Muller: Illini Could Be In For Special Season In 2011
Winning a bowl game like the Texas Bowl may not be that big of a deal to many who follow college football, but for the University of Illinois fans and Ron Zook, they will gladly take it.
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Winning a bowl game like the Texas Bowl may not be that big of a deal to many who follow college football, but for the University of Illinois fans and Ron Zook, they will gladly take it.
Christmas is over. New Year's is looming. And in between this week the Big Ten gets its bowl season rolling.
The NCAA is the biggest joke in all of sports. A couple of week ago, Auburn quarterback Cam Newton was deemed eligible to play in the SEC Championship game against South Carolina.
On Feb. 8, 1896 – one month after X-Rays were discovered and nine months before William McKinley was elected as the United States' 25th president – a the Midwest's premier universities held a powwow in Chicago and established the Big Ten.
The last time I checked, the Chicago Bears play their home games outdoors in Soldier Field. The home of the Bears has long been known to be one of the most unforgiving stadiums in the National Football League in terms of inclement weather.
OK, it's taken a couple of days, but I'm finally on board with this whole new Big Ten thing. The conference is bigger, it's badder (and that's just what they're saying about our divisions!) and, thanks to all those new multi-name football awards, it's also more hyphenated than ever before.
When the Big Ten announced they were adding Nebraska, the response was almost all positive. And when the Big Ten announced the names for the new divisions, the response was almost all negative.
OK. Now it's my turn! There sure has been a lot of talk around Big Ten country in the past 24 hours about the new conference logo and football divisional names.
This past summer, when the Big Ten announced that the University of Nebraska was signing on as the league's 12th team, the Conference That Can't Count hit a stand-up triple.
Of course the names "Legends" and "Leaders" have been poorly received by fans and critics. The two new Big Ten division names are uninspiring and uncreative, at best.
You know how offensive coordinators can get too "cute" with their play calling when they are already having success? That's basically what Big Ten Commissioner Jim Delany has done since announcing Nebraska would join the conference, allowing for a Big Ten Championship Game to be born.
The Big Ten released it's new logo and the names for it's two divisions, today. The addition of Nebraska, next year, will allow for the conference to have two divisions and a championship game.
Adam Hoge breaks down the eight bowl games involving Big Ten teams this season.
With the Big Ten Conference winning the Big Ten/ACC Challenge for the first time in eleven tries last season, both Illinois and Northwestern looked to do their part this year in ensuring that conference bragging rights would stay in the Midwest for at least one more year.
Technically nothing is official until the final BCS standings come out Dec. 5, but if it's up to the Rose Bowl representatives, the Wisconsin Badgers will be playing in Pasadena on New Year's Day.
Illinois coach Bruce Weber said his Fighting Illini played their best first half of the season on Saturday, when they took a 25-point lead into halftime.
Adam Hoge takes a look ahead at this week's Big Ten football action.
The team is mediocre, the coach is already under fire just 11 games into his tenure, and the school's administration is taking more hits than its quarterback these days.
The happiest man in Chicago this past Saturday had to be The University of Illinois Head Football Coach Ron Zook. Could you blame him?
Saturday's Illinois-Northwestern football game at Wrigley Field was a historic experience for fans of both teams, in more ways than one.
It sounds like the "losers walk" rules that kids use when playing football in their back yards. Whenever Illinois or Northwestern score on offense Saturday, everyone has to switch around and face the other way for the next drive.
There has been plenty of talk about Saturday's Northwestern and Illinois football game at Wrigley Field. Most of the talk has surrounded the safety of the players. Today an announcement was made to help protect them.
Did the Wisconsin Badgers run the score up against Indiana or are the Hoosiers just that bad?
ISU knocked off No. 1-ranked and defending champion North Dakota State in the Football Championship Subdivision playoffs.
Daniel Hardy, Cole Kmet, and Kyle Monangai volunteered with the Salvation Army to serve a BBQ holiday meal to shelter residents and others in need.
It is unclear what led up to the crash or if any injuries were reported.
Rylee Parker discovered his goldendoodle, Cooper, was missing after his car was ransacked while he validated his parking.
It has been more than a month since the City of Harvey began reducing their workforce, amid a partial government shutdown due to severe financial trouble. Since then, another round of layoffs has hit city employees.
Majority Leader John Thune announced that the Senate will vote on a Republican-led measure alongside a Democratic bill to extend expiring tax credits.
President Donald Trump's former attorney in battleground Wisconsin is alleging that a judge presiding over his case and that of two other Trump aides charged with felonies related to the 2020 election is guilty of misconduct and must step aside.
An Indiana State Senate committee advanced a proposed new congressional map after hearings Monday, after months of contentious debate and pressure from the Trump administration.
The Justice Department can release investigative materials from a sex trafficking case against Ghislaine Maxwell, the longtime confidant of Jeffrey Epstein, a federal judge ruled.
The Federal Transit Administration is demanding that the CTA take immediate action to improve safety or risk losing funding.
A condo owner in Country Club Hills says he's forced to sell his home after his condo association failed to reimburse him for repairs to his leaking roof. Edward Hadnott's condo has sat empty since a major roof leak in 2022.
The U.S. stopped minting pennies this week, and some groups have issued a warning about the headaches that can create for some businesses and consumers.
