1hawkeye1
Well-Known Member
But you started out your post with "last night on ESPN...." That story was not about players being paid to go to Illinois. Your post confoosed me as I am simpleton.
Illini BB...exposed as cheaters again?
- Thread starter JHHawk
- Start date
But you started out your post with "last night on ESPN...." That story was not about players being paid to go to Illinois. Your post confoosed me as I am simpleton.
BSpringsteen
Well-Known Member
Until anyone growing up in Chicago becomes an Illinois sports fan, Illinois will never be good at anything.
ihawkeye
Well-Known Member
I didn't realize all of the Celebs and famous Athletes that grew up around that kid. Nick Anderson, Common, R Kelly and a few other notables. What a sad story.
nationalchamps
Well-Known Member
This was a great documentary. They showed a list of the top prep players in the country around that time and Ed Horton's name was on there. I did find it odd that Ben's girlfriend at the time declined to be interviewed for the film. She's about the only one who knows exactly what happened and how things went down.
Very sad story about the kid but sounds like he had a few issues. Also even after all these years those involved don't have the same story.
I also liked the DePaul coach saying that he didn't go to the funeral because it was a circus and all of the people that were there didn't know Ben Wilson and were just taking advantage of the spotlight his death gave them (I think he was specifically talking about everybody's best friend Jesse Jackson)
Also found it interesting on the old clip of Wilson's mom being on Oprah about hoping it would be a part in ending the senseless violence that happened in the inner city.
And all of his now middle aged friends sitting around talking about how different their life would have been if their buddy had made it to the big time and how they could have gone along for the ride.
I also liked the DePaul coach saying that he didn't go to the funeral because it was a circus and all of the people that were there didn't know Ben Wilson and were just taking advantage of the spotlight his death gave them (I think he was specifically talking about everybody's best friend Jesse Jackson)
Also found it interesting on the old clip of Wilson's mom being on Oprah about hoping it would be a part in ending the senseless violence that happened in the inner city.
And all of his now middle aged friends sitting around talking about how different their life would have been if their buddy had made it to the big time and how they could have gone along for the ride.
Mary Wilson did become a strong advocate for non-violence for the rest of her life. She was a highly respected figure in the city.
The shooter,who has become part of an organization to help with gang violence is interesting. I cannot help but believe that he probably could have been a good kid if he had not made that stupid decision to take his Auntie's .22 caliber handgun with him on that day he and his friend went to Simeon to help his cousin collect that 10 dollars. This is what bothers me...the proliferation of guns in those neighborhoods...have a fist fight,but do not shoot each other.
And yes, Kenny McReynolds did comment in this interview on the Score about him not attending the funeral. He reiterated that it was a 3 ring circus,with all kinds of pols and celebrities who did not know Ben coming in for the show and hogging the spotlight. It was shameful,and he was not comfortable being part of it.
The shooter,who has become part of an organization to help with gang violence is interesting. I cannot help but believe that he probably could have been a good kid if he had not made that stupid decision to take his Auntie's .22 caliber handgun with him on that day he and his friend went to Simeon to help his cousin collect that 10 dollars. This is what bothers me...the proliferation of guns in those neighborhoods...have a fist fight,but do not shoot each other.
And yes, Kenny McReynolds did comment in this interview on the Score about him not attending the funeral. He reiterated that it was a 3 ring circus,with all kinds of pols and celebrities who did not know Ben coming in for the show and hogging the spotlight. It was shameful,and he was not comfortable being part of it.
I respect the **** out of the guy for saying and doing that since he knew him so well. He didn't want to be part of the problem, seems like a stand up guy that I would let my sons play for.
GhostofBTT
Banned
Like I said before, Illinois fans hold a deep and abiding grudge to Iowa. They feel, and I am absolutely, 100% serious about this, the resulting sanctions after the Pearl-Thomas investigations crippled Illinois basketball when they were getting ready to peak (They made the Final Four the prior year), and if it were not for the Iowa program intentionally sabotaging them, they would be where Duke is today.
There are still members of the media in Chicago(Les Grobstein and Harry Tinnewitz) who are friends of Jimmy Collins and they still rip on Bruce Pearl and Iowa every chance they get for the Deon Thomas affair.
According to them, Jimmy was as clean as the fallen snow,and Pearl and Iowa were Satan personified.
They blame Pearl and Iowa for sabotaging Collins chances of taking over at Illinois when Henson left.
Iowa still seems to be paying the price in recruiting in the city....and I just know that Collins was not clean.
hawkeyebob62
Well-Known Member
Actually, Nick Anderson grew up in a different area (went to Prosser, originally), but was able to "transfer".
(As a side rant, high schools "recruiting" and high school athletes "transferring" is proof positive of a world turning/turned upside-down).
It's amazing how many of the ESPN and media types professed intimate kinship with thekid. yet, they are always "shocked" when one of their hero schools goes on probation.
Just how hard IS it to connect dots? Follow Calipari's trail. UMass? Known only for Dr. J attending. Calipari comes in. Team becomes a "player". Calipari leaves. Team on probation. Team now very average. Memphis? Struggling with mediocrity, Calipari comes in, team makes NCAA Championship Game, Calipari leaves, team now on probation with possible academic scandal(s). Kentucky no longer the power they once were. Ta-da! Calipari arrives, team is lights-out NCAA Champions, gets nearly ALL top recruits, and NObody at the NCAA thinks to maybe do some "poking around"? Better get Louis Freeh and the Gang on this one (the new NCAA investigatory "benchmark").
