Scott Turner, who played cornerback for the Illini and went on to play in the NFL for the Redskins, Broncos and Chargers, has been nominated by Trump to be secretary for the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). During Trump's first term, he served as Exec. Director of the WH Opportunity and Revitalization Council. He served in the Texas House of Representatives from 2013-2017.

This feels like a big game to me and it's a game we should win if we play well and don't beat ourselves. Pull this one out today and we go into the NW game with momentum and a lot of positive energy and it's a big difference ending the season with a three-game winning streak and a high level bowl game. With the changing landscape of college football it's a key time for your program to be perceived as belonging in the "haves" versus the have nots. The same holds true for this new, expanded B1G "super conference."

I understand BB's desire to be a balanced offense and have the ability to run on 1st down and make at least 3 yards even if the D knows it's coming, but the matchup today calls for a pass-first gameplan. It can still be balanced, just be biased enough to avoid the defense's strength and exploit their weakness. There's been more than a few games against Schiano's Rutgers teams where we tried to play smashmouth and got beat because his team was a little better at playing smashmouth football. Having said that, I don't care what it looks like today, "just win, baby!"

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – No. 22/23 Illinois continued its strong start to the season with an 85-66 win over Oregon State at State Farm Center on Friday. Never trailing in the contest, the Fighting Illini closed its five-game season-opening homestand with a 5-0 record behind double-digit outings from three Orange and Blue scorers.

Kendall Bostic finished with a career-high 31 points, her second-consecutive 20-point game and her fourth double-digit scoring effort of the season. Bostic recorded the 1,000th point of her Illinois career during the contest while shooting 15-for-18 from the field and grabbing eight rebounds.

Makira Cook totaled 20 points, which tied her season-best tally and marked her second game of the campaign with 20 points. Cook also dished out eight assists, made two steals, and corralled three rebounds.

Genesis Bryant reached double figures in scoring for the second time this season, notching all 12 of her points in the second half. Bryant also amassed four assists and two rebounds. With her final bucket of the game, Bryant reached 1,000 points scored as an Illini.

Brynn Shoup-Hill added eight points and seven rebounds, while Gretchen Dolan accumulated seven points, five boards, and two assists.

Adalia McKenzie had eight points, four rebounds, and two assists.

With the victory, the Illini have now posted three wins over 2024 NCAA Tournament teams by an average margin of 13.3 points this season. The Beavers, who entered the night with an average of 59.3 points allowed per game under 15-year head coach Scott Rueck, allowed their second-most points in a non-conference game since at least 2004-05; the Illini's 85 points saw the Orange and Blue surpass that average by nearly 26 points.

Cook accounted for the Orange and Blue's first six points of the night via 3-pointers on back-to-back possessions within the first two minutes of the first quarter. A 9-2 Illinois run followed soon after, which gave the home side a double-digit advantage, 17-6, just over six minutes into the contest. That 11-point edge was Illinois' largest lead of the opening frame, and the hosts entered the second quarter ahead by eight, 21-13.

Four Illini starters totaled at least four points through the first 10 minutes, including a game-high eight points for Cook.

Illinois used a 6-2 run to start the second quarter to re-establish a double-digit lead before the Beavers responded with a 5-0 run of their own. Holding Oregon State to only two points over the next three minutes, the Orange and Blue pieced together an 8-2 run to extend their advantage to 13 with three minutes to go. Bostic recorded 10 points in the second quarter alone, which helped the Illini go into the break with a 40-30 edge.

Both Bostic and Cook reached double figures in scoring within the opening 20 minutes of action, while the Illini shot 53.1% from the field at halftime.

A 6-0 Illini run within the first 90 seconds of the third quarter added to the hosts' advantage. Four minutes later, the Illini posted a 14-2 run that featured points from Bostic, Bryant, and Cook, while that four-minute stretch moved the home side's lead up to 69-41 late in the third period of play.

Bryant moved into double figures in the fourth quarter, while Bostic was credited with the Illini's final seven points of the night to surpass the 30-point mark for the first time in her career. Leading by as many as 28, Illinois closed out the 19-point victory against the Beavers.

The win extended the Illini's active winning streak to 10 straight games, which ranks second in the country.

No. 22/23 Illinois (5-0) begins a stretch of four consecutive games away from home on Tuesday, when the Illini take on Maryland Eastern Shore in the Music City Classic in Nashville, Tenn. Tipoff from Trevecca Trojan Fieldhouse is slated for 1:15 p.m. CT and will be streamed on BallerTV.

