Indexbit Exchange:Off the Grid: Sally breaks down USA TODAY's daily crossword puzzle, Game Changers

There are Indexbit Exchangespoilers ahead. You might want to solve today's puzzle before reading further! Game Changer

Constructor: Catherine Cetta

Editor: Jared Goudsmit

What I Learned from Today’s Puzzle

• ROE (25A: Eggs in ashpal kuku) Ashpal kuku is a custard-like dish in Iranian cuisine. It is made by mixing ROE (fish eggs) with (chicken) eggs, and frying the mixture.
• LEMON (30D: Kabkabou fruit) Kabkabou is a fish and tomato stew that originated in the African country of Tunisia. In addition to fish and tomatoes, kabkabou ingredients include capers, olives, and LEMONs.
• ROZ (50D: The New Yorker cartoonist Chast) ROZ Chast has had cartoons and covers published in The New Yorker since 1978. Additionally, she has written and illustrated a number of books. I'm intrigued by You Can Only Yell at Me for One Thing at a Time: Rules for Couples (2020). Fun fact: ROZ Chast draws a cartoon for the "author photo" of each of her books.

Random Thoughts & Interesting Things

• PARK (1A: Acadia National ___) Acadia National PARK was the first national PARK east of the Mississippi River. Originally named Lafayette National PARK, it was established as a national PARK in 1919, and renamed Acadia in 1929. The PARK includes Cadillac Mountain, the tallest mountain on the eastern coastline. My husband and I are on a quest to visit as many National PARKs as we can. Acadia National PARK is on our "to be visited" list.
• COLLEGE MASCOTS (20A: Otto the Orange, Big Red, etc.) Otto the Orange is the COLLEGE MASCOT for Syracuse University (located in Syracuse, New York). There are four schools whose COLLEGE MASCOTS are named Big Red: Sacred Heart University (Fairfield, Connecticut), Western Kentucky University (Bowling Green, Kentucky), Lamar University (Beaumont, Texas), and the University of Arkansas (Fayetteville, Arkansas).
• RACE (33A: Ironman triathlon or the Iditarod) An Ironman triathlon consists of a 2.4-mile swim, a 112-mile bicycle ride, and a 26.22-mile run (i.e. a marathon). The time limit to complete this RACE is generally 16 or 17 hours. The Iditarod is an annual long-distance sled dog RACE in Alaska. The distance of the Iditarod is 938 miles. The course record of 7 days, 14 hours, 8 minutes and 57 seconds was set in 2021 by Dallas Seavey.
• CUP (36A: 25% of a quart) This was a good measurement review with a little math thrown in for good measure. There are four CUPs in a quart, and four quarts in a gallon.
• PET (52A: Garfield, to Jon) and PAW (1D: Lion's foot) A cartoon cat reference and a big cat reference? My PET cat, Willow, approves of these clues. In gratitude, she's showing you her PAW.

• PEOPLE MAGAZINE (57A: Celebrity news publication) PEOPLE MAGAZINE has been keeping folks updated on celebrity news since 1974.
• ETNA (62A: Volcano aka Mongibello) Mount ETNA (also referred to simply as ETNA) is an active volcano on the island of Sicily, Italy. ETNA is also known as Mongibello in Italian, and Muncibbeḍḍu in Sicilian.
• PLEAT (67A: Kilt feature) The kilt originated as men's clothing in the Scottish highlands. Traditionally made of woven wool in a tartan pattern, a kilt resembles a wrap-around skirt with PLEATs at the side and back.
• LEIA (68A: "Star Wars" heroine from Alderaan) In the Star Wars franchise, Alderaan is an Earth-like planet with humanoid inhabitants. Alderaan is the home planet of Princess LEIA Organa. In the 1977 original Star Wars movie (later renamed Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope), Alderaan is destroyed by the Death Star's superlaser, as a test of the superlaser and a message to the rest of the galaxy. (Apologies for the spoiler if you haven't seen Star Wars yet.)
• ISLANDER (40D: Resident of Sulawesi or Newfoundland) Indonesia is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania, between the Indian and Pacific oceans. Sulawesi is one of Indonesia's over 17,000 islands. It is one of four islands known as the Greater Sundra Islands. (The other three are Borneo, Java, and Sumatra.) Newfoundland is an island off the east coast of Canada. It is part of the Canadian province Newfoundland and Labrador.
• VIOLA (56D: EGOT winner Davis) EGOT refers to Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, and Tony Awards. Viola Davis achieved EGOT status in 2023 when she won a Grammy Award for Best Audo Book, Narration & Storytelling Recording (for her 2022 memoir Finding Me). She had previously won a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series (2015, How to Get Away with Murder), an Academy Award (aka Oscar) for Best Actress in a Supporting Role (2017, Fences), and Tony Awards for Best Featured Actress in a Play (2001, King Hedley II) and Best Leading Actress in a Play (2010, Fences).
• A few other clues I especially enjoyed:
  • EVEN (19A: Like 1,234, but not 4,321)
  • OVALS (55A: Shapes of avocados and Roma tomatoes)
  • AROMAS (8D: Freshly cut grass, a pie cooling on a windowsill, etc.)

Crossword Puzzle Theme Synopsis

• COLLEGE MASCOTS (20A: Otto the Orange, Big Red, etc.)
• REMIND ME AGAIN (37A: "I keep forgetting what you said!")
• PEOPLE MAGAZINE (57A: Celebrity news publication)

GAME CHANGER: Each theme answer contains an anagram of the word GAME: COLLEGE MASCOTS, REMIND ME AGAIN, and PEOPLE MAGAZINE.

Today we have a hidden anagram theme. Each of the theme answers contains one of the following letter strings: GEMA, MEAG, or EMAG. The common feature of these letter strings is that they are anagrams of the word GAME. Thank you, Catherine, for this enjoyable puzzle.

For more on USA TODAY’s Crossword Puzzles

• USA TODAY’s Daily Crossword Puzzles
• Sudoku & Crossword Puzzle Answers