Wisch List

My Nov. 28 column from CBS Chicago …

(CBS) Derrick Rose’s knees are about as stable as your turkey’s. Jay Cutler’s lower extremities aren’t a whole lot sturdier. With one combined Big Ten victory, the Illinois and Northwestern football teams have no leg to stand on this weekend. And both the Cubs and the White Sox?

Well, they could use arms.

Along with just about everything else.

Here on Thanksgiving Day, our local sports teams don’t exactly have a great body of work. And, to be honest, it’s difficult to find much to be thankful for. But as I prepare to leave for my honeymoon “Down Under” in Australia on Friday – something for which I’m very thankful – I’m going to give it a shot anyway.

I’m thankful for Derrick Rose

Yes, I’m thankful for D-Rose. While a second major knee injury in as many years is indeed a tragic blow both for the Chicago Bulls and their homegrown superstar, I am thankful that I got the chance to see Rose play in person before his body began to fail him.

Most memorably, I recall seeing Rose when he was a 15-year-old sophomore at Simeon High School competing in the Pontiac Holiday Tournament. During that game, Rose was awfully raw (he had eight turnovers), but he also showed just how ridiculously athletic he was.

In fact, his first step off the dribble was the quickest that I’d ever seen in person – at any level. And I’ll never forget the two-handed fast break dunk that he threw down over a helpless defender at full-speed in game. So breathtaking was the athletic feat that the entire crowd inside the Pontiac High gym gasped audibly in unison.

While I’m not holding my breath, I’d be incredibly thankful to see Rose someday return to that same form with the Bulls – and actually stay healthy.

Continue reading at CBSChicago.com …

My Nov. 26 column from CBS Chicago …

(CBS) On the campus of the University of Illinois, the Bielfeldt Athletic Administration Building sits between Florida Avenue and St. Mary’s Road.

But when it comes to the Fighting Illini football program, it might as well be stuck between a rock and a hard place.

Or maybe that’s just athletic director Mike Thomas’ office.

With Illinois’ narrow 20-16 victory over a hapless Purdue team on Saturday, Tim Beckman successfully snapped both the program’s 20-game Big Ten losing streak and his own personal 14-game conference drought. Undoubtedly, it was good to finally see the Illini’s ignominious streak go up in smoke, but I can’t say that the win over the 1-10 Boilermakers got me any more fired up about Beckman and his tenure.

Although it’s almost certainly kept him from being fired.

For better or worse, with Thomas having money and his reputation invested in him, Tim Beckman – having now doubled last season’s two-win total and finally secured that elusive Big Ten victory – is expected to be back for a third season in 2014.

But what exactly does that mean for next year’s expectations for the Illini, and the program at large beyond that?

Continue reading at CBSChicago.com …

From the Saturday, Nov. 23, editions of The Daily Journal (Kankakee, Ill.) and The Times (Ottawa, Ill.) …

By Dave Wischnowsky

The WISCH LIST

Everybody is interested in money.

But who knew that money is also so interesting?

Thanks to Chicago’s Money Museum – yes, that’s a real place – I I’ve learned that, with interest. And as an added financial bonus, I’m also now one of the few guys this side of Scrooge McDuck who can tell you what a million bucks in one-dollar bills looks like.

It looks good, by the way.

Last week, I popped in to of the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago (230 S. LaSalle St.) in the Loop’s financial district, hoping to make greater sense of money by touring the museum located inside.

Upon my arrival in the lobby, I was greeted by a chummy security guard who seemed exorbitantly pleased to see me, before saying, “A lot of people don’t know this museum exists,” which explained why.

“Although, we do get a lot of student field trips,” he added before explaining how I’d need to show a form of ID and step through a scanner much like the ones at O’Hare before I could gain entrance.

After emptying my pockets – but keeping my shoes on – I slipped through the scanner with no waiting (unlike O’Hare) and at no cost stepped into a space filled with more money than I’ve ever seen in my life.

Or probably ever will.

Continue reading “A million reasons to visit Chicago’s Money Museum”

Today’s column from CBS Chicago …

(CBS) Alex Rodriguez is insufferable.