Illinois basketball recruiting thread.

Doug. Can we get an update on recruiting? What can we expect December 4th?

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – Head coach Shauna Green bolstered her squad with five recruits in the Class of 2025, including four in the top 100 of the espnW HoopGurlz Recruiting Rankings. Manuella Alves, Naomi Benson, Erica Finney, Destiny Jackson, and Cearah Parchment all signed Big Ten Athletics Scholarship Agreements during the national signing period, with the Fighting Illini's five-player recruitment class coming in at No. 7 in espnW's post-signing window class rankings.

Green and the Illini coaching staff added four top-100 signees during the national signing period, a mark that leads the Big Ten and ranks tied for second nationally. Jackson (No. 25), Parchment (No. 40), Alves (No. 61), and Benson (No. 98) all earned spots in the prestigious rankings.

Jackson, a five-star point guard from Chicago, was also named to the Naismith Trophy Girl's High School Player of the Year Preseason Watch List.

Green put together the nationally ranked recruiting class in just her third season at Illinois after clinching the inaugural WBIT title in 2024. Across her first two years with the Orange and Blue, Green totaled 41 wins, the most by a head coach across their first two years in program history, and she has now led the Illini to ranked wins in each of her three seasons in Champaign. Under Green's tutelage, the Illini have made back-to-back postseason appearances for the first time since the 2006-07 and 2007-08 campaigns and registered back-to-back top-five single-season attendance marks at State Farm Center.

The program's current success has translated directly to Illinois' recruiting momentum. The Illini have earned a spot in the AP top 25 in back-to-back weeks and sit at No. 22 in the most recent poll while boasting a 4-0 record thus far this season.

After adding five-star freshman Berry Wallace in the Class of 2024, Green has now signed five-star recruits in back-to-back years with the addition of Jackson in 2025. Green and her staff have already coached 10 espnW Top 100 recruits at Illinois.

Shauna Green on the 2025 recruiting class:

"We are so proud of this 2025 class that we have put together. I can't thank my staff enough for the hard work, the time that they put in to really develop deep, genuine relationships; that's what we pride ourselves on here. Our culture and our recruiting is about building relationships and most of these kids in our class that we have signed we've been recruiting for years. Putting together this top 10 recruiting class is something that we knew was a critical piece as we lose five seniors. We've addressed all our needs from point guard, to really filling the four and the five positions. I think the class overall shaped up to be as good as it could possibly get. I could not be more excited, and also more grateful, for our staff for all the work that they did to be able to sign a class of this magnitude."


Manuella Alves | F | Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

• Four-star ranked No. 61 in espnW's HoopGurlz rankings
• Ranked a four-star recruit by 247Sports
• Averaged 10.7 points and 8.2 rebounds over six games for Brazil at 2024 FIBA U18 Women's AmeriCup

Naomi Benson | F | Streetsboro, Ohio

• Four-star ranked No. 98 in espnW's HoopGurlz rankings
• First Team All-Ohio, Metro Conference Player of the Year, First Team All-District, Tri-County Underclassman of the Year, Team MVP as a junior in 2023-24
• Helped high school team to first sectional championship in 36 years as a freshman and led high school to first league and district titles in program history

Erica Finney | G | Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

• Averaged 8.0 points and 2.4 rebounds and shot 35.9% from deep in the FIBA U17 2024 World Cup while representing Team Australia at the event in Mexico
• Represented New South Wales at the 2024 Australian National Championships, averaging 12.9 points, 5.5 rebounds, and 1.4 steals while shooting 41.1% from 3-point range
• 2023 NBL1 East Defensive Player of the Year and 2024 NBL1 East Most Improved Player

Destiny Jackson | G | Chicago, Illinois

• Five-star ranked No. 25 in espnW's HoopGurlz rankings
• Ranked No. 28 prospect in the Class of 2025, No. 6 at her position, and No. 1 in the state of Illinois by 247Sports
• Three-time Chicago Public League (CPL) champion and three-time First Team All-Conference selection with Whitney Young

Cearah Parchment | F | Whitby, Ontario, Canada

• Four-star ranked No. 40 in espnW's HoopGurlz rankings
• Four-star ranked No. 46 prospect in the Class of 2025 and No. 11 at her position by 247Sports
• Averaged 3.9 points, 5.4 rebounds, 2.1 assists, and 1.0 steals in the FIBA U17 tournament to win the silver medal playing for Team Canada

* Illinois looked shell-shocked early and rattled by Alabama's frenetic pace. The Illini got sped up offensively in the half court, and their heads were spinning on the defense end. Stared at the ball and lost their man at three-point line.

