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.
Two young dancers are bringing the beauty of the historic dance of flamenco to new life in Chicago.
A Wisconsin sheriff is suing an Illinois woman for $1 million, accusing her of defamation, saying her claims of being detained by federal immigration officials in the Dodge County Jail are a hoax.
Franz Wagner scored 25 points, Jamal Cain added 20 and the Orlando Magic remained in the running to avoid the play-in tournament by beating the Chicago Bulls 127-103.
Kris Bubic struck out a career-high 11, Carter Jensen hit his fourth home run and the Kansas City Royals beat the Chicago White Sox 2-0.
Due to popular demand, pope-themed hats that the White Sox initially offered as limited-edition items as part of a special ticket package in honor of Pope Leo XIV will now be given out to every fan who attends their Aug. 11 game against the Reds.
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy pointed out that gamers "have many of the hard skills it takes to be a successful controller."
Starting in December, eligible men in the U.S. will be automatically registered for the military draft.
An attorney for ex-Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan argued to the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals on Thursday that the former Democratic power broker's conviction on bribery and other corruption charges should be overturned.
Pope Leo XIV on Thursday met with David Axelrod, a longtime Democratic strategist and former senior advisor to former President Barack Obama.
Attorneys for imprisoned former Illinois House Speaker Mike Madigan were set to return to court Thursday, in hopes of getting his corruption conviction overturned.
A passenger on an American Airlines flight from New York to Chicago has been charged with making a false bomb threat that forced an emergency landing at Detroit Metro Airport last month, according to a federal criminal complaint.
Skyrocketing property taxes continue to be a hot-button issue in Cook County — particularly since last fall, when many residents saw their tax bills increase by 100% or more.
Illinois Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias this weekend issued a warning about a surge in text messages that falsely claim to come from his office or the DMV within it.
Tenants at a South Loop luxury high-rise that has been plagued with problems like broken elevators are vowing to fight five-day eviction notices.
It's become an annual March Madness tradition at CBS Chicago, pitting our city's best eateries in direct competition in a foodie bracket challenge. We did pizza, we've done Italian beef, we've done Chicago dogs. This year, we're taking flight with wings.
The United States has long struggled with understanding and finding ways to help treat mental illness. A new documentary, which is screening Saturday in Chicago, examines the reality of living with mental illness in America.
Allergy season is here, and the dreaded pollen can trigger sneezing, congestion, wheezing, and shortness of breath.
Northwestern Medicine and the American Red Cross teamed up for a community blood drive in Chicago on Monday morning.
Ending domestic violence is the goal of groups and advocates all over the world, and some experts in Chicago say it is time to become less reactive and more proactive when it comes to the people causing harm.
A new Iowa law bans local nondiscrimination protections on the basis of gender identity after the state became the first in the U.S. to roll back its civil rights code last year.
A new restaurant has joined the busy stretch of Halsted Street toward the south end of Chicago's Lincoln Park neighborhood that is also home to Alinea and Boka.
The federal government is suing Illinois, Connecticut and Arizona over efforts to regulate prediction market operators such as Kalshi and Polymarket.
The owners of the popular Uncommon Ground restaurant, live music venue, and brewery in Chicago's Wrigleyville community announced this week that they're looking for a successor to take over the business.
Chicago consistently ranks in the top three cities in Fortune 500 company headquarters, and now a competition has been launched to build on Chicago's power in business.
The flagship Ann Sather restaurant on Belmont Avenue in Chicago's Lakeview community will be moving later this year, a restaurant representative said Tuesday.
The United States has long struggled with understanding and finding ways to help treat mental illness. A new documentary, which is screening Saturday in Chicago, examines the reality of living with mental illness in America.
Afrika Bambaataa, a rapper and producer, was best known for breakthrough tracks like 1982's "Planet Rock" and for founding the Universal Zulu Nation art collective.
Mozart's "Don Giovanni," the local premiere of the 2022 opera "Omar," and a fresh production of "Guys and Dolls" are among the highlights of the 2026-2027 season for Chicago's Lyric Opera.
Federal magistrate Renee Harris Toliver told Pooh Sheisty that the evidence against him is strong.
A major music festival featuring the rapper formerly known as Kanye West was canceled after the U.K. government blocked Ye from entering the country.
Chief meteorologist Albert Ramon has the latest First Alert Weather forecast.
Two young dancers are bringing the beauty of the historic dance of flamenco to new life in Chicago.
A Wisconsin sheriff is suing an Illinois woman for $1 million, accusing her of defamation, saying her claims of being detained by federal immigration officials in the Dodge County Jail are a hoax.
NASA's Artemis II crew is safe back on Earth, after splashing down in the Pacific Ocean, returning from its 10-day mission around the moon.
New footage shows the moment gunshots rang out in Bronzeville, hitting a CTA bus, leaving one woman wounded.
A woman was injured when a CTA bus in Bronzeville was struck by gunfire Friday afternoon.
A Wisconsin sheriff is suing an Illinois woman for $1 million, accusing her of defamation, saying her claims of being detained by federal immigration officials in the Dodge County Jail are a hoax.
NASA's Artemis II astronauts return to Earth with a splashdown landing in the Pacific Ocean after making a high-speed reentry through the atmosphere.
The Archdiocese is accusing Chicago Public Schools of abruptly pulling funding for students with disabilities, but the district disputes the claim.
Two young dancers are bringing the beauty of the historic dance of flamenco to new life in Chicago.
New proposed Illinois legislation would allow renters or people who can't install massive rooftop panels to also harness the power of the sun.
When a rusty light pole snapped and fell on a woman's car in Bucktown, causing thousands of dollars in damage, she thought the city would pay for it. She was wrong.
Financial exploitation is the leading type of elder abuse in Illinois. One Streamwood woman learned that personally, when her brother took hundreds of thousands of dollars from their parents' financial accounts.
One year after a teenage girl was shot outside her home in Country Club Hills, Illinois, and was told she would never walk again, she continued to defy the odds and reclaim her independence.
A Morgan Park family is still in shock after a staggering 300% spike in their latest property tax bill, and the man poised to take over as Cook County Assessor at the end of the year says it's an error he wants to make sure doesn't happen again.
Franz Wagner scored 25 points, Jamal Cain added 20 and the Orlando Magic remained in the running to avoid the play-in tournament by beating the Chicago Bulls 127-103.
Kris Bubic struck out a career-high 11, Carter Jensen hit his fourth home run and the Kansas City Royals beat the Chicago White Sox 2-0.
Due to popular demand, pope-themed hats that the White Sox initially offered as limited-edition items as part of a special ticket package in honor of Pope Leo XIV will now be given out to every fan who attends their Aug. 11 game against the Reds.
It was a special day at the Blackhawks Ice Center on Friday as the team held its inaugural Blackhawks Hall of Fame induction ceremony.
Bryan Reynolds hit a two-run homer and Carmen Mlodzinski pitched six-hit ball into the sixth inning, helping the Pittsburgh Pirates beat the Chicago Cubs 2-0.
Federal magistrate Renee Harris Toliver told Pooh Sheisty that the evidence against him is strong.
A man was injured in a fight with a woman at a CTA the CTA Belmont Avenue Red-Brown-Purple Line station this week, but police said he didn't report until several hours later.
Chicago police on Tuesday issued a community alert about car break-ins targeting patrons of a gym in the city's Irving Park neighborhood.
Chicago police on Tuesday issued a community alert about a rash of car break-ins in Jackson Park on the city's South Side.
A shooting left a 16-year-old boy dead Tuesday morning in Chicago's South Shore neighborhood.
