning.

On Sept. 11, 2001, ordinary people became heroes. Firefighters climbed into burning towers. Strangers carried strangers down dozens of flights of stairs. A nation sat stunned in front of its televisions, then stood up and got to work.

“GROUND ZERO SPIRIT: 25 Years of Resilience” revisits that day through the images and voices that defined it. It follows the long road from grief to rebuilding: the memorials, the communities restored, the first responders still fighting for their health and the generation that grew up in the aftermath.

Shop online at 9-11.PictorialBook.com

app. | ASBURY PARK PRESS

lohud. | The Journal News

northjersey.com | The Record

FROM TOP: Missouri head coach Eli Drinkwitz following the Tigers' loss to Mississippi State on Sept. 26; Missouri fans during the Tigers' 45-17 victory over Florida on Oct. 3; Missouri mascot Truman the Tiger kicks an inflatable gator on Oct. 03 in Columbia, Missouri. PHOTOS BY JAY BIGGERSTAFF, JUSTIN FORD/GETTY IMAGES

You won! But ...

College fans' obsession with failure is ruining the game

We just can't be happy. Once the greatest three-month sport on the planet, college football has dissolved into miserable slog through perceived failure.

And only failure.

Because no matter what plays out week to week in this glorious sport of kings, no matter how good it looks or how unforgettable the moment, we're always staring down the negative.

Winning is exhaling and complaining, losing is tragedy and fire the coach. Or fire the athletic director who made the awful hire in the first place.

Matt Hayes

College football columnist

USA TODAY NETWORK

And while you're at it, bench the damn quarterback, too. A Heisman Trophy candidate? He can't even complete a simple pass while staring through a wall of 6-foot-5, 330-pound offensive linemen while dealing with exotic blitz packages and combination coverages.

Screw him, he's getting paid millions to make that throw.

So it should come as no surprise that after his biggest SEC win at Missouri last weekend, Tigers coach Eli Drinkwitz began the postgame news conference by fielding questions about the lowhanging, social media-fueled fruit of failure.

Sure, you beat Florida in a big game – but how does it feel to finally beat a ranked SEC team?

"Yeah, I'm done with that," Drinkwitz said.

What are we doing here? Have we become so jaded in the now college football world of funny money, that we're ignoring the beauty of you never know what you're getting week to week?

Yet here we are, ignoring the signature win for Missouri and focusing on past failures in games against ranked teams.

Or worse, the Missouri win was more about the failure of Florida not backing up a rout of Ole Miss from the previous week.

Texas got a defining win over Ohio State in September, and we're more locked in on the Buckeyes blowing a 20-point lead in the fourth quarter.

Oklahoma State, in its second game under first-year coach Eric Morris, beat top-5 Oregon and the narrative wasn't the biggest win in years

See HAYES, Page 2C

Michael

Middlehurst-Schwartz

USA TODAY

Johnson is gone: Huge loss for Eagles

Few NFL players have been as adept at keeping harm at bay as Lane Johnson was for the Philadelphia Eagles.

Quantifying an offensive lineman's value to a team can be an exceedingly difficult proposition. Johnson, of course, was heavily decorated throughout his 14-year pro career, having earned six Pro Bowl nods and two first-team All-Pro selections.

But even as the 36-year-old came to be seen as the modern gold standard at right tackle – and perhaps the best ever at the position – Johnson's lofty reputation still couldn't fully capture just how meaningful he was to the franchise. Including the playoffs, the Eagles went 122-63-1 with him in the lineup and 18-30 without him.

A cornerstone of the only two Super Bowl-winning teams in franchise history, the No. 4 overall pick in the 2013 NFL Draft saw multiple quarterbacks, head coaches and other marquee figures cycle in and out during his time. Through it all, Johnson – and the rest of the offensive line – held everything together, ensuring some level of comfort even amid significant change and challenging circumstances.

Until now.

Johnson's announcement on Oct. 6 that he would be retiring immediately to focus on his mental health should prompt a moment of celebration for one of the organization's all-time greats. As

See EAGLES, Page 2C

Offensive tackle Lane Johnson played 171 games over a 14-year NFL career, all with the Eagles.

JAY BIGGERSTAFF/IMAGN IMAGES VIA REUTERS

Jarrett Bell

Columnist

USA TODAY

Texans' supposed 'great' D has lost its way

HOUSTON – Last year.

That phrase came off like a dirty word when it was mentioned to Will Anderson Jr. as he indulged a curious visitor at his locker this week. Of all the things that could go wrong for the Houston Texans in stumbling to a 0-4 start, it is rather stunning that the once-dominant defense led by Anderson has suddenly lost its way. Or worse.

I mean, the Texans had the NFL's top-ranked defense last year, when only the Super Bowl champion Seattle Seahawks allowed fewer points. And pretty much everybody's back.

See BELL, Page 2C

🔗 [系统已自动跨页缝合转版续文：《Eagles》]

C

a teammate, mentor – beyond his work within the organization, he co-founded the OL Masterminds summit in 2018 – and pass protector, the 36-year-old earned an almost singular level of reverence throughout the league and among those who worked closest with him.

“Lane excelled under multiple coaching staffs, maintaining an elite level of play throughout his entire career,” Eagles owner Jeffrey Lurie said in a statement. “His combination of talent, strength, athleticism, and intelligence made him a truly unique player in this league, and there is no doubt in my mind that one day he will be named to the Pro Football Hall of Fame.”

Any break from the reality now facing the Eagles, however, will have to be short-lived for the team.

At 2-2 and coming off its worst offensive performance in more than a decade with Johnson out of the lineup, Philadelphia's offense already appeared to be nearing a breaking point. But for a group that appeared intent on trying to hold on as its key contributors got healthier and gained a better grasp on a new scheme, Johnson's departure might put any hopes of a breakthrough even further out of reach.

🔗 [系统已自动跨页缝合转版续文：《Bell》]

C

But hey, that was so 2025. This is clearly a new year.

"This is the thing with football: I try to tell the guys this. Nobody gives a (flip) about what you did last year," Anderson told USA TODAY Sports. "Nobody cares what you did last year. They don't care about what Pro Bowl you made, what All-Pro team you made, they don't care that you were the No. 1 defense.

“What are we going to do this year? We have to come out and prove it every year, we have to show it every day, put it on their mind for what type of player you are and want to be that day. That’s the thing. We’ve got to forget about last year and focus on who we are right now.”

Right now, the Texans defense is in crisis mode. It is ranked 20th for yards allowed, is giving up 27.25 points per game (tied for sixth-worst in the NFL) and has produced just three turnovers.

Whatever happened to the vaunted unit fit to lay the tracks for a serious Super Bowl run?

During the 34-30 loss against the Cowboys on Oct. 4, Houston was not only victimized by Cee Dee Lamb for his career-high 17 catches, 189 yards and the winning touchdown, it allowed Dallas to twice rally from a 10-point deficit and gave up four passing plays of at least 20 yards during the second half – including the 53-yarder that George Pickens hauled in over Kamari Lassiter – and blew a lead in crunch time.

That's become some kind of pattern. In three of Houston's losses this season, it surrendered the lead late in the fourth quarter. That's like a cardinal sin for any given championship defense. The Cowboys used an 11-play, 74-yard drive, which included a fourth-down conversion, in the final two minutes. A week earlier, the Texans took the lead at Indianapolis with 1:48 remaining, then lost on a 53-yard field goal. In Week 1 against Buffalo, Houston couldn't stop a 96-yard drive accented by a 35-yard completion and a 34-yard TD throw with 96 seconds left.

“We’ve got to find a way to finish these games,” said Anderson, 25, the relentless edge rusher who earned first-team All-Pro honors for the first time in 2025.

In the three come-from-behind cases, the Texans lost by four, two and five points.

"It's frustrating," Anderson added. "I know we're a really great football team. It really just comes down to finishing. It's about every man doing their job for four quarters, not letting up. That's kind of been the case these last few games."

---

Offense already in dire straits

Even prior to Johnson's decision, the Eagles offense was facing a necessary moment of reflection.

Sunday's 24-20 loss to the Los Angeles Rams laid bare all the ways in which the attack is ailing, both figuratively and literally. With running back Saquon Barkley's first-quarter hamstring injury putting nearly half of the Week 1 starting offense out of commission, Philadelphia went 0-for-12 on third down and posted its fewest yards (172) since 2014.

Though Eagles coach Nick Sirianni refused to let the mounting injuries be an excuse. Instead, he saw a more insidious problem taking root.

“I don’t think we really know our identity of what we want to be,” Sirianni said in a news conference Monday. “We know where we’re going, we know what we need to be able to do, but there’s still some identity questions that we still have to continue to answer as we continue through this.”

Now, the offense has to push on without the figure who might have been the most capable of helping the unit define itself.

As a rare player who grew even more formidable in his 30s than he was at his athletic peak, Johnson was still operating at a top-tier level to the very end. Through four weeks, he ranks second in pass-block win rate among all offensive tackles, according to ESPN. And his last quick pressure (under 2.5 seconds) allowed came in Week 10 of 2024, according to Next Gen Stats.

That sustained level of excellence in pass protection was the hallmark of Johnson's career. Philadelphia could always count on its bookend tackles – first with Jason Peters manning the blind side opposite Johnson, then with Jordan Mailata taking over – to neutralize even the craftiest and most dynamic edge rushers.

But even with the duo still excelling this season, the interior line came unraveled. Offensive guard Landon Dickerson landed on injured reserve after admitting he was a “complete liability” in the opener. That prompted center Cam Jurgens to slide left and have Drew Kendall take over at the pivot.

The results have been calamitous for all involved. Philadelphia has surrendered the league's third-highest pressure rate at $43.2\%$ and has had runs stuffed at or behind the line of scrimmage at the fifth-highest rate $(19.4\%)$ , according to Next Gen Stats. A front that used to bulldoze its opponents on late downs with the Tush Push now is wilting in the third-and-long scenarios.

---

Philadelphia's problems compound

How much could Johnson have done to turn things around? There's probably only so much that could have been asked of him to cover for a group that presented so many vulnerabilities in its first few games without famed position coach Jeff Stoutland.

But Sunday's loss provided a glimpse of how dire things can get for this offense – as presently constructed – without him.

With third-round rookie Markel Bell stepping in at right tackle, the Rams blitzed the Eagles at a 54.5% rate, according to Next Gen Stats. That represented the most aggressive approach of any defense not orchestrated by Brian Flores this season.

The result: Los Angeles registered a 57.6% pressure rate – the second-highest single-game mark so far this season – and limited Hurts to 93 passing yards, the lowest output of any contest he's started and finished in his career.

Bell had earned Johnson's seal of approval, but he desperately needed the veteran's tutelage to accelerate his development.

Now, he's been called to the front of the class for a pop quiz.

And opposing defenses are sure to throw the football equivalent of quantum physics problems at him with their exotic blitzes, with the rest of the line only able to do so much to support him.

An essential piece exiting amid such widespread struggles might typically be cause for re-evaluation of a team's approach. Yet first-year offensive coordinator Sean Mannion, speaking Tuesday prior to Johnson's announcement, doubled down on his belief in the standing framework.

“We’re implementing something that we absolutely believe in,” said Mannion, acknowledging that the team would evaluate possible tweaks. “We believe in the things that we’ve installed from a fundamental perspective in terms of the structure of our offense. We’re gonna keep leaning into that and make it as good as it can be.”

Without Barkley and the ground game carrying the operation, there might not be a safe place to retreat to, especially with the stripped-down receiving corps unable to reliably beat man coverage. Still, Mannion seemed to undercut his own faith in a scheme that's been an oil-and-water fit for the Eagles' personnel, particularly Hurts. In defending the lack of production from the under-center and play-action looks at the core of the attack, Mannion said the misalignment might be a product of the matchups that have popped up in the early weeks.

But if Philadelphia couldn't dictate terms offensively and flourish with Johnson in the lineup, what hope does it have in executing that same game plan with him now gone?

---

Johnson's departure could loom large in locker room

While Sirianni and others retreated to “next man up” maxims in accounting for Sunday’s loss, the finality of Johnson’s decision might not be so easy for players to move past.

"I think it's just heavy. It's heavy to deal with right now," Mailata said Tuesday on Sportsradio WIP. "I'm still processing my emotions – let alone, also, we try to remember all the times we had. Lot of memories to unpack when I think about Lane. I just think about how much I'm going to miss him going forward."

Mailata tried to remain upbeat, saying he believed the team had the cohesiveness to make it through a challenging time.

A key part of that effort was expressing his faith in Bell.

"The one thing that you can do now is create your own shoes," Mailata said. "You're not here to fill Lane Johnson's shoes – you're here to make your own. You're here to create your own legacy and your own story, and that's all we want. We just want you to focus on that.

"You don't have to be Lane Johnson."

Of course, no one else could.

---

Quarterback C.J. Stroud doing his part for Texans

This was supposed to be a season when Houston, guided by defensive-credentialed coach DeMeco Ryans and building around quarterback C.J. Stroud and Anderson (drafted second and third overall in 2023) was poised to take the next step toward becoming a legitimate Super Bowl contender – if the quarterback could raise his game. If there was anything to bank on in that equation, it was a defense that brought back 10 starters. Or so we thought.

As it turns out, Stroud, who threw four interceptions during the loss at New England in the divisional playoffs in January, is not the issue. Not now. His growth has come with better decision-making. He hasn't thrown an interception all season, and despite No.1 receiver Nico Collins missing two games due to a hamstring injury, Stroud has put up two 300-yard games.

So, no, this rocky start can't be pinned on the quarterback once cast as a weak link.

The latest loss was such an embarrassment – if it wasn't Lamb running wide open repeatedly to expose coverage breakdowns, it was the shabby tackling – that Ryans won't rule out significant changes. That includes the possibility that Ryans, previously the 49ers defensive coordinator, could take over play-calling duties from coordinator Matt Burke, who came here with the coach in 2023.

Texans head coach DeMeco Ryans reacts as he coaches against the Bengals on Sept. 20 at Reliant Stadium in Houston.

THOMAS SHEA/IMAGN IMAGES VIA REUTERS

“We’ll see how all that goes,” Ryans responded on Monday when asked specifically about the play-calling role.

---

What's going wrong for Texans defense?

It's striking that communication was an issue on Sunday, given all of the returning pieces. Lassiter, a third-year pro who starts opposite first-team All-Pro Derek Stingley Jr., acknowledged some of the problems for the 28th-ranked pass defense when he met with reporters. Especially when it came to trying to contain Lamb, who moved around to align at different spots across the formation.

“It’s like ‘Where’s Waldo?’” Lassiter said. “You’ve got to find him. Then you’ve got to find out, ‘OK, what’s the plan for this play?’ Every play has a call, so obviously you have to execute the call.”

And obviously, while missing injured linebackers Azeez Al-Shaair and Henry To'oTo'o, the calls and execution didn't cut it.

Ryans seemed urgent as he pondered how to fix such issues.

"Just take a deep dive, take a look at everything to see how we can help," he said. "How can I help everybody just be a little bit better? That's my role, that's my job. Of course, we don't want to be where we are but this is it, we're here."

The Texans started 0-3 in 2025 (last year, if you will) and earned a wild-card playoff berth. Yet this rises a few notches on the challenge scale. The 1992 San Diego Chargers are the only team in NFL history to start 0-4 and make the playoffs.

"I'm not concerned about it right now," Ryans said, referring to a playoff mission. "I'm concerned about finding a way to play better, coach better and go beat the Tennessee Titans."

Yes, there's hope. Houston's next opponent is in even worse shape. The teams meet Sunday in Nashville.

Yet if you listen to Anderson, the team's pulse, the more formidable opponent comes from within. Anderson insists the defense's confidence remains high, knowing the deep pool of talent and the high standards they have established. Part of the process involves "not letting the outside noise slip into the building," he said.

“We’ve just got to do our jobs. And it starts with us up front,” Anderson added. “We’ve got to be able to keep getting more pressure on the quarterback, guys have to continue to cover and plaster. We have to play as one group, not as individuals. That’s the big thing. We always talk about it. We’re a really great defense when all 11 guys are on the same page.

“But if I don’t set the edge or a D-tackle doesn’t do this, or a linebacker misses a fit, or a safety or cornerback is not in the right leverage, the defense gets picked part.”

In other words, there's a thin line between last year and now.

Follow Bell on X: @JarrettBell

COLLEGE FOOTBALL

Danger ahead for every unbeaten

Miami Hurricanes and star wide receiver Malachi Toney might be the best to go undefeated in the regular season. SAM NAVARRO/IMAGN IMAGES VIA REUTERS

Paul Myerberg

USA TODAY

Fifteen Football Bowl Subdivision teams are still unbeaten heading into second weekend of October. That number will be capped at 14 heading out of Oct. 10 given the heavyweight bout between No. 2 Georgia and No. 7 Alabama. Another unbeaten, No. 22 UCLA, is an $11 \frac{1}{2}$ -point underdog at No. 13 Oregon.

By December, there may be just one undefeated team still standing. Two teams have run the table in the regular season during the 12-team College Football Playoff era: Indiana last season and Oregon in 2024.

Or there may be zero. USA TODAY Sports ranks and evaluates the current 15 unbeatens to predict when each team will suffer its first loss – and comes up with just one team scheduled to head into the playoff unblemished.

---

1. Miami (No. 4, 5-0)

First loss: In College Football Playoff

History says there's an ugly loss brewing somewhere, since those have dotted virtually every year of Mario Cristobal's Power Four career. Maybe things have changed down in Miami. If we pencil in a win at Notre Dame then that's a perfect regular season, since there's no one in the ACC who can hang with the Hurricanes.

---

2. Georgia (No. 2, 5-0)

First loss: at No. 7 Alabama, Saturday

The Bulldogs are slight underdogs against a rival that has taken 10 of the past 13 in the series, including two of three under coach Kalen DeBoer. Combined with the play of the Tide's offense, this one-sided Alabama advantage points to Georgia's first loss. On the other hand, the Bulldogs have destroyed every opponent to date and could romp to an unbeaten regular season.

---

3. Notre Dame (No. 3, 5-0)

First loss: vs. No. 4 Miami, Nov. 7

There's a challenging road trip to No. 8 BYU this month, though the Cougars will need to improve to pull off an upset. Next month, the Fighting Irish welcome in Darian Mensah and Miami in one of the biggest games of the regular season. The Hurricanes are the only opponent on the schedule that can match Notre Dame's talent level and might be the only team in the country with a better quarterback.

---

4. Texas (No. 1, 4-0)

First loss: vs. No. 11 Ole Miss, Oct. 24

The loaded remaining schedule for the Longhorns: Oklahoma, No. 15 Florida, No. 11 Ole Miss, No. 20 Mississippi State, at No. 16 Missouri, at No. 10 LSU, Arkansas and at Texas A&M. By year's end, Texas will have played nine teams in the top 20 of this week's US LBM Coaches Poll. The second of six ranked opponents in a row, the Rebels have the explosiveness to outscore an Arch Manning-led offense that hasn't taken a step forward.

---

5. Alabama (No. 7, 5-0)

First loss: at No. 10 LSU, Nov. 7

Alabama can no longer just pencil in a win against No. 16 Tennessee. The trip to Neyland Stadium on Oct. 17 is hard to predict even as the Volunteers offense craters behind two unproven quarterbacks. Given how the Tide have looked, though, it'll take an LSU offense with major firepower to hand them their first loss.

---

6. Indiana (No. 5, 5-0)

First loss: vs. No. 6 Ohio State, Nov. 17

Indiana gets Ohio State at home and did narrowly beat the Buckeyes in last year's Big Ten championship game before bulldozing through the playoff. The Hoosiers will be tested by Nebraska on Saturday if the Cornhuskers clean up their penalties, but the much more realistic first loss will come a week later to Jeremiah Smith and Ohio State.

---

7. BYU (No. 8, 4-0)

First loss: vs. No. 3 Notre Dame, Oct. 17

Four games against Utah Tech,

Arizona, Colorado State and TCU have left BYU as one of the Power Four's biggest enigmas. (Last weekend's 17-10 win against the Horned Frogs didn't help.) The Irish are operating on a different level and will be motivated to post a stylish road win against one of just three opponents ranked in this week's US LBM Coaches Poll.

---

8. Utah (No. 12, 4-0)

First loss: vs. No. 8 BYU, Nov. 7

BYU has won three in a row in the series, including once in Salt Lake City, after Utah took nine in a row from 2010 to 2019. The Utes have looked like the best team in the Big 12 under new coach Morgan Scalley and have a good chance of remaining unbeaten through an October schedule of Kansas, Colorado, No. 19 Houston and Cincinnati.

---

9. Texas Tech (No. 9, 5-0)

First loss: at Oklahoma State, Nov. 14

Texas Tech hasn't been impressive. But Arizona State just allowed 55 points to Baylor, so maybe the Sun Devils aren't the one. Cincinnati comes on the road, but almost no one would bet on the Bearcats scoring the upset. Getting Arizona and West Virginia at home helps. The Cowboys can't match the Red Raiders up front but they do have an offense that has gotten better on a weekly basis after a loss to Tulsa in their season opener.

---

10. Nebraska (5-0)

First loss: vs. No. 7 Indiana, Saturday

This is very clearly an improved Cornhuskers team and by almost every measurement the best of the Matt Rhule era, even if the schedule to date ranks among the weakest in the Power Four. Considering the Hoosiers' talent, coaching and error-free play, the Cornhuskers will need an A-level game to score the program's biggest win in years in this matchup.

---

11. UCLA (No. 22, 4-0)

First loss: at No. 13 Oregon, Saturday

The Bruins have been one of the best stories in the Power Four under new coach Bob Chesney. Beating Purdue and Maryland doesn't mean UCLA is ready to win at Autzen Stadium, however. The Ducks are double-digit favorites even with backup Dylan Raiola potentially starting in place of an injured Dante Moore.

---

12. Duke (No. 23, 4-0)

First loss: at Georgia Tech, Saturday

First loss at Georgia Tech, Saturday

Yeah, the Yellow Jackets lost to Colorado and Stanford in September. Now they're going to take down Duke? This upset special banks on Tech making the most of the bye week and rebounding just in time to salvage hopes of reaching bowl eligibility.

---

13. Pitt (No. 24, 5-0)

First loss: at No. 4 Miami, Oct. 24

The Panthers are moving forward without starting quarterback Mason Heinstchel, a rising star in the ACC who will miss the rest of the year with an ACL injury. Holden Geriner got the job done against Virginia Tech and should keep the offense afloat against North Carolina and Boston College. But Miami's going to roll at home.

---

14. James Madison (5-0)

First loss: at Appalachian State, Oct. 22

James Madison is heading toward another double-digit win season under the program's third coach in four years. But back-to-back undefeated runs through conference play are so hard to pull off that a midweek trip to Appalachian State seems like a ripe spot for an upset.