* Encouraging moments in the second half but just couldn't quite get over the hump.

* Many freshman mistakes. A lot if was not valuing every possession and understanding game situations. Again, they rushed shots on key possessions and lost their composure when execution and a bucket could have cut into the lead.

* I would have this team in the gym doing closing drills over and over until they get it right. More than any Brad Underwood team, this group is very passive closing on jump shooters. They were better in the second half.

* The only thing keeping Will Riley out of the starting lineup is some inconsistency on defense. He had a high 123.2 DRtg and lets his man get him on this hip a lot.

* Still, 29 minutes for Riley and only 16 minutes for Tre White. Riley should probably be starting. He scored 18 points (15 in the second half), grabbed 9 rebounds and had 4 assists. Analytics had him as the only Illini player who wasn't negative in the plus / minus. He broke even. Team high 18.1 efficiency rating.

* That was the most aggressive and most confident that we've seen Kylan Boswell (17 points, 7 rebounds, 3 assists). A positive step.

* Illinois needs to get more from Ben Humrichous that just three-point shooting. 6 of his 7 shots were from three. Just 1 rebound and a team-worst 144.5 DRtg. Guys like that are typically designated shooters off the bench.

* The Illini will have to figure it out defensively. It was pretty easy for Alabama to get good looks. 100 points, 1.266 points per possession. 52% FG. 22-for-34 at the rim. 50 points in the paint. 79 possessions, which was too fast for Illinois.

* Bad free throw shooting night, but I don't think this will be a bad free throw shooting team.

* Six more turnovers for Kasparas Jakucionis. I fully expected him to have some trouble with the quick Alabama guards, but he just plain got his pocket picked a couple of times. Turnovers are problem for him, which may result in Boswell playing more at the 1.

* Bench production was one of our keys to the game. Even with the 18 from Riley, the Alabama bench outscored the Illinois bench 39-24. Dra Gibbs-Lawhorn played 17 minutes and was 0-for-5 from the floor.

* Good effort by Illinois on the glass. They outrebounded Alabama 44-37. 14 offensive rebounds and 15 second-chance points. 10 rebounds for Ivisic. The Illini guards are good rebounders. Will Riley 5 ORB.

The first real test for Illinois this season.

Tipoff 8 p.m. CT on SECN.

1) Kylon at the Point attacking down hill.

2) KJ and Tommy initiating offense off of KB in the half court.

3) Will Riley - LG !

4) Ben - BEN

5) Get back on D

LFG !

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — The Illinois football game against Northwestern on Saturday, Nov. 30, will kick off at 11 a.m. CT on Big Ten Network, the conference office and television partners announced. The Fighting Illini will face Northwestern at Wrigley Field.

Illinois last played at Wrigley Field in 2010, a 48-27 win against Northwestern. Mikel Leshoure set an Illinois record with 330 rushing yards at the Friendly Confines.

Illinois has played at Wrigley Field twice in program history. The Illini's 2010 win and 29-0 win over Northwestern in 1923.

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — The Illinois football team is ranked #25 in this week’s College Football Playoff Top 25, the CFP committee announced Tuesday.

Illinois (7-3, 4-3 Big Ten) is in the College Football Playoff Top 25 for the third time in program history. The Illini were in the CFP committee’s rankings twice during the 2022 season, when Illinois finished 8-4 on its way to the ReliaQuest Bowl in Tampa.

The Fighting Illini are coming off a 22-point home win over Michigan State last weekend to close the Memorial Stadium schedule with a 6-1 record. The Illinois defense had five sacks, RB Josh McCray scored three touchdowns, and WR Pat Bryant had 135 receiving yards and one touchdown to lead Illinois to the dominant 38-16 win.

Illinois will close the regular season with back-to-back Big Ten road games, a stretch that begins Saturday at Rutgers. The Fighting Illini and Scarlet Knights are scheduled to kick off at 11 a.m. CT/12 p.m. ET on Peacock.