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By Larry Smith - IlliniGuys Staff

March 27, 2023

(Cover photo courtesy ESPN)

Put your tattered brackets away and clear your mind for a moment as I ask you this one question:

Isn't this awesome?!

Yeah, I know you may have had Kansas repeating as champion or Alabama going all the way.  Maybe Houston in another Final Four or Purdue making the final weekend for the first time in decades.

But none of that happened, so get over it.  Instead, we all bore witness to a daily reminder of why this is the greatest tournament in sports.  There is no other event with the drama, the uncertainty, the thrills, and the classic moments like the NCAA men's basketball tournament.

Florida Atlantic vs. San Diego State.  Miami vs. UConn.  A most unusual quartet that seems destined to deliver a classic weekend in Houston in a few days.

Brad Sturdy, Co-Host IlliniGuys Sports Spectacular

March 27, 2023

(Cover photo courtesy Georgetown University Athletics)

As the college basketball season enters its final week, nearly every team is already hip-deep into the offseason and the decision-making required to transition into next fall.

Mike Farrell, IlliniGuys National Football Recruiting Expert

March 27, 2023

(Mike Farrell also has his own website: https://mikefarrellsports.com/)

In this edition of the Farrell Files Illinois, we look at a couple of losses in the 2024 class and where they may go next.

Kedric Prince, IlliniGuys Director of Recruiting

March 26, 2023

Once again, the Fighting Illini football staff has put on their X-Ray vision glasses seeing talent when others miss.

In his first year back as running backs coach Thad Ward wants to split the workload of his position room among some big and experienced options.

Matt Stevens, IlliniGuys Staff Writer

March 26, 2023

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. -- The 2012 Big Ten Conference Championship Game still serves as not only his finale at Wisconsin but also the peak of success of the running game of a Bret Bielema program.

(EDITOR'S NOTE: IlliniGuys co-founder Larry Smith has covered sports from the local to the international level for 35 years, including 12 Final Fours and six NBA Finals.  He is the creator of the Dirty Dozen, an office pool selection matrix that is 12-0 in its existence.)

By Larry Smith - IlliniGuys Staff Writer

March 25, 2023

--If you feel like there's a little extra drama sprinkled into this weekend's Elite Eight games, you're right.  At least one program (Creighton or San Diego State) will earn a trip to their first-ever Final Four and two others (Florida Atlantic, Miami) could join them.

This is another sign of the growing parity in college basketball. 

Illinois conducted its first spring practice in full pads on Saturday afternoon. 

By Matt Stevens - IlliniGuys Football Writer/Analyst

March 25, 2023

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. -- Good afternoon and welcome to the third of 15 allotted spring football practices for the University of Illinois program as we are months away from the third year of the tenure of Illini head coach Bret Bielema.

It was approximately a 40-minute viewing period of the first day in full pads so here’s a few quick notes:

The Saturday afternoon session (or at least the media viewing portion of the practice was moved from Memorial Stadium to inside the Irwin Indoor Facility due to looming weather conditions in the central Illinois area.

Kedric Prince - IlliniGuys.com Director of Recruiting

March 25, 2023

If you are a college basketball fan and the team you root for is out of the tournament, the next exciting thing on the agenda should be recruiting.

Kedric Prince, IlliniGuys Director of Recruiting

March 24, 2023

Sophomore guard Jayla Oden has made it official that she intends to enter the NCAA Transfer portal.

Kedric Prince - IlliniGuys.com Director of Recruiting

March 23, 2023

Meg Newman is a sharpshooter who is currently on the Arizona State roster but is looking to move to a different location.

Larry Smith - Executive Producer & Co-Host IlliniGuys Sports Spectacular

Cover photo Whole Hog Sports

March 23, 2023 (originally posted March 14, 2022)

The first weekend of the NCAA tournament is done, and March is again mad.

Kedric Prince, IlliniGuys Director of Recruiting

March 23, 2023

March 20 was the first official day of spring, which means it is Bret Bielema time at Memorial Stadium.

Larry Smith - Executive Producer & Co-Host IlliniGuys Sports Spectacular

Cover photo Duke Athletics

March 23, 2023 (originally posted March 17, 2022)

OK so if you read Part I of the White Jersey Theory, I've probably whet your whistle. 

By Kedric Prince - IlliniGuys.com Director of Recruiting

March 22, 2023

(Cover photo courtesy UNC Athletics)

We told you here at IlliniGuys that we would try to keep you up to date when we find players interested in Illinois and with Illinois showing interest in them.

These updates are happening daily, actually hourly. The most recent is North Carolina wing Dontrez Styles, a 6-foot-6 wing who has great athletic ability but has not been a good fit at UNC.

Larry Smith - Executive Producer & Co-Host IlliniGuys Sports Spectacular

Cover photo Duke Athletics

March 22, 2023 (originally posted March 8, 2022)

It's hard to believe it's been 21 years since a random conversation forever changed the way I view college basketball. 
It was a time when the NCAA tournament made regular stops at Kansas City's Kemper Arena before the newer, sleeker T-Mobile Center was built.  And that's why I was in the building.  Not to cover a game, but to watch my alma mater Eastern Illinois play in its second (and last) NCAA tournament.  The Panthers were a huge underdog against the 2nd seeded Arizona Wildcats, but had a pair of guards - future pros Kyle Hill and Henry Domercant - who made every game interesting if not entertaining.

EIU vs. Arizona was the second game of the day, so I found a random vacant seat a few rows up from the floor to watch the 7-10 game, Wake Forest vs. Butler.  The Bulldogs had the better resume, but - as was often the case - the "big school" Demon Deacons were the 7-seed and the favorite.  But they were in the process of being knocked out in the first round by Butler and a young coach named Thad Matta.

The gentleman in the next seat recognized me and struck up a conversation.  He was also an informed spectator; a referee who was in town to work one of the evening games.  He was a seasoned official who often worked Pac-10 and Mountain West games.