---

15. North Dakota State (5-0)

First loss: at New Mexico, Oct. 24

The Bison's unbeaten start in the Bowl Subdivision could end on Saturday at UNLV, especially after the up-and-down Rebels seemed to get on track last week against Cal. If not this weekend, the first loss will come later this month against the Lobos, the Mountain West favorite and one of the best teams in the Group of Six.

HEISMAN RANKINGS

New QB tries to catch Jeremiah Smith

Austin Curtright

USA TODAY NETWORK

Ohio State superstar Jeremiah Smith struck the Heisman Trophy pose in the Buckeyes' commanding 31-14 road win over No. 13 Iowa in Week 5.

It was warranted.

Smith set new career highs with 11 receptions for 206 yards in the win, along with two touchdowns. The third-year receiver now ranks first nationally in receptions (44) and receiving yards (823) and is tied for first with nine receiving TDs.

The 6-foot-4 receiver has set multiple Ohio State receiving records and is establishing himself as one of the program's greatest offensive players ever. He's on pace to obliterate his previous career high of 1,315 receiving yards in a season, which was set in 16 games.

Alabama quarterback Keelon Russell is also making a push for the Heisman. The first-year starter and former five-star recruit has been lights-out for a Crimson Tide offense that ranks No. 2 nationally averaging 49.6 points per game this season.

Each week, USA TODAY Sports provides a pulse check on the Heisman race. Here's a look at where things stand heading into Week 6 (previous ranking in parentheses):

1. Jeremiah Smith, Ohio State (1): Smith became Ohio State's all-time leader in both receptions (207) and receiving touchdowns (36) against Iowa, after having already broken the all-time receiving yards record at the school known for producing high-end NFL talent.

NFL star Chris Olave needed 47 games to secure Ohio State's career record of 35 receiving touchdowns. Smith broke the mark in only 35. He also became the second player in Big Ten history to record back-to-back games with 200 or more receiving yards, joining former Indiana standout Ty Fryfogle.

Ohio State receiver Jeremiah Smith strikes a Heisman pose after a TD.

ADAM CAIRNS/THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

2. Keelon Russell, Alabama (8): Russell keeps getting better and better, and he was the better quarterback in Alabama's Week 5 game against Mississippi State and fellow Heisman contender Kamario Taylor.

Russell completed 16 of 22 passes for 285 yards with three touchdowns in Alabama's 56-23 drubbing of the Bulldogs, also rushing for a touchdown. The second-year quarterback now has 13 total touchdowns in his last three games and is leading an offense that has scored 45 or more points in every game this season.

Up next for Russell and Alabama is a matchup with No. 2 Georgia, a game with huge College Football Playoff and Heisman implications.

3. Darian Mensah, Miami (2): The only thing missing for first-year Miami quarterback Darian Mensah so far is a big performance ... against a big-time team. Mensah led Miami to a 41-13 win over Clemson in Week 5, although he was held to “just” 227 passing yards with two total touchdowns in the win.

The Duke transfer still hasn't thrown an interception this season and ranks tied for third nationally with 15 passing touchdowns and eighth in passing yards with 1,438. It's hard to imagine a world where Mensah doesn't at least make it to New York.

4. Trinidad Chambliss, Ole Miss (3): Trinidad Chambliss and Ole Miss were off in Week 5 after they were dismantled by Florida 52-28 in Week 4.

Chambliss and the Rebels need to bounce back for him to have a shot at the award. He'll have plenty of chances to do so in upcoming games against Missouri, Texas and Georgia.

5. Drew Mestemaker, Oklahoma State (7): Oklahoma State was on bye in Week 5, which came after Drew Mestemaker tossed for a combined 713 yards with eight touchdowns in wins over Murray State and West Virginia.

The Cowboys look like a Big 12 championship contender in large part to Mestemaker's play following the Cowboys' Week 1 upset by Tulsa. Mestemaker led OSU to one of the best wins in college football this season, racking up 426 total yards with three touchdowns in the Cowboys' 39-31 win over then-No. 6 Oregon.

6. Malachi Toney, Miami (6): Malachi Toney was held in check by Clemson in Week 5, catching five passes for 40 yards with a touchdown in the win. He has still proved to be one of the best playmakers in the country, ranking seventh nationally in receptions (39) and fourth in receiving yards (604).

A later-season matchup against Notre Dame still looms, which could be the breakout performance Toney needs for a Heisman push.

7. CJ Carr, Notre Dame (9): Nothing about CJ Carr is flashy, but he's quietly having one of the best seasons among quarterbacks. The second-year starter hardly makes mistakes and has completed 88 of 124 passes (71%) for 1,197 yards with 16 total touchdowns to one interception this season.

Carr projects to be one of the top quarterbacks selected in the 2027 NFL Draft and is coming off a five-touchdown performance in Notre Dame's 37-26 win over North Carolina in Week 5. The fact the Fighting Irish look like one of the top national championship contenders this season also helps Carr's chances.

8. Kamario Taylor, Mississippi State (4): Kamario Taylor falls a few spots in the meter after struggling to take care of the ball in Mississippi State's big loss to Alabama at home in Week 5. The talented QB still threw for 258 yards and three touchdowns in the loss, but fumbled on the opening possession before throwing two interceptions, including a pick-6.

Taylor exited the game early in the fourth quarter with an apparent injury, although the game was already out of reach. He still leads college football with 17 passing touchdowns, though, and is capable of bouncing back.

Jarrett opens up over dangers of racing

Dale Jarrett attends the NASCAR Hall of Fame Voting Day at Charlotte Convention Center on May 19 in North Carolina. DAVID JENSEN/GETTY IMAGES

Mitchell Northam

USA TODAY

It's been nearly two decades since he sat behind the wheel of a race car, but Dale Jarrett has seen it all.

Across a Hall of Fame career in NASCAR that spanned from 1982 to 2008, Jarrett saw the sport change in real time – not just in popularity, but with safety innovations too.

Jarrett was racing at the top level when restrictor plates were introduced at the largest and fastest tracks, Daytona and Talladega, in 1988. Later came roof flaps, the mandated use of the HANS (head and neck support) device, and then the installation of SAFER (steel and foam energy reduction) barriers at all NASCAR tracks. A driver hasn't died from a crash in the Cup Series since Dale Earnhardt at Daytona in 2001.

While the sport of stock car racing can be thrilling, it remains risky. Drivers put themselves in perilous situations at high speeds every week, which makes what wheelmen like Jarrett were able to accomplish all that more impressive. Besides winning 43 races and the Cup Series championship in 1999, Jarrett captured three Daytona 500 victories, two Brickyard 400 wins and a Coca-Cola 600 checkered flag in 1996.

"The side of it that we tend to forget sometimes is the dangerous side of the sport," he told USA TODAY recently. "Even though things had improved somewhat with safety initiatives as I came along versus what my dad and many of those competed in, it is a dangerous sport and competition to do."

The treacherous nature of racing and the long-term impacts from it have been on his mind for two reasons recently.

Jarrett, 69, was one of several prominent athletes honored on Oct. 5 in New York City. The Buoniconti Fund to Cure Paralysis' 41st Annual Great Sports Legends Dinner aims to raise awareness and millions of dollars for research and treatment of paralysis and other neurological conditions.

"I'm just humbled and honored to be a part of this and be able to be a part of a celebration that will not only help bring the funds that are needed, but the awareness also," Jarrett said. "The

Miami Project and everything they do, it's just so fascinating."

And Jarrett is also thinking about one of his contemporaries, a fellow Hall of Fame driver, Darrell Waltrip.

Last month, the family of the 79-year-old said in a statement that Wal-trip was taking a step back from public life after he had been diagnosed with frontotemporal degeneration (FTD) complicated by possible Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE) due to injuries he suffered from a racing career that spanned from 1972 to 2000.

Before going on to have an iconic broadcasting career with Fox Sports, Waltrip won 84 races in the Cup Series, a mark that still ranks fifth all-time. Waltrip won the 1989 Daytona 500, the 1992 Southern 500 and took five checkered flags at the Coca-Cola 600 in Charlotte, making him the winningest driver of NASCAR's longest crown jewel race.

“First and foremost, every one of us that have known Darrell for many years and understand the impact that he had in helping grow the sport of NASCAR, we’re saddened by what we were told and what we know at this point, and we’re all thinking and praying for him,” Jarrett said. “But Darrell Waltrip was – and still is – one of the most recognizable names, faces and voices that NASCAR has had throughout the years. He had such an outstanding racing career and was a tenacious competitor.

“Unfortunately, it probably won’t be a situation that will get better, but Darrell has always been one to face every battle and every challenge that he’s ever had.”

According to the Mayo Clinic, CTE is a brain disease likely caused by repeated head injuries that gets worse over time. Currently, it can only be definitively diagnosed after death during an autopsy of the brain. After he died in 2024, NASCAR Hall of Famer Fred Lorenzen was diagnosed with CTE by researchers at Boston University.

“I think that, now that we know more about (CTE), as these things happen, we will hear of more (former drivers) that are willing to give their brains (to science),” Jarrett said. “I feel 100% sure that there were a number before that had no idea that may have been part of the cause of what they went through before their passing.”

One of the documented concussions Jarrett had came at Kansas in 2001, when he spun near Turn 2 and hit the outside wall hard after getting some contact from Bobby Labonte. Two years later, another hard crash for Jarrett – this one at New Hampshire – sparked a rule change for NASCAR, ending the practice of drivers “racing back to yellow” after a caution flag dropped.

Jarrett played football in high school before his racing career began in earnest, and he remembers hard hits being classified as “getting your bell rung.”

"There was never even a thought that it might have been a concussion," Jarrett said. "But once you understand what concussions are, you find out the impact of them and how many you may have had.

"I go back to, you know, we used to hit concrete walls at well over 150 miles-an-hour and sometimes close to 200 miles-an-hour. And so, I'm not surprised. I know things that I go through myself from concussions through the years."

Since retiring from racing, Jarrett has remained close to NASCAR by working on television, emulating a post-racing career similar to what his late father had. Ned Jarrett, a two-time champion, Southern 500 winner and Hall of Famer, was a longtime broadcaster for CBS and ESPN. He died this year at the age of 93.

Dale Jarrett was previously an analyst for ESPN and NBC and is now part of the broadcast crew for USA Network, which carries the postseason Chase. During race weekends when he's not in front of a camera, Jarrett can walk through the garages and chat with racers like Kyle Larson and Ryan Blaney.

In 2023, a team at Wake Forest University developed a mouthpiece sensor that collects data and measures what happens to a driver's head during a crash, similar to a “black box” inside of a car.

Larson and Blaney are among the drivers who have voluntarily used it.

"There always is more to do and there's many doctors involved," Jarrett said. "(Concussions) will certainly be something that will always be at the forefront, even though it may not be talked about a lot. It is something that is happening behind the scenes."

"The drivers now have much more help in that regard than what has ever been available to NASCAR drivers through the years."

Lost in Translation: Spieth seeks old form

Adam Schupak

Golfweek | USA TODAY Network

After failing to make the top 50 in the season-long points race at the FedEx St. Jude Championship, Jordan Spieth left Memphis deflated, knowing he'd have to figure out another way to play his way into the 2027 signature events.

"I just feel like I'm kind of getting back to playing really good golf, like it's close to kicking off, and I'm not going to play a tournament for a long time," he said in August.

A long time turned out to be until this week. Spieth, 33, is making his third start at the Baycurrent Classic and first trip back to Japan since 2019.

The 13-time PGA Tour winner and three-time major champion had an unusual year by his high standards. On the one hand, he was the picture of consistency: 10 top-25 finishes in 22 starts. But he hasn't produced a top-10 since a T-7 at the 2025 Memorial, with a best of two T-11 finishes in March and hasn't tasted victory since the 2022 RBC Heritage.

Spieth enters the week No. 55 in the FedExCup Fall standings, looking to protect his spot inside the top 60 to earn a berth into the first two 2027 signature events at Pebble Beach and Riviera, two of his favorite hunting grounds.

“I think that I had a lot better season than the results showed. I felt like I was getting better as the year went on. I’m really excited about what the next bunch of years can produce going forward,” Spieth said Oct. 6 during a pretournament interview. “I feel as healthy and strong as ever. I don’t feel like I have restrictions like I did for a couple years. I feel that my mechanics are more sound than they’ve been for a while. It’s just about giving myself more and more opportunities to get comfortable at or near the lead again where I can push – where I finished 11th to 19th most of the weeks this last year, I can push that up to having a good chance when I tee off on Sunday and being at or near the lead.”

Two years ago Spieth was sidelined after wrist surgery and missed the Japan stop. Last year he was in the midst of revamping his swing and was not ready to test it out in competition.

"I just need to be playing more and practicing knocking in more putts, so that's what I've been doing. I've been trying to play a lot of golf, kind of get back right where I was and just slightly improve but get back to playing a lot," he said. "Then working on trying to get back to making a lot of mid-range putts and that will be this week, but then I don't think anything's going to change after this week by the next time I play. I think it's just kind of what this offseason looks like, which is a lot more fun than working on swing stuff."

Jordan Spieth has 10 top-25 finishes and has made the cut in 19 of his 22 PGA Tour tournaments this year.

STACY REVERE/GETTY IMAGES

Spieth is approaching a decade since his last major victory. His trip to play at Yokohama Country Club, situated about 20 miles south of Tokyo, is shades of Bill Murray's character Bob Harris – a fading, middle-aged American movie star experiencing a deep midlife crisis in “Lost in Translation.”

And yet Spieth could change the way he remembers this season should he end his victory drought, but at the very least, a strong finish could go a long way in shaping the direction of the rest of his offseason.

"When you play tournaments on difficult golf courses, you get a better gauge on that than when you're just practicing at home," he said. "I came here to try to win the golf tournament, but also coming out of it I'll know a lot on what I want to do over the next couple months to get ready for what I think is going to be a really good season next season."

Attention Valued Readers:

USA TODAY will not be

publishing a print edition on

Columbus Day — Monday, October 12.

The local news you love will still be available online via the eNewspaper, a digital replica of the print edition ready for you early in the morning. To access your eNewspaper, visit usatoday.com/enewspaper.

To view the entire holiday printing schedule, visit the About Your Subscription page at aboutyoursubscription.usatoday.com.

If you have any questions or need assistance accessing the eNewspaper, please call our Customer Service at 1-800-872-0001.

SOCCER USMNT WINNERS AND LOSERS

Stock up, down after fall friendlies

Losers

Seth Vertelney

USA forward Cavan Sullivan (8) celebrates his first goal against Mexico during an international friendly Oct. 3 in Glendale, Arizona. PATRICK BREEN/THE REPUBLIC

USA TODAY

The U.S. men's soccer national team could not have started the post-World Cup era much better.

Mauricio Pochettino's side won all four of its friendlies in the extended September-October international window, defeating Peru, Chile, Mexico and Canada by a combined scoreline of 12-3.

Boosted by a youthful roster, the USMNT's performances provided plenty of optimism that the new cycle could see significant improvement.

When looking at the entire roster, there were clearly more winners than losers in this window. Even many of the players who saw their stock dip are young enough where it shouldn't be a major worry.

Let's examine the biggest winners and losers of the September-October international window.

Winners

Mauricio Pochettino: The winning is nice, of course, but at this stage of a World Cup cycle, player pool expansion is just as important of an objective. In this window, Pochettino emphatically achieved both goals. The Argentine gave debuts to 13 players across the four games, eight of whom were teenagers. Not all 13 are ready for the step up to the full team, but several players are clearly ready to challenge some established veterans. Pochettino will have a real selection headache for next month's Concacaf Nations League quarterfinal against Haiti. He probably won't mind.

Gio Reyna: Has the Reyna-ssance finally arrived? Over the past several years, simply playing soccer consistently has been the goal for the midfielder. Actually producing in those minutes was more of a bonus than anything. But the 23-year-old showed in this window that he may finally be ready to do both, and in the process start to fulfill the lofty expectations placed on his shoulders as a teenager.

Reyna started all four games of this window, the only USMNT player to do so. He tallied two assists across those matches and played a major role in a third, Julian Hall's opener against

Mexico. Remarkably, he has now started eight straight games for club and country for the first time in his entire career. Pochettino's continuing faith in Reyna seems to be paying off.

Alex Freeman: Freeman has now played in 25 straight matches for the national team, and he seems to get better in each one. The 22-year-old's rise continues to be remarkable, and he can now reasonably lay a claim as one of the team's most important players. The right back started three of four games in this window, providing lockdown defense on one end and his trademark offensive threat on the other.

After the Canada match, USMNT legend Landon Donovan said Freeman "was the best player on the field, and it wasn't even close."

Cavan Sullivan: Sullivan continues to show why the hype around him is justified. This camp saw his USMNT debut as a 16-year-old, and his first signature moment as a 17-year-old. His goal against Mexico was a perfect encapsulation of his precocious combination of talent and audacity. He saw his moment to launch a shot from deep after intercepting a pass from goalkeeper Tala Rangel, and he didn't miss.

Now the youngest goal scorer in

USMNT history, Sullivan may have also shown he's ready for a regular role with the team moving forward.

Julian Hall: Sullivan wasn't the only teenager to make USMNT history in this window. Hall scored in each of his first three appearances, becoming the youngest USMNT player to do so and only the third ever. The 18-year-old did what every volume scorer does, getting himself into good spots repeatedly. He actually left several goals on the table, missing a number of presentable chances. But you can't score if you don't get chances, and Hall undoubtedly manages to find those.

The new goalkeepers: Pochettino gave Diego Kochen his debut in the second half against Peru, then gave the 20-year-old a massive vote of confidence by starting him against Mexico. Kochen delivered on both occasions, failing to concede a single goal, showing solid distribution and producing one highlight-reel save against Mexico.

Like Kochen, Brian Schwake also played three halves in this window and looked up for the task, particularly in his clean-sheet performance against Canada. The Nashville SC shot-stopper didn't make any errors and commanded his box well.

The old goalkeepers: The goalkeeper position has been in flux for some time and if this window is anything to go by, that uncertainty is set to continue. The two returning goalkeepers on this roster, Matt Freese and Chris Brady, did very little to prove they should be the starter moving forward. Freese, the 2026 World Cup starter, played a single half in the opener against Peru but didn't see the field again. Brady, meanwhile, had a bit of a nightmare in his half against Chile, conceding a goal after two awful clearance attempts. Like Freese, he was removed at halftime and didn't play the rest of the window.

Miles Robinson: Even at a position as thin as center back, Robinson could be reaching the end of the line with the USMNT. The 29-year-old played just once, looking shaky in his 63 minutes against Chile. He could be eclipsed soon by the likes of George Campbell, Neil Pierre and others.

Frankie Westfield: Westfield is just 20 and in the midst of an excellent season in MLS with the Philadelphia Union, but his introduction to the international game was rough. The right back struggled mightily in his lone start against Chile, then didn't see the field against Mexico and Canada. With Freeman, Sergiño Dest and Joe Scally in the mix at right back, Westfield may have to wait for another shot.

Zavier Gozo: It's been a humbling few months for Gozo, who hasn't made much of an impact at Crystal Palace since a reported \$15 million move from Real Salt Lake in August. His first international call-up followed a similar script, as he played just once, getting a 30-minute cameo off the bench in the opener against Peru. Gozo is still 19, so his slow start is far from a major concern, but he may not quite be ready to contribute at the highest levels yet.

Damion Downs: Downs has not scored a goal at the club level since the 2024-25 season, so his call-up – even as an injury replacement – was somewhat baffling. The striker made one 20-minute cameo off the bench this window and shouldn't be part of the picture until he finds some stability at the club level.

Gauff says online abuse was ‘draining’

Elizabeth Flores

USA TODAY

World No. 4 Coco Gauff made an early exit from the China Open, falling to Elise Mertens 3-6, 3-6 in the Round of 16. The loss came in the aftermath of Gauff receiving an “insane” amount of racist comments on social media following a controversial point in her previous match.

Despite her efforts to maintain focus on the court Oct. 7, Gauff acknowledged that the psychological toll of the persistent online harassment weighed heavily on her, impacting her performance against Mertens.

"It has been kind of draining, I'm not going to lie," Gauff admitted to reporters. "I just turn off my phone and move on. There's nothing you can do."

The controversy originated during Gauff's previous third-round match against Chinese rising star Sun Xinran. With Xinran on the verge of winning a crucial point, play was halted due to a flickering electronic advertising board that distracted Gauff.

The chair umpire ruled the point should be replayed, sparking a surge of online abuse targeting Gauff. Gauff regrouped to win the next three points, eventually sealing the match 7-5, 6-1.

Coco Gauff reacts during her Round of 16 match against Elise Mertens on Oct. 7. MAXIM SHEMETOV/REUTERS

Against Mertens, a player Gauff had beaten five times in a row, the 22-year-old struggled with consistency, committing 34 unforced errors. The victory marked a significant milestone for Mertens, who improved to 3-3 against top-10 opponents this season and reached her first WTA 1000 quarterfinal since the Madrid Open in 2021.

"I think today I was just a bit flat," Gauff reflected after the match. "I just didn't play well. I think I wasn't moving well. There were a lot of things I didn't do well."

Super Bowl, two games to be offered on Disney+

Chris Bumbaca

USA TODAY

Super Bowl 61 is more than four months away, but fans will have a variety of options to consume the big game.

ESPN and Disney+ announced on Oct. 7 that Super Bowl 61 will be available on Disney+ in addition to ESPN and ABC for both English and Spanish language broadcasts.

ESPN/ABC is back in the Super Bowl rotation for the first time in two decades, and the Disney-owned company (ESPN) is hyping its return all season long. Disney+ will also carry the game in more than 55 international markets, while the linear ESPN option will be available in more than 130 countries and territories.

The company also announced that two additional “Monday Night Football” games will be available on Disney+ this season. The first is the Dallas Cowboys at Philadelphia Eagles on Oct. 26 (Week 7), while the second matchup has yet to be announced.

Joe Buck (play-by-play) and Troy Aikman (color commentary) will be in the booth calling a Super Bowl for the

An ESPN and Disney + Super Bowl advertisement features images of Seattle Seahawks quarterback Sam Darnold (14) and Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes at Maracana Stadium. KIRBY LEE/IMAGN IMAGES VIA REUTERS

first time since Patrick Mahomes won his first Super Bowl title with the Kansas City Chiefs in early 2020. Lisa Salters and Laura Rutledge will be the sideline reporters.

---

MARKETPLACE TODAY

For advertising information: 1.800.397.0070 www.russelljohns.com/usat

All classified ads are subject to the applicable rate card, copies of which are available from our Advertising Dept. All ads are subject to approval before publication. USA Today reserves the right to edit, refuse, reject, classify or cancel any ad at any time. Errors must be reported in the first day of publication. USA Today shall not be liable for any loss or expense that results from an error in or omission of an advertisement. No refunds for early cancellation of order.

