Illini continue to roll

The Upstart Illini

The Fighting Illini are off to a spectacular start after traveling to Nashville and defeating Vanderbilt 69-63 on Thursday. The Illini were not predicted to do much if anything this season by many college basketball "experts" (including many Illini fans). Well they have proven many wrong so far and are off to a 3-0 start before today's game against Jackson St. Although, the first two teams they played were not the stiffest of competition, the Illini took care of business. The game at Vanderbilt showed what the Illini potentially could be-a never say die-fight to the end team. They will scratch and claw all the way until the final buzzer goes off. Some of the things that have been key for the Illini so far and if they keep on happening, this team could suprise some people: they have bought into the TEAM Concept-much was written about the issues that surrounded the team last year, which was a major factor for the poor season, the Seniors-Trent Meachem, Chester Frazier, and Calvin Brock have been solid so far-Trent shooting very well, Chester and Calvin contributing in ways that don't show up on the box score-one thing is the fact against Vandy, Chester and Demetri McCamey combined for 14 assists and only 1 turnover, Mike Davis has two double-doubles so far, which shows he is willing to get in there and mix it up-he has a lot of raw athleticism, which combined with skills and understanding of the game can lead to many more double-doubles, the bench has been a huge factor coming in and contributing to what the starters are doing, and finally the biggest factor that has plagued Illini basketball for recent season is Free-Throw Shooting: so far the Illini are shooting 77% on the season and made huge free-throws down the stretch at Vandy, while the Commodores missed plenty of key ones (usually it was the other way around the past few seasons).

There is a great possibility that the Illini can be off to a 6-0 or 5-1 start going into December with the upcoming South Padre Island Tournament. They could make Illini Nation forget about the struggles of last year and get the Illini back to the NCAA tournament and atop of the Big 10.

"College basketball may have its own version of the "Redeem Team," the popular nickname for Team USA during its run to the gold medal in the Beijing Olympics this past summer.

"That's us in a way," Illinois sophomore guard Demetri McCamey said. "Illinois hasn't had a season like last season in a long time. We are determined not to let that happen again. We are a team looking for redemption." ...

But Weber's luck on the recruiting trail finally appears to have turned for the better. Four prospects who are ranked among the top 150 signed with the Illini earlier this month. The group is ranked No. 10 nationally by Rivals.com and includes four-star shooting guards Brandon Paul and D.J. Richardson, ranked No. 44 and No. 57 overall. Paul and Richardson committed more than a year ago.

"We have worked very hard at recruiting since we got here and sometimes things haven't gone our way," Weber said. "I think the key was Richardson committing to us first. Everything snowballed from there. We had a great relationship with him and once we had him we were able to call the other kids and say, 'Hey, we only have this many scholarships left.' "

Meacham has played with many of the incoming recruits and knows just how great the future of Illinois basketball looks. But he doesn't want his final season to be viewed as some sort of steppingstone either.

"The recruits we have coming in are very talented and are going to give this program a big boost," Meacham said. "I know the program is going to be really exciting after I'm gone, but I believe we can be a good team this year. We are starting to believe we can win and we're staying together. We need to remain tough and keep that mind-set of building on what we are doing every day."

Sounds like a player bound for redemption."

Congratulations Albert and An NFL Coach not afraid of his Catholicity

Yesterday Albert Pujols claimed his second National League MVP Award (should have at least one more...) Albert was in contention with Phillies 1st Baseman Ryan Howard who led the league in HR's and RBI's, but had a below .250 batting average and had 199 strikeouts! Albert was second in batting .377 and only struck out less than 60 times the whole year, while hitting 37 HR's and 116 RBI's while having better On-Base Percentage and Slugging Percentage for the year. Albert did it all year without a feared hitter to back him up (although Ryan Ludwick did have a career year) and was consistent from day one. Howard had perennial all-stars Chase Utley, Jimmy Rollins to back him up. I am glad the writers got this MVP voting right. Yes, I am biased towards Pujols because I am a Cardinals fan, but this guy has been doing it for 8 years straight (he has never finished lower than 10th in MVP balloting). Read the Article from the St. Louis Post-Dispatch for more opinion and statistics that will prove why Pujols is one of the best hitters of all time.

