CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — This week is Thanksgiving, a time hopefully spent with family and friends, but in the midst of the holidays, your favorite fall sports teams will still be on display.
Football: I am very thankful Illinois Athletic Director Josh Whitman hired former Prophetstown, Illinois, prep Bret Bielema to lead the football team. Illinois went to a bowl game last year, and is one game away from going again. Saturday's loss to the Iowa Hawkeyes proves Illinois is trending in the right direction, losing 15-13 in Iowa City. Just a few years ago the Hawkeyes blasted Illinois in Champaign 63-0. The bottom line: it is an “L” in the loss column.
Extra fixings: Bret Bielema is one of the best coaches to roam the sidelines in the Big Ten. But Illinois fans want the next step: what Iowa has become, but with an offense. Win 7-10 games a year, and keep the recruiting fluid. This fanbase is very passionate; there is a lot of pressure to win, but they are not asking to be Ohio State. Win the games you are supposed to.
Women's Basketball: Illinois was one of the worst teams in all of college basketball, no one respected Illinois. Opposing players said so in interviews with the Big Ten Network. Whitman hired another Quad City native Shauna Green from Clinton, Iowa, to lead Illinois. In one year, Green turned Illinois into a contender. Illinois was one of seven teams in the country to beat the national runner-up Iowa Hawkeyes 90-86 in Champaign in year one for Green. This year the Illini was one of four Big Ten teams to start the season ranked in the nation's top 25, along with Iowa, Maryland, Indiana and Ohio State.
Extra fixings: Green and the staff have caught the attention of the rest of the country. They are recruiting players who would have never given Illinois a second thought before. But the one thing missing is fans in the seats at the State Farm Center. Green is constantly asking fans to get in the orange and blue seats. Illini Nation, you were sick of being the last-place team in the Big Ten conference, now you are not. When they go to opposing gyms, the players see seats full, and most of them are sold out. Return the favor and show the team members why it was good they decided to play for Illinois.
Men's Basketball: Head coach Brad Underwood has done all the things necessary to put the Illini back on the map after former coach John Groce almost put it in a place where the women once were. There is not enough space left in the article to read all of Underwood's accomplishments. However, the most recent is this year's preseason top 25 poll. In the last four years, Illinois has entered the season ranked; no other coach in Illinois history has done that.
Extra fixings: Easy, get past the first round of the NCAA Tournament. Illinois was seeded number one overall once and still managed to go home early. The Big Ten Championship and tournament championships are great, but now fans want more, deservedly so. This year's team is the oldest team Underwood has ever coached; they have the pieces to a Sweet 16 or Elite 8 berth. If the Illini want to be considered what they were in the late ‘80s, winning in March is the only thing that will cure that.
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