NOTICES

NOTICES

---

PUBLIC NOTICE

---

PUBLIC NOTICE

---

REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS

Sourcewell, a State of Minnesota local government unit and service cooperative, and Pequot Lakes Public Schools ISD 186, as Lead Agency, are requesting proposals for Food Products and Distribution for School Food Authorities with Related Supplies and Services to result in a procurement solution for use by its Participating Entities.

Participation under this Master Agreement is limited to eligible Child Nutrition Program operators within the actual or potential cooperative membership contemplated and defined in the underlying solicitation and procurement. This Master Agreement is not available for use by Sourcewell members that do not qualify as eligible Child Nutrition Program operators under the applicable federal Child Nutrition Program requirements.

A full copy of the Request for Proposals can be found on the Sourcewell Procurement Portal https://proportal.sourcewell-mn.gov.

Only proposals submitted through the Sourcewell Procurement Portal will be considered.

Procurement Portal will be considered.

Proposals are due no later than December 3, 2026, at 3:30 p.m. Central Time, and late proposals will not be considered | NOTICES | NOTICES | PUBLIC NOTICE | PUBLIC NOTICE | The Interlocal Purchasing System (TIPS)has posted procurement solicitations atwww.tips-usa.com for the following categories: | 261001 | Uniforms and Promotional Attire, Accessories,and Services | 261002 | Energy and Water Efficiency Goods and Services(2 Part with JOC) | 261003 | Technology Solutions, Products, and Services | The proposal is due and will be opened onNovember 19th, 2026, at 3:00 pm local time.Call 866-839-8477 for problems with website or questions. | ADVERTISE HERE!To advertise, call: 800-397-0070 | To view more Classified listings, visit: classifieds.usatoday.com

GET YOUR BUSINESS

NOTICED!

Print • Online Classifieds • Web Banners

To advertise, contact us at: (800) 397-0070 sales@russelljohns.com

AQI Moderate

---

FOR THE RECORD

---

All times ET

---

ODDS

AQI Unhealthy s/g

AQI Moderate

South

DETROIT

LAS VEGAS

CHICAGO

NFL

Sunday

FAVORITE | FAVORITE | LINE | O/U | UNDERDOG | JACKSONVILLE | 7.5 | 42 | Philadelphia | Cincinnati | 7 | 42.5 | MIAMI | NEW ENGLAND | 3.5 | 45 | Las Vegas | Minnesota | 2 | 42 | NEW ORLEANS | NY JETS | 2 | 40 | Cleveland | PITTSBURGH | 2.5 | 44.5 | Indianapolis | Houston | 7.5 | 37.5 | TENNESSEE | WASHINGTON | 3.5 | 43.5 | NY Giants | Chicago | 3 | 45.5 | GREEN BAY | Denver | 3.5 | 42 | LA CHARGERS | Detroit | 5.5 | 54.5 | ARIZONA | SEATTLE | 3 | 46 | San Francisco | ATLANTA | 3.5 | 43.5 | Baltimore | FAVORITE | LINE | O/U | UNDERDOG | LA RAMS | 3 | 54.5 | Buffalo | College Football

Thursday | FAVORITE | LINE | O/U | UNDERDOG | WESTERN KY | 2.5 | 56.5 | Missouri State | LIBERTY | 13.5 | 52.5 | Sam Houston | UTSA | 7 | 50 | South Florida | ARKANSAS ST | 1.5 | 58.5 | South Alabama | FAVORITE | LINE | O/U | UNDERDOG | LOUISVILLE | 3.5 | 59.5 | Florida State | UTAH STATE | 5.5 | 44 | Washington St | WASHINGTON | 3.5 | 41.5 | Iowa | SAN JOSE STATE | 6.5 | 43.5 | Wyoming | BYU | 10.5 | 46.5 | Iowa State | FAVORITE | LINE | O/U | UNDERDOG | ARMY WEST PT | 3 | 48 | Tulane | MISSOURI | 3.5 | 48.5 | Texas A&M | Arizona | 3 | 61.5 | WEST VIRGINIA | OKLAHOMA ST | 10.5 | 53 | ucf | PITTSBURGH | 3.5 | 47 | North Carolina | Wake Forest | 3.5 | 59.5 | NC STATE | Indiana | 7.5 | 49.5 | NEBRASKA | BOWLING GREEN | 7.5 | 44.5 | Sacramento St | NORTHWESTERN | 37 | 52.5 | Ball State | FLORIDA | 11.5 | 61 | South Carolina | APPALACHIAN ST | 9.5 | 50 | Old Dominion | Miami (OH) | 2.5 | 47.5 | MASSACHSTTS | NORTH TEXAS | 28.5 | 57.5 | Charlotte | NAVY | 2.5 | 48.5 | Tulsa | Texas | 7.5 | 39.5 | OKLAHOMA | Ole Miss | 10 | 58 | VANDERBILT | KANSAS STATE | 2.5 | 55.5 | Houston | Virginia Tech | 10 | 53.5 | CALIFORNIA | Duke | 6.5 | 46 | GEORGIA TECH | NOTRE DAME | 38 | 54 | Stanford | Illinois | 2.5 | 48 | MICHIGAN STATE | OREGON | 11.5 | 58 | ucla | Eastern Michigan | 7 | 52 | AKRON | TOLEDO | 21 | 54.5 | Buffalo | OHIO | 3 | 46.5 | Central Michigan | WESTERN MICH | 13.5 | 43.5 | Kent State | TEMPLE | 3.5 | 54.5 | Connecticut | EAST CAROLINA | 10 | 47.5 | Rice | Tennessee | 13.5 | 51 | ARKANSAS | OHIO STATE | 34.5 | 56.5 | Maryland | OREGON STATE | 14.5 | 53.5 | San Diego State | MEMPHIS | 14 | 55 | uab | Isu | 8.5 | 52.5 | KENTUCKY | North Dakota St | 3 | 47.5 | UNLV | Nevada | 9.5 | 49.5 | UTEP | MARSHALL | 3 | 58.5 | Coastal Carolina | ALABAMA | 1.5 | 52.5 | Georgia | VIRGINIA | 9.5 | 50 | Syracuse | PENN STATE | 1.5 | 54.5 | usc | Air Force | 7.5 | 46.5 | NORTHERN ILL | James Madison | 7.5 | 53.5 | GEORGIA SOU. | LOUISIANA TECH | 3 | 47.5 | Louisiana | Minnesota | 2.5 | 50.5 | PURDUE | UTAH | 15.5 | 51.5 | Kansas | ARIZONA STATE | 20.5 | 50 | Hawaii | Boise State | 6.5 | 48.5 | FRESNO STATE | ---

CFL

EAST DIVISION | W | L | Pct | PF | PA | x-Montreal | 12 | 3 | .786 | 535 | 4220 | x-Toronto | 9 | 7 | .600 | 462 | 455 | Hamilton | 5 | 11 | .267 | 396 | 474 | Ottawa | 0 | 15 | .000 | 355 | 558 | WEST DIVISION | W | L | Pct | PF | PA | x-Edmonton | 11 | 4 | .733 | 470 | 382 | BC | 9 | 6 | .571 | 452 | 398 | Saskatchewan | 8 | 7 | .571 | 430 | 408 | Calgary | 8 | 8 | .467 | 572 | 541 | Winnipeg | 7 | 8 | .500 | 383 | 419 | Note: x- clinched playoff berth.

Friday's Games

Edmonton vs. Hamilton, 7 p.m.

Ottawa vs. BC, 10 p.m.

---

Saturday's Game

Saturday's Game

Calgary vs. Winnipeg, 7 p.m.

Monday's Game

Saskatchewan vs. Montreal, 1 p.m.

---

NFL

AMERICAN CONFERENCE | East | W | L | T | Pct | PF | Buffalo | 3 | 1 | 0 | .750 | 127 | New England | 2 | 2 | 0 | .500 | 65 | N.Y. Jets | 1 | 3 | 0 | .250 | 76 | Miami | 0 | 4 | 0 | .000 | 46 | North | W | L | T | Pct | PF | PA | Cleveland | 3 | 1 | 0 | .750 | 81 | 95 | Baltimore | 3 | 1 | 0 | .750 | 116 | 96 | Pittsburgh | 2 | 2 | 0 | .500 | 77 | 87 | Cincinnati | 2 | 2 | 0 | .500 | 97 | 85 | South | W | L | T | Pct | PF | PA | Jacksonville | 3 | 1 | 0 | .750 | 104 | 53 | Indianapolis | 2 | 2 | 0 | .500 | 102 | 104 | Tennessee | 0 | 4 | 0 | .000 | 55 | 83 | Houston | 0 | 4 | 0 | .000 | 84 | 109 | West | W | L | T | Pct | PF | PA | Kansas City | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1.00 | 118 | 77 | Las Vegas | 3 | 1 | 0 | .750 | 115 | 84 | Denver | 2 | 2 | 0 | .500 | 74 | 94 | L.A. Chargers | 0 | 4 | 0 | .000 | 67 | 106 | NATIONAL CONFERENCE | W | L | T | Pct | PF | PA | N.Y. Giants | 3 | 1 | 0 | .750 | 82 | 79 | Philadelphia | 2 | 2 | 0 | .500 | 75 | 93 | Dallas | 2 | 2 | 0 | .500 | 122 | 112 | Washington | 1 | 3 | 0 | .250 | 88 | 122 | North | W | L | T | Pct | PF | PA | Minnesota | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1.00 | 86 | 51 | Chicago | 3 | 1 | 0 | .750 | 112 | 65 | Detroit | 2 | 2 | 0 | .500 | 119 | 127 | Green Bay | 2 | 2 | 0 | .500 | 73 | 105 | W | L | T | Pct | PF | PA | Carolina | 2 | 2 | 0 | .500 | 121 | 109 | New Orleans | 1 | 2 | 0 | .333 | 81 | 83 | Atlanta | 1 | 2 | 0 | .333 | 51 | 68 | Tampa Bay | 0 | 4 | 0 | .000 | 76 | 96 | W | L | T | Pct | PF | PA | San Francisco | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1.00 | 122 | 64 | Seattle | 3 | 1 | 0 | .750 | 105 | 73 | L.A. Rams | 2 | 2 | 0 | .500 | 85 | 83 | Arizona | 1 | 3 | 0 | .250 | 87 | 117 | Jacksonville State at Kennesaw State New Mexico State at FILL

Thursday's games

Fast

Sam Houston at Liberty, 7 p.m.

Missouri State at Western Kentucky, 7 p.m. South Alabama at Arkansas State, 7:30 p.m. Friday's Games

---

Thursday's Game

---

9:30 a.m.

Thursday's Game

Tampa Bay at Dallas, 8:15 p.m.

Sunday's Games

Philadelphia vs Jacksonville at London, 8:30

9:30 a.m.

Cincinnati at Miami, 1 p.m.

Las Vegas at New England, 1 p.m.

Minnesota at New Orleans, 1 p.m.

Cleveland at N.Y. Jets, 1 p.m.

Indianapolis at Pittsburgh, 1 p.m.

Houston at Tennessee, 1 p.m.

N.Y. Giants at Washington, 1 p.m.

Chicago at Green Bay, 1 p.m.

Denver at L.A. Chargers, 4:05 p.m.

Detroit at Arizona, 4:25 p.m.

San Francisco at Seattle, 4:25 p.m.

Baltimore at Atlanta, 8:20 p.m.

Monday's Game

Buffalo at L.A. Rams, 8:15 p.m.

Buffalo at L.A. Rams, 8:15 p.m.

---

MLB

---

Postseason

---

Divisional Round

(Best-of-5 series; x- if necessary)

AMERICAN LEAGUE

Chicago White Sox 2, Cleveland Guardians 0

Game 1: Chicago 3, Cleveland 0

Game 2: Chicago 4, Cleveland 3

Wednesday: Cleveland vs. Chicago

x-Thursday: Cleveland vs. Chicago, 5 p.m.

x-Saturday: Chicago vs. Cleveland, 5 p.m.

Tampa Bay Rays 2, New York Yankees 0

Game 1: Tampa Bay 1, New York 0

Game 2: Tampa Bay 5, New York 2

Wednesday: Tampa Bay vs. New York

x-Thursday: Tampa Bay vs. New York, 8 p.m.

x-Saturday: New York vs. Tampa Bay, 8 p.m.

---

NATIONAL LEAGUE

Los Angeles Dodgers 2, Atlanta Braves 1

Game 1: Los Angeles 5, Atlanta 3

Game 2: Atlanta 3, Los Angeles 2

Game 3: Los Angeles 3, Atlanta 1

Wednesday: Los Angeles vs. Atlanta x-Friday: Atlanta vs. Los Angeles, 8 p.m.

Milwaukee Brewers 2, San Diego Padres 1

Game 1: Milwaukee 3, San Diego 2

---

Game 2: Milwaukee 4, San Diego 3

Game 3: San Diego 4, Milwaukee 3

Wednesday: Milwaukee vs. San Diego

x-Friday: San Diego vs. Milwaukee, 4:30 p.m.

---

COLLEGE FOOTBALL

---

Wednesday's games

---

East

---

East

---

Southeast

Florida State at Louisville, 7 p.m.

West

Washington State at Utah State, 9 p.m.

Iowa at Washington, 9 p.m.

Wyoming at San Jose State, 9 p.m.

Iowa State at BYU, 10:15 p.m.

---

NHL

EASTERN CONFERENCE

Atlantic Division | W | L | OT | Pts | GF | GA | Florida | 2 | 0 | 2 | 6 | 8 | 8 | Ottawa | 2 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 10 | 8 | Tampa Bay | 2 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 8 | 7 | Buffalo | 2 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 10 | 11 | Toronto | 2 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 11 | 11 | Boston | 2 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 9 | 11 | Montreal | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 12 | 14 | Detroit | 1 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 7 | 8 | Metropolitan Division | W | L | OT | Pts | GF | GA | N.Y. Rangers | 4 | 1 | 0 | 8 | 16 | 8 | Carolina | 2 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 11 | 12 | Pittsburgh | 2 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 15 | 8 | Washington | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 6 | 5 | Columbus | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 7 | 7 | N.Y. Islanders | 1 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 9 | 7 | New Jersey | 1 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 6 | 13 | Philadelphia | 0 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 5 | 17 | WESTERN CONFERENCE

Central Division | W | L | OT | Pts | GF | GA | Utah | 3 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 17 | 8 | Minnesota | 2 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 9 | 5 | Winnipeg | 2 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 9 | 8 | Colorado | 2 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 14 | 5 | Nashville | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 7 | 9 | Dallas | 1 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 6 | 6 | St. Louis | 1 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 7 | 10 | Chicago | 1 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 9 | 17 | Pacific Division | W | L | OT | Pts | GF | GA | Vegas | 3 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 17 | 10 | Edmonton | 2 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 17 | 14 | Anaheim | 2 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 7 | 5 | San Jose | 2 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 9 | 12 | Seattle | 2 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 15 | 11 | Vancouver | 2 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 19 | 18 | L.A. Kings | 0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 9 | 15 | Calgary | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 16 | NOTE: Two points for a win, one for OT loss.

---

Tuesday's Scores

Carolina 6, Montreal 4

Utah 5, New Jersey 3

Buffalo 3, Minnesota 2, OT

Detroit 5, Ottawa 3

Toronto 5, Nashville 4, OT

N.Y. Rangers 5, N.Y. Islanders 2

Chicago 4, St. Louis 2

Vegas 6, Seattle 2

Wednesday's Games Pittsburgh at Washington Colorado at Winnipeg

---

Colorado at Winnipeg Edmonton at Anaheim

Thursday's Games Philadelphia at Ottawa, 7 p.m. Vancouver at Carolina, 7 p.m. Utah at Boston, 7 p.m.

---

Dallas at Buffalo. 7 p.m.

Nashville at Montreal, 7 p.m.

Minnesota at Tampa Bay, 7 p.m.

Chicago at N.Y. Islanders, 7:30 p.m.

San Jose at St. Louis, 8 p.m.

Colorado at Calgary, 9 p.m.

Toronto at Vegas, 10 p.m.

Friday's Games

N.Y. Rangers at Washington, 7 p.m.

Seattle at Detroit, 7 p.m.

Pittsburgh at Columbus, 7 p.m.

Anaheim at Winnipeg, 8 p.m.

---

SOCCER

---

MLS

Columbia at Marist, 7 p.m.

EASTERN CONFERENCE | W | L | T | Pts | GF | GA | Nashville | 18 | 3 | 6 | 60 | 55 | 21 | New England | 14 | 9 | 4 | 46 | 45 | 36 | Inter Miami CF | 12 | 5 | 10 | 46 | 64 | 50 | Chicago | 13 | 8 | 6 | 45 | 49 | 39 | Charlotte FC | 12 | 8 | 7 | 43 | 47 | 38 | Philadelphia | 11 | 10 | 6 | 39 | 54 | 44 | Orlando City | 10 | 13 | 4 | 34 | 48 | 64 | NY Red Bulls | 9 | 12 | 6 | 33 | 34 | 51 | NY City FC | 8 | 10 | 9 | 33 | 41 | 36 | Cincinnati | 8 | 9 | 9 | 33 | 55 | 64 | D.C. United | 6 | 8 | 12 | 30 | 34 | 42 | Columbus | 8 | 14 | 5 | 29 | 39 | 43 | Toronto FC | 6 | 10 | 11 | 29 | 39 | 51 | Atlanta | 7 | 14 | 6 | 27 | 32 | 45 | CF Montreal | 6 | 15 | 6 | 24 | 34 | 54 | WESTERN CONFERENCE | W | L | T | Pts | GF | GA | Vancouver | 15 | 7 | 5 | 50 | 60 | 29 | Saint Louis | 13 | 6 | 8 | 47 | 48 | 36 | FC Dallas | 13 | 6 | 8 | 47 | 50 | 42 | San Jose | 13 | 8 | 6 | 45 | 49 | 39 | Houston | 13 | 9 | 5 | 44 | 34 | 32 | Los Angeles FC | 11 | 9 | 8 | 41 | 43 | 30 | Seattle | 10 | 9 | 8 | 38 | 35 | 35 | Colorado | 11 | 13 | 3 | 36 | 38 | 38 | LA Galaxy | 9 | 10 | 9 | 36 | 37 | 44 | Portland | 9 | 13 | 5 | 32 | 48 | 51 | Real Salt Lake | 9 | 13 | 5 | 32 | 40 | 44 | San Diego FC | 8 | 11 | 8 | 32 | 47 | 47 | Austin FC | 7 | 10 | 10 | 31 | 35 | 47 | Minnesota | 7 | 12 | 8 | 29 | 40 | 49 | Sporting KC | 6 | 18 | 3 | 21 | 32 | 65 | Saturday's Ganes

CF Montreal at Toronto FC, 1 p.m.

NY City FC at Chicago, 2:30 p.m.

FC Dallas at Charlotte FC, 7:30 p.m.

Cincinnati at Atlanta, 7:30 p.m.

Seattle at New England, 7:30 p.m.

D.C. United at Inter Miami CF, 7:30 p.m.

Real Salt Lake at Philadelphia, 7:30 p.m.

Columbus at Orlando City, 7:30 p.m.

San Diego FC at NY Red Bulls, 7:30 p.m.

Portland at Sporting KC, 8:30 p.m.

Houston at Minnesota, 8:30 p.m.

Nashville at Austin FC, 8:30 p.m.

San Jose at Colorado, 9:30 p.m.

Vancouver at Los Angeles FC, 10:30 p.m.

English Premier League | GP | W | D | L | GF | GA | Pts | Manchester City | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 13 | 5 | 15 | Arsenal | 5 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 8 | 4 | 12 | Brighton | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 16 | 5 | 10 | Brentford | 5 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 10 | 4 | 9 | Leeds United | 5 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 7 | 3 | 9 | Liverpool | 5 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 7 | 4 | 9 | Everton | 5 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 6 | 3 | 9 | Hull City | 5 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 6 | 4 | 8 | Newcastle | 5 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 9 | 9 | 8 | Chelsea | 5 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 10 | 12 | 7 | Ipswich Town | 5 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 7 | 11 | 6 | Man United | 5 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 8 | 8 | 5 | Nott'm Forest | 5 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 5 | 5 | Sunderland | 5 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 6 | 4 | 4 | Crystal Palace | 5 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 6 | 11 | 4 | Aston Villa | 5 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 9 | 4 | Bournemouth | 5 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 6 | 8 | 3 | Coventry City | 5 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 10 | 3 | Fulham | 5 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 8 | 2 | Tottenham | 5 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 8 | 2 | Note: Three points for win, one point for tie. Saturday's Games

---

Saturday's Games

Leeds United at Arsenal, 7:30 a.m.

Bournemouth at Chelsea, 10 a.m.

Brentford at Aston Villa, 10 a.m.

Fulham at Ipswich Town, 10 a.m.

Brighton at Sunderland, 10 a.m.

Tottenham at Manchester United, 12:30 p.m.

Sunday's Games

Nottingham Forest at Crystal Palace, 9 a.m.

Manchester City at Liverpool, 11:30 a.m.

---

WNBA

---

Postseason

---

Semifinals

(Best-of-5 Series; x- Ir necessary)

No. 4 Atlanta Dream 1, No. 8 N.Y. Liberty 0

Game 1: Atlanta 92, New York 82

Wednesday: New York vs. Atlanta

Friday: Atlanta vs. New York, 7:30 p.m. (ESPN)

x-Sun, Oct. 11: Atlanta vs. New York, TBD (ABC)

x-Wed, Oct. 14: N.Y. vs. Atlanta, TBD (ESPN)

No. 2 Golden State Valkyries 1,

---

No. 3 Las Vegas Aces 0

All games on Peacock/NBCSN

Game 1: Golden State 71, Las Vegas 60

Wednesday: Las Vegas vs. Golden State

Friday: Golden State vs. Las Vegas, 9:30 p.m.

x-Sunday, Oct. 11: Golden State vs. Vegas, TBD

x-Wed, Oct. 14: Vegas vs. Golden State, TBD

---

DENNIS FRANCHIONE 1951-2026

Longtime head coach led Alabama, Texas A&M, TCU

Craig Meyer and Zac Al-Khateeb

USA TODAY NETWORK

Dennis Franchione, a head coach at five Football Football Subdivision schools over a decorated career, died Oct. 6, his family confirmed to the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. He was 75.

Franchione

Franchione was most well-known for his coaching tenures at Alabama (2001-02) and Texas A&M (2003-07). He also coached at New Mexico (1992-97), TCU (1998-2000) and Texas State (1990-91 and 2011-15), the last of which he helped transition from the Football Championship Subdivision to FBS

Over his more than 20 years as an FBS head coach, Franchione's teams went 133-116.

