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  • Big Ten Conference schedule released

    Nov 19, 2020 8:45 am

    The Illini  will play twice against Indiana, Minnesota, Nebraska, Northwestern, Ohio State, Penn State and Wisconsin. Home singles are agianst Iowa, Maryland and Purdue, while its road singles are at Michigan, Michigan State and Rutgers.

  • Isaiah Williams rushes for a touchdown

    Quarterback Isaiah Williams: A record-setting first start

    Nov 16, 2020 10:15 am

    A redshirt freshman got his first start on Saturday, scored his first career touchdown, led his team to season victory number one, and, set a single-game rushing record for an Illini quarterback.

  • Braggin' Rights graphic provided by Division of Intercollegiate Athletics

    Braggin’ Rights basketball scheduled for Dec. 12

    Nov 12, 2020 9:30 am

    The two programs will play on campus at either Mizzou Arena in Columbia, Mo., or State Farm Center in Champaign, Ill. A coin flip will determine the location.

  • Illinois Coach Brad Underwood claps as he walks courtside in an orange blazer

    Illini Men's Basketball debuts at No. 8 in AP poll

    Nov 9, 2020 1:45 pm

    Illinois will open the 2020-21 season at No. 8 in the Associated Press Top 25 - its highest preseason ranking since starting off at No. 5 prior to 2004-05. It marks the first time Illinois enters a season ranked since 2010-11 (No. 13). 

  • graphic: Karol Kahrs, 1940 - 2020

    Women’s sports pioneer Karol Kahrs passes away

    Nov 4, 2020 8:00 am

    "Dr. Kahrs was a pioneer and transformational leader in establishing...women's collegiate athletics at the U of I, in the Big Ten, and nationally," Athletics Director Josh Whitman said. '(Her) contributions to the Fighting Illini cannot be overstated.'

  • Illini will play at Duke in ACC/Big Ten Challenge

    Oct 30, 2020 2:30 pm

    Pairings for the 2020 ACC/Big Ten Challenge have been determined, and the Fighting Illini highlight one of the marquee matchups in this year's event. Illinois will play at Duke on Tuesday, Dec. 8. 

  • Ayo Dosumnu celebrates a three-point shot during a game against Indiana in March, 2020

    Dosunmu: CBS Sports Preseason First-Team All-American

    Oct 28, 2020 11:30 am

    '...Dosunmu opting to return to campus to give Illinois its best outlook in a decade-plus might be the best,' according to the CBS Sports article. 'The heady, athletic, fearless lead guard has Illini fans dreaming of a Final Four.'

  • orange and blue graphic - Illinois vs. Purdue

    Illinois looks to keep the cannon Saturday vs. Purdue

    Oct 26, 2020 8:00 am

    The Illinois football team kicks off its home schedule Saturday with the Battle for the Cannon against Purdue. Big Ten Network will carry the television broadcast at 11 a.m. CT.

  • Illinois Football uniforms to promote social justice awareness

    Oct 22, 2020 2:45 pm

    The players have been active in the area of social justice since returning to campus this summer, and these uniform changes are another example of their continued advocacy for social change. 

  • Illini Football travels to No. 14 Wisconsin for 2020 opener

    Oct 20, 2020 10:00 am

    The Illinois football team begins its 2020 season Friday evening (7 p.m., BTN) at Wisconsin, the first game of the season for any Big Ten teams.

  • Fighting Illini fan cutouts available for 2020 football season

    Oct 6, 2020 9:45 am

    No fans will be inside Big Ten stadiums this football season, but you can get a piece of yourself represented in Memorial Stadium through the Fighting Illini Fan Cutouts packages. 

  • Former assistant coach Mark Coomes discusses Lou Henson's social justice legacy

    Sep 30, 2020 11:15 am

    The nephew and assistant of the late Lou Henson talks to us about Henson's legacy on and off the court, and his work as a pioneer in the field if social justice.

  • Basketball an outlet for Antigua to share Hispanic roots

    Sep 25, 2020 10:00 am

    As an assistant coach with the Men's Basketball team at Illinois, Antigua has been instrumental in recruiting talented young men to represent the orange and blue.

