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Tate: Awarding 'Oscars' to UI athletics

It’s Oscar “Make Believe” Sunday, so let’s apply “best of” categories to real Illini sports figures.

We don’t need host Chris Rock to offset the Hollywood outcry about a lack of diversity.

And there’ll be no fakes, like the bear scene in “The Revenant” in which rubber trees were constructed and the angry grizzly was added digitally after Leonardo DiCaprio was strapped with harnesses and cables to simulate his struggle. If it wins best picture, thank the fake depictions and the stunt men.

Here we go with real UI winners over the past 12 months:

Best Picture: After three months of anxiety, Josh Whitman was presented as Illini athletic director in a happy crowd scene Feb.