Franchione had previously coached at NAIA Southwestern College in Kansas, Division II Pittsburg State in Kansas and at Southwest Texas State, which was an FCS school at the time before changing its name to Texas State and moving to the FBS ranks. He was the Bobcats' coach during that transition, helping pave the way for a program that is now in its first season in the Pac-12.

After guiding New Mexico to its first bowl berth in 36 years, he first made a name for himself nationally at TCU, where he took over a program that went 1-10 and led it to three bowls in three years. That run was capped off by a 10-1 regular season in 2000, the Horned Frogs' most wins in a season since 1938. Star running back and future Pro Football Hall of Famer LaDainian Tomlinson finished fourth in the Heisman Trophy voting.

That success earned him the head coaching job at Alabama, which was coming off a 3-8 season. The Crimson Tide went 10-3 in Franchione's second season, but as the program was dealing with NCAA sanctions from violations committed by his predecessor, Mike DuBose, Franchione left for Texas A&M. He spent five seasons with the Aggies, going 32-28 in that time, before resigning after the Aggies beat No. 13 Texas in their regular-season finale in 2007.

He had been diagnosed with a cancerous tumor in his kidney in 2016. He was again diagnosed with cancer in 2021 but was in full remission after treatment. His family told the Star-Telegram the cancer returned earlier this year and he was placed into hospice care earlier this month.

WEATHER WEATHER ONLINE USATODAY.COM

---

TODAY'S FORECAST

---

TODAY'S HIGH TEMPERATURES

An influx of tropical moisture will lead to persistent downpours across South Texas and Florida today. Any heavier downpour can result in flash flooding and gusty winds. Outside of a few showers in northern New York and New England, the rest of the United States will be dry.

A heat dome will remain locked in across the western portions of the nation. Temperatures will be 5-15 degrees above the historical average, with some places approaching records. The heat dome will persist for much of the week, leading to additional heat stress. Warm air will expand into the Plains and Southeast, with temperatures a few degrees above those typical in early October. Meanwhile, cooler air will remain across the Great Lakes and Northeast.

The weather changes. Stay up-to-date, 24/7.

TOP TRAVEL CITIES Air quality index (AQI)

Forecasts and graphics provided by AccuWeather Inc. ©2026

Below 10 10s 20s 30s 40s 50s 60s 70s 80s 90s 100s 110+

Download our free app

---

AccuWeather®

Proven Superior Accuracy™

Get the AccuWeather app

---

EXTREMES

Note: For contiguous 48 states through Tuesday

HOTTEST: 109°

Death Valley, Calif.

COLDEST: 27°

West Yellowstone,

Mont. | ATLANTA | BALTIMORE | THU | Partly sunny85/66 | THU | Mostly sunny80/45 | FRI | Some sun80/62 | FRI | Sunny75/49 | SAT | Stormy68/62 | SAT | High clouds73/59 | AQI Moderate

AQI Good | THU | T-storms90/78 | THU | Some sun67/53 | FRI | Stray t-storm91/78 | FRI | Partly sunny75/62 | SAT | Showers around89/81 | SAT | Windy85/64 | AQI Good

c Cloudy F Fog Ice R Rain st U.S. CITIES TODAY FRI | O.S. CITIES | TODAY | FRI | Akron, Ohio | 68/43pc | 68/49s | Albany, N.Y. | 68/46pc | 64/39pc | Albuquerque | 81/55s | 78/55s | Allentown, Pa. | 73/43s | 68/42s | Amarillo, Texas | 84/55pc | 83/55s | Anaheim, Calif. | 95/68s | 89/69s | Anchorage, Alaska | 47/38pc | 49/44pc | Aspen, Colo. | 72/40c | 69/41s | Atlantic City, N.J. | 77/53s | 73/55s | Augusta, Ga. | 84/58s | 78/66pc | Austin, Texas | 90/63pc | 91/60pc | Bakersfield, Calif. | 97/71s | 96/67s | Baton Rouge, La. | 93/67pc | 89/68c | Billings, Mont. | 82/54pc | 85/53s | Birmingham, Ala. | 89/63pc | 85/65s | Bismarck, N.D. | 69/43pc | 79/50pc | Boise, Idaho | 87/58s | 85/51s | Buffalo, N.Y. | 64/46sh | 64/46pc | Burlington, Vt. | 65/47sh | 59/40sh | Cedar Rapids, Iowa | 70/54pc | 76/57t | Charleston, S.C. | 82/67pc | 77/70pc | Charleston, W.Va. | 77/45s | 74/50s | Cheyenne, Wyo. | 82/52s | 81/53pc | AQI Moderate | THU | Partly sunny87/74 | THU | Breezy75/55 | FRI | Rain, wind80/70 | FRI | Mostly sunny70/54 | SAT | Cloudy81/68 | SAT | Mostly sunny68/60 | TODAY | FRI | Cincinnati | 78/52s | 78/56s | Cleveland | 68/45s | 67/53pc | Colorado Springs | 82/52s | 81/51s | Columbia, S.C. | 85/62s | 79/65pc | Columbus, Ohio | 74/45s | 71/52s | Corpus Christi, Texas | 93/70t | 91/65t | Dayton, Ohio | 74/45s | 73/53s | Daytona Beach, Fla. | 82/74t | 83/76t | Des Moines, Iowa | 74/56pc | 82/62t | Duluth, Minn. | 61/43s | 63/52c | Durham, N.C. | 84/56s | 76/56h | El Paso, Texas | 84/63pc | 85/63s | Fairbanks, Alaska | 38/23pc | 40/27pc | Flagstaff, Ariz. | 74/42s | 71/41s | Fargo, N.D. | 67/48pc | 75/59pc | Fort Myers, Fla. | 85/75t | 89/76t | Fort Smith, Ark. | 94/63s | 92/60s | Fort Wayne, Ind. | 72/41pc | 72/49pc | Fresno, Calif. | 99/68s | 96/65s | Grand Rapids, Mich. | 66/45s | 68/54pc | Green Bay, Wis. | 67/41s | 68/54c | Greensboro, N.C. | 83/56s | 75/56pc | Greenville, S.C. | 84/59s | 78/59pc | Harrisburg, Pa. | 75/46s | 72/47s | AQI Good

71/52

FRI Some sun,

nice

70/59

SAT Partly

sunny

80/62

THU Partly sunny 90/64

FRI Sunny, warm 90/65

SAT Sunny, warm 88/67

THU Mostly sunny 79/54

FRI Sunny 74/53

SAT High clouds 74/58

THU Very warm 86/57

FRI Very warm 85/58

SAT Very warm 82/59 | TODAY | FRI | Hartford, Conn. | 73/47pc | 69/43s | Indianapolis | 77/51s | 78/56s | Islip, N.Y. | 75/52s | 70/50s | Jackson, Miss. | 91/62pc | 89/66s | Jacksonville, Fla. | 81/72t | 78/72t | Jefferson City, Mo. | 84/56s | 90/55s | Kansas City | 82/59s | 85/62s | Key West, Fla. | 88/82t | 88/82t | Knoxville, Tenn. | 84/56s | 81/59s | Laredo, Texas | 94/71t | 93/67pc | Lexington, Ky. | 81/50s | 81/57s | Lincoln, Neb. | 80/59s | 86/63s | Little Rock, Ark. | 93/62s | 92/64s | Long Beach, Calif. | 90/70s | 83/69pc | Louisville, Ky. | 83/55s | 84/58s | Lubbock, Texas | 84/58pc | 84/58s | Madison, Wis. | 68/45pc | 66/58pc | Manchester, N.H. | 73/46pc | 66/40s | Memphis, Tenn. | 92/65s | 91/66s | Milwaukee | 68/51pc | 68/59c | Mobile, Ala. | 84/68pc | 78/68r | Modesto, Calif. | 100/64s | 93/58pc | Montgomery, Ala. | 87/63pc | 78/66pc | Myrtle Beach, S.C. | 80/65pc | 78/69pc | pc Partly cloudy s Sunny sh Showers t Thunderstorms

THU Mostly sunny 69/45

FRI Partly sunny 68/53

SAT High clouds 77/59

THU - Sunny, hot 104/82

FRI - Hot 104/79

SAT Clouding up 93/73

AQI Moderate

THU Very warm 85/60

FRI Very warm 85/66

SAT Windy 77/59

THU Heavy rain 82/77

FRI A few showers 86/74

SAT Showers around 87/73

THU Very warm 93/68

FRI Very warm 91/67

SAT Partly sunny 90/68

THU Humid 84/69

FRI Humid 79/70

SAT Humid 79/68

AQI Moderate

AQI Moderate | TODAY | FRI | Nags Head, N.C. | 77/66s | 73/65pc | Nashville, Tenn. | 89/56s | 88/63s | Newark, N.J. | 78/53s | 73/52s | New Haven, Conn. | 73/50pc | 70/46s | Norfolk, Va. | 81/64s | 75/64pc | Oakland, Calif. | 77/57pc | 72/58pc | Oklahoma City | 90/61s | 88/61s | Omaha, Neb. | 79/58pc | 85/64pc | Palm Springs, Calif. | 107/80s | 105/76s | Pensacola, Fla. | 84/70pc | 74/68r | Pierre, S.D. | 72/49pc | 82/61pc | Pittsburgh | 70/46pc | 67/49s | Portland, Maine | 69/46sh | 66/39s | Portland, Ore. | 79/55s | 64/48r | Providence, R.I. | 74/48pc | 69/45s | Raleigh, N.C. | 85/58s | 78/58pc | Rapid City, S.D. | 78/48pc | 90/61pc | Reno, Nev. | 89/54s | 86/55s | Richmond, Va. | 84/53s | 78/55s | Rochester, N.Y. | 64/46sh | 63/43pc | Sacramento, Calif. | 101/59s | 90/59pc | San Antonio | 90/68c | 90/64pc | San Jose, Calif. | 90/61pc | 79/58s | Santa Fe, N.M. | 76/47s | 74/47s | THU Fog to sun 75/57

FRI Breezy 70/59

SAT Very windy 67/53

AQI Moderate

THU Very hot 98/74

FRI Very hot 97/74

SAT Breezy, warm 89/67

THU - Sunny, hot 94/69

FRI - Mostly sunny 86/68

SAT - Partly sunny 81/68

AQI Moderate

SEATTLE | TODAY | FRI | Sarasota, Fla. | 84/74t | 89/75t | Savannah, Ga. | 83/68pc | 76/69sh | Scottsdale, Ariz. | 102/79s | 101/76s | Shreveport, La. | 94/63pc | 95/67s | Sioux Falls, S.D. | 73/54pc | 80/63pc | South Bend, Ind. | 69/43s | 68/55pc | Spokane, Wash. | 76/51pc | 65/39pc | Springfield, Mo. | 91/62s | 91/61s | Springfield, Ill. | 81/51s | 85/55s | St. Louis | 84/58s | 89/63s | St. Petersburg, Fla. | 81/74t | 87/76t | Syracuse, N.Y. | 65/48sh | 62/39sh | Tallahassee, Fla. | 82/71pc | 76/71t | Tampa, Fla. | 81/74t | 87/76t | Toledo, Ohio | 72/41pc | 72/49pc | Topeka, Kan. | 84/58s | 87/60s | Tucson, Ariz. | 97/76s | 95/74s | Tupelo, Miss. | 92/60s | 91/64s | Tulsa, Okla. | 90/62s | 89/62s | Virginia Beach, Va. | 79/66s | 74/65pc | Wichita, Kan. | 89/59s | 85/60s | Wilmington, Del. | 79/48s | 74/49s | Winston-Salem, N.C. | 83/55s | 74/56pc | Worcester, Mass. | 68/48pc | 62/47s | AQI Good | THU | Partly sunny69/54 | FRI | A little rain63/47 | SAT | Shower61/45 | AQI | Moderate | THU - Warmer 80/53

FRI - Sunny 76/56

SAT - High clouds 74/60

AQI Good

WORLD CITIES | TODAY | FRI | Beijing | 80/49h | 81/55s | Buenos Aires | 65/55r | 62/55r | Cancun, Mexico | 89/78r | 90/77r | Dubai, UAE | 106/86s | 103/84s | Frankfurt | 61/42r | 54/50c | Hong Kong | 87/78pc | 89/78s | Istanbul | 68/60c | 74/61s | Jerusalem | 79/64s | 80/63s | Johannesburg | 78/57s | 83/58c | London | 61/52s | 66/47sh | Mexico City | 72/57r | 67/57t | Montreal | 62/46sh | 57/41sh | Moscow | 58/47c | 63/44c | Mumbai, India | 98/82h | 98/82sh | Paris | 62/44s | 59/54r | Rio de Janeiro | 81/72pc | 84/75t | Rome | 77/64sh | 72/55pc | Seoul | 78/51h | 79/51c | Singapore | 93/79t | 92/79t | Sydney | 66/54pc | 74/62s | Toronto | 65/47sh | 65/47sh | Tokyo | 76/62s | 77/63s | NFL MVP POWER RANKINGS

Plenty of changes behind the top three

Jack McKessy

THURSDAY NIGHT GAME

49ers quarterback Brock Purdy carries the ball against the Broncos defense during the second half at Levi's Stadium. DAVID GONZALES/IMAGN IMAGES VIA REUTERS

USA TODAY

The NFL MVP race is heating up about a quarter of the way through the 2026 season.

Heading into Week 5, the top handful of MVP candidates have started to separate themselves from the pack. While most top MVP front-runners so far are quarterbacks, several running backs have made a case for the NFL's most prestigious award.

No non-quarterback has won MVP since 2012, when Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson swept the MVP and Offensive Player of the Year awards.

Atlanta Falcons running back Bijan Robinson and Kansas City Chiefs running back Kenneth Walker are off to the hottest starts by non-QBs in this year's MVP race. They're also the only two players who don't play quarterback on the NFL MVP power rankings heading into Week 5.

Here's how the full list shakes out:

---

1. QB Brock Purdy, San Francisco 49ers

Purdy was already at the top of the power rankings last week. With Josh Allen and the Bills' first loss and Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson's injury, he didn't have to do much to stay in first place. But beating the Denver Broncos in the passing game while the 49ers' run game struggled is nothing to sneeze at. For a fourth straight game now, Purdy has thrown multiple touchdowns, taken zero sacks and finished with a passer rating above 100.

The 49ers quarterback is tied for the NFL lead in touchdown passes (11) and is the sole leader in passing success rate (61.9%), passer rating (126.2) and net yards per pass attempt (8.9). Plus, Purdy's 4-0 record as a starter is one only matched by Patrick Mahomes.

---

2. QB Josh Allen, Buffalo Bills

Allen and the Bills lost for the first time this year in Week 4. While much of the blame falls on the defense for letting Patriots quarterback Drake Maye find a rhythm with Romeo Doubs, some of it falls on Allen and the offense. The Bills looked ineffective for long stretches. Of Allen's 23 completions, there were 16 either behind the line of scrimmage or within 5 yards downfield. His interception came on a desperation heave into double coverage, and he deserved to get flagged for intentional grounding when he made a backhand throwaway in the end zone as he got tackled.

Allen remains among the top 10 passers in several statistical categories (passer rating, passing yards, success rate) and has also been a huge contributor to the Bills' ground game. His rushing score in the second quarter marked a new franchise record for touchdowns from scrimmage (i.e., not including passing touchdowns). If not for his first two weeks and Lamar Jackson's injury, Allen would have sunk down the list further after Week 4.

---

3. QB Lamar Jackson, Baltimore Ravens

Jackson was on pace for the best game of his career through the first half against the Titans in Week 4. In 30 minutes of game time, the two-time MVP had already matched his pass attempts, completions and passing touchdown output from his entire Week 3 outing (15-for-20, two touchdown throws). Jackson had also surpassed his yardage output from Week 4 (186 against the Cowboys) with 222 passing yards against the Titans and had his highest passer rating of the season so far: 144.2. Then he got hurt taking a sack on the final offensive play of the second quarter and missed the rest of the game.

The Ravens quarterback still leads the NFL with his 10.1 yards per attempt. Jackson's $70.8\%$ completion rate is third-best, and his $57.3\%$ success rate per Pro Football Reference is second-best. His 144 rushing yards lead all quarterbacks. But the best ability in an MVP race is availability. Since Jackson may miss some time with his ankle injury, he didn't move up the list.

---

4. QB Dak Prescott, Dallas Cowboys

Prescott doesn't currently hold the league leads in any passing stat, but he's having another very solid year so far. His Week 4 performance against the Texans was his best statistically this season, but it may also have been his best overall. He led the Cowboys offense on four touchdown drives in the second half, including a game-winner with 40 seconds left.

Two of Prescott's best throws of the day came within two plays of each other on that drive. The first was a gotta-have-it, fourth-and-4 bullet to Jake Ferguson on a zone-beating concept to keep Dallas alive. Two plays later, Prescott threw a perfect ball to CeeDee Lamb right on the sideline from the opposite hash. The results haven't been there for the Texans this year, but their secondary is one of the best in the NFL on paper. Prescott gashed them for 335 yards in the air in Week 4.

---

5. QB Patrick Mahomes, Kansas City Chiefs

Outside of Purdy, who is at the top of this list, only one other quarterback has led his team to four straight wins to begin the season: Mahomes. (Vikings fans: Kyler Murray missed all of Week 2 and almost all of Week 1.) The Chiefs quarterback actually swapped spots with Prescott on this list this week after a shaky outing against the Raiders. Mahomes faced more pressure than he had all season in Week 4, and his resulting 50% completion rate matched the third-lowest mark of his career.

Of course, injuries to top receivers Rashee Rice and Tyquan Thornton did not do Mahomes any favors. Yet he still managed a season-high average depth of target of 11.5 yards as the Chiefs' explosive run game continued to unlock deep, play-action passes. Mahomes completed three of his six pass attempts deeper than 25 yards downfield against the Raiders, and his 8.1 average yards per attempt are now tied for fourth in the NFL.

---

6. QB Trevor Lawrence, Jacksonville Jaguars

Lawrence's counting stats (passing yards, passing touchdowns, etc.) have not been impressive so far this year, which may hold him back in MVP voting down the road. He ranks 18th in passing yards (843), 16th in passing first downs (42) and tied for seventh in passing touchdowns (8). Conversely, his rating stats have been off-the-charts. Lawrence is seventh in completion rate $(69.2\%)$ , fifth in success rate $(51.8\%)$ , tied for fourth in yards per attempt (8.1) and third in passer rating (111.2).

The Jaguars quarterback needed a win over the Bengals to secure a victory against every other team in the AFC in the sixth year of his career, and he managed to secure it with another strong outing featuring no turnovers.

---

7. RB Bijan Robinson, Atlanta Falcons

Every team in the NFL knows that to beat the Falcons, the defense has to stop Robinson. And yet no team besides the Carolina Panthers has quite been able to do that yet this year. Through four weeks, the Falcons' star running back has games with 173, 213 and 147 yards from scrimmage. Even Robinson's "worst" game against Carolina saw him rush for 72 yards on 16 carries.

Adding a competent passer like Michael Penix Jr. to the Falcons offense has

---

NFL MVP betting odds

Here's how betting odds look for the NFL MVP award through four weeks of the 2026 season, according to DraftKings Sportsbook as of Oct. 6:

1. QB Josh Allen, Bills: +270

2. QB Brock Purdy, 49ers: +330

3. QB Trevor Lawrence, Jaguars: +650

4. QB Patrick Mahomes, Chiefs: +650

5. QB Lamar Jackson, Ravens: +800

6. QB Dak Prescott, Cowboys: +1300

7. QB Joe Burrow, Bengals: +1600

8. RB Jahmyr Gibbs, Lions: +3000

9. QB Matthew Stafford, Rams: +3000

10. QB Drake Maye, Patriots: +4000

completely unlocked Robinson's potential. As defenses have had to start respecting the passing game, they've been unable to stop the running game. The Falcons' lead back has 339 rushing yards in the last two weeks alone, and on 48 carries – an average of more than 7 yards per carry. Robinson also scored two touchdowns for a second straight game in Week 4. Fear him. Try to stop him. Robinson is inevitable.

---

8. QB Joe Burrow, Cincinnati Bengals

The Bengals leaned on Burrow and his arm in a big way in Week 4, having him drop back to pass on 81.7% of their offensive snaps. The result? Fifty-four pass attempts (39 completions), a season-high 428 yards, a touchdown pass ... and two interceptions – three if one didn't get called back. Cincinnati also finished Week 4 with a loss.

Burrow has the raw talent to be an MVP candidate, especially when star wide receivers Ja'Marr Chase and Tee Higgins are healthy. But when they're not healthy – Chase exited with a concussion and Higgins suffered an adductor injury – and when the Bengals lean on him too heavily, he will face more pressure and be forced into more mistakes. Burrow faced a season-high 18 pressures on Oct. 4, and those pressures correlated with his season-high two interceptions.

---

9. QB Bryce Young, Carolina Panthers

Heading into Week 5, no passer has thrown for more yards this season than Young. The Panthers quarterback has 1,268 yards this season after a 329-yard day against the Lions – and that's with five other quarterbacks ahead of him in total completions so far this year. At 2-2, Carolina is in first place in the NFC South despite a scoring defense that is sixth-worst in the league, and Young's performance is a big reason why.

NFL senior researcher Tony Holzman-Escareno pointed out some key stats that show just how impressive the fourth-year quarterback has been this season. Entering Week 5, Young is the league leader in completions of 10-plus yards (55), completions of 25-plus yards (13), passing yards under pressure

Buccaneers (0-4) at Cowboys (2-2)

Oct. 8, 8:15 p.m. ET,

AT&T Stadium, Arlington, Texas

TV: Prime Video

Spread (BetMGM):

Cowboys by 8

Buccaneers' keys: Find a passing game finally. Rookie QB Jalon Daniels created only 134 net passing yards in leading the Bucs to 14 points in his first NFL start. Beating the Cowboys in Dallas will require a lot of points, so Daniels and the Bucs passing game must catch fire. Cowboys' keys: Keep the Dak Prescott to CeeDee Lamb connection going. Lamb has three consecutive 100-yard games, and he caught 17 passes in helping the Cowboys orchestrate a comeback win last weekend. Dallas has scored at least 30 points in all three games that Lamb has gone over 100 yards during this season.

Matchup to watch: Buccaneers WR Emeka Egbuka vs. Cowboys CB DaRon Bland: Can Egbuka produce a big night? The 2025 first-round pick hasn't gone over 70 receiving yards in a game this season. Bland has allowed a touchdown pass into his coverage in three of four games to start 2026.

Who wins? The Buccaneers must now go on the road on a short week, making a 0-5 start very possible. The Cowboys offense is rolling, and it's tough to imagine a rookie QB keeping up. Dallas wins big. Cowboys 31-13.

– Zach Kruse, NFL Wires

(411), passing touchdowns under pressure (4), deep passing yards (321) and passing touchdowns outside the numbers (7).