  • football player Kendrick Green stands beside graphic of football schedule

    2020 Illinois Football schedule announced

    Sep 18, 2020 2:15 pm

    The Fighting Illini are slated to start the abbreviated season at Wisconsin on October 24. Home game opponents for the Illini are Purdue, Minnesota, Ohio State and Iowa. The team will travel to Wisconsin, Rutgers, Nebraska and Northwestern. 

  • male cheerleader waves a very large Block I flag during a basketball game at State Farm Center

    Basketball season start date announced: Nov. 25

    Sep 17, 2020 11:45 am

    'The new season start date...is a grand compromise of sorts and a unified approach that focuses on the health and safety of student-athletes competing towards the 2021 Division I basketball championships,' an NCAA executive said.

  • Memorial Stadium

    Big Ten Football to resume October 23-24

    Sep 16, 2020 8:45 am

    The Big Ten will require all on-field personnel to undergo daily antigen testing with results completed and recorded prior to each practice or game.

  • packed State Farm Center with sinopia color treatment

    Illini Basketball attendance Once again in top 25

    Aug 19, 2020 1:30 pm

    Illinois ranked 24th nationally in men's basketball home attendance during the 2019-20 season, averaging 13,041 fans across 18 games at State Farm Center, for a total of nearly a quarter million spectators.

  • Chen watches a tee shot

    Chen finishes fifth in China’s National Amateur Tour leg 1

    Aug 18, 2020 9:30 am

    Illinois freshman Siyan Chen tied for fifth at the China Golf Association's National Amateur Tour Leg 1 held in Yangjiang, Guangdong, China.

  • Big Ten's 'B1G' logo

    Big Ten Conference postpones all fall sports

    Aug 11, 2020 2:30 pm

    The decision applies to all fall sports, including the football, volleyball, women's soccer and cross country programs. The Big Ten Conference will continue to evaluate the possibility of competition in the spring.

  • students in the 'Block I' cheering section of a Fighting Illini football game. Photo by L. B. Stauffer

    Illini Pride membership available now for U of I students

    Aug 7, 2020 10:00 am

    Due to the announced reduced capacity at Memorial Stadium this season, student tickets for Illinois football will be available through a lottery system to only Illini Pride members.

  • 2020 Illini Football schedule announced

    Aug 5, 2020 10:45 am

     The revised 2020 Illinois football schedule was released by the Big Ten Conference today, with the Fighting Illini opening the season September 3 with a Thursday Night Special against Ohio State at Memorial Stadium.

  • images of Kofi Cockburn in graphic with text, 'King Kofi'

    Kofi Cockburn, Ayo Dosunmu returning for 2020-21

    Aug 3, 2020 9:15 am

    Center Kofi Cockburn and guard Ayo Dosunmu have both announced their return to Illinois for the 2020-21 season. 'My dream is to play in the NBA. But first I need that national championship,' Dosunmu said.

  • Coach Henson poses with Final Four trophy

    Messages pour in honoring Coach Lou Henson

    Jul 31, 2020 12:45 pm

    As the news of legendary Fighting Illini basketball coach and ambassador Lou Henson's passing broke, hundreds of posts on social media were shared with personal anecdotes about the man in an orange blazer. 

  • Bartch-Hackley swinging at the net as an Illini player

    Michelle Bartsch-Hackley: Illinois Athletics Hall of Fame Class of 2020

    Jul 30, 2020 9:15 am

    The many accomplishments of former Fighting Illini volleyball standout and 2020 Illinois Athletics Hall of Fame inductee Michelle Bartsch-Hackley.

  • graphic - Block I symbol with green bandana draped over it

    Illinois Athletics joins Green Bandana Project

    Jul 28, 2020 9:30 am

    The program offers student-athletes training that focuses on recognizing and learning how to respond when someone is experiencing a mental health crisis. This peer to peer response can help to encourage those in need to get help. 

