Wisch: Will Thomas Hold Beckman To Zook's Standards?
Illinois athletic director Mike Thomas has a big decision awaiting this weekend.
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Illinois athletic director Mike Thomas has a big decision awaiting this weekend.
Ravenous Illinois fans take over Internet polls -- what would they do with a real championship team?
Tim Beckman's boss made it clear upon his hiring that Big Ten success was the goal.
Illinois' football attendance has been dwindling for five straight seasons.
No Illini coach has started with three straight losing seasons since 1977-'79.
Don't blame Illinois' admission standards for a lack of football talent -- the onus is on the coaches.
Former Illinois coach Ron Zook appears destined for Green Bay.
The Tim Beckman hire was a mistake and everybody has known it since his first press conference.
Illinois has a nearly two-decade tradition of retaining coaches at least one season too long.
The only hope for Illinois to continue progress (or start it) is by firing embattled defensive coordinator Tim Banks and hoping that Thomas can hire a talented assistant to replacement him.
It's that simple. Yet, of course, for the Fighting Illini, it isn't at all.
What a difference a week makes.
Stanford does it. So does Michigan. Notre Dame, Wisconsin and Vanderbilt do it, too.
Things Illini Nation learned this past week: 1) Ron Zook now works for a bank, and 2) Mike Thomas is willing to invest time in rebutting him.
If Beckman can't get things turned around soon – both on the field and with the state's best athletes – he won't be worrying about recruiting rankings for long.
From 1994-98, I was a student at the University of Illinois, and during those four years I saw a grand total of 14 football victories.
But then there's the University of Illinois, the sadsack program of the prairie whose last three head football coaches can now be found at Florida International University (Ron Turner), the University of Buffalo (Lou Tepper) and, well, the coaching unemployment line (Ron Zook).
We don't really know what Ron Zook is up to these days.
Zook, who was fired last year after seven seasons in Champaign, left the Illinois football program in far better shape than he found it.
On Thursday, the bad case of Illini indigestion was finally relieved when Ohio University's John Groce was announced as the 17th men's head coach in Illinois history during a press conference at Assembly Hall in Champaign.
Down in Champaign at the state's flagship school, the football program is listing, which is why Toledo's Tim Beckman was brought in to right a ship that Ron Zook wrecked after a 6-0 start to the season.
Twenty years ago, after compiling a sterling 30-16-1 record on the football field at that "basketball school" down in Champaign, University of Illinois coach John Mackovic bolted the Land of Lincoln for the gridiron riches of the Lone Star State.
Toledo head football coach Tim Beckman has reportedly emerged as the favorite to replace Ron Zook at Illinois.
Illinois has extended the application period for candidates for its head football coaching position until late Thursday night.
I happen to think the Illinois football job offers as much potential as any in the country. Much like, you know, the University of Wisconsin job offered Alvarez two decades ago when he took it over and transformed the Badgers into a snarling, bare-knuckled national power.
The chief of police in New Chicago, Indiana, stood accused Sunday of selling a pawn shop a gun that was being held as evidence and then trying to have it bought back, among other allegations.
A beloved United Airlines pilot stationed in Chicago received a very special sendoff into retirement this weekend.
Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson got a warm sendoff Sunday as he prepares for a trip to the Vatican.
Chicago police detectives on Sunday were investigating multiple shootings and other violent incidents stemming from gatherings of teens this Memorial Day weekend.
Freshman Gabriella McCollester scored a career-high four goals for Northwestern in a win over North Carolina in the NCAA Division I women's lacrosse national championship.
Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson got a warm sendoff Sunday as he prepares for a trip to the Vatican.
U.S. officials and negotiators were discussing a process to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, sources briefed on the conversations said.
The Trump administration on Friday announced a sweeping policy designed to make it harder for immigrants already in the U.S. to get permanent residency.
Senator Dick Durbin has fired former federal prosecutor Sheri Mecklenberg from her role as counsel to the Senate Judiciary Committee following allegations of prosecutorial misconduct with the grand jury in the Broadview Six case.
Tulsi Gabbard is resigning as the director of national intelligence after her husband was diagnosed with a rare form of bone cancer.
Consumer and environmental advocates said Monday that they found overcharges buried in the most recent rate-hike request by Nicor.
One week away from Memorial Day weekend and the unofficial start of the summer travel season, with gas prices remaining high, negotiations were set to resume Monday at the largest oil refinery in the Midwest.
Chatham residents say they're losing a vital resource as Walgreen's prepares to close its store near 86th and Cottage Grove.
According to AAA, the average price of a gallon of regular gas in Chicago was $5.17 on Friday, up from $3.75 a year ago.
Peoples Gas and North Shore Gas Company customers are likely to see minor credits on their bills for the next three years, thanks to a $125 million settlement agreement announced Thursday by Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul.
Menopause can feel like a major turning point for millions of women, with symptoms like fatigue, weight gain, and brain fog can make women feel like their bodies aren't their own.
