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Colts hold on for 33-28 win over Texans

By WTOP Staff

KRISTIE RIEKEN
AP Sports Writer

HOUSTON (AP) — Andrew Luck tried not to make too much of the Indianapolis Colts’ victory over the Houston Texans.

Yet the quarterback couldn’t help but be a little excited after the 33-28 win Thursday night gave Indianapolis first place in the AFC South.

“I realize it’s only Week 6 so it’s not a Super Bowl, and it’s not anything too, too special,” he said. “But to beat a real darn-good football team like that is huge for us.”

The Colts (4-2) led 24-0 after one quarter, but allowed Houston (3-3) to cut it to five points early in the fourth on J.J. Watt’s fumble return for a touchdown.

The Texans had two opportunities to take the lead late, but the Colts recovered fumbles by Andre Johnson and Ryan Fitzpatrick in the last five minutes.

“You can finally start to see the type of defense that we envisioned a long time ago to go out there and do that week in and week out,” Colts coach Chuck Pagano said.

Luck finished with 370 yards passing and three touchdowns for his fourth straight 300-yard passing game. T.Y. Hilton had a career-high 223 yards receiving with a touchdown.

The Texans were driving with less than 5 minutes remaining when Johnson — called for pass interference two plays earlier — caught a 13-yard pass and fumbled.

Watt knocked down Luck’s pass on third down on Indy’s next drive to give Houston one last chance. But Bjoern Werner sacked Fitzpatrick and stripped the ball, and D’Qwell Jackson recovered.

“We fought. We gave it a good shot, a good run but in the end we didn’t make enough plays,” Watt said.

Houston coach Bill O’Brien was at a loss about why his team can’t get things going early.

“I don’t know,” he said. “We haven’t started well yet so got to try to figure it out.”

Five things to know about Indy’s win over Houston:

LUCK ROLLING: Luck is off to the best start of his career and leads the NFL with 1,987 yards passing and 17 touchdowns. He threw touchdown passes of 5, 4 and 33 yards on Thursday night.

WATT A PLAYER: Watt, who was the Defensive Player of the Year in 2012, has been almost unstoppable this season. Watt had two sacks and swatted down two passes on Thursday night and his 45-yard fumble return for a touchdown was his third score this season.

“He’s a great, great player,” Pagano said. “He’s one of the most dominant players in the game right now. He’ll go down as one of the best defensive players … to play the game.”

After getting some grief from his teammates after a failed attempt at a dance called the ‘Nae Nae’ the last time he scored, Watt tried it again this time and it was much better. He waved one hand in the air and swayed his hips wildly while flanked by A.J. Bouye and Whitney Mercilus, who joined in on the dance.

Watt was disappointed that Houston lost another close game after falling to the Cowboys in overtime last week, but was encouraged by how they played after the first quarter.

“It’s a tough loss, it is frustrating,” he said. “But it’s definitely not time to panic.”

HILTON’S BIG DAY: Hilton’s career game came in large part because of a huge first quarter, when he had 140 yards receiving.

“He’s a game wrecker, a game breaker,” Pagano said. “We all know that. He came up big.”

Hilton had four receptions of more than 30 yards on Thursday night and said making long plays is always a goal for him.

“Every game we try to hit a chunk,” Hilton said. “We always talk about chunk plays, so whenever we get a chance, we want to make sure we hit them.”

JOHNSON’S MILESTONE: Johnson finished with 99 yards receiving to give him 13,080, making him the 15th player in NFL history to reach 13,000. But he couldn’t celebrate the milestone because of his late fumble.

“I still think we should have won the game,” he said. “I think my turnover was probably the biggest mistake of the game, took the momentum that we had going down. I really thought we were going to go down and get points.”

ANOTHER 100 FOR FOSTER: Arian Foster had 109 yards rushing with two scores for Houston, his fourth 100-yard game this season and the 29th of his career. It was the 13th multi-touchdown game of his career and he has 50 career rushing touchdowns.