  • the legendary coach, Lou Henson. Annotated: 1932 - 2020

    Legendary Fighting Illini Lou Henson passes away at 88

    Jul 29, 2020 12:00 pm

    Legendary Fighting Illini basketball coach and ambassador Lou Henson passed away peacefully in his Champaign home Saturday, July 25, the Henson family announced Wednesday, July 29.

  • graphic using images of Women's Basketball Head Coach Nancy Fahey. Text is story headline.

    Fahey named among 100 Influential People in Women's College Basketball

    Jul 22, 2020 6:30 pm

    Fahey, who is entering her 35th year as a collegiate head coach overall and her fourth year at Illinois, became synonymous with excellence during her 31-year tenure at Washington University in St. Louis.

  • Hanson awaiting a play. Image over Butkus Award graphic

    Jake Hansen named to Butkus Award watch list

    Jul 20, 2020 10:45 am

    Illinois senior linebaker Jake Hansen has been named to the Butkus Award watch list. It is the second career watch list for Hansen, who is on the Bednarik 2020 watch list and was a Butkus Award semifinalist in 2019.

  • DIA director Josh Whitman

    COVID-19 Briefing Series: Athletics

    Jul 17, 2020 9:15 am

    Division of Intercollegiate Athletics Director Josh Whitman and sports medicine head Randy Ballard discuss plans for 2020-21 Illinois Athletics.

  • side-by-side images of Taylor Edwards in action as an Illini Basketball and Illini Softball player

    Edwards named NCAA Woman of the Year nominee

    Jul 15, 2020 10:30 am

     Taylor Edwards, a standout pitcher for the Fighting Illini softball program for four seasons before joining the women's basketball team for her final year of eligibility in 2019-20, has been named as a nominee for NCAA Woman of the Year.

  • block I logo

    Fall sports: DIA's statement on Big Ten Conference announcement

    Jul 10, 2020 10:15 am

    Teams will compete against only Big Ten Conference opponents, and participation in sports is voluntary, with scholarship and financial aid protected for all student-athletes regardless of their participation. 

  • Andres Feliz and Malcolm Hill embrace after the victory.

    House of 'Paign upsets top seed, advances to TBT Quarterfinals

    Jul 9, 2020 9:45 am

    The Illinois alumni team House of 'Paign knocked off No. 1 seed and defending champion Carmen's Crew (Ohio State alumni), 76-68, in Wednesday's round of 16 action at The Basketball Tournament (TBT).

  • Whitney Mercilus eyes a moving quarterback as an Illini

    Mercilus named to BTN All-Decade Second Team

    Jul 7, 2020 10:45 am

    Mercilus was a consensus All-American and won the Hendricks Award (top DE in the nation) at Illinois in 2011 after one of the best seasons by a defender in Fighting Illini history. 

  • the former Stone Creek Golf Club, with overlaid text: Atkins Golf Club at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

    Atkins Group gives Stone Creek Golf Club to Illinois Athletics

    Jun 30, 2020 9:30 am

    The golf club will remain closed for the 2020 season while undergoing improvements, and re-open as a championship-caliber public course and the home of the Fighting Illini men's and women's golf programs. The gift value exceeds $15 million.

  • Illini basketball signee Brandon Lieb. Photo provided.

    Brandon Lieb signs with Fighting Illini Basketball

    Jun 29, 2020 9:00 am

    Lieb is a 7-0, 210-pound center from Deerfield, Illinois. 'Brandon's skill level and shooting ability stand out right away; he can really space the floor at the 5,' said Illini Head Coach Brad Underwood.

  • Latest Atkins Baseball Training Center rendering released

    Jun 24, 2020 8:30 am

    Illinois has released an updated rendering of the state-of-the-art Susan and Clint Atkins Baseball Training Center. The project is scheduled for completion by January 2022. 

  • wide view of a packed State Farm Center

    IHSA Boys State Basketball Tournament will return to Champaign

    Jun 16, 2020 9:15 am

    The Illinois High School Association announced that its Boys State Basketball Tournament will return to the State Farm Center in Champaign for three years, through 2023.

  • Football student-athletes begin return to campus

    Jun 10, 2020 8:00 am

    Players returning for voluntary works begin with viral and antibody testing, initial quarantining, and contact tracing. Arrangements will be made for extended quarantine and care of any student-athlete testing positive for COVID-19.