A person suspected of having hantavirus in Winnebago County, Illinois, turned out to be a false alarm, officials said Monday.
The DuPage County Health Department has confirmed its first positive tests for West Nile virus in pools of mosquitoes this year.
The Kane County Health Department was set Monday to offer a free mental health awareness webinar.
At least 80 deaths have been reported in a new Ebola disease outbreak in Congo and Uganda, authorities said.
The owners of Gene & Georgetti steakhouse are suing a concessions operator over their expansion at Midway International Airport.
DraftKings announced Monday that it is closing its sportsbook operation at Wrigley Field after only about two years.
After more than 80 years, there will be no Ann Sather restaurant location in the 900 block of West Belmont Avenue in Chicago's Lakeview community, effective in June.
Flight attendants at Chicago-based United Airlines have approved a new labor contract, marking their first pay increases in six years.
The Chicago Fire FC announced Wednesday morning that its new stadium in the South Loop will be named McDonald's Park.
Former CBS Chicago anchorman Bill Kurtis has signed off from his role as the judge and scorekeeper on the NPR weekly news quiz show "Wait Wait… Don't Tell Me!"
Pop star Britney Spears said she was "totally fine" to drive and had not had a drink for about six hours when she was pulled over by the California Highway Patrol.
After nearly a century on the air, CBS News Radio signed off, with the final reports airing on Friday, May 22.
Stephen Colbert hosted "The Late Show" for the final time Thursday night as the franchise came to an end after 33 years.
The Museum of Broadcast Communications in Chicago already has one of Stephen Colbert's old desks, and now it will receive the whole "Late Show" set.
Meteorologist Mary Kay Kleist has your 5:30 p.m. First Alert Weather forecast for Sunday, May 24, 2026.
Fire crews in Orange County, California, are in their fourth day of trying to cool a failing chemical tank at an aerospace facility.
The White House says the U.S. and Iran are close to reaching a finalized agreement that would bring the war to an end and reopen the Strait of Hormuz, but lawmakers on both sides of the aisle are expressing concerns about the terms of the deal. Natalie Brand repots.
Capt. Jolanda Witvliet was honored with a water cannon salute at O’Hare International Airport on Saturday.
Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson got a warm sendoff Sunday as he prepares for a trip to the Vatican.
Chicago police detectives on Sunday were investigating multiple shootings and other violent incidents stemming from gatherings of teens this Memorial Day weekend.
A 2-year-old boy died Sunday after accidentally shooting himself in the head in Chicago's Pullman community.
New federal policy could force thousands of people living legally in the United States — including many in the Chicago area — to leave the country or lose their shot at a green card.
The chief of police in New Chicago, Indiana, stood accused Sunday of selling a pawn shop a gun that was being held as evidence and then trying to have it bought back, among other allegations.
A beloved United Airlines pilot stationed in Chicago received a very special sendoff into retirement this weekend.
Data centers popping up all over Illinois are sucking up millions of gallons of water a day, at a pace that the state can't keep up with. But experts say tapping into wastewater resources would steer the state in a new and much safer direction.
Many Metra riders with disabilities have been forced to reroute their trips due to Monday's closure of the only elevator providing access to the Electric Line at Millennium Station in downtown Chicago.
Pothole complaints continue everywhere, but especially on one street in the Pullman neighborhood on the South Side of Chicago.
People in Lincoln Park and Lakeview have rallied against a plan to build a new industrial ComEd electrical substation in their neighborhoods, pushing local and state leaders to get involved.
Monday marks one year since Illinois enacted Karina's Law — legislation aimed at taking firearms out of the hands of people accused of domestic abuse.
Freshman Gabriella McCollester scored a career-high four goals for Northwestern in a win over North Carolina in the NCAA Division I women's lacrosse national championship.
Christian Walker hit a three-run homer to cap a five-run fifth inning and the Houston Astros completed a three-game sweep of the Chicago Cubs with an 8-5 victory on Sunday.
Christian Walker homered twice with three RBIs, and the Houston Astros beat Chicago 3-0 Saturday to extend the Cubs' losing streak to seven, their longest skid in four years.
Harrison Bader hit a grand slam for the second time in six days, and the San Francisco Giants beats the Chicago White Sox 10-3.
Natasha Howard scored 26 points, including 14 in the second quarter, and the Minnesota Lynx defeated the Chicago Sky 85-75.
The chief of police in New Chicago, Indiana, stood accused Sunday of selling a pawn shop a gun that was being held as evidence and then trying to have it bought back, among other allegations.
Chicago police detectives on Sunday were investigating multiple shootings and other violent incidents stemming from gatherings of teens this Memorial Day weekend.
A woman was sexually assaulted in the LaBagh Woods forest preserve on Chicago's Northwest Side this weekend, and police were asking for help from the public in finding the attacker.
At least 22 people had been wounded in shootings across Chicago this Memorial Day weekend as of early Sunday afternoon.
A 17-year-old boy was hospitalized Sunday morning after a shooting on the Near West Side.
