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Two of the best defensive teams in the Big Ten Conference coming off disappointing losses will meet in State Farm Center. 

Matt Stevens, IlliniGuys Staff Writer

January 11, 2023

CHAMPAIGN — Brad Underwood made sure his squad’s film review for the Michigan State Spartans included watching Tom Izzo’s post-game rant from Sunday night.

After an 88-74 loss at Northwestern, the Spartans 29-year head coach ripped into his team’s lack of defensive execution, inability to control the rebounding advantage or play with physicality, a laziness when it came to taking care of the basketball and for good measure, took some parting shots at the analytical community on his way out of Evanston, Illinois. 

Kedric Prince, IlliniGuys Director of Recruiting

January 11, 2024

Early this weekend four-star guard Jeremiah Fears released his final list of five schools. The original plan was to narrow the list to maybe 10. Jeremy Fears Sr., a former DI athlete himself, went through the recruiting process; with his son Jeremy Jr. a freshman at Michigan State and now with Jeremiah, they have learned a lot, and it is only right to be honest and fair to those he does not plan to attend. 

Jeremiah said, "I’m honored and blessed that all of those schools recruited me, they have been great, I've built some great relationships with all of them. But after talking to my family, it was time to narrow things down."

Jeremy Sr. shared with IlliniGuys why each school made this cut.

Mike Farrell, IlliniGuys & Big Sports Radio National Football Recruiting Expert

January 10, 2024

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

In this edition of the Farrell Files Illinois, I’ll take a look take a look at an interesting coaching change in high school, a DL loss in the portal to a pesky new recruiting foe and break down 2024 WR TySean Griffin in four categories.

A restraining order/injunction filed by Illinois guard Terrence Shannon Jr. against the University of Illinois for an immediate removal of Shannon’s suspension will be heard in federal court on Friday.

By Matt Stevens - IlliniGuys Staff Writer

January 10, 2024

Terrence Shannon’s hearing against the University of Illinois in federal district court has been set for a Friday afternoon in the form of a video conference appointment. 

The graduate senior guard, who filed for a temporary restraining order Monday in Champaign County Court in order to immediately return to the University of Illinois basketball team, has seen his case moved to the U.S. District Court for the Central District of Illinois. According to federal court filings, the initial judge assigned to the case, Colin Stirling Bruce, recused himself on Tuesday and judge Colleen R. Lawless was assigned Tuesday morning. 

The representation for Shannon, which includes attorneys Mark P. Sutter, Rob Lang, Steve Beckett and Mark Goldenberg, apparently didn't need to refile the motion for the restraining order in federal court, as it was attached to the removal notice and the judge decided to take up the motion as is based on the limited info available. Lawless ordered the representation for the University of Illinois, University of Illinois Board of Trustees and University of Illinois System president Timothy L. Killeen - which includes attorney Peter G. Land - to file a response to Shannon’s temporary restraining order request by Thursday, and set a hearing date for Friday at 1:30 p.m. CST to be done by video teleconferencing. 

Kedric Prince, IlliniGuys Director of Recruiting

January 9, 2024

Last weekend, Illinois hosted transfer offensive lineman Melvin Priestly for an official visit. We caught up with the East St. Louis prospect to get the latest with his recruitment.

Kedric Prince - IlliniGuys.com Director of Recruiting

January 9, 2024

The Fighting Illini football staff appears to be fully aware of the direction the Big Ten football is headed. The days of run, run, and run more might be a thing of the past.

Brad Sturdy, Co-Host IlliniGuys Sports Spectacular & Big Sports […]

Kedric Prince, IlliniGuys Director of Recruiting

January 8, 2024

Typically, the Illinois men's basketball program does not bring in a large number of recruits during the season. Why? Illinois head coach Brad Underwood allows his coaches a more hands-on approach when it comes to coaching responsibilities. 

Mike Farrell, IlliniGuys & Big Sports Radio National Football Recruiting Expert

January 8, 2024

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

In this edition of the Farrell Files Illinois, I’ll take a look take a look a new OL portal offer who could commit soon and break down the key TE commitment from the portal.

A year after qualifying for the 2023 NCAA Tournament, […]

Brad Sturdy, Co-Host IlliniGuys Sports Spectacular & Big Sports Radio, Illini Uber-Insider

January 7, 2023

The Illini lost on Friday evening at Purdue by an 83-78 after trailing by as many as 21 points in the second half. Clearly, losing by 5 on the court of the #1 team in the country isn’t a bad loss, but some issues did come up in this one that Illinois will need to fix moving forward. Let’s look at a few areas where Purdue was able to expose some things against Illinois. 

Whether defending National Player of the Year Zach Edey was on the floor or not, Purdue physically handled an overmatched Illinois squad inside Mackey Arena Friday. 

Matt Stevens, IlliniGuys Staff Writer

January 6, 2023

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — As he entered the visiting locker room of Mackey Arena Friday night, Illinois head coach Brad Underwood looked at his boss and repeated one of his favorite go-to sayings. 

“That was a Pizza Hut parking lot beating tonight,” Underwoods said looking at Illinois athletics director Josh Whitman. 

By IlliniGuys Staff January 5, 2024 (Cover photo courtesy […]

Ked's Recruiting Roundup   By Kedric Prince - IlliniGuys.com […]

Brad Sturdy, Co-Host IlliniGuys Sports Spectacular & Big Sports Radio, Illini Uber-Insider

January 5, 2023

The Illini are into the top 10 and now head on the road to take on the #1 ranked Purdue Boilermakers. The Boilers have been on a roll outside of one road hiccup at Northwestern and Illinois has been playing like a top 10 squad, with their only recent loss a tough one at #5 Tennessee. 

Illinois will be without leading scorer Terrence Shannon Jr. for the 3rd straight game as the All-American Guard is still on suspension, but it hasn’t fazed the Illini in dominant wins over FDU and Northwestern. Now, they get a much stiffer test in West Lafayette against #1 Purdue.

Here’s a breakdown. 

Setting the Stage

#9/8 Illinois (11-2, 2-0 B1G) at #1/1 Purdue (13-1, 2-1 B1G) 

Jan. 5, 2024 // 7:30 p.m. CT (8:30 p.m. ET) // West Lafayette, Ind. // Mackey Arena 

TV: FS1 – Brandon Gaudin (Play-by-Play), Robbie Hummel (Analyst) 

Radio: Busey Bank Illini Sports Network – Brian Barnhart (Play-By-Play), Deon Thomas