But when it comes to steroids in baseball, should he also have to suffer alone?

This week in a column for the magazine Jacobin, Jack Moore tackled the topic of PED use in sports, making a series of insightful points. And perhaps the most interesting of them was this:

“Throughout its steroids investigation, Major League Baseball has operated with tunnel vision. Players have been the sole target – not the suppliers of performance enhancing drugs, not the coaches who oversee these players, not the owners who profit from their performances. This has proven over the past decade or so to be an ineffective strategy for halting steroid use. So why do the powers that be in baseball insist on punishing the players, and no other party.”

Back in July, in the wake of Ryan Braun’s season-ending suspension for his violations of the Joint Drug Prevention and Treatment program, I tread similar ground when I wrote that, “Forfeits Could Be The Solution to MLB’s PED Problems.” At that time, my friend Josh had expressed his opinion to me that “players aren’t going to quit taking PEDs until getting caught punishes teams and teammates.”

I still think that’s true. And it was refreshing, in light of Moore’s thoughts on the topic, to see USA Today on Thursday also publish the headline: “If MLB is serious about stopping steroids, teams should be punished.”

Continue reading at CBSChicago.com …

Thursday’s column from CBS Chicago …

(CBS) Somewhere down in Champaign, there’s a wall.

And Tim Beckman’s back is up against it.

On Wednesday, as Illinois’ beleaguered second-year coach was readying his team for this weekend’s trip to West Lafayette (or, at least, we assume he was), Champaign News-Gazette columnist Loren Tate wrote that, “Even though the masses of Illini Nation don’t have a vote, there is a popular referendum ongoing whether Tim Beckman needs to defeat Purdue on Saturday to retain his job.”

The answer is: He doesn’t.

But if Beckman does indeed fail against the Boilermakers, then he sure as heck had better beat Northwestern at home the week after that.

Ever since Illinois football again tumbled into the abyss with the start of the Big Ten campaign – 20 consecutive losses, and perhaps counting – I’ve said that if Beckman wins just one conference game this season then I think that he’ll probably be back for a third go-round in 2014.

Continue reading at CBSChicago.com …

Tuesday’s column from CBS Chicago …

(CBS) When it comes to weekends, Illini Nation’s was about on par with Bernie’s.

On Friday morning, basketball commitment Quentin Snider turned tails for Louisville. On Friday afternoon, Chicago Curie’s Cliff Alexander did everything but say he was “taking his talents to Lawrence” during his nationally televised dis of his home state school. And by Saturday afternoon, fans of defense were again grossly offended as the Illini football team was stomped by Ohio State for its 20th consecutive Big Ten loss.

By the time tornadoes had raked large swaths of Central Illinois on Sunday afternoon, the entire state needed a weekend from its weekend.

And probably another weekend on top of that.

But come Sunday night, John Groce’s current basketball players showed that all is not lost in Champaign. By impressively routing I-74 rival Bradley 86-51 at the State Farm Center, the Illini quieted a small group of BU students in attendance who had been chanting “We want Cliff” and “Rock, Chalk, Jayhawk.” The victory featured 19 assists on 28 baskets and a breakout shooting game from transfer Jon Ekey (5-of-7 on three-pointers for 19 points) allowing Illinois fans to head into Monday morning with their chins still bruised, but up.

Continue reading at CBSChicago.com … 

Saturday’s Wisch List newspaper column from The Daily Journal (Kankakee, Ill.) and The Times (Ottawa, Ill.) …

The WISCH LIST

By Dave Wischnowsky

It’s arguably the most famous part of Chicago.

Yet, unless you work in the area, you probably don’t spend much time there – something that’s true for city-dwellers and out-of-towners alike.

However, if a coalition of downtown businesses has its way, both local shoppers and tourists will soon be thrown for quite the Loop.

As one of the city’s 77 officially designated community areas, “The Loop” is Chicago’s central business district. And as home to institutions such as State Street, Goodman Theatre, City Hall and the Chicago Board of Trade, it’s also considered the Windy City’s commercial, cultural, political and financial core.