Why is one school in the west Chicago suburb of Lisle paying a water bill three times higher than another? The answer has to do with a private utility company.
The Food and Drug Administration is warning about additional cookware brands that could be leaching lead into your food.
Walgreens said it will close its office space in Chicago's Old Post Office building.
The newest measles vaccination numbers released by Chicago Public Schools shows immunizations are finally moving in the right direction.
Two pregnant Black women recently faced alarming neglect at hospitals in Indiana and Texas, highlighting racial disparities in maternal care.
Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker on Tuesday signed a bill aimed at protecting vaccine access in Illinois.
Roseland Community Hospital on Monday celebrated the opening of a new sickle cell treatment clinic.
Consumers with the imported pans should throw them away due to the severe health risks posed by lead, the agency warns.
A Culver's is coming to Chicago's South Loop, a real estate broker has confirmed.
A new vision for passenger rail is on track in southeastern Wisconsin. The MARK Passenger Rail Commission held its inaugural meeting on December 5, 2025, at Racine City Hall.
U.S. Steel says it'll resume making steel slabs at its Granite City Works plant in Illinois amid strengthening demand.
Traffic at O'Hare International Airport is growing faster than expected, and this has Chicago city leaders wanting to make big changes to future construction plans at the airport.
Small Business Saturday was disrupted by the winter storm for many business owners in Chicago, but in the Rogers Park neighborhood, a group of business owners came together to draw customers.
Paramount Skydance's $30 per share offer comes just days after Netflix agreed to buy parts of Warner Bros. in a deal valued at nearly $83 billion.
The nominations for the 2026 Golden Globes have been announced. Here are the nominees.
Landon Wallace, better known as Power 92 radio and Chicago Bulls mixer DJ Commando, died last week.
Thirty-five years after throngs headed to a theater near them to see "Home Alone," you can have a lovely cheese pizza, just for you, like Macaulay Culkin's Kevin McCallister character did.
Frank Gehry was known for designing the Guggenheim Museum Bilbao in Spain and the Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles.
The report blames Instacart’s algorithmic pricing experiments. The AI model places different price tags on identical products without revealing it to consumers.
The scents are inspired by crisp apple, vintage cola, and ginger ale flavors. The company is randomly selecting 1,000 fans to receive a roll of wrapping paper and a 12-pack of the corresponding flavored soda.
A recent study of more than 200 adults with chronic pain found users cut their morphine dose by 22% over 18 months.
A recent study of more than 200 adults with chronic pain found users cut their morphine dose by 22% over 18 months.
Snow will impact the mid-morning hours tomorrow through the early afternoon with heavy bursts of snow at times.
A Chicago Border Patrol agent is facing federal charges for allegedly sexually assaulting four women at Chicago area hotels while on the job in 2022.
It has been more than a month since the City of Harvey began reducing their workforce, amid a partial government shutdown due to severe financial trouble. Since then, another round of layoffs has hit city employees.
Rylee Parker discovered his goldendoodle, Cooper, was missing after his car was ransacked while he validated his parking.
It is unclear what led up to the crash or if any injuries were reported.
The Chicago White Sox will have the first overall pick in the 2026 Major League Baseball draft.
A Chicago woman battling ALS said she's been struggling just to get a disabled parking space in front of her Bridgeport home.
Days after new Cook County Chief Judge Charles Beach ordered an urgent review of the county's electronic monitoring program, Sheriff Tom Dart said this crisis isn't new, and that he's been warning lawmakers of problems for years.
Charles Beach was sworn in on Monday as Cook County's first new chief judge in 24 years, and takes over amid a political firestorm over what appears to be systemic issues with how accused criminals are being monitored before trial.
Some Chicagoans found out the hard way on Monday that the overnight winter parking ban is in effect.
The electronic monitoring system in Cook County has come under increased scrutiny, after a woman was set on fire in a horrific arson attack on the Blue Line, with critics demanding answers as to why the suspect wasn't already behind bars.
ISU knocked off No. 1-ranked and defending champion North Dakota State in the Football Championship Subdivision playoffs.
Daniel Hardy, Cole Kmet, and Kyle Monangai volunteered with the Salvation Army to serve a BBQ holiday meal to shelter residents and others in need.
The Chicago White Sox will have the first overall pick in the 2026 Major League Baseball draft.
Despite Sunday's loss and losing the top spot in the NFC North, fans said they're confident the Bears will bounce back.
Leo Carlsson scored two goals and rookie Beckett Sennecke had a goal and an assist in the Anaheim Ducks' 7-1 victory over the road-weary Chicago Blackhawks.
A man stood charged with attempted murder Tuesday in a shooting involving a Chicago police officer in the Morgan Park neighborhood this past weekend.
A man died after being with multiple gunshot wounds in an alley in Chicago's North Lawndale neighborhood early Tuesday morning.
The Federal Transit Administration is demanding that the CTA take immediate action to improve safety or risk losing funding.
A man has been charged with setting a fire in the apartment building where he lived to cover up the shooting death of his roommate last month in Cicero, Illinois.
A man was charged with impersonating a police officer and other counts after a chain of events that led to gunfire from real police officers in Aurora, Illinois.