Young made some incredible throws on “Sunday Night Football” this week, but his two best were both to Tetairoa McMillan. The first was his first touchdown throw. The second was his third-and-14 throw to the sideline while on the run to pick up a first down in the fourth quarter. The Panthers really might have themselves a quarterback.

---

10. RB Kenneth Walker, K.C. Chiefs

Walker leads the NFL with 537 rushing yards (including a season-high 177 in Week 4), his 6.2 yards per attempt and his longest run of 76 yards (also in Week 4). At this rate, he's competing with Seahawks receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba for Offensive Player of the Year honors.

What makes Walker so valuable though is how much his explosiveness has positively affected the Chiefs offense. It's because the reigning Super Bowl MVP is having the success he is on the ground that Mahomes has started to look more like vintage, deep-ball-guy Mahomes in 2026. When defenses have to respect the run, it opens up play-action and deeper throw opportunities with fewer two-high safety coverages. Walker's addition, among other things, is making the Chiefs look like Super Bowl contenders again.

---

Honorable mention: QB Michael Penix Jr., Falcons

As much as Walker has forced opponents to respect Kansas City's run game, Penix has forced opponents to respect Atlanta's passing game. It was easier to stop Robinson and the Falcons' rushing attack when Cooper Rush was behind center. Penix has made the offense far less predictable.

The proof is easy to find. In two weeks with Rush starting, the Falcons averaged eight points per game. With Penix starting the last two weeks, Atlanta is averaging 40 points per game.

---

Honorable mention: QB Kirk Cousins, Las Vegas Raiders

The Raiders are no longer undefeated, but Cousins deserves his flowers. He has run head coach Klint Kubiak's offense to perfection through four weeks. The 38-year-old veteran had Las Vegas within reach of a fourth straight win after a fourth-quarter touchdown to tight end Brock Bowers – tying Cousins for the league lead in touchdown passes (11).

Rookie quarterback and No. 1 overall pick Fernando Mendoza will have plenty of time to sit and learn this year. There's no rush to throw him into the fire of an NFL regular-season game as Cousins continues to perform well.

LEGENDARY COCKTAILS

FROM THE BEST BARS IN AMERICA!

From a modern Manhattan in NYC to a Pacific Coast gin fizz in Portland, America's craft cocktail scene is alive, inventive and deeply local. "Shake and Sip" takes you inside the nation's best bars — the hidden gems, the legendary haunts and the rising stars — with original drink recipes straight from the bartenders themselves.

Celebrate one unforgettable tour of American craft cocktail culture.

Books ship November 2026 in time for holiday gift-giving. Reserve your copies today!

Preorder and save!

\$17.95

reg. \$19.95

plus tax & shipping

offer expires Oct. 21, 2026

books ship Nov. 27, 2026

ICONIC BARS

Preorder online at

BestBars.USATBook.com

SIGNATURE

RECIPES

SHIPS LATE

NOVEMBER

The “relatable” actor and theater fan plays the president in the disaster-movie satire. Page 2D

Rebecca Yarros and John Grisham take the top two spots as new books enter the list. Page 4D

LIFELINE

PAUL BERGEN/AFP VIA GETTY IMAGES

THEY SAID WHAT?

THE STARS' BEST QUOTES

“His whole manner is unattractive. Historically, presidents have been eloquent and elegant. You feel like, even if you don’t agree with them, you still respect them. But when someone like Trump is as nasty as he is, you end up feeling dislike for him.” – Phil Collins, slamming President Donald Trump during an appearance on “Piers Morgan Uncensored.” The former Genesis frontman, 75, added that it’s “a very scary time” in the United States. In response, White House spokesman Davis Ingle wrote in a statement to USA TODAY, “No one with a brain cares what woke Hollywood has to say.”

---

IT'S YOUR BIRTHDAY WHO'S CELEBRATING TODAY

Winans

Actor Paul Hogan turns 87. Author R.L. Stine, 83. Actor-comedian Chevy Chase, 83. Actor Sigourney Weaver, 77. Filmmaker Edward Zwick, 74. Actor Michael Dudikoff, 72.

Actor-comedian Darrell Hammond, 71. Singer CeCe Winans, 62. Actor Karyn Parsons, 60. Actor Emily Procter, 58. Actor Jeremy Davies, 57. Actor Matt Damon, 56. Actor Kristanna Loken, 47. Pro wrestler-actor "The Miz," 46. TV host-actor-rapper Nick Cannon, 46. Singer Bruno Mars, 40. Actor Angus T. Jones, 33. Actor Molly Quinn, 33. Actor Bella Thorne, 29. - USA TODAY Network

---

HOROSCOPE | SANCTUARY More: www.sanctuaryworld.co

Aries (March 21-April 19). Considering starting the new regimen? Wait! The moon is void all day. Continue your standard protocol.

Taurus (April 20-May 20). New trend caught your attention? The day-long Virgo void mood suggests that this fad is a passing one.

Gemini (May 21-June 21). Considering making some upgrades around the house? Your time can be better spent under today's void moon.

Cancer (June 22-July 22). What could get you more organized? A new app? An improved scheduling system? Resist the urge to “optimize” today!

Leo (July 23-Aug. 22). Do you NEED that? While this acquisition seems important, you risk paying too much for your money today.

Virgo (Aug. 23-Sept. 22). Tempted to make a bold style alteration? This idea is better in theory than in practice.

Libra (Sept.23-Oct. 23). Are you releasing out of compassion or frustration? Things begrudgingly let go have a way of reappearing...

Scorpio (Oct. 24-Nov. 21). Attempting to revise plans with your collaborators? Stop! Work on what's already in progress.

Sagittarius (Nov. 22-Dec. 21). Volunteering to spearhead a project? Wait before throwing your hat in the ring.

Capricorn (Dec. 22-Jan. 19). Weighing your options? Life is a choose-your-own-adventure under the void moon, but you must choose wisely!

Aquarius (Jan. 20-Feb. 18). Are you overreacting or underreacting? Your intuition is somewhat clouded under today's Virgo void moon.

Pisces (Feb. 19-March 20). Hashing out a compromise? Avoid switching asks last minute.

TELEVISION

"Scrubs" was revived after popular commercials by real-life besties Zach Braff and Donald Faison. NATHANIAL GARY/USA TODAY

Braff and Faison still scrubbing in

Ralphie Aversa USA TODAY

NEW YORK – Relative to the last time he was on camera with Rachel Bilson, “Scrubs” star Zach Braff says their latest scenes were a bit easier. ● In the opening shot of the Season 2 premiere for the ABC medical sitcom (new episodes Wednesdays at 8 p.m. ET/PT, streaming next day on Hulu), Braff and Bilson are in bed together. ● “We’re old friends and buddies,” the actor, 51, says alongside costar and real-life best friend Donald Faison. “It’s like rolling around with a very beautiful buddy.” See SCRUBS, Page 2D

J.D. (Braff) and Turk (Faison) are navigating the workplace and their personal lives together again in the revival of “Scrubs.” PROVIDED BY SERGEI BACHLAKOV/DISNEY

"It's got to make it easier that everybody in the immediate cast, you've known pretty much half your life."

Donald Faison

On reuniting with "Scrubs" castmates

BOOKS

King wraps up ‘Worlds’ worth of work

Brian Truitt

USA TODAY

With his new novel “Other Worlds Than These,” Stephen King buttons up two popular fantasy book series. He’s also glad to still be upright.

"It was a big relief, actually," King tells USA TODAY of closing out both "The Talisman" and "The Dark Tower" stories. "Robert B. Parker died at his desk, and that didn't happen to me with this book."

At 79, “every time I finish a project like this, particularly one that’s as long as this, it just feels like, ‘Whew. God, I’m so glad that that’s done.’”

The massive 704-page “Other Worlds Than These” also marks a final collaboration between King and his friend Peter Straub, who died in 2022 at 79.

With their 1984 novel “The Talisman,” King’s Constant Readers were first introduced to Jack Sawyer as a 12-year-old who could flip between his America and an alternate magical landscape known as the Territories. He went from a kid on a road trip to save his mother's life to a retired LA cop helping track down a Wisconsin murderer in the 2001 sequel "Black House."

That book revealed that the Territories and Mid-World from the “Dark Tower” saga were one and the same, and in “Other Worlds Than These,” a middle-aged Jack has his work cut out for him while bouncing between both places. A pair of teenage serial-killing lovebirds from Nebraska have crossed over and infected the youngsters of Mid-World with their chaotic and homicidal spirit, and Jack and a team of misfits – his “katet” in Mid-World speak – have to deal with them as well as a growing dark force called the Gullet that threatens to

See KING, Page 2D

MOVIES

Goodman digs this new phase of his career

Brian Truitt

President Compson (John Goodman) isn't excited about seeing a rogue ice shelf careening toward Europe in "Digger." PROVIDED BY WARNER BROS. PICTURES

USA TODAY

Here's a fun fact about John Goodman: He's a big London guy.

While in the English metropolis promoting his new movie “Digger” (now in theaters), Goodman chats with USA TODAY over Zoom and reveals that he takes “a couple of trips” there annually just to see theater. He enjoys watching British thespians “because I love their commitment and their professionalism. They’re always working.”

And that ties into why, at 74, Goodman still adores his job. “I’m a huge fan of actors,” he says. “If possible, that’s all I would ever talk about or read about. I’m a fanboy. I get excited working with these guys. So that’s what keeps it fresh.”

Director Alejandro González Iñárritu's disaster movie satire "Digger" pairs Goodman for the first time with Tom Cruise. Cruise stars as oil tycoon Digger Rockwell, whose company inadvertently sends a rogue ice shelf nicknamed "Judy" careening toward Europe, while Goodman is President Compson, who tasks his buddy Digger with fixing the situation.

With a red tie, American flag lapel pin and plenty of bluster, and surrounded by nitwit sycophants, one might wonder if Compson and other power players are based on certain real-life political figures. Goodman suggests instead that "Digger" is a "timeless" story in that politicians "have always been good at spinning things" in their favor.

“I mean, from the founding of the country, it came from so many different visions, and they hammered out a government, which almost collapsed in 10 years, so they had to make a constitution,” Goodman says. “But it was the same people jockeying for power, for their constituencies. These were all white property owners in the beginning and they hammered everything out for themselves.”

Although Compson also is dealing with his mortality in the movie, Goodman plays him as a goofy, comedic character. And no one enjoyed watching him as much as his director.

“Every line he said is so much fun. So truthful and so wild and so funny, only John Goodman could do what he did,” Iñárritu says. “John Goodman is an icon. He’s such a relatable guy, which is the genius of humor.”

Goodman has been a beloved character actor since the '80s: On film, there was the fiery football coach in "Revenge of the Nerds" that was followed by loose cannon Walter Sobchak in “The Big Le-bowski” and cyclopean “Big Dan” Teague in “O Brother, Where Art Thou?” Generations of kids have grown up hearing his voice as Sulley in “Monsters, Inc.,” and of course, Goodman is probably best known as TV dad Dan Conner in the long-running sitcom “Roseanne.”

“Digger” gave him exactly what he looks for – something totally new – and “this was a bonanza. This was Christmas doing this film. It was such a gift, to make a fool out of yourself.”

Goodman has dropped 200 pounds in the past decade and looked pretty spry with his wife Anna Beth on the red carpet at the “Digger” Hollywood premiere. He still has a zest for performing, yet acknowledges “it’s really been changing” in the last few years: “It’s fascinating to me, and I noticed that about myself, that my goals are different now. I’m just trying to go with the flow, and basically pare down and make it easy as possible. To make it more graceful.”

"I'm getting up there in years and it'd be great to be able to work in the States, but now you've got to go where the work is," adds Goodman, who next stars in Season 3 of HBO's sci-fi hit "The Last of Us." "I can't do it the way I used to do it. I used to love living out of a suitcase. I don't want to do that anymore. So, yeah, I'm adapting with my own needs.

"I've never had the luxury of being able to mold what I want to do. I've always had to wait for somebody to want to use me, or audition for something. I don't pick and choose. I just get picked and chosen."

🔗 [系统已自动跨页缝合转版续文：《Scrubs》]

D

Rachel plays Charlie, J.D.'s (Braff) love interest. The two actors previously worked on the 2006 film "The Last Kiss."

"We actually did R-rated movie fake sex back in the day," Braff notes of the film. "So to come and do ABC half-hour comedy sex is easier."

For the season premiere, Braff pulled double duty, directing the episode as well. And as Faison points out, Bilson isn't the only person that Braff has known for a while.

"It's got to make it easier that everybody in the immediate cast, you've known pretty much half your life," Faison, 52, notes, mentioning Sarah Chalke, Judy Reyes, John C. McGinley and Neil Flynn, who also were on the original run of "Scrubs" from 2001 to 2010.

"The biggest challenge of directing 'Scrubs' is we shoot it in five days," Braff replies, noting that directing the cast is "easy." "It's a real challenge to get everything that we do in five days."

Braff says filming the jokes, drama and surreal fantasies with a cast of 15 and 50 extras is a “marathon” for that short of a period. Both he and Faison serve as executive producers for the revival, with Braff overseeing production in Vancouver, where the show films.

"I don't miss a single scene," Braff says. "I cared so much about getting this right that if I'm not in the scene and it's at 6 a.m. and I wrapped at 1 in the morning, I'll be there."

🔗 [系统已自动跨页缝合转版续文：《King》]

D

consume all worlds.

"There's a lot of back and forth between Mid-World and our world, but it's all based on the idea of ka – fate – and the idea that there are echoes and everything repeats," the author says.

And lest you think King's slowing down as he nears 80, the author's closing another chapter of his literary life: He just finished his next book, "Anything for Holly," the last novel to feature fan-favorite detective Holly Gibney.

King talks about “Other Worlds Than These,” the real-life serial killer who plays an important role in the plot, and the many connection in the legendary author’s works.

This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity and length.

Question: With such a significant finale to different parts of your bibliography, did you have the ending in mind early on for “Other Worlds”?

Answer: I think that the ending became clear to me. John Irving once said to me, “I write the last sentence of a book before I write the book,” and I thought, “What fun is that?” It should be a voyage of discovery, for me anyway. So, I didn’t have the ending at the beginning. I just assume on faith that it will take care of that. About three quarters of the way through it, I saw what the ending would be because it is, in a way, the ending of the “Dark Tower” books as well. It’s part of my overall idea that everything that goes around comes around. They say those who do not learn from history are bound to repeat it. But we repeat it. We’re helpless to do anything different.

Back in the day, how did you and Peter write together?

It wasn't exactly the internet days. Peter got very excited by the idea of saying we could communicate (and) send copy back and forth by modem. I don't know if you remember, but there was this weird tweeting noise, just a howl kind of thing, when the copy was going through. And his came up, to my end, with the dashes turned into question marks. His end, the quotation marks turned into exclamation points. So it wasn't perfect.

The two killers of “Other Worlds” are influenced by real-life 1950s serial murderer Charles Starkweather and his girlfriend Caril Ann Fugate. Starkweather also inspired the movie “Badlands” and the Bruce Springsteen song “Nebraska.” What is it about him that still fascinates us?

He is the modern American shooter. He is everyone who went on a killing spree since then. I mean, there were a lot of school shootings that started (with Columbine) but he was the first modern American spree killer. He went with his girlfriend, and they were kind of romantic in the sense that they were star-crossed lovers. At the end of the Springsteen song, he says, "They're gonna put me in the electric chair, my pretty baby's gonna sit right there on my lap." It's not romantic, of course, to the relatives of the people who are killed. But that is almost, what, 70 years ago now? So it's passed from reality and newspaper headlines into legend.

Stephen King, at the 2024 Toronto Film Festival premiere of “The Life of Chuck,” just finished “Anything for Holly,” the last of his Holly Gibney novels. OLIVIA WONG/GETTY IMAGES

Peter Straub cowrote two “Talisman” books with King, who finished the trilogy after Straub’s death in 2022.

PROVIDED BY KYLE CASSIDY/SCRIBNER BOOKS

The line “Other Worlds Than These” is repeated often in the book, referring to our world, Mid-World and potential other realities as well. Is there a world in this Stephen King multiverse that you haven’t explored yet and still want to?

Well, there are stories that I would like to tell. I'm running out of road here. It's getting a little bit narrow, and there are a number of things that I would like to do in this world and in other worlds maybe than those.

Holly is one of your favorite characters. Did you get a little emotional finishing her story, too?

She means a lot to me. She's my dear one. And she means a lot to readers who have followed her for a long time. I didn't cry beautiful tears or anything like that, but yeah, I got a little nostalgic I guess you would say. I always say to myself, well, maybe she'll come back in some form or another, but I really don't think so.

DOWN

Solution to Wednesday's puzzle

---

Faison reveals he turned down this invite from Braff

“Scrubs” took an atypical route to get from its first run to its second. ABC Studios originally produced the series, yet ABC declined it for its network. The show ended up running for eight seasons on NBC before a 9th on ABC in 2010. Like other shows during the COVID-19 pandemic, “Scrubs” received renewed attention, thanks in part to a re-watch podcast that Braff and Faison started.

Then in 2023, the duo starred in Super Bowl commercials for cellular network T-Mobile. They eventually would return for multiple ads, however the first one (which also featured John Travolta) ranked in the top 10 of USA TODAY's Ad Meter. ABC then picked up a revival of "Scrubs," which premiered in February 2026.

"To be honest, those ads helped alley-oop, if you will, this experience happening," Braff says, using a basketball analogy. "The ads being so successful as they were kind of helped bring the show back, so we're very grateful for those."

Faison, a diehard New York Knicks fan, agrees. And he loves the sports analogy: the actor is still riding high off the Knicks' NBA championship win in June.

“Listen, I waited 52 years for this,” the actor says. “I was born the year after [the Knicks won in 1973]. I think my parents might have had conceived me through celebration of the Knicks winning the year before."

"It's a little more lived in this season. I think we found our footing," Zach Braff, left, with Donald Faison, says of Season 2. NATHANIAL GARY/USA TODAY

But despite Faison's fandom and his sitcom airing on the network that showed the NBA Finals, the actor didn't try and pull a favor for tickets to the games. He even turned down an invitation from Braff to go to Madison Square Garden because he didn't want to sit in a suite "with a bunch of people who were not Knicks fans and hear them say to me, 'It's all right, maybe next game Donald.'

"I guess you're talking about me because I'm not walking around with a Knicks hat yelling 'Knicks in 5!' at every doorman that I meet," Braff responds.

“Maybe I am!” Faison quickly retorts, as both men start laughing.

---

Braff, Faison tease 'Scrubs' Season 2 storylines

The “Scrubs” revival reunites best friends J.D. and Turk, who are now at Sacred Heart Hospital as the chief of medicine and chief of surgery, respectively. J.D. is trying to date post-divorce, as is his ex-wife, Dr. Elliot Reid (Chalke). She reunites with her ex-boyfriend Sean (Scott Foley).

And Faison says that his character Turk is still trying to find his way.

“Even though J.D. is back in the hospital and Turk seemed to be on the mend from his depression, it doesn't really work like that,” Faison says. “Turk still has issues about where he works and how he works. And he's grateful that his best friend's back, but he's still burnt out.”

"I think the fans are going to like the season even more because we learned a lot last year," Braff says, referencing the first season of the revival. "It's a little more lived in this season. I think we found our footing."

Both actors are thinking about plans for “Scrubs” past Season 2, but neither know ultimately what will happen. The only prediction Faison will offer is on the Knicks upcoming season.

"I've waited 52 years and it's happened, and there's a possibility it might be another 52 years," he says of the Knicks' championship chances. "Even though I think we win it again this year. Knicks in 5."

---

USA TODAY CROSSWORD

EDITED Amanda Rafkin

BY Leo Tsai

THE FEELING IS MUTUAL (FREESTYLE)

ACROSS

1 Like food that's \*chef's kiss\*

6 Deger's for some designers

10 Nonverbal greeting

13 Pizza size for a big party

15 Comedian Dommett

16 Art movement with a physical medium?

17 Currency that's color-coded based on its worth

18 "What's up?"

19 Tiny bug

20 Father figure?

22 "Wow, you \_\_\_\_ kidding!"

24 Acronym typed before sharing a cool new fact

25 Automobile

26 "Hurry up, already!"

28 Clean Air Act org.

31 Pots and \_\_\_\_

32 Element of pure awesomeness

34 "Legally Blonde" prequel

35 Some locked boxes in escape rooms

36 Gave temporarily

37 One of an Olympic trio for Eileen Gu

39 Like the Nissan Cube

40 Workout spot

41 Great Barrier \_\_\_\_

42 Sinus doc

43 Quarterback Manning

45 Component of some cauldron decorations

48 "If everything goes perfectly . . ."

51 Only U.S. state name that starts with two vowels

52 "I did NOT need to know that"

55 Paint layer

© Andrews McMeel

56 "Everything okay?"

59 Shapes of rainbows

60 Direct and serious

61 Fountain pen liquid

62 Brand of canvas sneakers

63 Sends out

1 Silicon Valley industry, for short

2 Wheel bar

3 Don't go

4 "Give it a go!"

5 Goes on and on

6 Not glossy

7 Indirect social connection

8 Ages \_\_\_\_

9 Email button

10 Send back-to-back messages

11 Prefix for "space"

12 Trudge

14 Here be dragons!

15 Person serving the light side

21 Roti ingredient

22 Diminished, like the moon

23 Answer to the classic riddle "What gets wetter the more it dries?"

25 "I'm busy . . . Let's talk later!"

27 What—(hypothetical)

29 Ginuwine hit with the lyric "ride it"

30 Kehinde Wiley's field

31 Scheme

32 Walked into the shallow end M

33 Copy A

34 Easter \_ N

35 Visualize G

38 3D hospital scans A

39 Unhelpful answer to M

40 "Why?"

44 Allows S

46 Toys that can go around the world H

47 "Ha! You toppled the Jenga tower!"

card 1-800-320-4280.

Answers: Call 1-900-988-8300, 99 cents a minute; or, with a credit card, 1-800-320-4280.

48 Smoothie bowl berry

49 Experiencing analysis paralysis

50 Fail completely

52 "Beloved" novelist Morrison

53 Not quite all

54 \_\_\_\_ of March

57 Chirashi bowl topping

Wednesday's Answer

Today's theme Human body

CROSSWORDS ON YOUR PHONE get our crossword app

© USA TODAY and Rich Coulter

More puzzles: PLAY.usatoday.com

Want solutions? answers.usatoday.com

Feedback: feedback@usatoday.com

Use the phone keypad to decode the clues. For example 2 could be A, B or C ... and 5678 could be LOST

Yesterday's solution

---

SUDOKU

---

TXTPERT

Complete the grid so that every row, column and 3x3 box contains the numbers 1 through 9 (no repeats). | 7 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 7 | 2 | 9 | 1 | 5 | 7 | 2 | 1 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 6 | 3 | 7 | 9 | 4 | 8 | 4 | 2 | 3 |

DIFFICULTY RATING ★★★★★

Down

1. 7246

2. 7227

3. 46332833

5. 775336

7. 327

SUDOKU FUSION ON YOUR PHONE

puzzles.usatoday.com

Across

2. 77463

4. 3478

6. 63783

8. 2253

9. 97478

10. 3937

11. 25663

©2026 KenKen Puzzle, LLC www.kenken.com

---

KENKEN

© Andrews McMeel

1. Each row and column must contain the numbers 1 through 4 without repeating.

YESTERDAY'S SOLUTION

2. The numbers within the heavily outlined boxes, called cages, must combine using the given operation (in any order) to produce the target numbers in the top-left corners.

