By Bobby Narang The Northern Illinois University football team returned to the practice field Monday morning. In another twist to the football season, and sports world in general, the Huskies restarted their season after the Mid-American Conference officials reversed course and elected to have a shortened season. Northern Illinois head
By Bobby Narang In many ways, the saying fits perfectly: The Return of the MAC. In this case, it’s in regards to football in the Mid-American Conference. September 25, the Mid-American Conference Council of Presidents voted to resume the Fall football season. A six-game schedule will start November 4, plus
By Bobby Narang Katherine Lemke is taking a positive spin toward the end of her high school golf season. The St. Francis senior in Wheaton is one of the top golfers in the western suburbs. She earned that honor with several noteworthy performances throughout her career, most notably placing 12th
By Bobby Narang The Illinois High School Association (IHSA) dropped another headline in mid-September. With high school football, girls volleyball, and boys soccer, three major sports, all sitting out this Fall because of the coronavirus pandemic, the IHSA continues to draw headlines nearly every week with updates and news. The
By Bobby Narang Less than one month into the season, the Benet Academy High School girls golf team is on a roll. The Redwings returned just a small handful of players from last season, most notably Reagan Rodenbostel, but that hasn’t stopped them from having a breakout season. So far,
By Bob Narang The golf scene is exploding in the Chicago area. One of few sports and leisure activities that bodes well for competition amid a global pandemic, the sport of golf is thriving. With football and girls volleyball among the high school sports pushed back into the early part
By Bobby Narang The Illinois High School Association (IHSA) made headlines, again. Monday, Aug. 24, after the Fall season started in many sports, the IHSA Board of directors held a virtual meeting which led to an approval of a modified postseason State series for boys and girls cross country, boys
By Bobby Narang The Northern Illinois University football team will have a longer wait than expected to start the season. The Mid-American Conference August 8 became the first Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) conference to postpone the 2020 football season. Two days later, the Mountain West Conference followed in the MAC’s
By Bobby Narang The high school football season last week was pushed back nearly six months. The boys and girls basketball seasons are shortened, and the Spring sports took the heaviest cut in the length of their respective seasons. Those were among the many eye-opening, but badly-needed, changes to the
By Bobby Narang The Northern Illinois University (NIU) football team was dealt another blow for the Fall season last week. The Huskies were scheduled to open the season against Rhode Island September 5 at Huskie Stadium, but the Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) announced it was suspending all league football games
By Bobby Narang Mike Dunn is in the next chapter in his coaching career. His next stop won’t require an introduction. Dunn stepped down from his position as Yorkville High School’s boys basketball coach July 14 to accept the head boys basketball coaching job at York High School in Elmhurst.
By Bobby Narang The Northern Illinois University (NIU) football team took a pair of losses before the season even reached August. The Huskies suffered a heavy financial loss and had two of their non-conference games dropped last week when the Big Ten Conference announced it was limiting all Fall sports
By Bobby Narang Late last week, the Illinois High School Association (IHSA) released its guidelines for Phase 4 of Illinois’ reopening plans. Called the Return to Play guidelines, the IHSA allowed contact days to begin Monday. The return to play guideline is a major step for high schools throughout the
By Bobby Narang Matthew Weerts is heading out west to find his mojo. Technically, the Batavia High School soon-to-be-senior linebacker found his football mojo a long time ago. Weerts, whose nickname is “Mojo,” committed to the University of Arizona in late June. The 6-4 and 224-pounder had many offers, including
By Bobby Narang The boys basketball high school State tournament will return to Champaign. The Illinois High School Association (IHSA) board of directors voted to accept the Champaign-Urbana bid to be the host for the State basketball tournament beginning with the 2020-2021 season all the way through the 2022-2023 season
By Bobby Narang The Illinois High School Association (IHSA) revealed last week the Stage 1 plan to restart sports in the Summer. Since the coronavirus pandemic led to the immediate stoppage of all high school sports in early March, right before the opening of the Class 1A and 2A state
By Bobby Narang Two-plus months after the end of the high school girls basketball season, Jason Nichols made a surprise decision that sent shock waves in the Chicago area scene. Nichols announced last week that he was stepping down from his position as head girls basketball coach at Montini Catholic
By Bobby Narang Nazareth Academy High School quarterback J.J. McCarthy made a big splash Monday. After leading the Roadrunners to a Class 7A State championship and two State second-place finish in his first three seasons, McCarthy changed course and announced Monday he was transferring to IMG Academy in Bradenton, Fla.,
By Bobby Narang Luke Juriga is not afraid of long odds. He was a two-star prospect coming out of Marmion Academy in Aurora, despite a solid build and National Football League (NFL) lineage. Juriga was named the 2014 Chicago Catholic League co-Offensive Player of the Year, then made redshirt his
By Bobby Narang Broc Rutter is set to prove any doubters wrong, again. After a dominating performance in leading North Central College, based in Naperville, to the Division III national championship last Fall, Rutter signed a free agent contract with the San Francisco 49ers last week. “They are such a
