I remember my first Illini Homecoming. It was 1997. Current superstar activist and author Dorian Warren was Homecoming King. The Illini lost. That’s not surprising, since that year the team went 0-12. It’s widely considered the worst season in the history of Illini football. Yet somehow, we remember the Ron Turner era as…not too bad.
So why am I going through this cathartic stroll down memory lane? Because on the 25th anniversary of my first Illini Homecoming, this year’s iteration means so much more.
It means a showdown with the boat-rowing coach born and raised in the Land of Lincoln.