"It's almost like a little boy getting a toy," Pujols said. "You're so excited waiting for that Christmas and to find out what you got. I knew I had a pretty good chance. I think the guys who voted, the baseball writers, know what they're doing."

"He's been the leader on this team probably since his second year," said La Russa, Pujols' only major-league manager. "If you had to name The Leader, it's been him. It didn't mean a guy like Mike Matheny or Jim (Edmonds) didn't lead. Scott (Rolen) had his moments. But when you look at the inner workings of our club, Albert is the guy who speaks with the most sense. He leads by example as well. I always admired the fact he is willing to share. He's not hoarding an angle on a pitcher or something like that."


And this story about Baltimore Raven's Head Coach John Harbaugh. It is nice to see a Head Coach displaying his Religion and something positive in a sport that deals with an image issue what seems like weekly.

"Harbaugh talks frequently about humility and looking out for the other guy.

“When you make yourself small and raise the other people up around you, that’s the whole Christian message,” he said. "

Mr. Obama if your watching this...

Chase Hilgenbrinck: From the Pitch to the Priesthood

"Called to be Fisher's of Men"

Congratulations Albert!

He already has a Rookie of the Year, MVP, and World Series Ring, now Albert Pujols may have the best award is his eyes. Albert Pujols recieved the 2008 Roberto Clemente Award, which is given to a player in the Major Leagues who excels in charity work, serving the Community, and individual effort on the field. Pujols' work with the Pujols Family Foundation is tremendous reaching out and givings tons of money to to families with children who have Down's Syndrome in the Greater St. Louis Area. This is why Albert Pujols is not only one of the best players in the Major Leagues, but also all-around people. He plays hard, for his team, and for his God. Thank You Albert-in a time of phony "heroes and athletes" it's nice to see someone doing it clean and for the right reason!

What happens when you take "Devil" out of the "Devil Rays"

The Tampa Bay Rays are tied with the Philadelphia Phillies 1-1 in the 2008 MLB World Series. Last year they were dead last in the AL East and had one of the worst records in the Majors. For 10 years they have been a team of futility and a benchmark for awfulness. Then after deciding to change their nickname from the "Devil Rays" to just "Rays" this youthful exuberant bunch are on the verge of something great-going from worst to literally first. I'm not saying that by taking "Devil" out of their name is the sole reason and that God has looked down and them and justified them by the removal of the name. I think it is an interesting story that just plays along with the great season this team, led by Manager Joe Maddon with his Buddy-Holly (Rivers Cuomo esc) glasses has led the Rays to within 3 games of winning the World Series.

"Until this season, the Rays hadn't even had a winning season..."You take the 'Devil' out of the Devil Rays," said Boston shortstop Alex Cora, pointing to the sky, "and Jesus helps them out."... The thornier religious question behind Tampa's nickname is this: Does God care about the name or the fate of a team?... Christopher Evans, a professor of church history at Colgate Rochester Crozer Divinity School in Rochester, N.Y., said most sports fans mistake superstition for religion..."The rational part of our brain sort of recognizes that a lot of the curse stuff is silly," said Evans, co-author of "The Faith of 50 Million: Baseball, Religion and American Culture."... "The reason that Tampa Bay has done well is that they have a great team. They have a great manager."

And with the 2008 US Presidential Election only 10 days away here is something to think about when choosing which Candidate to choose for: "“The moral history of your country is the story of your people's efforts to widen the circle of inclusion in society, so that all Americans might enjoy the protection of law, participate in the responsibilities of citizenship, and have the opportunity to make a contribution to the common good. Whenever a certain category of people—the unborn or the sick and old—are excluded from that protection, a deadly anarchy subverts the original understanding of justice. The credibility of the United States will depend more and more on its promotion of a genuine culture of life, and on a renewed commitment to building a world in which the weakest and most vulnerable are welcomed and protected.” Pope John Paul II