Big Recruiting Summer
It hit me yesterday that the next six months are so big for the basketball program. The two (or three) players that John Groce lands this summer will define our trajectory. Will we add "solid contributors" to the two four-stars we've already landed (DJ Williams and Aaron Jordan), or will we add superstars? And the same goes for football. … [Read More...]
Ethos 2.0
When we were 6-0 in 2011 and ranked 15th in the nation, we played Ohio State at home and lost. My post after the game focused on one thing: the fans booing the third … [Read More...]
A Good Problem
When writing about the future of basketball, lately I find myself saying the phrase "then you add Cosby, Paul, Starks, Black, and Finke..." a lot. That's the hope, … [Read More...]
We Love No Other 1.12 – Athletic Director Mike Thomas
I absolutely panicked. I finish an audio interview with the Athletic Director late last week and the recording software I use gives me this "there was a problem so I'm closing now" error. What do I do? That half hour I just recorded - do I call the AD back … [Read More...]
Rebrand Photo Gallery
I brought Jonathan with me tonight, and he took a gazillion pictures, so I figure I have two options here: I could go on and on about the football helmets - how much I like them, how we're going to win 14 additional games over the next eight seasons simply … [Read More...]
1LL1N01S
You are now reading Version Two of this post. Version One was never published. Because as I was writing Version One, someone on Illinois Loyalty cracked the code to the Nike website (they had all of the pictures there, just hidden from public view), and … [Read More...]
We Love No Other 1.11 – Craig G.
My first repeat guest! I guess I could also say that like this: "We just had a Spring Game, and it needs to be analyzed, so who better to call than my friend Craig G. so we can break down everything that happened?" Craig is like me - he keeps his own depth … [Read More...]
9 That’s Really 7 and 4 That’s Really 6
I should do this more often. The spring game ended about 20 hours ago, but I haven't written a postgame post yet. And I've found that in the last 20 hours, my thoughts have changed a bit. Maybe I should do this every week during the season. Here's my … [Read More...]
Postgame Interviews
I think I'm going to let my postgame thoughts simmer for a bit on low heat (stirring occasionally) and then post them tonight or in the morning. I've been in Champaign for 48 hours now, and I haven't seen my wife in a while, so I think I'll post these … [Read More...]
Spring Game Slideshow
Haven't tried one of these posts before. But Jonathan was here at the Spring Game today, so I figured I'd take some of his photos and upload them as a slideshow. If this works, great - we'll use it again on Wednesday night when Jonathan shoots photos of the … [Read More...]
Tell Me About Your Mom
I'm nervous. I want to do this story justice. I've started and stopped this post three times, deleting everything and starting over. It's a story about wide receiver Justin Hardee and the phone call he received that we all fear: "Get home as fast as you can … [Read More...]
Thursday Practice Breakdown
Because I'm one of The Seventeen, how 'bout I put together the breakdown from the practice last night as a list of seventeen things I observed? Or, more accurately, sixteen things I observed and then an interview I did with Chunky Clements. Did you know that … [Read More...]
Spring Game Head Coach Smack Talk
The rosters are picked. The coaching staff is divided. The alumni coaches all have a sideline to stand on. So the only thing left to do before the Spring Game on Saturday was this: talk to both head coaches - Mike Ward for the Orange Squad and Alex Golesh … [Read More...]
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