Trademark KenKen, LLC Distributed by Andrews McMeel

©2026 KenKen Puzzle, LLC www.kenken.com

3. Freebies: fill in single-box cages with the number in the top-left corner.

Complete the grid so that every row, column and 3x2 box contains the numbers 1 through 6 (no repeats). | 4 | 3 | 5 | 5 | 2 | 4 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 8 | 6 | 3 | 7 | 4 | 2 | 9 | 1 | 5 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 5 | 6 | 3 | 4 | 9 | 1 | 8 | 3 | 5 | 2 | 7 | 6 | 3 | 6 | 5 | 1 | 4 | 2 | 7 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 6 | 9 | 8 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 3 | 6 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 9 | 2 | 8 | 3 | 1 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 7 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 3 | 5 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 9 | 5 | 7 | 6 | 2 | 8 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 5 | 6 | 5 | 7 | 6 | 2 | 8 | 4 | 3 | 9 | 1 | 6 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 2 | 4 | 7 | 5 | 9 | 8 | 1 | 6 | 3 | 6 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 3 | 8 | 9 | 6 | 7 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 2 | 6 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 6 | 1 | 5 | 4 | 2 | 3 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 6 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 4 | By Davide Coppo Difficulty: EXPERT

---

KUBOK 16

©2026 Kubok. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency. 10/8/26 All rights reserved.

Enter the missing numbers from 1 to 16 without repetitions so that the sum of the four numbers in each row and column is the same as the corresponding circled number.

---

Words

WORD ROUNDUP

By David L. Hoyt and Jeff Knurek | Find and Circle: | Eight words related to books | □□□□□□□□ | Four U.S. states that border Canada | □□□□ | Two martial arts | □□ | Two four-letter felines | □□ | Volcano discharge | □ | Wednesday's answer: CHEESE FLEECE FREEZE BREEZE BEEF FEED NEED / GUTTER STRIKE SPARE ALLEY SCORE BALL / DOLPHIN DINGO DUCK / VENUS / THINK

---

QUICKCROSS

---

By John Wilmes

10/8

QUICKCROSS ON YOUR PHONE

puzzles.usatoday.com | PAUTHORZVTBZ | JALIONRANPRY | EUGDQENOJERR | TEDEVAMOTAEA | ANMOTRHPVLAR | RICNEAAATEDB | AAOVDHLICVLI | KMJICDTPUMAL | ---

UP & DOWN WORDS

By David L. Hoyt and Russell L. Hoyt

10/8

1. Stressful job: \_\_\_\_ controller

2. Stop-and-go headache

3. Band's informal rehearsal

4. Musician hired for recordings

5. Athlete and team leader

6. Less expensive way to fly

7. Collective lawsuit

Wednesday's Answer

SALT / WATER

WATER / SKI

SKI / LIFT

LIFT / TICKET

TICKET / PRICE

PRICE / RANGE

RANGE / ROVER

PUZZLES.USATODAY.COM © Andrews McMeel

---

DON'T QUOTE ME® Don't Quote Me

Actor Lin-Manuel Miranda offers this encouragement.

Rearrange the words to complete the quote.

BUT CAST IMAGINE LIFE PLAY ROLE YOU

© WIGGLES 3D GAMES

ARE PERFECTLY \_\_\_\_ IN YOUR

Wednesday's Answer: "Humor is just another defense against the universe." - Mel Brooks

. GO

10/8

---

7 LITTLE WORDS

Yesterday's | Jumbles: TRACT CHOMP VACUUM JACKAL Answer: After getting into an accident, his new sedan was a — COMPACT CAR

---

BONUS CROSSWORD

ACROSS

1 Winter precipitation

5 One way to address a lady

9 Certain voter (Abbr.)

12 — de force

13 Movie award

15 Sedan

16 Vaulted church area

17 Giraffe relative

18 Belgrade native

19 Improved

21 Low area

23 Ship's company

24 Insect stage

25 Engraved

28 Muzzled

32 For

33 The butcher, the —, the candlestick maker

34 Actress — Gardner

35 Singer — Cooke

36 Thesaurus writer

37 Web crawler

38 “— on a Grecian Urn”

39 Gets along

40 Mike's partner in candy?

41 — -Benz

43 Mended

46 Saharan

47 Note

48 Andes animal

51 Trick-or-treating gear

55 Lake in Asia

56 Treasure —

58 Departed

59 Bathroom fixture

60 Source of down

61 Irish river

62 Dir. letters

63 Nuisance

64 Escritoire

1 Attempt

2 Slangy refusal

3 Eject

4 Miserable one

5 Anchored

6 Twisted

7 Private sch.

8 Aid to navigation

9 Formal fight

10 Raison d'—

11 "— -Dick"

14 Stream

15 Narnia ruler

20 Before

22 Mimic

24 Colorado's — Peak

---

PREVIOUS PUZZLE SOLVED

10-8-26 © 2026 UFS, Dist. by Andrews McMeel for UFS

25 — salts

26 Commerce

27 Fellow on the way up

28 Wise men

29 Rustic dwelling

30 Draw forth

31 Anachronistic

33 Drilled

36 Spread out from a center

39 Seedless plant

42 Spackling material

43 Abandon

44 Qty.

45 Applied blusher to

47 Relocates

48 Jardiniere

49 Showy flower

50 Walking stick

51 Cipher

52 Additional

53 River in Austria

54 Go after

57 Headstone inscription

---

USA TODAY BEST-SELLING BOOKS BOOKLIST.USATODAY.COM

□ Rank this week □ Rank last week | | TITLE/AUTHOR | PUBLISHER | GENRE | C | 1 | 15 | Threshing Day (Wing and Claw Collection)/Yarros, Rebecca | Entangled: Red Tower Books | Romance - Fantasy | F | 2 | n/a | The French Illusion/Grisham, John | Doubleday Books | Thrillers - Suspense | F | 3 | n/a | The Long-Lived King: An Original the Owl House Graphic Novel/Crisostomo, Mikki | Hyperion Avenue | Fantasy | NF | 4 | 6 | Verity/Hoover, Colleen | Grand Central Publishing | Women | F | 5 | n/a | Heated Rivalry Collector's Edition: Now Streaming on Crave and HBO Max (Reissue)/Reid, Rachel | Harlequin | Friendship | F | 6 | 2 | Theo of Golden/Levi, Allen | Atria Books | Literary | F | 7 | n/a | American Hagwon/Lee, Min Jin | Cardinal | Literary | F | 8 | n/a | Escape Me Deluxe Limited Edition/Mafi, Tahereh | Storytide | Dystopian | F | 9 | n/a | Tough Enough: How to Lead a Team to Greatness Without Being a Jerk/Baird, John | Basic Venture | Leadership | NF | 10 | n/a | The Steps: A Memoir/Stallone, Sylvester | William Morrow & Company | Entertainment & Performing Arts | NF | 11 | 1 | Hollywood, Ending/Green, John | Dutton Books | Literary | F | 12 | n/a | Plantyou Quickies: 140+ Nourishing Plant-Based Recipes for Busy People/Bodrug, Carleigh | Balance | Television - Genres - Drama | NF | 13 | 7 | Hollow Bones/Picoult, Jodi | Ballantine Books | Literary | F | 14 | 8 | Exit Party/Mandel, Emily St John | Knopf Publishing Group | Literary | F | 15 | 19 | You're My Little Baby Boo/Edwards, Nicola | Silver Dolphin Books | Family - General | F | 16 | n/a | Trust Fall/Painter, Lynn | Simon & Schuster | Romance - Contemporary | F | 17 | 17 | The Eureka Machine: Why AI Is the Key to Unlocking a New Era of Scientific Discoveries/Socher, Richard | PublicAffairs | Industries | NF | 18 | 11 | Dungeon Crawler Carl/Dinniman, Matt | Ace Books | Fantasy - Action & Adventure | F | 19 | n/a | Babe: Elaboratio: A Tribute to My Mother/Connick, Harry, Jr. | Harper Celebrate | Entertainment & Performing Arts | NF | 20 | 24 | The Calamity Club/Stockett, Kathryn | Spiegel & Grau | Literary | F | 21 | n/a | Kneel Before Me (Deluxe Edition)/Straube, Lindsay | Bloom Books | Romance - Fantasy | F | 22 | 31 | Pirate Queen/Lawhon, Ariel | Doubleday Books | NF | 23 | n/a | Baldur's Gate 3: Astarion/Kingfisher, T. | Random House Worlds | Fantasy - Epic | F | 24 | n/a | In the Dark: Deluxe Limited Edition/Rose, Shain | Kensington Publishing Corp | Romance - Suspense | F | 25 | 9 | Protocols: An Operating Manual for the Human Body/Huberman, Andrew D. | S&S/Simon Element | Longevity | NF | | TITLE/AUTHOR | PUBLISHER | GENRE | C | 26 | n/a | Dawn of the Cursed Queen: Deluxe Special Edition/Nicole, Amber V. | Kensington Publishing Corp | Fantasy - Romantic | F | 27 | n/a | Camp Half-Blood: From the World of Percy Jackson: The Wild Zone/Oh, Annabelle | Random House | Action & Adventure - General | F | 28 | n/a | What Could Possibly Go Right?: The Essential Journey to Scale an Enduring Culture/Meyer, Danny | Random House | Leadership | NF | 29 | n/a | Cursed City/Golden, Kate | Ace Books | Romance - New Adult | F | 30 | 34 | The Love Hypothesis/Hazelwood, Ali | Berkley Books | Romance - Romantic Comedy | F | 31 | 25 | Brain Damage/McFadden, Freida | Poisoned Pen Press | Thrillers - Suspense | F | 32 | n/a | Ruthless/Steel, Danielle | Delacorte Press | Women | F | 33 | 43 | Yesteryear/Burke, Caro Claire | Knopf Publishing Group | Feminist | F | 34 | 18 | Sometimes I Scare Myself: A Collection of Horror/Rose, Jeneva | Blackstone Publishing | Short Stories (single author) | F | 35 | 35 | The Disappearers/James, Marlon | Riverhead Books | Literary | F | 36 | n/a | Mestra: A Short Story/Miller, Madeline | Ecco Press | Literary | F | 37 | n/a | Florescentia/Ophelia, I. V. | Montlake | Gothic | F | 38 | 93 | Taipei Story (Deluxe Limited Edition)/Kuang, R. F. | William Morrow & Company | Humorous - General | F | 39 | 41 | Murdoku: 80 Murder Mystery Logic Puzzles/ Garand, Manuel | Puzzlewright Press | Logic & Brain Teasers | NF | 40 | 117 | East of Eden/Steinbeck, John | Penguin Books | Literary | F | 41 | n/a | The Dying Light: A Detective Matthew Venn Novel/Cleeves, Ann | Minotaur Books | Mystery & Detective - Traditional | F | 42 | n/a | I Want to Be Famous: When Everybody and Nobody Is a Celebrity/Finger, Bobby | Crown Publishing Group (NY) | Media Studies | NF | 43 | 52 | The Killer Isn't Alice: The Bestselling Murder Mystery Puzzle Book - 46,600 Suspects, 1 Killer. Can You Solve the Crime?/Starling, Iris | Little Brown and Company | Logic & Brain Teasers | NF | 44 | 40 | Whistler/Patchett, Ann | Harper | Literary | F | 45 | n/a | Work in Progress: A Memoir/Rodriguez, Devon | One World | Personal Memoirs | NF | 46 | 55 | Project Hail Mary/Weir, Andy | Ballantine Books | Thrillers - Suspense | F | 47 | 46 | Swan Song: Diana, My Sister/Spencer, Charles | Penguin Press | Personal Memoirs | NF | 48 | 83 | Rowley Jefferson's Awesome Friendly Spooky Stories 2: From the Creator of Diary of a Wimpy Kid/Kinney, Jeff | Amulet Books | Humorous Stories | F | 49 | n/a | Just Like That: Deluxe Limited Edition/Hendrix, Lena | Kensington Publishing Corp | Romance - Small Town & Rural | F | 50 | 70 | My Dreadful Darling: The Hollow Graves Duet Book 1/Carlton, H. D. | Zpn | Romance - Suspense | F | WHAT AMERICA'S READING® The book list appears every Thursday. You also can find it at booklist.usatoday.com. Each week, USA TODAY collects sales data from booksellers representing a variety of outlets: bookstore chains, independent bookstores, mass merchandisers and online retailers. Using that data, we determine the 150 top-selling titles of the week.

DOLLY PARTON

in a commemorative hardcover book

cover not final

---

Save 10% today

\$35.95 \$39.95 plus tax & shipping

Learn more at

Dolly Parton grew up the fourth of twelve children in a one-room cabin on Locust Ridge, and by the time she left us she had written more than 3,000 songs, built a theme park in the Smokies that employs thousands of her neighbors and put more than 250 million books into children's hands through the Imagination Library. Tennessee watched all of it happen. She sang about this place her whole life and no matter how famous she got, she never really left. "Dolly: A Life of Many Colors" honors that life in a 160-page commemorative hardcover from The Tennesseean and the Knoxville News Sentinel, following her from the cabin to the Opry stage, through the hits, the movies and Dollywood, with compelling photographs and the stories behind them.

---

Dolly.PictorialBook.com

offer expires Dec. 16, 2026 • books ship Jan. 22, 2027

Preorder by check/money order and ship my order to the address below after Jan. 22, 2027.

Quantity of books: \_\_\_\_ x \$47.96 $^{*}$ = \$\_\_\_\_ total

\*Includes sales tax, shipping, and mail-in processing fees; discount expires Dec. 16, 2026. Order online for best price.

Checks payable to Pediment Books OR Pay with credit/debit/PayPal online: Dolly.PictorialBook.com PLEASE PRINT LEGIBLY Sond form and payment

Send form and payment to:

Name \_\_\_\_ Dolly Parton Book c/o Pediment Books

Dolly Parton Book

12004 NE 95th St., Ste. 850

Address \_\_\_\_ Vancouver, WA 98682

Please remember to make

City \_\_\_\_ State \_\_\_\_ Zip \_\_\_\_ checks payable to Pediment Books

Phone \_\_\_\_ E-mail \_\_\_\_

Dolly Parton Book • #PS01

NATION&WORLD EXTRA

ELECTION 2026

President Donald Trump has spent the past decade remaking the Republican Party in his own image.

ANNA MONEYMAKER/GETTY IMAGES

BALANCING ACT

Most Republicans in tight races distance themselves from Trump

Nathan Layne and David Morgan

REUTERS

Two-thirds of Republican candidates in competitive U.S. House and Senate races have broken with President Donald Trump on policy or played down ties to him, a Reuters review found, revealing a widespread effort to distance themselves from the president as his unpopularity threatens the party's hold on Congress.

The review of voting records, public statements and campaign materials found candidates in 41 of 62 competitive congressional races seeking some distance from Trump ahead of the Nov. 3 midterm elections.

The candidates have largely criticized or diverged from Trump on individual issues rather than repudiated his broader agenda. The findings suggest an effort to attract independent voters while avoiding a direct break with their party leader.

Policy differences were the most common point of divergence, appearing in 23 of the 62 races.

In 12 contests, the split centered on the Iran war, with vulnerable Republicans either voting to curb Trump's war powers or calling publicly for an end to the fighting that has raised gas prices and squeezed household budgets.

Data centers are among the issues dividing Trump and some Republican candidates. Reuters identified three candidates in competitive races who have criticized or sought to slow such projects despite the president's support for faster development.

Rep. Mike Lawler, R-New York, is facing one of the most competitive U.S. House races. BRIAN SNYDER/REUTERS FILE

The shift is notable because Trump has spent the past decade remaking the Republican Party in his own image and has been swift to punish lawmakers and candidates who defied him through primary challenges, personal attacks or public pressure to fall into line.

In response to questions about the Reuters findings, White House spokesman Davis Ingle pointed to the administration's accomplishments and said Trump was “the unequivocal leader, best messenger and unmatched motivator” for the party.

While news organizations have highlighted individual cases of distancing, the Reuters review is the first to systematically measure the trend across competitive races that will decide whether Republicans retain control of either or both chambers of Congress.

A new Reuters/Ipsos poll underscored the challenge facing Republicans: Trump's approval rating remained stuck at a career-low $32\%$ , while registered voters favored Democrats over Republicans $44\%$ to $37\%$ ahead of the midterms. Among independents, Democrats led $37\%$ to $21\%$ .

---

Creating distance from Trump

Reuters also found a broad effort to play down ties: A dozen candidates removed his name, image or endorsements from campaign websites, most after securing their party's nomination.

See REPUBLICANS, Page 5NN

Israelis gather to mark 2023 attacks

---

Palestinians mourn Gaza's destruction

Rami Amichay and Mahmoud Issa

REUTERS

KFAR AZA, Israel – Israelis gathered in silence on Oct. 7 in a kibbutz near the Gaza border that was overrun by Hamas militants on Oct. 7, 2023, mourning victims of attacks that set off Israel's assault in Gaza and plunged the Middle East into war.

In the Gaza Strip, devastated by three years of Israeli bombardment, Palestinians sheltering among the ruins of destroyed cities recalled life before a war that displaced nearly the entire population and tore apart families.

The attacks of Oct. 7, 2023, made it the deadliest day in Israel's history. Militants led by Hamas killed 1,200 people and took 251 hostages, a cross-border incursion that traumatized Israelis who have demanded government accountability.

Israel's subsequent bombardment and ground operations in Gaza have killed more than 74,000 people, including at least 1,400 killed in the past year since a U.S.-brokered ceasefire, which halted major fighting but has failed to stop Israeli attacks or secure the disarmament of Hamas.

---

'A very difficult day'

In Kfar Aza, where Hamas militants killed dozens of Israelis before taking

See ATTACKS, Page 5NN

A woman embraces a memorial sign with a photo at the site of the Nova music festival near Reim, Israel, on Oct. 7. RONEN ZVULUN/REUTERS

Vance: Iran must cut enrichment to end war

But official says issue

is a red line for Tehran ber's midterm elections.

Jacob Bogage

REUTERS

FAIRBANKS, AK – Vice President JD Vance said in an exclusive interview with Reuters that Iran must make a “meaningful” reduction in its nuclear enrichment capacity to satisfy U.S. demands and end the countries’ seven-month war, even as Washington was unsure how Tehran makes decisions in negotiations.

Vance, a longtime skeptic of U.S. involvement in foreign wars, has taken a leading role in negotiating a settlement to the conflict and brokered a provisional peace agreement in June that quickly fell apart. The war has jolted global energy markets and become a political liability for President Donald Trump and fellow Republicans ahead of Novem-

Vance

Vance said on Oct. 5 after a campaign trip in Alaska that any agreement would require Iran to reduce its nuclear enrichment capacity, rather than offer assurances of

future nuclear drawdowns.

"If you don't want a nuclear weapon, then why do you need $60\%$ enriched fuel? And if you want to show commitment to not building a nuclear weapon, don't build highly enriched fuel. That's a very basic threshold issue," Vance said.

"I think if they want to show a commitment to not building a nuclear weapon, they would do something meaningful on their enrichment capacity."

Washington's “requests and ideas” about Iran's nuclear program are at odds with Tehran's demands, a senior Iranian official told Reuters on Oct. 7 when

See VANCE, Page 5NN

An Iranian woman rides a zip line during a military course at the "Sacrifice for the Homeland" training camp set up in Tehran on Oct. 6.

ATTA KENARE/AFP VIA GETTY IMAGES

We make life simpler, safer, and better. Visit AccuWeather.com or get the app.

---

NATIONAL SUMMARY

AccuWeather.

[QR Code]

Tropical moisture will produce drenching thunderstorms across South Texas and Florida today. It will be largely dry across the rest of the United States outside of showers in New England. A heat dome is forecast to persist in the West. Isaias is forecast to become a hurricane in the Gulf while moving north.

