From the Saturday, March 12, editions of The Daily Journal (Kankakee, Ill.) and The Times (Ottawa, Ill.) … The WISCH LIST By Dave Wischnowsky New AD dazzles in dizzying week for Illini Lovie Smith is the head football coach of not a pro team, but the University of Illinois. The thrifty school has ponied up […]
Author Archives: Dave
Diary of an Illini Fan
It’s been a great week to be an Illinois fan, but it’s taken a wild year to get there What a year it’s been. Last March, after another frustrating Illini basketball season ended not with an NCAA bang, but an NIT whimper, I wrote a column for CBS Chicago in which I dumped at the feet of […]
Dressing Downton: The Crawleys come to Chicago
From the Saturday, March 5, editions of The Daily Journal (Kankakee, Ill.) and The Times (Ottawa, Ill.) … The WISCH LIST By Dave Wischnowsky If you’re a Chicagoland fan of Downton Abbey and want to visit the fictional Yorkshire estate of your Edwardian dreams, you’ll need to hop a 7½-hour flight to London Heathrow, followed […]
Illinois basketball is in a fix – and in need of a change
From the Saturday, Feb. 27, editions of The Daily Journal (Kankakee, Ill.) and The Times (Ottawa, Ill.) … The WISCH LIST By Dave Wischnowsky He’s lost recruiting battles. He’s lost players to injuries — and he’s lost them to suspension. And, yes, he’s certainly lost games, as well. But perhaps none of those things is as troubling […]
A Long Journey on the Red Line
For Fred Long, Chicago’s youth-focused nonprofit UCAN has been a ticket to a world that he never even knew existed growing up on the city’s South Side. CHICAGO — There are 31 stops between 95th Street and Jarvis on the CTA Red Line. And Fred Long has a story for all of them. As a native of […]
Five things you never knew about The Second City
From the Saturday, Feb. 13, editions of The Daily Journal (Kankakee, Ill.) and The Times (Ottawa, Ill.) … The WISCH LIST By Dave Wischnowsky Two years ago this month, the world became a little (or a lot) less funny when comedy legend Harold Ramis died at his home in Glencoe at the age of 69. […]
With fan attendance dropping, NFL must up its game
From the Saturday, Feb. 6, editions of The Daily Journal (Kankakee, Ill.) and The Times (Ottawa, Ill.) … The WISCH LIST By Dave Wischnowsky From concussions and domestic violence to deflated footballs and debatable discipline, the NFL seemingly has more threats to its mighty brand these days than Cam Newton has in his offensive arsenal. […]
Don’t make Valentine’s Day plans heart on yourself
From the Saturday, Jan. 30, editions of The Daily Journal (Kankakee, Ill.) and The Times (Ottawa, Ill.) … The WISCH LIST By Dave Wischnowsky It’s not quite February yet, but if you haven’t already started making plans for the 14th of next month, well, you’re liable to be left out in the cold. Both by […]
February’s short month long on action in Chicago
From the Saturday, Jan. 23, editions of The Daily Journal (Kankakee, Ill.) and The Times (Ottawa, Ill.) … The WISCH LIST By Dave Wischnowsky For such an abbreviated month (even with the extra day leaping in this year), Chicago’s February certainly packs in a lot. And that’s not even including all of the romantic – […]
Weathering the winter with thoughts on the Illini & Cubs
From the Saturday, Jan. 16, editions of The Daily Journal (Kankakee, Ill.) and The Times (Ottawa, Ill.) … The WISCH LIST By Dave Wischnowsky The weather may be frigid this weekend, but it’s only 33 days until Major League pitchers and catchers begin reporting to their spring training outposts on Feb. 18. And that thought […]