Joe Sports

Before we get to the other stuff, I think everyone who saw Northwestern’s 78-61 win over Indiana on Sunday afternoon was rewarded with a little smidge of history.

I believe the first half marked the first time in college basketball annals that two different players from the DuPage Valley Conference opened and closed a half with rousing dunks.

On the game’s first possession, Northwestern freshman Drew Crawford (Naperville Central) faked IU freshman Christian Watford one way and then drove baseline for a powerful two-handed dunk.

Except for the part where Mike Tisdale wrenched his left knee with two minutes to go, Illinois’ long-awaited debut on ESPN’s College GameDay couldn’t have gone any better for the program.

Fans showed up in orange droves to act crazy in Assembly Hall. Key recruits showed up on a night and experienced the Hall the way it was in 2004-05. And the Illini won like it was, well, not quite 2004-05 but plenty good enough for this year’s group.

First things first: Illinois coach Bruce Weber suggested after Saturday night’s 78-73 win over No. 5 Michigan State that Tisdale might have to rest his knees the next two days in order to be ready for Tuesday’s game at Wisconsin.

In case you haven’t heard, the ESPN College GameDay college basketball crew broadcasts live from Illinois’ Assembly Hall at 10 a.m. Saturday.

It’s the first time ESPN has brought its GameDay crew to Champaign for football or basketball, so the Illini are hoping it’ll serve as a nice marketing tool for the program.

Initially, Illinois hoped to break the GameDay attendance record, but Kansas State drew more than 8,000 fans last week. Now the Illini are shooting for 4-5K to make the broadcast look better for the fine folks watching at home.

If you had Feb. 5 in your "When does Rod Marinelli gets promoted to defensive coordinator?" pool, then you're in luck. In a related note, you've used up your good karma for the weekend and that'll keep you from doubling up your winnings on Sunday with Super Bowl squares.

The Bears just announced the following changes:
1) Marinelli to DC.
2) Assistant D-line coach Eric Washington becomes the full-blown D-Line coach.
3) Shane Day is the new QBs coach.
4) Andrew Hayes-Stoker is the new offensive quality control guy. He apparently used to be TCU's top backup to LaDainian Tomlinson back in the day.
5) Mikal Smith (son of Lovie) is the new defensive quality control guy.

Here's Lovie's official quote per the Bears:

When DePaul plays at Connecticut on Saturday night, it’ll be just the 11th game this year for junior big man Mac Koshwal.

He missed eight games in November and December with a stress fracture in his left foot. Then he missed four games in January when doctors feared his right foot was on the verge of its own stress fracture. He returned for the Jan. 25 home game with West Virginia, though he hasn’t looked quite as explosive as the normal Mac.

“I feel healthy,” Koshwal said. “I don’t know if I’m fully 100 percent, but there’s no choice. I’ve got to be out there, you know? I want to play. I’ve got love for the game.”

Mike Davis heard rumors the Orange Krush students were going to make the Iowa game their annual road trip.
So when Illinois’ junior forward saw 160 pale college students arrive en masse shortly before tipoff Wednesday night in black Iowa T-shirts -- and proceed to pack the first 20 rows behind the northeast basket -- he grew delightfully suspicious.
And when the Krush ripped off their Iowa garb and revealed their orange gear just as the Illini prepared to break the huddle for tipoff, Davis was the first to spot the transformation.
He and several teammates started bouncing around and pointing at the Krush with smiles on their faces.
The Krush probably didn’t help the Illini pull off their 57-49 win, but they certainly didn’t hurt.

Every coach puts on his best face for Signing Day. Though some get more excitable than others, everyone stays upbeat. Most every player has a chance to become special.

With that in mind, decide for yourself what it means when Ron Zook uses these words to describe the 20 young men who signed with the Illini this year: “This class is going to surprise a lot of people down the road.”

Illinois lost several oral commitments down the stretch, including killer safety Corey Cooper from Proviso East. Cooper, who committed as a sophomore, switched to Nebraska to become a part of the nation’s No. 1 scoring defense in 2009.

Hi gang,

We interrupt our Football Frenzy to address the fast-moving rumor that the NCAA already has decided to expand the men's basketball tournament from 65 to 96 teams.

According to Dave Worlock, an Associate Director of the Division I Men's Basketball Championship, nothing's set in stone or even in papier-mache.

"We are in an exploratory process and giving the topic of tournament expansion its due diligence," Worlock wrote in an e-mail. "But to say, as some are, that expansion is imminent or a 'done deal' is false."

Thank goodness, because I don't think there's a single March Madness fan across these United States who believes a 96-team tournament to be a good idea.

Just like coaches who run into last-minute signing snags, my plan to post some NIU knowledge at 1 p.m. didn't come to fruition. I was waylaid by an overly long drive to Iowa City. Really wanted to hit that Dairy Queen at World's Largest Truckstop, too.

Anyway, better late than never, here's some stuff on NIU's class. You can find a more story-like creation on the Herald web site in a little bit.

NIU RECRUITING IN A BOX

Already on campus (3):
RB Jasmin Hopkins (Fort Scott CC, jr.)
WR Akeem Daniels (Miramar, FL, fr.)
S/CB Demetrius Stone (Pembroke Pines, FL, soph.)

Juniors (2):
RB Hopkins
QB Casey Weston (Northwest Mississippi CC).

Sophomores (2):
CB/S Stone
OT Matt Battaglia (Marist/Harper JC).

Redshirt freshman (1):

If you’re looking for a bunch of frequent-flyer miles, Pat Fitzgerald might have some he can spare.

Between the time Northwestern finished the regular season (Nov. 21) and the end of the recruiting season (last weekend), Fitzgerald criss-crossed the country making 20 home visits in 10 states. Oh, and he also coached the Wildcats in the Outback Bowl.

“That would make a great story someday,” Fitzgerald said.

For today, though, the story is Northwestern’s 17-man recruiting class (which means Fitzgerald had an 85 percent success rate on those home visits).

First, here’s the class:
OFFENSE:
QB Trevor Siemian (Windermere, FL)
QB Kain Colter (Denver, CO)
RB Adonis Smith (Oakland, CA)
WR Jimmy Hall (Sylvania, OH)
WR Tony Jones (Flint, MI)