There is certainly a misperception. Not to harp on my Kam’s experience, but when they said they wouldn’t televise the game, the bartender said, “You know our football team must suck if we don’t even show the game.” I wanted to say, “No, dumbf***, we USED to suck. Now we win some and are building to bigger things.” Equally sad was that I was the only one in the bar who cared and my friend, a UVA fan, asked “why is no one in here wearing orange and blue?”
Illinois 24, Virginia 3 Postgame
Somehow have to find a way to change the attitude on campus. DIA research from about 3 years ago showed that incoming students had very little interest in athletics, felt no connection to any traditions of the university, were more likely to retain whatever sports affinity they came in with and wouldn't attend events unless they could find a group to go with.
IMO, the student population that the university recruits will not lead to engaged and passionate fans. Is the answer to develop a fan base from the local area, from Chicagoland or from end to end of the state? I don't know, but we need to look into all possible answers.
The Galloping Ghost
- Washington, DC
So like, Kams is just gonna say f-it to that UCLA basketball game on ESPNU in November, also?
blackdog
- Champaign
A little more from the game itself because the defense was good and we have some special looking young guys out there too.
Having ten thousand international students and bringing in five thousand international students last year can't help this either. At these numbers I would question how much acclimation there is to university traditions, let alone American culture. Frankly, it is insulting to the in-state students who don't get in, so no wonder when they go to Iowa or Purdue they have a strong dislike for Illinois. The middle 50% of ACT scores for the engineering college is 33-35, so you know there are good students getting turned away.
I wasn’t alive during the Mike White days, but the crowds in 2001 and 2007 were electric. The place was rocking in a way that I hope comes back. Win and it will happen. Both of those years came after many years of mediocrity, so it can still happen.
The DIA should be offering family 4-packs to every remaining game. No reason you can’t offer that for $79-99 for bigger games. Better than getting $0 for those empty seats!
Mr. Tibbs
- southeast DuPage
the quality of students from Hinsdale Central
( those I know who were friends of my kids from 2007-2013) that got rejected from College of Engineering or Business would simply blow you away .
Many would indeed end up at other B10 schools and many had a sour taste for UI for getting denied when their grades & scores were simply excellent .
( those I know who were friends of my kids from 2007-2013) that got rejected from College of Engineering or Business would simply blow you away .
Many would indeed end up at other B10 schools and many had a sour taste for UI for getting denied when their grades & scores were simply excellent .
Nailed it. I was a student with Blackman and Moeller. Continued to travel to all home games from Chicagoland throughout the 80's and early 90's. Then my kids activities became the priority. That 80's environment will never return if they are waiting for the alums to fill the stands. Very different student composition over th last 20-25 years.
I didn't see very much of the game yesterday. What I did see was the first 10 minutes of the game with all the frustrating turnovers and the one very exciting fumble recovery/TD.
At nearly that same moment my 4 year old grandson informed me it was time for us to go play in the basement. *heavy sigh but so worth it.
He worked me harder than Chase Brown worked yesterday. (When adjusted for age and fat.) That's including the "Grandpa timeouts every 30 minutes or so to rest and catch my breath.)
I was able to escape the basement when I made the dinner run. But my reprieve was short lived. I caught a little of the 3rd quarter as Grami ate her dinner and I watched the 9 month old. When it was finally time for me to eat all I heard was, "Grandpa, can we go to the basement now?" I ate fast. I don't remember a single play of the 3rd quarter.
I look forward to going back in a few weeks. In the meantime I better hit the weights. It is harder to lift him up and fly him around the room every time I see him.
At nearly that same moment my 4 year old grandson informed me it was time for us to go play in the basement. *heavy sigh but so worth it.
He worked me harder than Chase Brown worked yesterday. (When adjusted for age and fat.) That's including the "Grandpa timeouts every 30 minutes or so to rest and catch my breath.)
I was able to escape the basement when I made the dinner run. But my reprieve was short lived. I caught a little of the 3rd quarter as Grami ate her dinner and I watched the 9 month old. When it was finally time for me to eat all I heard was, "Grandpa, can we go to the basement now?" I ate fast. I don't remember a single play of the 3rd quarter.
I look forward to going back in a few weeks. In the meantime I better hit the weights. It is harder to lift him up and fly him around the room every time I see him.
I've heard similar stories from friends with high school kids. It seems a lot of universities are prioritizing out-of-state or especially international students for the higher tuition. I know it's the case here in Calif.... the percentage of state kids admitted to Cal Uni's has gone down. So kids here end up going to BIG and other out-of-state schools.