  • side-by-side action photos of Andres Feliz and Nicole Biondi

    Feliz, Biondi receive Big Ten Outstanding Sportsmanship Award

    May 27, 2020 4:45 pm

    The Big Ten announced on Wednesday that Illinois' Andres Feliz (basketball) and Nicole Biondi (gymnastics) were named Outstanding Sportsmanship Award winners for the 2019-20 academic year. 

  • Empty weight training facility at Illinois

    Illinois Athletics plans for safe return of student-athletes to campus

    May 26, 2020 9:00 am

    The Division of Intercollegiate Athletics is preparing to return groups of student-athletes to campus for voluntary summer training, with staggered arrivals beginning as early as June 3.

  • Senior Aleks Kovacevic, junior Alex Brown, and sophomore Siphosothando Montsi

    Three Illini named to Men's Tennis All Big Ten teams

    May 21, 2020 10:30 am

    Senior Aleks Kovacevic, junior Alex Brown, and sophomore Siphosothando Montsi have been named to the Men's Tennis All-Big Ten teams.

  • Asuka Kawai and Mia Rabinowitz

    Kawai, Rabinowitz named to All-Big Ten team

    May 20, 2020 3:45 pm

    Illinois women's tennis juniors Asuka Kawai and Mia Rabinowitz were named to the 2020 All-Big Ten Team, as announced by the conference office Wednesday, May 20.

  • Paradise and Edwards

    Paradise, Edwards earn Big Ten Medals of Honor

    May 15, 2020 9:00 am

    The Big Ten Medal of Honor is awarded annually to one male and one female student-athlete from the graduating class of each institution for excellence on and off the field throughout their college career. 

  • side-by-side photos of Jaqueline Quade and Ayo Dosunmu

    Quade, Dosunmu named Dike Eddleman Athletes of the Year

    May 14, 2020 8:00 am

    As Fighting Illini Athletes of the Year, Dosunmu and Quade become Illinois' nominees for Big Ten Athlete of the Year honors, which will be announced later this spring.

  • Mia Takekawa and Kofi Cockburn

    Takekawa, Cockburn named Illinois Freshmen of the Year

    May 13, 2020 9:30 am

    Mia Takekawa (gymnastics) and Kofi Cockburn (basketball) have been named winners of the annual award, presented to the top male and female freshman competing for the Fighting Illini.

  • three spirit award winners

    Edwards, Feliz, Brown win Fighting Illini Spirit Awards

    May 12, 2020 10:30 am

    Taylor Edwards (women's basketball), Andres Feliz(men's basketball), and Dre Brown (football) are winners of the 2020 Fighting Illini Spirit Awards for best exemplifying spirit, courage, effort and dedication.

  • 15 questions with Giorgi Bezhanishvili

    May 7, 2020 10:15 am

    The cancellation of the tournaments, the suspension of classes, announcements of friends exploring opportunities in the pros. Giorgi Bezhanishvili stays positive, as always.

  • side-by-side images of Kameno Bell in football gear and in full PPE as an emergency room doctor

    Kameno Bell: Illini hero, American hero

    Apr 27, 2020 10:00 am

    Since 2007, Kameno Bell has served as an emergency medicine physician at New Jersey's Hackensack University Medical Center, just 10 miles from the world's COVID-19 epicenter in New York City.

  • recruit Adam Miller in an Illini uniform

    2020 Illinois 'Mr. Basketball' signs with Fighting Illini

    Apr 23, 2020 2:00 pm

    Consensus top-40 recruit Adam Miller has signed a national letter of intent. A two-time Illinois Gatorade Player of the Year, Miller is a 6-foot-3-inch, 180-pound combo guard from Peoria.

  • Illinois Athletic Director Josh Whitman

    AD Whitman's update on Illini Athletics

    Apr 21, 2020 8:00 am

    With an unforeseeable return date, Whitman is encouraged by the resilience of student-athletes and athletic staff. 'I'm always amazed at the creativity and ingenuity that people can show in the face of challenge.'