---

WEDNESDAY EXTREMES

NATIONAL (for the 48 contiguous states) | High: | 108 at Death Valley, CA | Low: | 23 at Whitefield, NH | Precip: | 6.45" at Naples, FL | NATIONAL CITIES THURSDAY

INTERNATIONAL (excludes Antarctica) | High: | 114 at Omidieh, Irna | Low: | 1 at Batagay, Russia | Precip: | 6.44" at Naples, USA | High/low/W | Air Quality | Aberdeen, SD | 70/47/pc | 38 | Abilene, TX | 90/62/s | 69 | Accomac, VA | 78/51/s | 47 | Adrian, MI | 70/42/s | 25 | Akron, OH | 69/43/pc | 75 | Alamogordo, NM | 83/57/s | 33 | Alexandria, VA | 81/48/s | 39 | Alliance, OH | 69/43/pc | 75 | Amarillo, TX | 83/55/pc | 25 | ● Ames, IA | 75/53/pc | 25 | Anderson, SC | 86/64/s | 50 | Appleton, WI | 66/47/s | 25 | Asheville, NC | 81/52/s | 50 | Ashland, OH | 69/41/pc | 75 | Athens, GA | 85/62/s | 53 | Augusta, GA | 85/60/s | 73 | Austin, TX | 91/64/pc | 75 | Bartlesville, OK | 89/56/s | 90 | Battle Creek, MI | 67/44/pc | 25 | Bedford, IN | 78/49/s | 51 | Binghamton, NY | 63/44/s | 23 | Bluffton, SC | 82/70/pc | 52 | Bremerton, WA | 72/52/pc | 33 | Brockton, MA | 73/44/pc | 45 | Brownwood, TX | 89/60/s | 72 | Burlington, IA | 76/54/pc | 36 | Burlington, NC | 85/54/s | 50 | Burlington, VT | 66/46/sh | 35 | Cambridge, OH | 74/40/s | 52 | Camdenton, MO | 88/61/s | 54 | Canandaigua, NY | 65/46/sh | 23 | Canton, OH | 69/43/pc | 75 | Carlsbad, NM | 85/57/pc | 50 | Chambersburg, PA | 75/45/s | 22 | Cherry Hill, NJ | 78/49/s | 50 | Cincinnati, OH | 77/51/s | 50 | Clarksville, TN | 88/52/s | 51 | Coldwater, MI | 69/42/s | 25 | Columbus, OH | 73/45/s | 44 | Corning, NY | 66/40/s | 29 | Corpus Christi, TX | 93/70/t | 25 | ● Daytona Beach, FL | 82/74/t | 25 | Deming, NM | 85/58/s | 39 | DeRidder, LA | 93/64/s | 44 | ● Des Moines, IA | 75/58/pc | 25 | Detroit, MI | 69/44/s | 25 | Devils Lake, ND | 63/46/pc | 34 | Dover, NH | 71/45/pc | 25 | El Paso, TX | 86/62/pc | 25 | Elmira, NY | 66/39/pc | 29 | Erie, PA | 67/51/s | 20 | Eugene, OR | 79/47/s | 25 | High/low/W | Air Quality | Evansville, IN | 83/50/s | 25 | Fall River, MA | 74/47/pc | 45 | Farmington, NM | 81/50/s | 67 | Fayetteville, NC | 84/62/s | 48 | Fond du Lac, WI | 67/43/pc | 25 | Fort Myers, FL | 87/75/t | 25 | Fort Smith, AR | 92/63/s | 69 | Framingham, MA | 73/44/pc | 45 | Freeport, IL | 71/46/pc | 25 | Fremont, OH | 73/44/pc | 51 | Fort Collins, CO | 88/52/s | 75 | Gadsden, AL | 88/57/s | 88 | Gainesville, FL | 80/71/t | 25 | Galesburg, IL | 75/52/pc | 25 | Gastonia, NC | 85/59/s | 52 | Glen Rose, TX | 89/60/s | 80 | Gonzales, LA | 91/70/pc | 44 | Great Falls, MT | 78/54/pc | 36 | Green Bay, WI | 67/41/s | 25 | Greenville, SC | 85/59/s | 52 | Hackensack, NJ | 76/52/s | 40 | Hagerstown, MD | 75/47/s | 22 | Hattiesburg, MS | 89/65/pc | 42 | Henderson, KY | 84/47/s | 25 | Hendersonville, NC | 81/52/s | 50 | Herkimer, NY | 64/45/sh | 25 | Hillsdale, MI | 69/43/s | 25 | Holland, MI | 65/48/pc | 25 | Hornell, NY | 65/42/s | 28 | Houma, LA | 86/72/c | 41 | Howell, MI | 67/43/s | 25 | Hutchinson, KS | 87/58/s | 67 | Hyannis, MA | 70/51/pc | 45 | Indianapolis, IN | 78/52/s | 25 | Iowa City, IA | 74/54/pc | 36 | Ithaca, NY | 64/43/s | 23 | Jackson, MS | 91/62/pc | 51 | Jackson, TN | 90/54/s | 65 | Jacksonville, FL | 82/72/t | 25 | Jacksonville, NC | 82/62/s | 45 | Kent, OH | 68/43/s | 25 | Kewanee, IL | 74/50/pc | 25 | Keyser, WV | 76/44/s | 17 | Kinston, NC | 84/59/s | 45 | Knoxville, TN | 84/56/s | 52 | Lafayette, IN | 76/47/s | 71 | Lafayette, LA | 91/67/pc | 42 | Lakeland, FL | 82/72/t | 25 | Lansing, MI | 67/43/s | 25 | Las Cruces, NM | 83/57/s | 48 | Lebanon, PA | 75/43/s | 44 | Leesburg, FL | 80/72/t | 25 | ---

TODAY IN HISTORY

Lead, S.D., had 36 inches of snow on Oct. 8, 1982, but just 20 miles away in Rapid City, which is at a lower elevation, there was only a trace. | High/low/W | Air Quality | Levittown, PA | 77/48/s | 50 | Lincoln, IL | 80/49/pc | 25 | Louisville, KY | 82/53/s | 75 | Lubbock, TX | 86/57/pc | 75 | Manitowoc, WI | 66/47/s | 25 | Mansfield, OH | 70/42/pc | 51 | Marshall, NC | 79/50/s | 45 | Marshfield, WI | 64/41/pc | 25 | Massillon, OH | 70/42/pc | 75 | McLean, VA | 80/46/s | 39 | Melbourne, FL | 84/75/t | 25 | Memphis, TN | 91/67/s | 101 | Middletown, NY | 72/42/s | 26 | Milford, MA | 72/46/pc | 45 | Milwaukee, WI | 68/47/pc | 25 | Monroe, MI | 71/43/s | 25 | Monroe, LA | 95/60/s | 53 | Montgomery, AL | 87/63/pc | 46 | Muncie, IN | 75/47/s | 55 | Murfreesboro, TN | 87/50/s | 51 | Naples, FL | 88/75/t | 25 | Nashville, TN | 88/54/s | 51 | Neptune, NJ | 78/54/s | 45 | New Bedford, MA | 73/46/pc | 45 | New Bern, NC | 82/62/s | 45 | New Philadelphia, OH | 71/40/pc | 75 | Newark, OH | 73/38/pc | 44 | Newton, NJ | 73/40/s | 50 | New York, NY | 74/54/s | 40 | Norwich, CT | 73/42/pc | 33 | Ocala, FL | 79/71/t | 25 | Oklahoma City, OK | 89/60/s | 90 | Opelousas, LA | 92/64/pc | 42 | Oshkosh, WI | 66/46/pc | 25 | Palm Beach, FL | 88/80/t | 25 | Palm Springs, CA | 107/81/s | 64 | Panama City, FL | 82/70/pc | 25 | Pekin, IL | 77/53/pc | 25 | Pensacola, FL | 83/71/pc | 25 | Peoria, IL | 76/53/pc | 25 | Petersburg, VA | 86/50/s | 39 | Phoenix, AZ | 103/81/s | 97 | Port Huron, MI | 67/39/s | 48 | Portsmouth, NH | 73/49/pc | 25 | Poughkeepsie, NY | 74/43/s | 26 | Providence, RI | 74/49/pc | 50 | Pueblo, CO | 86/45/s | 25 | Quincy, MA | 73/49/pc | 45 | Redding, CA | 102/60/s | 64 | Reno, NV | 88/52/s | 25 | Ravenna, OH | 68/42/s | 25 | Richmond, IN | 75/43/s | 44 | ---

WEATHER TRIVIA™

Q: What machine is sometimes used to disperse fog at airports?

---

A: A helicopter

• Denotes possible travel delays | High/low/W | Air Quality | Rochester, NY | 65/45/sh | 33 | Rockford, IL | 71/46/pc | 25 | Ruidoso, NM | 71/47/s | 32 | Salem, OR | 80/49/s | 50 | Salina, KS | 87/61/s | 70 | Salinas, CA | 82/56/pc | 54 | Salisbury, MD | 81/48/s | 22 | San Angelo, TX | 88/57/pc | 58 | ● Sarasota, FL | 85/75/t | 25 | Savannah, GA | 82/68/pc | 53 | Sheboygan, WI | 66/46/pc | 25 | Shelby, NC | 83/57/s | 52 | Sherman, TX | 90/59/s | 61 | Shreveport, LA | 93/62/pc | 55 | Silver City, NM | 78/53/s | 39 | ● Sioux Falls, SD | 73/55/pc | 80 | Somerset, PA | 67/42/s | 38 | Somerville, NJ | 77/42/s | 50 | South Bend, IN | 69/44/s | 25 | Spartanburg, SC | 85/61/s | 52 | Springfield, IL | 80/52/s | 25 | Springfield, MO | 88/62/s | 70 | ● St. Augustine, FL | 81/73/t | 25 | St. Cloud, MN | 65/43/pc | 31 | St. George, UT | 94/65/s | 25 | Staunton, VA | 78/41/s | 39 | Stevens Point, WI | 66/41/pc | 25 | Stockton, CA | 100/61/s | 77 | Stroudsburg, PA | 74/40/s | 50 | ● Stuart, FL | 87/75/t | 25 | Sturgis, MI | 69/44/s | 25 | Tallahassee, FL | 84/71/pc | 25 | Thibodaux, LA | 87/71/pc | 41 | Topeka, KS | 83/59/s | 77 | Tuscaloosa, AL | 91/61/pc | 64 | Utica, NY | 63/44/sh | 27 | Ventura, CA | 77/64/s | 63 | Victorville, CA | 97/62/s | 84 | Vineland, NJ | 78/42/s | 45 | Visalia, CA | 99/61/s | 54 | Washington, DC | 81/54/s | 39 | Watertown, SD | 67/51/pc | 74 | Wausau, WI | 65/42/pc | 25 | Waynesboro, PA | 75/46/s | 22 | White Plains, NY | 74/49/s | 50 | Wichita Falls, TX | 89/60/s | 75 | Wilmington, DE | 78/48/s | 28 | Wilmington, NC | 82/62/pc | 45 | Wisconsin Rapids, WI | 66/41/pc | 25 | Wooster, OH | 69/38/s | 75 | Worcester, MA | 68/48/pc | 45 | York, PA | 75/43/s | 44 | Air Quality Index: 0-50, Good; 51-100, Moderate; 101-150, Unhealthy for sensitive groups; 151-200, Unhealthy; 201-300, Very unhealthy; 301-500, Hazardous

INTERNATIONAL CITIES | ThursdayHigh/low/W | FridayHigh/low/W | Acapulco | 83/74/r | 82/74/t | Addis Ababa | 77/52/pc | 77/53/pc | Algiers | 82/66/sh | 77/57/sh | Amman | 85/64/s | 84/63/pc | Amsterdam | 60/51/r | 63/52/r | Ankara | 73/45/t | 74/42/s | Asuncion | 87/73/t | 81/67/t | Athens | 78/60/s | 79/60/s | Auckland | 68/51/s | 70/54/pc | Baghdad | 96/79/pc | 97/78/pc | Bangkok | 92/79/r | 94/79/t | Beijing | 80/49/pc | 80/55/s | Beirut | 84/74/s | 84/73/s | Belgrade | 83/61/pc | 72/53/sh | Berlin | 65/46/r | 57/50/pc | Bogota | 69/51/r | 67/52/r | Brussels | 60/47/sh | 60/49/c | Bucharest | 79/47/pc | 83/56/pc | Budapest | 77/53/t | 66/44/s | Buenos Aires | 66/56/r | 62/56/r | Cairo | 86/67/pc | 85/68/pc | - Denotes possible travel delays Thursday | ThursdayHigh/low/W | FridayHigh/low/W | Cape Town | 68/53/pc | 71/54/c | Caracas | 92/79/r | 92/76/r | Casablanca | 78/60/sh | 78/60/sh | Colombo | 90/76/r | 90/76/r | Copenhagen | 59/48/r | 56/51/r | Damascus | 87/59/s | 89/59/s | Dublin | 59/53/r | 60/47/pc | Geneva | 59/45/sh | 60/50/r | Guatemala City | 76/64/t | 77/64/t | Hanoi | 91/72/s | 91/74/pc | Harare | 82/59/t | 83/58/t | Havana | 90/73/r | 90/75/r | Helsinki | 56/54/c | 56/44/r | Hong Kong | 87/78/pc | 88/78/s | Jakarta | 93/76/c | 93/77/sh | Jerusalem | 78/63/s | 79/62/s | Johannesburg | 78/57/s | 84/59/c | Kabul | 79/55/pc | 78/55/pc | Khartoum | 97/82/pc | 102/84/s | Kyiv | 74/52/pc | 67/44/c | Kingston | 91/80/sh | 89/80/t | ThursdayHigh/low/W | FridayHigh/low/W | La Paz | 65/36/s | 66/32/s | Lagos | 86/77/r | 85/76/r | Lima | 79/72/pc | 81/71/s | Lisbon | 81/60/s | 79/57/s | London | 60/52/s | 66/47/sh | Madrid | 71/41/s | 70/45/s | Manila | 90/79/t | 93/79/t | Mexico City | 72/57/r | 69/55/t | Milan | 69/56/r | 71/56/pc | Mombasa | 87/75/r | 84/74/r | Montevideo | 67/57/r | 63/57/c | Montreal | 63/46/sh | 57/37/sh | Moscow | 59/45/c | 62/44/c | Nairobi | 81/62/t | 82/63/t | New Delhi | 92/75/s | 91/72/pc | Panama City | 89/75/t | 90/75/t | Paris | 60/44/s | 60/53/r | Port-au-Prince | 86/73/sh | 94/71/t | Rio de Janeiro | 80/72/pc | 84/75/t | Riyadh | 105/79/pc | 104/78/pc | Rome | 77/64/sh | 73/56/pc | Weather(W): s-sunny, pc-partly cloudy, c-cloudy, sh-showers, t-thunderstorms, r-rain, sf-snow flurries, sn-snow, i-ice. | ThursdayHigh/low/W | FridayHigh/low/W | San Jose | 80/68/r | 82/69/r | ● San Salvador | 83/69/r | 83/69/r | ● Santiago | 65/47/r | 67/44/pc | Sao Paulo | 83/67/pc | 88/69/r | ● Sarajevo | 73/57/pc | 69/51/r | Shanghai | 81/63/s | 80/65/pc | Singapore | 94/80/t | 93/79/t | ● Stockholm | 56/44/r | 46/35/c | Sydney | 67/53/pc | 75/63/s | Taipei | 84/72/pc | 85/74/pc | ● Tegucigalpa | 82/68/t | 84/66/t | Tehran | 85/68/pc | 85/65/c | Tokyo | 77/63/s | 77/63/s | Toronto | 65/46/sh | 65/47/sh | Tunis | 91/69/pc | 77/64/r | Vancouver | 62/53/pc | 59/48/sh | ● Vienna | 76/52/c | 63/45/pc | ● Warsaw | 74/49/c | 58/49/pc | Yerevan | 69/53/pc | 68/47/pc | ● Zagreb | 72/56/sh | 63/48/r | ● Zurich | 60/42/sh | 59/47/r | # Pressure mounts on Cornell

Leadership facing student protests, alumni criticism

Helen Coster

REUTERS

NEW YORK – Cornell University's administration and president are facing mounting pressure over the school's handling of an alleged 2024 gang rape that has thrust it into the national spotlight and set off a wave of outrage over sexual violence on college campuses.

Since Oct. 5, the administration has faced student protests, a no-confidence resolution from faculty and criticism by alumni. A seven-hour sit-in in support of the alleged victim was being held on Oct. 7.

Representatives for University President Michael Kotlikoff and Cornell did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Kotlikoff released a video statement over the weekend in which he said “we must do better” and the school would take “a serious look at the role of fraternities and sororities in campus life.”

Still, calls have mounted among some demonstrators for the resignation of Kotlikoff and members of his administration, blaming their policies for what protesters have described as a “culture of rape” on campus.

The demonstrators also want an external inquiry into how Cornell's administration has handled the matter, independent hearings and uniform minimum sanctions for all sexual assaults on campus, as well as better training for campus police in responding to complaints of sexual violence and harassment.

Yasmeen Masoud, a Cornell University student, holds a sign while taking part in a sit-in protest in Ithaca, New York, on Oct. 7. ANGELINA KATSANIS/REUTERS

The Cornell Faculty Senate, which represents faculty members in university governance, introduced a resolution this week calling for a no-confidence vote in the administration's handling of the school's “ongoing crisis of sexual assault.”

The resolution will be debated at the Senate's Oct. 14 meeting.

Alumni are also voicing concern. In an open letter to Kotlikoff and the university's Board of Trustees, posted on the Cornell Daily Sun website, alumnus Marco Fuentes wrote that the president and trustees had "single-handedly degraded" the school's reputation and "eroded the value of the degrees earned by tens of thousands of proud alumni" through their "administrative negligence and spineless handling" of the alleged assault.

Fuentes wrote that he will no longer bequeath half his estate to the school, and is contacting alumni and donor networks to advocate for a freeze on donations until leadership changes occur.

The outcry began in September with a lawsuit in which the alleged victim, referred to as “Jane Doe,” said she was plied with drugs and alcohol and sexually assaulted by several members of the campus chapter of the Chi Phi fraternity in October 2024 after she became incapacitated.

She reported the alleged assault to police several weeks after the fact, leading to an internal university investigation and a law enforcement probe, but the local prosecutor declined to bring criminal charges in the case.

Cornell, which has defended its response to the original report, shut down the Chi Phi chapter and imposed a range of discipline on the fraternity members involved, including expulsions and other sanctions.

The alleged victim's lawsuit criticized the university for having offered some of the alleged perpetrators a chance to mitigate their penalties by writing essays.

The men all denied any wrongdoing, some saying the sexual activity was consensual and others disputing their participation, the New York Times has reported, citing Cornell documents.

Cornell said this week it hired a top former U.S. Justice Department lawyer to conduct an independent review of how Cornell prevents and responds to sexual assault claims.

Pharma lobby sues administration over Medicare drug pricing plan

Michael Erman

REUTERS

The pharmaceutical industry's top lobby group on Oct. 7 sued to invalidate the Trump administration's efforts to benchmark U.S. drug prices to lower costs overseas in the Medicare health insurance program, arguing that it is an illegal government overreach.

The GLOBE rule intends to set hospital drug prices for Medicare patients. Its final version was published last week on exactly how a “most-favored-nation” pricing system based on what is paid in a group of comparable countries would be integrated in the Medicare Part B program.

The rule is expected to have limited reach. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services plans to waive it for manufacturers that have signed separate voluntary deals with the White House to cut prices for their drugs, and it could ultimately apply to as few as four drug-makers.

The PhRMA lobby group filed its lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia against the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., CMS and two of its officials.

The lobby group argues in its lawsuit that CMS, Medicare's regulator, has stretched the authority of a program to test new pricing ideas into rewriting Medicare's pricing structure without congressional action.

Congress has given CMS “a little bit of authority to test models,” PhRMA General Counsel Jim Stansel said in an interview. “Instead, CMS is doing exactly what Congress has declined to do multiple times over the last several years, and that’s to replace the pricing structure in Medicare with a most-favored nation structure.”

Stansel said that the lawsuit was important even with the limited reach of the rule because GLOBE could outlast the voluntary deals drugmakers have signed, and could extend to future administrations beyond President Donald Trump's.

Rachel Turow, an attorney with Skadden who is not involved in the lawsuit, said it can be viewed as an attempt to stop future price controls using simi-

lar mechanisms.

If they don't foreclose the idea that you can use this process “to impose drug pricing controls, then they’ve basically opened the floodgates,” Turow said.

Medicare is the U.S. government program that provides health coverage to about 70 million people aged 65 and older or with disabilities.

HHS was not immediately available to comment on the lawsuit.

In the finalized version of the rule, however, the agency argued that it was not overstepping its bounds, writing, "CMS is acting within a detailed, purpose specific statutory framework that Congress designed precisely for this type of model test."

Trump has already signed deals with more than two dozen drugmakers, including many of the world's largest.

The final rule sharply reduced the government's projected savings from the model. HHS now estimates the program will reduce Medicare Part B spending by about \$440 million over the seven-year model period, compared with roughly \$11.9 billion projected in the proposed rule published last year.

---

TODAY IN HISTORY

---

Today is Oct. 8. On this date in:

1775: A council of officers at Cambridge, Massachusetts, unanimously voted to discharge all Black men, both slaves and free, from the Continental Army. But with recruitment low, Gen. George Washington later allowed them to reenlist, and by 1778 there were over 750 Black soldiers fighting for American independence.

1871: The Great Chicago Fire erupted, destroying about 3.5 square miles of the city. It took two days to extinguish the fire that killed more than 300 people and left about 100,000 residents homeless. According to legend, it started when Mrs. O'Leary's cow kicked over a lantern in her barn on DeKoven Street.

1894: The Hershey Chocolate Co., one of the largest chocolate manufacturers in the United States, was founded.

1918: In the Argonne Forest of France, U.S. Sgt. Alvin C. York single-handedly took out a German machine-gun battalion during World War I, killing at least 25 enemy soldiers and capturing 132. Although he had tried to avoid the war for religious reasons, York returned a national hero. He was later awarded the Medal of Honor and the French Croix de Guerre.

1958: The first scheduled transatlantic passenger jet service began. Pan Am's Boeing 707 took off from New York's Idlewild Airport (now known as John F. Kennedy International Airport) and flew nonstop to Paris, drastically reducing the travel time between the two continents and revolutionizing commercial aviation.

1967: Iconic Argentine Marxist revolutionary Che Guevara, who played a key role in the Cuban Revolution, was captured by the Bolivian army and executed the next day, solidifying his status as a martyr and symbol of global revolution.

1993: The U.N. General Assembly lifted economic sanctions against South Africa following the end of racial apartheid. The sanctions had been imposed since the 1960s.

1996: Palestinian President Yasser Arafat made his first public visit to Israel for talks with Israeli President Ezer Weizman at his private residence.

1998: The popular search engine Google, founded by Larry Page and Sergey Brin, was incorporated as a privately held company.

1998: The House of Representatives voted 258-176 to approve a resolution launching an impeachment inquiry of President Bill Clinton.

2001: President George W. Bush announced the creation of the Office of Homeland Security in response to the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. The office later became the Department of Homeland Security, a federal agency responsible for coordinating the country's defense against terrorism and ensuring national security.

USA TODAY Network

FINANCIAL MARKETS

Wall Street ends lower as Treasury yields climb

Fed's minutes reveal division over rationale

Stephen Culp and Tharuniyaa Lakshmi

REUTERS

NEW YORK – Wall Street closed lower on Oct. 7, as long-dated U.S. Treasury yields resumed their climb, reviving fears about inflation and mounting debt the day after the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq hit record closing highs.

All three major U.S. stock indexes were modestly lower, with the S&P 500 and the Dow snapping four-day winning streaks. The Nasdaq notched its first down day in six.

The small-cap Russell 2000 underperformed its larger cap counterparts, dropping 1.3%.

In the wake of the Oct. 6 stock market rally, Brent crude settled above \$100 per barrel and long-dated Treasury yields touched a 24-year high.

Iran war-related supply concerns have led to soaring oil prices, which in turn have revived inflation worries and raised the chances of a prolonged central bank rate hiking cycle. Those concerns, combined with mounting corporate and sovereign debt levels, have caused a global bond sell-off, which rattled global markets in recent weeks.

Investors “have been looking for some relief on oil, which would drive some relief on rates and that would therefore help the stock market,” said Thomas Martin, senior portfolio manager at GLOBALT in Atlanta.

"The third quarter was supposed to be the weak quarter of the year; we were supposed to get a correction," Martin added. "That didn't happen, so it's three cheers and let's take some money off the table."

Stocks pared losses after crude prices turned lower following the International Energy Agency's agreement to speed up the release of oil stocks, prioritizing diesel.

Minutes from the U.S. Federal Reserve's September monetary policy meeting, at which the central bank unanimously approved its first interest rate hike since July 2023, revealed divisions over the rationale of the increase. Some participants saw a hike as necessary to keep the impact of energy price shocks at bay, while others felt the increase was necessary to curb demand-driven inflation.