But the area that derives its nickname from the nexus of elevated train tracks that run in a loop through it also tends to be much more of a place where people go to work than a destination they go to visit.

In an effort to change that, the Chicago Loop Alliance this week introduced a strategic plan intended to make the Loop into much more.

Coming on the heels of the Alliance’s new program to address downtown homelessness, this plan’s initiatives include a new website, more outdoor public seating and the transformation of dingy Wabash Avenue into a corridor that joins Michigan Avenue and State Street as hotspots for both local shoppers and tourists.

“Five or 10 years ago, having a cool city may not have been a necessity, but the rise of the global middle class and the rise of cities in Asia has made it a requirement,” Loop Alliance Executive Director Michael Edwards told Crain’s Chicago. “We have to up our game and create a higher-performing urban experience at street level.”

Continue reading “Throwing Chicago’s shopping and tourism for a Loop”

Saturday’s column from CBS Chicago …

(CBS) From controversial NFL nicknames to the NCAA’s so-called “hostile and abusive imagery” to the wrangling over trademark rights for the University of Illinois’ Chief Illiniwek logo, there’s a whole lot of talk these days about what people shouldn’t do regarding Native American heritage.

But why don’t more people talk about what we should do?

And what we can.

Yes, U. of I., I’m looking at you.

On Tuesday, CBSSports.com reported that as part of the Nike N7 initiative, four NCAA basketball teams will wear turquoise uniforms in November to honor Native American Heritage Month and help spread the popularity of the sport and other physical activities.

In partnership with Nike’s N7 Fund – created to benefit Native American and Aboriginal communities in the United States and Canada – Florida State, Oregon State and New Mexico will each wear the jerseys for one game, while Nevada will wear it for two. Each of the four schools has ties to the Native American community, according to CBS Sports, although it’s interesting that only Florida State uses – or has used – a nickname and imagery derived from a Native American tribe.

Continue reading at CBSChicago.com …

My Friday, Nov. 15. column from CBS Chicago …

(CBS) Queasy. Jaded. Worried.

Constipated. Disoriented. Resigned.

Optimistic. Stoked. Ready.

When it comes to moods, Illini Nation has more of them than a stack of Psychology 101 textbooks. And, really, it’s for good reason considering the emotional roller coaster that the fan base seems ticketed to perpetually ride no matter if the sport is football or basketball, or who either program’s coach might be.

Early this morning on Twitter, with Chicago Curie’s basketball super recruit Cliff Alexander set to announce his college choice at 3:15 p.m. this afternoon, I threw out a simple question on Twitter, “In one word, how you feelin’ this morning, Illini fans?”

Expectedly, what I got back was a flurry of brief but complex answers, a handful of which I shared above.

The reason for Illinois fans’ sudden bout of nausea was because on Thursday night, word broke that Illini point guard commitment Quentin Snider is wavering and reportedly reconsidering Louisville – his hometown school and where he was committed prior to pledging Illinois. Meanwhile, online buzz also began to swirl about Kansas as Alexander’s projected destination, causing much of Illini Nation to feel like it was standing on a cliff.

Continue reading at CBSChicago.com …

My Tuesday, Nov. 12, column from CBS Chicago …

(CBS) In 2009, the University of Illinois football program was in a bind.

Just two seasons earlier, the 9-4 Fighting Illini had played in the Rose Bowl and the team’s prospects were soaring. However, appearing in the Grandaddy of Them All had failed to spawn success.

Instead, Ron Zook’s Rose Bowl follow-up went a disappointing 5-7 during the 2008 season. And then in 2009, his Illini slipped even further, finishing with a 3-9 record.

Those struggles made Zook’s Rose Bowl berth look far more like an exception for the coach than a rule considering how by the end of ’09 he had just a 21-39 overall record in five seasons that included a miserable 12-28 mark in the Big Ten.

Looking at those numbers, the smart move for Illinois athletic director Ron Guenther would have been to fire Zook. However, Guenther instead decided to try to patch things together by hiring a pair of high-priced assistants to buttress Zook in offensive coordinator Paul Petrino and defensive coordinator Vic Koenning.

The plan worked. Sort of.

Continue reading at CBSChicago.com …