Illinois Fighting Illini Football

It's been a busy morning, very fired up for this first practice. It's ball time, baby! http://twitter.com/RonZook...

Thanks to Illinois wrestling coach Mark Johnson, filling the vacancy created by his surprise retirement announcement Monday shouldn't be hard. The top coach in Illinois history, the Rock Island native made Illinois wrestling relevant again. He took over a...

Hint: He now makes millions playing a different sport, and once dated Scarlett Johansson and Jessica Biel. Yes, it's Derek Jeter, whose mom once again forgot to bring the post-game orange slices....

Here in the states, soccer players have a bad reputation. I have to admit, even as an avid soccer fan, that some of it is deserved. There is a culture of let’s-call-it-gamesmanship in soccer that lends itself to dives, to kicking the ball away before free kicks, to stalling and just generally being sort of [...]

We don’t know if this man was an Ohio State fan, but…he was. It’s a biblical certainty. 30 miles east of Columbus, police found what could only be properly described as “The gloriously fractured wreck of what was once the most majestic thing ever” on the side of the road: a barstool outfitted with wheels [...]

Posted by ESPN.com's Adam Rittenberg My colleague Tim Griffin has an interesting piece over at the Big 12 blog about Phil Taylor, the former Penn State defensive tackle who transferred to Baylor after being dismissed from the program last summer.  Taylor was among the swell of Penn State players involved in off-field incidents in 2007 and early 2008. He pleaded guilty to misdemeanor disorderly conduct for his role in an a fight at the Penn State student union in October 2007. Teammate Navorro... Bowman pleaded guilty to the same charge and went on to earn first-team All-Big Ten honors as a linebacker last fall, but Taylor and fellow defensive linemen Chris Baker were kicked off the team in July.  Taylor didn't want to discuss Penn State too much, but he did say he was treated unfairly "because there were a lot of others in the same situation for similar things there." There was also this tidbit: "He is already struck by the difference in the leadership styles of Baylor coach Art Briles and [Joe] Paterno. 'I've been around a lot of teams, but here, it's more loose,' Taylor said. 'The coach lets us have fun. We still work very hard and do the things that we are supposed to do. But it's not quite as regimented as it was there -- do this, don't do that.' The feeling around the program is different, too, Taylor said. 'Here, they treat us more like adults,' he said." That's certainly a dig at Penn State, which has an old-school culture largely because of its old-school coach. But Paterno was in a pretty tough spot last summer after Penn State's reputation had been challenged. Many viewed his dismissals of Taylor and Baker as reactionary moves.  Penn State shifted the focus back to the field by going 11-2 and winning a share of the Big Ten title. Plus, player conduct has improved significantly during the last six months.more>>

Normally, these types of highlight reel posts are saved for the LeBrons and Howards of the world, but sometimes you run across something that’s just so cool, you can’t help but sharing. Yes, the dunk in the lead video is a nice one with plenty of authority, but for me, the reason it’s so [...]A post from the Intentional Foul Sports Blog, sponsored by Ticket Solutions. Can Your Pops Dunk Like This?

Last night, I went to Madison Square Garden for the first time since I caught the circus there at age four, and one thing was immediately clear—Ranger fans love Sean Avery. The crowd was...

Villanova shocked the world in 1985 by playing the "perfect game" to beat heavily favored Georgtown. The Wildcats head into Saturday night's Final Four game against North Carolina as a heavy underdog again. Can Villanova capture the 1985 magic for yet another magical upset victory?

Today in your Chicago Tribune, there are several more details about former Gov. Rod Blagojevich involvement with the sale of Wrigley Field. Last year, there were talks the Illinois Sports Facilities Authority would purchase Wrigley, which would give the owners of the field, the Tribune Co., a fat chunk of change to alleviate some of [...]