Saw the same a few years back with some good friends. Parents both UI grads along with other members of their extended families. Kids graduated from New Trier with very good test scores and grades but did not get into UI. Kids went to Indiana, parents threw away all of their Illini paraphenalia and have never been back again.
As a comparison just look at UI vs. Ohio State. Fall 2021 enrollment: U of I had 31422 Illinois resident students out of 56257 (55.8%) OSU had 43190 Ohio residents out of 61677 (70%). No wonder it's so easy for them to fill that stadium (even discounting success on the field).
The problem is that there is really very little that DIA can do to remedy this situation. The university and their admission priorities determine everything.
The admissions people also have an obsession with not giving legacies any preference. They don’t need to admit poor students because they are legacies but having a family member who has also attended should get at least some weight. Building generational connections to the University will make for a better university.
My wife and I both graduated from UofI. My son attended Stevenson HS. He had a 4.0+ GPA, a 32 ACT, played HS sports and worked at a kids summer camp for years. His dream school was Illinois. He of course had been on campus with us enough over the years for football and BB games. When he walked on the quad the day of the student visit day, he couldn't stop smiling. Illinois said they would give him no credit for the AP classes and tests he passed. He was "wait listed". When he received his "congratulations", he had already decided on another college that gave him out of state scholarships that lowered his tuition to less than in state tuition. He also received 11 credit hours for his AP classes. Which allowed him to double major plus a minor in 4 years and graduated Magna Cum Laude. When he opened that "congratulations" letter from Illinois, instead of being proud and excited he said, "!!!! you!". I was actually very proud of him, because I felt the same way.
pruman91
- Paducah, Ky
Illinois got the revenge it wanted in win over Virginia
CHAMPAIGN — The Illinois football team had some required viewing during the course of practice this week.
ANDERSON KIMBALL
CHAMPAIGN — The Illinois football team had some required viewing during the course of practice this week.
Played over and over during the week was a clip video coordinator Joe Maggio found of Virginia players dancing and celebrating.
"I showed them specifically a play where Virginia's sideline did that," Bielema said. "There was a play late in the fourth quarter where I watched their whole group get together. That had stuck in my mind. I'd taken that mental picture and I couldn't shake it."
Late in Saturday’s win over the Cavaliers, it was the Illini’s turn to dance.
The team got a stop on fourth down, officially clinching a 24-3 win that seemed decided for most of the game. Bielema wasn’t such a big fan, but the defense got to dance on the sideline and in the end zone near the student section in celebration of another example of the unit’s turnaround.
Last year, the Illini lost 42-14 to this same team and 364 days later it kept the opponent out of the end zone and won by three scores.
"This was a big statement to me about where we were a year ago to where we are now," Bielema said.
Defensive end Keith Randolph led the charge with a sack and 2½ tackles for loss, saw Virginia move down the field during that drive and decided he needed to step in.
"I remember they were moving the ball, on the end zone, and I was like, 'Hold on,' because I left my helmet all the way down the other end because I'm thinking we're done," Randolph said. "And I'm like, 'Oh they're on the 3-yard line.' I take off sprinting, 'Coach, coach, come on, put me in.' And he did."
Randolph made a tackle in the backfield before the Illini got a goal line stand, then dished back some of the celebration it had to witness last year and during the week of practice.
"It was great," Randolph said. "Something I'll never forget, honestly."
As a 69 year old Illini fan, it was hard to keep my composure watching this. A great symbol of our beloved university.
That is quite a change from when I was in school. As compared UM, UW, IU, etc., UI had a vastly higher proportion of in state students. I think we had one out of state kid in my fraternity and it was unusual to have an out of stater come through rush
Now that's what I'm talking about
I was just a little 10ish year old twerp when my family took me to the epic game against Penn State (Illinois' defense was #2 in the nation at the time). Completely sold out crowd and the atmosphere was incredible!
Yeah in the end Illinois blew a 21-0 lead but I'll never forget how amazing of a game experience it was for me and everyone I attended with. Loud af doesn't begin to describe how intense it was. Not to mention Illinois had the nation's 2nd ranked defense at the time.
here's a little trip down memory lane and a friendly heads up to the Generation Tik Tokers on the potential of a loud Illinois football home game.
Mere excellence can turn into greatness in one defining moment.
For Ali it was 15 rounds in Manila, for Doug Flutie six seconds in
Miami, for Secretariat two minutes and 24 seconds at Belmont Park.
For Penn State's 1994 football team it was six minutes at Memorial
Stadium in Champaign, Ill.
