By Woodrow Carroll It was bound to happen with COVID-19 laying waste to the sports scene. But, it was still painful when it did happen! Early there was a sense of optimism that Illinois, Northwestern, and Northern Illinois would play all of their scheduled top-level Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) football
“Elated.” The emotion was a one-word summation by Don Beebe, Aurora University head football coach, earlier this week on his reaction to his son, Chad Beebe’s, touchdown reception for the Minnesota Vikings Sunday with 46 seconds remaining in regulation (see below) that led to a 28-27 victory over the visiting
Oswego High School recently released a list of its newest inductees into the Oswego High School Athletic Hall of Fame. Due to the ongoing pandemic, there are no details of if, or when, a ceremony will take place this school year. If it does not, the 2020 Class will be
By Bobby Narang The on-and-off nature of high school sports took another turn last week. The Illinois High School Association (IHSA) Board of Directors met November 19 to provide an update on Winter sports. In the last few months, the COVID-19 pandemic has caused havoc around the globe and, more
Five Rosary High School athletes in the Class of 2021 have committed to continue their sports at the college level by signing National Letters of Intent at a ceremony this month in the School Library. • Elyssa Brault of Geneva, daughter of Patricia and Mark Brault, will swim for Brown
By Woodrow Carroll All of a sudden The Ohio State-at-University of Illinois Big Ten Conference football game at 11 a.m. Saturday generates a modicum of interest, however, only a couple of weeks back, the game was viewed by most observers a walkover victory for Ohio State. After dropping three straight
Joy is postponed. We are delaying gratification. We are in the midst of one of the best times of the year for football and basketball fans, especially in college competition. The transition from one sport to another brings clarity to football races and expectations to the basketball world. It is
The Illinois High School Association (IHSA) Board of Directors met for a special virtual meeting Thursday, Nov. 19, where the Board provided an update on Winter sports. To maintain compliance with the most recent mitigations issued by governor JB Pritzker that took effect November 20, the IHSA Board issued guidance
By Woodrow Carroll For the second consecutive season, Illinois’ kicker, James McCourt, a 6-1 and 215-pound senior, came through at the most opportune time for the Fighting Illini. Saturday at Rutgers, McCourt’s 47-yard field goal with :03 remaining in regulation gave Illinois a 23-20 victory, its first of the season,
Sports are in a topsy-turvey world along with much of our existence, propelled by the COVID-19 existence. Still, we continue. We are refreshed by a few signposts along the way. Although muzzled, muffled, and stifled, college football has found a way, in limited fashion, college basketball is ready to begin,
Three runners represented Waubonsee Community College at the 2020 NJCAA Division II National meet on Saturday in Fort Dodge, Iowa. Following the full-scholarship NJCAA Division I and non-scholarship Division III women’s and men’s events, the first Division II run was held. Waubonsee freshman Tony LoPresti paced the trio of competitors,
The Illinois High School Association (IHSA) Board of Directors held a virtual update session November 11, to review recent developments related to the IHSA basketball season ahead of the Board’s regularly scheduled meeting November 19. The Board announced that they are formally inviting representatives from JB governor Pritzker’s Office and
By Bobby Narang York High School first-year boys head basketball coach Mike Dunn might have to wait a bit longer for his debut season at his new school. The former Yorkville High School coach has a long family history that dates back 100 years with York High School. But the
By Woodrow Carroll Both football teams at Northern Illinois University and the University of Illinois have worked themselves into bad positions without victories through last weekend. Northern Illinois, 0-1, following a defeat at the hands of the visiting University of Buffalo, 49-30, in a season and home-opener in DeKalb, was
Clarity in high school Winter sports is under way. We just do not know when it will arrive. Wrestling has been moved out of its traditional Winter role. The next question is when basketball will be played. The question to be resolved is will basketball be moved to Spring, or,
A trio of runners from the Waubonsee Community College cross country team will participate in the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCCA) Division I National met in Fort Dodge, Iowa, Saturday. Daphne Kolody from the women’s team and men’s team’s Tony LoPresti and Dalton Klignensmith qualified last weekend in the
By Bobby Narang November is normally a special time of the season in high school sports. The weather turns chilly, leaves start to fall, and the football season is reaching a high point with the start of the playoffs. With basketball practices heating up and the State cross country meet,
By Woodrow Carroll The visiting Purdue University football team played Illinois in Champaign Saturday, which figured to be interesting with the unsettling and hovering nature of COVID-19 hovering. The nasty virus played its unfriendly and unsettling part. The game, the Illini home opener, proved to be better than expected. Illinois
Northern Illinois University senior punter Matt Ference is on pace to set school records. Northern Illinois University football photo
The Illinois High School Association (IHSA) Board of Directors met for a special board meeting Wednesday, Oct. 28, where the Board provided the latest information on the IHSA’s Winter sports season. The Board voted to move the sport of wrestling from the Winter season to the Summer season, which will