___

AP NFL website: www.pro32.ap.org and http://twitter.com/AP_NFL

Copyright 2014 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Don’t Settle for Student Loans to Pay for Online Education

By WTOP Staff
Online college programs are becoming a more popular choice for prospective students, with one study finding that more than 6 million students enrolled in at least one online course in fall 2015. The popularity of these courses can be attributed in part to their flexibility with working adults' schedules, students' ability to progress more quickly through online programs and, oftentimes, cheaper tuition. [See 10 low-cost online bachelor's programs for out-of-state students.]Online degrees can be beneficial to many college students, but some studies have shown online learners complete their programs at lower rates than students at traditional brick-and-mortar campuses. Individuals with student loans but no degree comprise two-thirds of defaulted borrowers. Though these numbers are not encouraging, just like for traditional programs, there are ways to reduce how much you'll need to borrow for an online program to ensure you won't become one of these statistics. Don't just settle on borrowing student loans to cover the whole cost of your program and living expenses. Instead, start thinking about how to cut costs and cover your balance in different ways, such as the following. -- Grants and scholarships: Even though you are taking an online course, you can still apply and receive grants and scholarships. But your first step should be to complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, commonly referred to as the FAFSA, which will allow you to receive a Pell Grant if your expected family contribution is low enough. The EFC criteria and award amounts are adjusted annually, but the 2017-2018 academic year awards range from $606 to $5,920, which could significantly lower the amount you borrow annually. Your next step is to apply for scholarships. You can start by checking online scholarship search engines, such as the Salt Scholarship Search, College Board's BigFuture and Peterson's. But don't forget to take advantage of local organizations and your school's financial aid office. Both may offer scholarships that you can't find with a national scholarship search. [Review these 10 sites to kick off your scholarship search.]For instance, organizations like the Elks Club, Knights of Columbus or the Rotary Club typically offer scholarships annually to local students. Just because you're going to school online doesn't mean you're ineligible. Visit your local library for scholarship listings, and ask around town. You might be surprised how many local organizations offer scholarships. While these scholarships typically aren't large, every little bit counts. Each dollar you receive in a scholarship is a dollar you don't have to borrow and pay interest on. -- Work-study: Another option for online students may be work-study awards. Not all students enrolled in online programs are eligible, but students at some schools -- including, for example, SUNY Empire State College and Liberty University -- are. Work-study awards are not given upfront like scholarships and grants. In most cases, they are an offer to earn up to the awarded amount if you secure an eligible work-study job. While there is a misconception that all work-study jobs must be on campus, students can work for off-campus, nonprofit or public employers as long as the work is in the public's interest. You may be able to work for a for-profit employer if the job is relevant to your course of study. No matter who the outside employer is, it will need to have an established agreement with your college for you to receive work-study funds. Remember, to be eligible for federal financial aid, you must be enrolled and pursuing a degree or certificate. If you're not working toward a credential, Pell Grants and work-study won't be option, but you may still be able to take advantage of private scholarships -- just be sure to read the eligibility criteria carefully. [Explore what to know about financial aid in online programs.]-- Pay as you go: One of the great benefits to enrolling online is the flexible schedule, which can allow you to complete your college coursework around your responsibilities. But prospective students often overlook using their part- or full-time job earnings as an option for paying for college. Almost 80 percent of college students in 2015 worked at least part time while attending classes, according to the National Center for Education Statistics. By budgeting and thinking strategically about your college costs, you can likely reduce your dependence on student loans by paying a portion out of pocket. Many -- but not all -- online programs are less expensive than traditional programs and often have shorter payment periods. Six, eight or 10 weeks are common course durations. Because of the frequency of payments in an online setting, you may be well-placed to pay as you go and possibly avoid borrowing altogether. Attending college online and avoiding student loans may be challenging, but if you are willing to put in the effort, you can limit the amount you need to borrow. More from U.S. News Q&A: Understanding Student Loan Discharge Eligibility Student Loan Refinancing Isn't Right for All Borrowers
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