''No one,'' said Penn State senior quarterback Kerry Collins,
''will ever forget 96 yards at Illinois.''
The scene looked as if it had been shipped in from the prop shop:
the field shrouded in a haunting fog, the home team clinging to a
31-28 lead -- and the dream of a marvelous upset -- with 6:07 to
play. There were the Nittany Lions, backed up to their own four-yard
line, faced with the task of negotiating the rest of the rug against
one of the nation's top defenses.
As good as Penn State had been in its previous eight games, it was
even better now. The Lions drove those 96 yards in 14 plays, thrice
converting on third down. Collins completed all seven of his passes,
for 60 yards. Of the final drive, Collins said afterward, ''There was
no tension. All eyes were on me, and everybody was very focused.''
With 2:00 left Penn State had moved to the Illinois 34-yard line.
Collins then threw 16 yards to Bobby Engram for a first down. After a
run for no gain and a nine-yard completion to Engram, the Lions faced
third-and-one at the Illinois nine. From there fullback Brian Milne
crashed over the right side for seven yards. One play later Milne
scored his third touchdown of the day, with 57 seconds left, to give
the Lions a 35-31 lead. It was the first time all day they had led,
having started their remarkable comeback from a 21-0 first- quarter
deficit.
Illinois did move the ball to the Penn State 31, but on the last
play of the game, quarterback Johnny Johnson was intercepted in the
end zone by safety Kim Herring. Afterward Penn State guard Marco
Rivera said, ''I'm still in shock that we won.'' The win clinched a
trip to the Rose Bowl for the Lions and made Joe Paterno the first
coach since Tennessee's Bob Neyland in 1951 to have led teams to all
four major bowls.
The Lions had come to Champaign averaging 533.5 yards (best in the
country) and 48.4 points (second best in the country) per game. For
its part, Illinois, though a frustrated 6-3, possessed the nation's
No. 2 scoring defense (11.3 points per game). The first omen of
trouble for the visitors came on the morning of the game, when a
power outage at the Lions' hotel forced them to eat pizza instead of
the arranged meal, which sat uncooked in the hotel kitchen.
The Lions suspected that the Illini defense would be stingy, but
they could not have foreseen the creditable performance by the
Illinois offense. Seizing on two rare Penn State mistakes -- a fumble
by tailback Ki-Jana Carter and an interception of Collins -- the
Illini's usually inconsistent offense ran out to a 21-0 lead in the
first quarter. By the half Penn State had rallied to within 28-14,
and Paterno saw reason for optimism. ''I told the kids at the half
that if we played our game, didn't lose our poise and didn't try to
make big plays, we'd be all right,'' said Paterno after the game.
By the third quarter it was clear that Penn State had righted
itself. The Lions' defense was performing better (it would hold
Illinois to a single field goal in the second half), so the only
question was whether enough time remained for Penn State to come all
the way back. With 7:50 to play, Milne slammed over from five yards
out, slicing the Illini lead to 31-28. Illinois punted on its next
possession -- a 67-yard missile by Brett Larsen -- and the Lions had
their chance to rise to greatness.
''I knew we had kids with a lot of character,'' Paterno said when
it was over. ''I never thought that we couldn't do it.''
For Ali it was 15 rounds in Manila, for Doug Flutie six seconds in
Miami, for Secretariat two minutes and 24 seconds at Belmont Park.
For Penn State's 1994 football team it was six minutes at Memorial
Stadium in Champaign, Ill.
''No one,'' said Penn State senior quarterback Kerry Collins,
''will ever forget 96 yards at Illinois.''
The scene looked as if it had been shipped in from the prop shop:
the field shrouded in a haunting fog, the home team clinging to a
31-28 lead -- and the dream of a marvelous upset -- with 6:07 to
play. There were the Nittany Lions, backed up to their own four-yard
line, faced with the task of negotiating the rest of the rug against
one of the nation's top defenses.
As good as Penn State had been in its previous eight games, it was
even better now. The Lions drove those 96 yards in 14 plays, thrice
converting on third down. Collins completed all seven of his passes,
for 60 yards. Of the final drive, Collins said afterward, ''There was
no tension. All eyes were on me, and everybody was very focused.''
With 2:00 left Penn State had moved to the Illinois 34-yard line.
