Illinois Fighting Illini (you'll see)

[OrangeRoughy]

This guy has the Illinois nation up in arms...

Locker Room Prep Talk

If by "up in arms" you mean "all hail Zook for finally black-balling Tinker Bell", then I agree.

Ever since he left a now-defunct newspaper in Champaign in the 1960s, Tinker Bell has had an axe to grind with the University of Illinois. He has a history of taking shots in the Chicago papers that now stretches over generations. Remember, before either of these two articles came out (back on page 40 of this thread) I said this:

There are two constants to any follower of Illinois recruiting: Taylor Bell (retired Chicago Sun Times prep hoops writer) will always write something negative about Illinois hoops. And Tom Lemming will take every. single. shot he possibly can at Illinois football.

I guess Tinker is now in the football business, because he's come out of retirement in the Sun Times prep blogs to take a few more swings at Champaign before the nurse takes his typewriter away. Poor Tinker - Illinois football is finally on the rise, and he no longer has a seat at the table where he might be able to do something about it.

R.I.P, Tink

 

[osugrad21]

Tinker = Hooley?

 

[illinidarrin]

Orange roughy is right about tayler bell. he hates Illinois and is always talking trash about them. He and Tom Lemming are one in the same.

 

[NFBuck]

Orange roughy is right about tayler bell. he hates Illinois and is always talking trash about them. He and Tom Lemming are one in the same.

He also has No_tre _ame's DNA on his best cocktail dress?

 

[Muck]

Illini fans are funnah

 

[BUCKYLE]

Illini fans are funnah

Funnah "ha-ha", or funny "Michigan"?

 

[billmac91]

Tinker = Hooley?

I'd say no, because Tinker was direct.

 

[jwinslow]

Illini fans are funnah

i already know im finna get all them orange things but i dont care i need to know what kinda toons or those thanks

I was ok with roughy and his posse, but maybe we're taking the welcome a bit too far (from bp ad)

 

[wadc45]

Ron Zook conducts clinic in recruiting ingenuity -- ChicagoSports.com

Speaking at high schools gives Illini football coach a decided recruiting edge

Teddy Greenstein | ON SPORTS MEDIA AND COLLEGES
10:26 PM CDT, May 14, 2008

As far as breakthrough ideas go, it ranks somewhere between electricity and the kicking tee.

In February, Ron Zook pondered the best response to the NCAA's so-called "Saban Rule," which prevents head coaches from evaluating recruits on the road in the spring.

So when an official at Zook's old high school in Loudonville, Ohio, called and asked him to return to conduct a clinic, the Illinois coach wondered if this could be his ticket to campuses.

Continued...

 

[Sportsbuck28]

Glad to see the SEC mentality of getting around NCAA rules is in full effect.

 

[leroyjenkins]

Speaking at high schools gives Illini football coach a decided recruiting edge


Is that like N_tre _ame's "decided" schematic advantage??

 

[BuckeyeNation27]

didn't tressel get a bunch of shit for doing the exact same thing?

 

[DaddyBigBucks]

Calling a coach a genius (or deriding him if he's from another school) because he speaks at high-schools is like criticizing a vice-president for attending the funerals of foreign dignitaries. Neither can be found in the first paragraph of the job description; but who really thinks either is worthy of praise (or criticism)?

 

[zincfinger]

didn't tressel get a bunch of shit for doing the exact same thing?

Sort of, but not exactly, at least as I understand it. Zook was criticized for giving a talk at a high school during the recruiting dead period, the implication being that he's using his talk as a means to skirt the no-contact rule. Tressel's talk was not during the dead period. It was during live recruiting season, but was at a fund-raiser for a high school that he had a verbally committed recruit from (Posey, I believe). The implication being that he had some kind of arrangement with the high school that he'd help them raise money if they pressured their student to attend OSU.

Calling a coach a genius (or deriding him if he's from another school) because he speaks at high-schools is like criticizing a vice-president for attending the funerals of foreign dignitaries. Neither can be found in the first paragraph of the job description; but who really thinks either is worthy of praise (or criticism)?

I basically agree with this, but pertaining to the above, while I think it's a little silly to argue that college coaches shouldn't visit high schools during the dead period, you can at least make a somewhat coherent argument that they shouldn't. In contrast, to argue that coaches shouldn't make appearances at schools or help with fund-raisers at schools where they recruit, or ever have recruited, or ever might recruit, is beyond stupid and can't be seriously argued, and the criticism in that case was a far more obvious attempt to gin up controversy out of thin air.

 

[osugrad21]

Zook was the keynote speaker at a small, localized football clinic in Marlboro County, SC just a few weeks ago. For him to appear there, he had to make a serious effort to get there.