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Illinois Football Camp is in Session: Familiarity should make for easy transition for Zakhari Franklin
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. (WAND) -- As they put some final touches on Memorial Stadium renovations before the season kicks off camp is officially in session for Illinois football. Head Coach Bret Bielema said 40 players will take part in the teams first training camp Monday night and one player no stranger to training camp is summer transfer Zakhari Franklin but it will be his first taste of Fighting Illini football.
Luke Altmyer feeling loose and confident heading into year two
CHAMPAIGN (WCIA) — Quarterback Luke Altmyer’s confidence took a hit in his first season at Illinois. “I got a little hesitant with my decision making. Being afraid to make mistakes sometimes,” said AItmyer. Altmyer felt held back by the criticism that comes with being a starting college starting quarterback, and after working through that mental […]
CBS Insider Jon Rothstein Underrates Illinois Basketball in Preseason Ranking
CBS Sports Insider, Jon Rothstein, dropped a Big Ten offseason breakdown which included a Big Ten preseason power ranking. For the most part, many believe that Illinois basketball should be at the top of the league. Despite having a very young, but supremely talented roster, many believe in the recent consistency that Brad Underwood has shown. In fact, Andy Katz placed the Illini in the “top tier” of the Big Ten alongside schools like Purdue and Michigan State.
Illini look to reinvigorate rushing attack: 'We need to be balanced'
CHAMPAIGN — Barry Lunney Jr. unquestionably has awakened a once-dormant Illinois passing attack. The Illini offensive coordinator inherited the worst passing attack in the Big Ten as Illinois averaged 156.2 passing yards in 2021 under Tony Petersen. But in Lunney's second season as play caller last fall, Illinois averaged 264.6 yards per game, good for third in the Big Ten.
Altmyer enters training camp with new perspective after challenging 2023 season
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. (WAND) - Luke Altmyer says that last season was not the season he wanted to have, but the season he NEEDED to have. The Illini starting quarterback had an up and down 2023 season. He ended up losing the starting gig to walk-on transfer John Paddock. Altmyer says...
ciSports: Illinois Men’s Basketball Asst. Coach Tim Anderson | Addressing purpose and community
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. (WCIA) — In this edition of ciSports, Host, Karidia Shelby interviews Illinois Men’s Basketball Assistant Coach Tim Anderson, who emphasized the importance of community and purpose in his life role. Coach Anderson sees basketball not just as a profession but as a bridge to community and...
Illini Football: Four Players to watch for Big Plays
The Illini Football offense is seeking to have a breakout season in 2024, and there are some highly possible home run hitters within Barry Lunney Jr’s unit. Of course, this does not mean that the guys I have named will be the top offensive producer. However, when you need a big play or a big play has been made, you can count on one of these talented Illini playmakers.
Medal-winning gymnast previously stopped by Champaign gym
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. (WCIA) — For the first time in 16 years, the U.S. men’s gymnastics’ team are bringing home medals at the Olympics, and one of the gymnasts has connections to central Illinois. The owner of Champaign Gymnastics Academy, Ian Dennehy, had a watch party for his athletes when the men took home bronze in […]
Orange Krush: More than just a student section
When one hears talk over a “sixth man,” they’re prone to thinking of someone coming off the bench. Illini fans know that the sixth man is not merely a man, but a sea of passionate students standing behind the basket and the benches at State Farm Center.
Illinois football left off prestigious award watchlist for first time since 2021
The Maxwell Award watchlist was released on Monday, and the Illinois football team is nowhere to be found. Heading into the 2024 campaign, the Illini are poised to have a bounce-back season. We finished 5-7 in 2023 after having an eight-win campaign the year before. It is time to get back on the bowl bandwagon and at least achieve the six-win mark.
Can't Wait For Saturday | For reporters, every day feels like a game day
Jul. 31—*** If you wander by the Smith Center at about noon these days, you might see a pack of media types waiting to get in. I'm the one with the digital recorder, which replaced the giant cassette recorder that used to get in the way of camera shots. Not intentionally, of course. The Smith Center is the venue for daily media sessions, which are held before the players and coaches go into ...
Defensive depth Henry's training camp focus
Jul. 30—CHAMPAIGN — Aaron Henry liked the way his defense competed during spring ball. Liked that there was daily improvement. No real regression to be found in those 15 practices three months ago. "I felt like every day every install we put in, guys took it in stride, learned from it and started to understand concepts on a much, much higher level," the Illinois defensive coordinator said ...
Edwards could be key in rebuilt Illini defensive line
Jul. 31—CHAMPAIGN — No defensive tackle played more in 2023 than Johnny Newton. His 749 snaps dwarfed his closest Big Ten competitor among interior defensive linemen and were 73 more than any other defensive tackle among the power conferences. Newton was a constant on the field for the Illini. The literal first line of defense playing alongside Keith Randolph Jr. and Denzel Daxon. Now all ...
Green Street: Recruiting in Alaska
Jul. 31—received her offer from Illinois just over a year ago. And the Illini landed in the top eight for the 6-foot-5 center with Iowa, Nebraska, Duke, Indiana, Gonzaga, Washington and North Carolina joining Illinois among the finalists to add the four-star recruit ranked No. 63 overall by ESPN's HoopGurlz in the Class of 2025. The past 12 months have seen Hays' recruitment blow up with the ...
Illinois football trying to strike gold recruiting the state of Texas
Over the past week, the Illinois football team began recruiting one of the top players in the country. Bret Bielema and the Illini continue to work on building out the class of 2025. There is still a lot of work left to make that class a top 50 group, but I feel like we can do it with the transfer portal being so important.
Good Morning, Illini Nation: Mid-summer bracketology update
Jul. 31—We're inside 100 days until the first games of the 2024-25 college basketball season. The NCAA tournament? That's a little further away. Selection Sunday is March 16, and the First Four tips off two days later. But there's never not a good time to talk about bracketology. Even months away from basketball being played and even more from it being particularly relevant to where teams ...
New Illinois football recruiting target could help build pipeline to Ohio
Illinois football is doing some big-time recruiting in the state of Ohio. There is still plenty of work to be done to button up the class of 2025. The Illini currently sit with 13 commitments and a national ranking of No. 65 for the 2025 class. That is not good enough to compete with the big boys, so the transfer portal might be the fallback option for this recruiting period.
Oregon football summer opponent preview: Everything to know about Ducks vs. Illinois
Bret Bielema is someone Oregon football fans probably remember from back when he was the head coach of the Wisconsin Badgers and was competing against the Ducks in the Rose Bowl. A lot has changed since Bielema last met with the Ducks and he’s now coaching the Illinois Fighting Illini.
Best places to watch your favorite Illinois teams
As everyone gets settled in for a new school year, along comes another year of Illinois sports. New players on new teams get a chance to one-up a solid 2023-24 calendar year for the athletic department, so where can you watch?. The easy answer for home games is at each...
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