Collins then threw 16 yards to Bobby Engram for a first down. After a
run for no gain and a nine-yard completion to Engram, the Lions faced
third-and-one at the Illinois nine. From there fullback Brian Milne
crashed over the right side for seven yards. One play later Milne
scored his third touchdown of the day, with 57 seconds left, to give
the Lions a 35-31 lead. It was the first time all day they had led,
having started their remarkable comeback from a 21-0 first- quarter
deficit.
Illinois did move the ball to the Penn State 31, but on the last
play of the game, quarterback Johnny Johnson was intercepted in the
end zone by safety Kim Herring. Afterward Penn State guard Marco
Rivera said, ''I'm still in shock that we won.'' The win clinched a
trip to the Rose Bowl for the Lions and made Joe Paterno the first
coach since Tennessee's Bob Neyland in 1951 to have led teams to all
four major bowls.
The Lions had come to Champaign averaging 533.5 yards (best in the
country) and 48.4 points (second best in the country) per game. For
its part, Illinois, though a frustrated 6-3, possessed the nation's
No. 2 scoring defense (11.3 points per game). The first omen of
trouble for the visitors came on the morning of the game, when a
power outage at the Lions' hotel forced them to eat pizza instead of
the arranged meal, which sat uncooked in the hotel kitchen.
The Lions suspected that the Illini defense would be stingy, but
they could not have foreseen the creditable performance by the
Illinois offense. Seizing on two rare Penn State mistakes -- a fumble
by tailback Ki-Jana Carter and an interception of Collins -- the
Illini's usually inconsistent offense ran out to a 21-0 lead in the
first quarter. By the half Penn State had rallied to within 28-14,
and Paterno saw reason for optimism. ''I told the kids at the half
that if we played our game, didn't lose our poise and didn't try to
make big plays, we'd be all right,'' said Paterno after the game.
By the third quarter it was clear that Penn State had righted
itself. The Lions' defense was performing better (it would hold
Illinois to a single field goal in the second half), so the only
question was whether enough time remained for Penn State to come all
the way back. With 7:50 to play, Milne slammed over from five yards
out, slicing the Illini lead to 31-28. Illinois punted on its next
possession -- a 67-yard missile by Brett Larsen -- and the Lions had
their chance to rise to greatness.
''I knew we had kids with a lot of character,'' Paterno said when
it was over. ''I never thought that we couldn't do it.''
The Comeback Down 21-0 early, Penn State dug deep and pulled out a memorable victory
Mere excellence can turn into greatness in one defining moment.For Ali it was 15 rounds in Manila, for Doug Flutie six seconds inMiami, for Secretariat two
vault.si.com
MustangWally
- Mayfield
My daughter barely graduated from high school. The only school she could get into was the local community college. After acing her way to an Associate's degree, Illinois was anxious to have her, tried to get her to come a semester early. She was happy to be an Illini, but doesn't have nearly the connection to the school that I have.
Sometimes I can get her to go to a game with me and she has a good time, but the Illini are never a priority for her. Times have changed.
I completely agree with this. I have three grown children with college degrees from other Illinois universities that are successful, professional, productive Illinois citizens that could not qualify for admittance to the U of I as highschool graduates. In my opinion that is the U of I's loss and the U of I school management is content to sustain that attitude throughout the state.
I have been trying to find historical statistics on this stuff. I haven't found a definitive source. I would love to know how the in-state/out-of-state/international percentages have changed over time. I enrolled in 1976 as an out-of-stater. I remember that I was a rarity (in other ways as well
). I know what I think has/is happening. But I would like to see real statistics.Pretty sketchy trying to find data but the best place I've seen is the student enrollment page from the Division of Management Information. (https://www.dmi.illinois.edu/stuenr/)I have been trying to find historical statistics on this stuff. I haven't found a definitive source. I would love to know how the in-state/out-of-state/international percentages have changed over time. I enrolled in 1976 as an out-of-stater. I remember that I was a rarity (in other ways as well
Lots of information that you have to dig through but it does go back th the early 70s/late 60s for some stuff.
Most other schools have data of some sort on their registrar's page.
Illwinsagain
- Cary, IL
Absolute chills! I started at U of I, the next year. I remember how revered the Chief was. I hate.... never mind, I have to get over it.
redwingillini11
White and Sixth
- North Aurora
I acknowledge that Chief Illiniwek is completely in our past, but God what a moment that used to be.... I remain extremely disappointed more wasn't even attempted to adapt the Chief to a 21st Century appropriate tradition.
But more than anything from that video, wow what an atmosphere Memorial Stadium used to be. I'd give anything to be able to bring friends and family down for a game or even just turn on the TV and see that level of excitement in the stands again. Please, please, please Bielema. Restore this program.