Financial markets are currently pricing in a $17.2\%$ likelihood that the Fed will implement a second consecutive rate hike at the conclusion of its October meeting, down from $37.6\%$ a week ago, according to CME's FedWatch Tool.

Oil prices

Brent crude futures settled down 38 cents, or 0.38%, at \$100.20 a barrel on Oct. 7. West Texas Intermediate crude futures settled down \$1.16, or 1.3%, to \$88.28.

"The market's Fed expectations are going to seesaw as it gets new bits of data," Martin said. "There's still an expectation for more rate hikes, but it isn't necessarily going to be a hike every meeting and that's what the market is telling you; October will be a pause."

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 341.11 points, or 0.66%, to 51,180.17; the S&P 500 lost 17.18 points, or 0.22%, to 7,801.75; and the Nasdaq Composite lost 61.19 points, or 0.22%, to 27,538.69.

Among the 11 sectors in the S&P 500, industrials suffered the steepest percentage drop, while health care stocks led the gainers.

Following the upward march of benchmark Treasury yields, the 30-year fixed mortgage rate surged last week to a near three-year high, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association. Housing and homebuilders slipped 2.3% and 2.9%, respectively.

Chip stocks, which have soared over 80% so far this year, dropped 1.2%.

SpaceX lost 2.5% following media reports that Elon Musk's aerospace firm was seeking \$40 billion in financing to fund purchases of Nvidia chips.

Next week, third-quarter reporting season is expected to begin in earnest with a spate of high-profile financial firms expected to post results.

Investors are likely to scrutinize the extent to which massive expenditures on AI technology are beginning to show results, while also watching for clues regarding the health of the U.S. consumer at a time of mounting inflationary pressures.

Analysts currently expect year-on-year S&P 500 earnings growth of 30.6%, on aggregate, for the July-through-September period, according to LSEG.

Declining issues outnumbered advancers by a 3.34-to-1 ratio on the NYSE. There were 115 new highs and 497 new lows on the NYSE.

On the Nasdaq, 1,421 stocks rose and 3,371 fell as declining issues outnumbered advancers by a 2.37-to-1 ratio.

The S&P 500 posted nine new 52-week highs and 12 new lows, while the Nasdaq Composite recorded 32 new highs and 250 new lows.

Volume on U.S. exchanges was 16.21 billion shares, compared with the 17.57 billion average for the full session over the last 20 trading days.

---

NEWS IN BRIEF

---

Democrats sue Trump to halt his taxpayer-funded TV ads

WASHINGTON – Democratic Party officials sued President Donald Trump on Oct. 7, seeking a court order blocking his administration from using taxpayer money to pay for election-related TV ads.

The lawsuit, filed by the Democratic National Committee in federal court in Washington, accused Trump of a “blatant violation of the statutory ban on the use of appropriations for ‘publicity or propaganda purposes.’”

Taxpayer-funded television ads glorifying Trump began airing in late September, sparking a bipartisan backlash.

In a post on his Truth Social site on Oct. 5, Trump said he considered the ads to be “a positive promotion for our Great U.S.A.,” but that they would no longer be funded by taxpayers. The White House said this week his MAGA PAC would fund the ads.

The DNC, the main governing organization of the Democratic Party, said in its lawsuit that the ads continued to air after Trump's comments.

---

DHS aims to charge international students for work authorization

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Homeland Security has proposed that international students pay at least \$70,000 in training fees if they want to work in the country, according to a government notice posted Oct. 7, part of the Trump administration's crackdown on foreign visa holders.

Under the proposal, nonimmigrant students with F-1 visas would be required to pay \$70,000 to a certified institution for on-the-job training, known as Optional Practical Training, or OPT, and \$30,000 for any additional work training.

DHS said the new rules were meant “to combat fraud, strengthen the integrity of the immigration system, and protect U.S. workers.”

Under the OPT system, foreign students can engage in work training for up to 20 hours per week while school is in session, as well as for a limited time after graduation, with an additional allowance for those with degrees in science, technology, engineering and mathematics. Those who enroll are currently expected to pay around \$500.

---

U.S. forces face curfew, alcohol ban in Okinawa after killing

TOKYO – U.S. soldiers stationed on Japan's Okinawa have been given a monthlong curfew and banned from drinking alcohol while they undergo discipline training after a Marine was alleged to have killed and robbed a local woman.

Lance Cpl. Devin Jacob Ballard, 20, is suspected of killing Anna Yagi, 39, in a hotel in Naha, the capital of the southernmost prefecture, on Oct. 3 and taking her wallet and backpack. Ballard denied the allegations, police said.

The case is the latest in a string of incidents stretching back years that have fueled unease over the large U.S. troop presence on the island chain near Taiwan and China, with U.S. officials warning it could undermine ties vital to security in East Asia.

“Every interaction with our neighbors either builds or undermines the trust that is essential to our team. When that trust is damaged, it affects the strength of our alliance and the security of this region,” Lt. Gen. Benjamin Watson said in a statement on Oct. 6 ordering the measures.

---

U.S. seizes \$3M in fuel shipments to Cuba as crackdown continues

HAVANA – The United States said on Oct. 7 it had seized 90 separate shipments of biodiesel bound for Cuba worth nearly \$3 million, the second time in a week U.S. authorities have announced the seizure of “illegal” fuel en route to the island nation.

The enforcement action comes as the Trump administration continues to strangle Cuba's energy sector, allowing only relatively small shipments of fuel to reach the island's private sector in a program aimed at undercutting the Cuban government.

Department of Homeland Security Miami Special Agent in Charge Jose Figueroa told reporters in Miami on Oct. 7 that the seized shipments were bound for Enetec, a Havana-based, state-owned fuel company sanctioned by the United States earlier this year.

Authorities said they had intercepted the fuel shipments in Houston and at Port Everglades in South Florida before they departed the United States. More than 600,000 gallons of fuel were seized, Homeland Security said. Reuters

At least 28 killed in Ukraine

A firefighter works at the site of an apartment building damaged during a Russian drone strike in Kyiv on Oct. 7. GLEB GARANICH/REUTERS

Zelenskyy condemns one of Moscow's 'most vile strikes'

Olena Harmash

and Vladyslav Smilianets

REUTERS

KYIV – Russia pounded Ukraine with waves of missiles and drones in one of its “most vile strikes” on Oct. 7, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said, killing at least 28 people, including children, and damaging industrial facilities and energy infrastructure.

Interior Minister Ivan Vyhivskyi put the country-wide death toll at 28.

The heaviest losses were in Pryluky in Ukraine's northern Chernihiv region, where a Russian missile obliterated a five-story residential building. Regional Gov. Vyacheslav Chaus said 20 people died in the attack, including five children.

Late Oct. 7, prosecutors in the capital, Kyiv, said falling debris from a drone killed two people in a suburb.

Zelenskyy said that 100 people had been injured throughout the country.

The president noted that the attacks coincided with Russian President Vladimir Putin's birthday.

"This is the kind of birthday present that Putin gave himself: the killing of children, the killing of people," Zelenskyy said in his nightly video address.

In earlier online comments, Zelenskyy said civilians had also been killed in Kyiv and in the central cities of Oleksandria and Kremenchuk during the massive attack.

In total, Russia fired 70 missiles at Ukraine overnight – many of them high-velocity ballistic munitions – and dozens of Shahed attack drones, he said.

"The Russians wanted to strike painfully and demonstratively. This was one of the most vile strikes."

In Pryluky, an excavator and dozens of rescuers with shovels sifted through rubble at the site where several sections of the apartment block had collapsed.

Emergency workers used ladders to get to the upper floors of what remained of the building, and brought out 15 survivors as they worked their way down through the rubble. Around 55 people were wounded in the town, regional officials said.

"There's a lot of destruction, especially in the town center," said Danylo Savenko, deputy mayor of Pryluky, who said he had run to an air raid shelter with his wife as soon as he heard the missiles flying.

---

Big jump in reported drone interceptions

Russia's defense ministry said its forces had carried out a “massive strike” on military-industrial facilities in Kyiv and other Ukrainian regions, using high-precision land-, sea- and air-launched weapons, as well as drones.

Ukraine's air force said it had downed just over $80\%$ of the 46 jet-powered drones launched by Russia – an increase from recent weeks when air defenses took down $50\%$ to $60\%$ .

Since the summer, Russia has used increasing numbers of the new high-velocity drones in round-the-clock attacks on Kyiv and other cities, with Ukraine's air defenses struggling to cope.

The air force did not explain the jump in the interception rate and did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Zelenskyy said the Russian ballistic missiles remained the major challenge for Ukraine, adding that he and his team were “every day looking for Patriot [missile interception] systems that can and must protect people’s lives.”

Ukraine received a new \$1.34 billion tranche from the European Union on Oct. 7 and will channel the funds toward defense needs, said Prime Minister Sergii Koretskyi.

The U.S.-made Patriot system is the only weapon in Ukraine's arsenal capable of stopping high-velocity ballistic missiles. Global supplies have been drained by the Iran war and the Ukraine conflict.

Russia's defense ministry said its targets included sites where Ukrainian defense company Fire Point manufactures and stores its Flamingo cruise missiles and medium- and long-range drones in Kyiv as well as the regions of Kyiv, Chernihiv, Kirovohrad, Dnipropetrovsk, Poltava and Kharkiv.

Last week, Zelenskyy said Ukraine had fired its first domestically made ballistic missile in combat, produced by Fire Point.

In an interview with Reuters, he said he expected the company to have a longer-range FP-9 missile ready by the fall. Fire Point has said that weapon will be able to reach Moscow.

---

People shelter overnight in Kyiv metro stations

Zelenskyy said Ukrainian troops hit four targets in Russia over the past 24 hours, including two Russian oil facilities and a training ground in the Perm, Samara and Astrakhan regions.

In the Reuters interview, Zelenskyy said Ukraine would hit Russia's energy assets in response to Moscow's escalating strikes on civilian infrastructure.

Ukrainian officials and military intelligence shared warnings of the upcoming attacks on Oct. 7, and many Kyiv residents took shelter in the city's underground metro stations.

Several loud explosions reverberated through the capital during the night.

In the part of Ukraine's southern Kherson region under Russian control, the regional Russia-installed governor said a Ukrainian drone killed two civilians in a car. And Russia-installed officials in Moscow-held parts of the eastern Donetsk region said three people died in Ukrainian attacks.

IEA to accelerate oil reserve release

Plan will prioritize diesel supplies amid high prices

The Iran and Ukraine wars have damaged refineries and disrupted tanker traffic, helping drive diesel prices to record highs. MIKE BLAKE/REUTERS FILE

Kate Abnett and Holger Hansen

REUTERS

BRUSSELS – The International Energy Agency agreed on Oct. 7 to accelerate the release of oil stocks and to prioritize diesel supplies under a plan launched in March, as governments seek to tackle record fuel prices and supply disruptions caused by the Iran war.

Wars in Iran and Ukraine have damaged refineries and disrupted tanker traffic, helping drive diesel prices to record highs in many markets and turning the fuel into a major political and economic concern worldwide.

The IEA said completing previously announced releases as quickly as possible could bring around 100 million barrels to market, although analysts and some governments said the figure did not necessarily represent a fresh intervention of that size.

The statement from the IEA, which advises industrialized countries, followed an agreement by G7 countries on Oct. 2 to release 100 million barrels of crude and diesel, which raised expectations of additional oil stock releases. The G7 move came after President Donald Trump warned he might ban U.S. diesel exports if they did not put more of the fuel into the market.

The IEA, which coordinates emergency oil stockpiles among industrialized countries, launched a 400 million-barrel release program in March to counter shortages and rising prices caused by the Iran war, although not all of those volumes have yet reached the market.

"Member governments expressed support for accelerating the oil stock releases announced in the Collective Action of March 2026 with a view to completing them as soon as possible," IEA Executive Director Fatih Birol said in the statement.

“IEA members also supported the prioritization of the release of diesel stocks, to the extent possible, given the current tightness in diesel markets.”

The IEA said about 100 million barrels pledged under the March initiative have yet to reach the market.

The IEA did not specify how much diesel and how much crude oil will be released.

In reaction to the IEA comment, the European Union member states agreed the planned oil releases must be done within the amount approved in March, a spokesperson for the European Commission said on Oct. 7.

IEA members are scheduled to assess and review the plans at a board meeting next week, the statement said.

The G7 includes EU members France, Germany and Italy along with the United States, United Kingdom, Ja-

pan and Canada.

Before the IEA statement, JPMorgan analysts said the Oct. 2 announcement appeared largely to accelerate deliveries already pledged under the March program rather than signal a fresh intervention.

"Our interpretation of the press release is that the headline 100 million barrels does not represent 100 million barrels of new intervention," the bank said in a report.

Germany's Economy Ministry said it was working to approve releases from reserves under the March plan but gave no indication of any new volume.

“Germany will participate in the further release of the volume already determined by the IEA in March,” the ministry said in a statement.

IEA member governments still have publicly held emergency oil stocks equivalent to around 1.1 billion barrels, including over 200 million barrels of diesel, the IEA's statement said.

Continued from Page 1NN

asked about Vance's comment that Tehran must cut enrichment to end the war.

Iran and the United States have exchanged proposals in recent weeks aimed at ending the war and reopening the Strait of Hormuz, a vital global energy shipping route. Trump rejected Tehran's latest offer and has warned that military operations could intensify after the midterms.

Vance said the United States remained open to an agreement but would require concrete Iranian nuclear concessions.

“We’re not going to trade words for actions,” Vance said.

Trump and administration officials have consistently called for blocking Iran's path to building a nuclear weapon, including the destruction or removal of its highly enriched uranium stockpile that can be used for a nuclear bomb.

The message has been less clear on whether Iran, under a possible peace deal, might be permitted to maintain some enriched uranium, at levels below what would be necessary to quickly build a weapon.

---

Tehran's red line

The senior Iranian official said no negotiations had taken place with the United States about Iran's nuclear program, and Washington must first meet

Tehran's conditions before nuclear talks can start.

The official said U.S. recognition of Iran's right to nuclear enrichment is Tehran's red line, which he said "it will not show flexibility on in any way." However, he said details of enrichment can be discussed later.

“Vance’s comments are Washington’s ideas and requests. ... Americans are free to make requests and have ideas, but they are at odds with Iran’s demands,” said the senior Iranian official, who is involved in indirect negotiations with the United States.

Israel, the United States and other Western states have long accused Iran of seeking nuclear weapons, including pointing to its move to enrich uranium to 60%, far higher than needed for civilian uses and closer to the 90% needed for a weapon. Iran denies seeking nuclear weapons; Iranian authorities have said that Tehran could agree to dilute its most highly enriched uranium.

Complicating matters, Vance said Washington is uncertain who makes decisions in Tehran.

Vance said the United States was in talks with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian and Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi. But it was unclear how much authority they wield within Iran's power structure, he said, after joint U.S.-Israeli strikes at the start of the war killed Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

"One of the things we picked up on is it's not totally clear how their country makes decisions," Vance said.

Separately, Trump said on Oct. 6 that

---

"I think if they want to show a commitment to not building a nuclear weapon, they would do something meaningful on their enrichment capacity." Vice President JD Vance Speaking about Iran's leaders

his “biggest problem” is no one knows who is running Iran.

Iran's Foreign Ministry spokesperson said on Oct. 4 that U.S. officials are well aware of who their Iranian counterparts are and how Iran's decision-making system works. "The problem is actually the opposite: it lies in the contradictory positions and mixed messaging from U.S. officials," Esmaeil Baghaei told a weekly news conference.

Vance told Reuters he has held personal conversations with field commanders to gauge battlefield conditions. He dismissed concerns over critical munitions shortages and added that while Iranian troops are periodically able to strike commercial ships in the Strait of Hormuz, they are largely unable to prevent energy exports through the waterway.

Vance declined to say whether he was leading peace talks, though he is frequently cited as the White House's top negotiator.

“We’re certainly involved,” he said. “Ultimately, the president of the United States is driving things.”

---

Republicans on the defensive

The war – and its \$3 billion monthly price tag – has become a key issue on the campaign trail. Higher energy prices have put Trump and Republicans on the defensive in competitive states that will decide control of Congress.

Vance has sought to temper criticism of Trump's handling of the conflict, telling voters they should not let that issue keep them from backing Republicans in November's elections.

In Alaska, Vance rallied for Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan, who is locked in a tight reelection battle with Democratic challenger Mary Peltola. Trump carried Alaska by 13 percentage points in 2024, but rising everyday costs have put the state in play.

Before speaking with Reuters, Vance focused much of his speech on affordability concerns, especially around energy. Alaska's remote locale makes consumer goods more expensive, and energy production is a key industry.

Rally attendees roared when Sullivan nearly introduced Vance as U.S. president, rather than vice president. Vance is seen as a leading Republican contender to succeed Trump.

Vance told Reuters afterward that he had not decided whether to seek the presidency in 2028. “I’m inherently a procrastinator,” he said. “I really haven’t thought about it much.”

Attacks

Continued from Page 1NN

19 hostages back into Gaza, residents held a vigil for those killed, standing in silence as a trumpet played a solemn bugle call. A resident read out a roll call of the dead.

Zion Regev, a community leader in the kibbutz, said most residents remain displaced and have yet to return, the trauma of Oct. 7 continuing to shape their lives.

“This is the first time we are doing all the things here in the kibbutz,” Regev said of the vigil. “It’s a very emotional day, it’s a very difficult day for our community, three years after Oct. 7.”

Elsewhere in Israel, protesters against what they view as a lack of accountability for the security failure gathered outside parliament in Jerusalem, blaming Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for refusing an independent inquiry into the attack.

Some protesters held signs reading: "The people will remember October 7 on October 27," a reference to an Israeli general election 20 days away that is being viewed as a referendum on Netanyahu's long tenure in power.

“We need the change and we need hope and we need to know that we have a government that cares about the public and doesn’t work also only for themselves,” said protester Shaked Arrad.

Netanyahu has rejected blame for the security breach and resisted calls for an independent investigation. That has frustrated many in Israel, including families of those killed in the attacks, some of whom have joined the election race.

In a statement released by his office, Netanyahu said: "The nation unites on this day in the longing for our dear

A Palestinian

sits in the

ruins of a

building

destroyed

during the war

in Gaza City on

Oct. 7. Gaza's

residents

mostly live in

makeshift

tents and

bombed-out

buildings.

MAHMOUD

ISSA/REUTERS

Continued from Page 1NN

Direct criticism was relatively rare, underscoring Trump's dominance of the Republican Party and the risks candidates face in openly challenging a president who still commands the loyalty of many ardent supporters.

ones."

Others acted in subtler ways, skipping his events or declining to say whether he should campaign on their behalf.

Candidates distancing themselves from an unpopular president before an election is not unusual. Democrats employed similar tactics in the 2014 and 2022 elections.

Referring to his country's ongoing attacks in Gaza, he added: "We will complete the mission: we have settled the score and will continue settling the score with all the murderers."

Election polls show neither Netanyahu nor his main competitors would muster enough seats in parliament to form a coalition if a vote were held today.

diately provide comment. The military did not provide comment on the strike in Khan Younis.

While Reuters did not conduct a comparable review of competitive races in the 2018 midterms during Trump's first term, analysts said Trump has rarely faced such widespread pushback by vulnerable Republican candidates.

---

Life in Gaza

Umm Mohammad, a mother of five displaced from Gaza City and now living with her husband and children in a tent encampment in Deir Al-Balah, said the war had ripped her family apart.

The anniversary is the first since the Oct. 10, 2025, ceasefire deal, which has left Israel in control of around two-

“We were one happy family. The war displaced us. My son left Gaza, the other went to a separate tent, my daughters left with their husbands to other parts of the Strip and we rarely meet,” she said.

Privately, campaign advisers told Reuters that candidates needed to dial back ties to Trump to attract indepenthirds of Gaza, where it has demolished remaining buildings and ordered residents out.

On this day, she said, “We recall how happy, despite all problems, we were before the war broke out, destroying everything we loved.”

"[Candidates] are reflecting voter attitudes in these races," said Republican strategist Ron Bonjean. "If [voters] are not with Trump, then they need to show a break."

Republicans

Hamas controls the remaining third of the territory, a narrow strip on the coast where the population of 2 million mostly live in makeshift tents and bombed-out buildings.

In the latest violence, Gaza medics said on Oct. 7 Israel's military had carried out air strikes in Beit Lahia in northern Gaza and in Khan Younis in the south, killing at least two Palestinians and wounding others.

The Israeli military said it struck and killed two people it described as militants with Hamas, which did not imme-

The balancing act was on display this week when Ricketts, who criticized Trump's plan to expand beef imports, joined the president at a Nebraska rally.

dent voters. Publicly, they dismissed criticism of the repositioning.

Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks, a Republican in one of the country's most competitive House races in Iowa, has also shown a growing willingness to break with the administration. She was among 12 candidates identified by Reuters who split with Trump on multiple issues, criticizing his beef-import policy and later voting to limit his war powers in Iran after previously opposing similar measures.

“President Trump, I have been fighting for you in Washington,” Ricketts told the crowd.

Republican Sen. Pete Ricketts, who faces a tough challenge from independent Dan Osborn in Nebraska, exemplifies the 11 candidates identified by Reuters who broke with Trump on one policy issue while backing him on everything else.

“It is a balancing act,” said Republican consultant Jeanette Hoffman, adding that candidates are trying to capital-

Yet, less than two weeks after her war powers vote, Miller-Meeks joined Trump at the White House to announce a major steel plant investment in Iowa.

Sen. Pete Ricketts, R-Nebraska, criticized Trump's plan to expand beef imports but joined the president at a Nebraska rally. KYLIE COOPER/REUTERS FILE

ize on the administration's successes while creating some distance from Trump because of “how toxic the Trump brand is at the moment.”

---

Scrubbing Trump references

As Republicans in competitive races seek to expand their appeal beyond Trump's core supporters, some candidates have begun dialing back public displays of loyalty to the president.

Mike Beltran, a former Florida state representative running against Democratic U.S. Rep. Kathy Castor, is among candidates who have scrubbed prominent references to Trump from their campaign websites.

In August, his homepage featured a photo of Trump and said he stood with the president, according to the Wayback Machine, an internet archive website. Now Beltran's homepage shows only him and his family and makes no mention of Trump.

Beltran's campaign had no immediate response to a Reuters request for comment.

Rep. Mike Lawler of New York, facing one of the most competitive U.S. House races, embodies the balancing act confronting many Republicans in battleground districts: staying close to Trump while demonstrating independence from him.

Lawler has highlighted breaks with Trump on issues including temporary legal protections for Haitian immigrants and a Trump-backed proposal to restore Turkey's access to F-35 fighter jets.

His campaign manager Ciro Riccardi said Lawler acts on behalf of his constituency regardless of a president's stance.

Lawler acknowledged the disagreements in a speech to Trump supporters at the Republican midterm convention in September, saying, “The truth is that the president and I don’t always agree. And that’s OK.”