Detroit has dumped their $14 million DH with 499 career home runs. Oh, don't worry ... he gets to keep the money! [MLB; But The Game Is On]

Posted by ESPN.com's Adam Rittenberg Northwestern head coach Pat Fitzgerald announced after the team's first spring practice Monday that two more players, wide receiver Jeremy Ebert and safety David Arnold, will miss spring drills with hip and knee injuries, respectively. Although wide receiver is in the spotlight this spring because Northwestern loses three multiyear starters, Ebert already proved himself last fall as the team's lone true freshman to log significant playing time. He had 15... receptions for 161 yards and two touchdowns in 2008, and should enter preseason camp as a projected starter. Arnold could be the bigger loss, only because injuries have dogged him throughout his career. Northwestern wanted to play Arnold as a true freshman in 2007, but injuries limited him to reserve duty in 10 games last season. The Wildcats are solid at safety in 2009 but need to develop players behind seniors Brad Phillips and Brendan Smith.more>>

After Shawn Johnson spent last week worried about a deranged stalker, she returns to "Dancing With The Stars" only to be greeted by what appears to be a deranged boner in her partner's pants. (NSFW?)...

It's a good thing that Virginia-Maryland lacrosse game ended after seven overtimes, because this poor college radio announcer might not be with us today if it hadn't. [YouTube]

• Mr. Chill. Depending on who you ask, either early-enrolling freshman Matt Barkley was "the star" of Southern Cal's first practice Saturday, or no one stood out at all in the three-way race to replace Mark Sanchez as the Trojans' quarterback/automatic Heisman candidate/babe magnet. Whatever his chances of passing Mitch Mustain and Aaron Corp, though, you have to give Barkley this: He's not overwhelmed out there. Buried amid longer answers in Barkley's Q&A with the Orange County Register... is an 18-year-old just getting off another day at work: Were you nervous? "Not really." Did you struggle with anything? "Not really." Is it harder being a freshman when the other guys have been in the system for a few years now? "I don’t find it that hard at all." Was there a big difference in speed? "It’s not that bad." Was practice what you expected? "I’ve been here, watching spring practice last year and years before. It’s the same thing." The Register, especially, was suspiciously enthusiastic over Barkley's debut, in contrast to the ho-hum reaction by the rest of the SC media, which does not seems as impressed by the freshman's "innate confidence" -- maybe they're just waiting for, you know, a second practice for confirmation. They get their chance today after taking Monday off. Quarterback battling aside, all we can ask of USC practices is this: Even though last year's video had to be removed, please, please bring back Brennan Carroll's walk-on tryouts on YouTube. That's all we ask. • Bellotti is back! Well, in a sense, for a limited time, in a greatly reduced role: The just-retired Oregon coach/soon-to-be Oregon athletic director will hang around to coach the quarterbacks during spring practice, assuming the as-yet unfilled spot on staff created by offensive coordinator Chip Kelly's promotion to Bellotti's old chair. Most of Bellotti's career was spent molding passers, including Joey Harrington, Akili Smith, et al, making him one of the most overqualified quarterbacks coaches in the country. Just remember who's boss, now, boss. As an aside, I first saw this news announced the news on its Twitter page but sounds instead like Bellotti would be conveying his wisdom to players in 140 characters or less. That would be a cutting edge move. • By the hand of Nassib, we shall be resurrected. Amid the irony of a snowy spring practice Monday, Syracuse became the first team to "officially" settle its quarterback quandary: Redshirt freshman Ryan Nassib took every snap with the first offense and received a vote of confidence from coach Doug Marrone, who said "it's his job to lose." This is something of an upset: Nassib was a completely anonymous recruit last year and opened the spring behind last year's starter, senior Cameron Dantley, who dutifully reassumes the backup role. In the meantime, poor Andrew Robinson, full-time starter for the Orange in 2007, part-time starter last year and beleaguered subject of a thousand "kwaddaback must go down" shots, feels "a sense of rejuvenation" at tight end. Quickly ... Chris Forcier, apparently on the outside of UCLA's quarterback derby, has been given his release from the Bruins. No word on his next stop. ... Notre Dame's defense shined during the team's first scrimmage, but still doesn't know where it will fit Manti Te'o. ... On the heels of some Bobcat fans, the Cleveland Plain Dealer calls out Ohio U. for weak scheduling. ... Mike Gundy can already tell Oklahoma State's defense will be improved. Glad that's settled. ... SMU is switching to the 3-4 defense for the spread offenses of C-USA. ... The Orlando Sentinel somehow thinks Percy Harvin can be replaced. ... And would you pay $300 to watch Texas A&M play Arkansas?more>>