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Scorpio79
Guest
^ another epic rant from everybody's Angry Uncle Bob ^
hawkeyebob62
Well-Known Member
It "appeared" they might not have been a "couple" at the time, or were working on things. Frankly, I kind of wondered if she wasn't part of the whole thing, but who knows. We never knew if she was one of the Casket Cryers they showed.
It was creepy that they re-opened the casket at the grave so everyone could get in one last look. (Shudder).
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Scorpio79
Guest
Wow, I'm shocked to learn that Teh Grobber and Hairy Trollowitz are pandering to their illwhinei audience.
hawkeyebob62
Well-Known Member
^ another epic rant from everybody's Angry Uncle Bob ^
It was one of my better ones!
The film, BTW, shows West Aurora briefly. Did you guys play them, or East Aurora, very often? They always smoked the crap out of us in b-ball.
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Scorpio79
Guest
My bro-in-law is an E Aurora grad.
Other than one magical year (1980), my high school was nothing special in basketball back then. Too many soft honkies in Downers Grove, and not enough legit ballerz.
hawkeyebob62
Well-Known Member
My bro-in-law is an E Aurora grad.
Other than one magical year (1980), my high school was nothing special in basketball back then. Too many soft honkies in Downers Grove, and not enough legit ballerz.
Was that Dan Dakich? Or a similar name? As I recall, Chicago Manley (Russell Cross) won it all that year, with Uwe Blab (as an exchange student at Effingham) taking runner-up.
And of course, that wa sthe Hawks last Final Four. A hell of a month, that March of 1980. I remember Vince Brookins getting hot and sparking the comeback against Georgetown. Do you remember what claim to fame Steve Krafcisin garnered that year?
hawkeyebob62
Well-Known Member
East Aurora was always an underachiever. Half the time when they would go into tourney time with a high ranking, West would take them down in the Regional finals. The years when West was "supposed" to be good, they'd always choke come tourney time.
They did have a Cinderella run in 1976, lost on a last-second shot to Morgan Park (Levi Cobb was MP's stud player, never did much after high school).
The 1970s and 1980s had some prime ballers in Illinois. Some of the teams I remember: Proviso East, Bloom, Chicago phillips, Chicago Westinghouse, Morgan Park, Peoria Central and Richwoods, Springfield Lanphier and Griffin, Lockport, Danville, Westchester St. Joe's, St. Lawrence, Providence-New Lenox and Providence-St. Mel, the Aurora teams, Elgin and Elgin Larkin on occasion. The aforementioned Manley, of course, and downstate/off-the-beaten-path powers Effingham and Quincy. Maine South won it one year, as well. And the 1-A, like Luther South (Mike Conley Sr.), and Walther Lutheran.
And of course, everyone always feared teams from East St. Louis, although I'm not sure they ever won any titles in b-ball or football EXCEPT the year they beat Andre Banks and Mendel Catholic.
They did have a Cinderella run in 1976, lost on a last-second shot to Morgan Park (Levi Cobb was MP's stud player, never did much after high school).
The 1970s and 1980s had some prime ballers in Illinois. Some of the teams I remember: Proviso East, Bloom, Chicago phillips, Chicago Westinghouse, Morgan Park, Peoria Central and Richwoods, Springfield Lanphier and Griffin, Lockport, Danville, Westchester St. Joe's, St. Lawrence, Providence-New Lenox and Providence-St. Mel, the Aurora teams, Elgin and Elgin Larkin on occasion. The aforementioned Manley, of course, and downstate/off-the-beaten-path powers Effingham and Quincy. Maine South won it one year, as well. And the 1-A, like Luther South (Mike Conley Sr.), and Walther Lutheran.
And of course, everyone always feared teams from East St. Louis, although I'm not sure they ever won any titles in b-ball or football EXCEPT the year they beat Andre Banks and Mendel Catholic.
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ILHawk
Guest
You are absolutely correct in your assessment of how Illini fans (of which I am not), feel about what happened to Illinois basketball. Their assessment is misguided as they refuse to look at issues in the 1980's on football/basketball violations. They also tend to hire coaches that don't stay or are inept. That is the biggest issue.
The flip side of the coin are Iowa fans that refuse to believe Bruce Pearle was different when he was at Iowa than he was at other places because he was at Iowa...the cleanest program on the face of the earth that never does anything wrong, always cheated by refs and so on. What on earth do you think Pearle was referring to in his sort of apology?
I do not doubt that Pearl ended up regretting the taping of his conversation of Deon Thomas. It basically ruined his career for over a decade,and the culprits only got a slap on the wrist. As I said, I think that Knight and Digger convinced Mr. Davis to try to nail Henson over Thomas. They had been battling with Henson and the corrupt Illini booster program for a decade,and wanted to expose them very badly. Pearl ended up being the pawn,along with Thomas,and both probably paid the biggest price,while Knight and Digger never did get any scrutiny.
I
ILHawk
Guest
Why is it though that Hawk and Illini fan...and virtually every other team's fan can't face reality that someone from their treasured cherished can do know wrong? You really think BP was only a pawn and didn't do anything really wrong? Really?
Henson's program was dirty no doubt. So BP only turned bad later on? Doubtful.
