The Champaign Room

Your go-to source for all things related to the Illinois Fighting Illini, available for free on the SB Nation network.

Local

English

Blog

Outlet metrics

Domain Authority

Ranking

Global

#516310

United States

#118769

Sports/American Football

#398

Traffic sources

Monthly visitors

Articles

University of Illinois’ new chancellor comes from rival institution

3 weeks ago | thechampaignroom.com | Stephen Cohn

Illinois.edu Chancellor is one of the most powerful positions on any college campus, and they can have a fairly large say in terms of what happens in a school’s athletic department. And Illinois has a new chancellor starting this summer. Charles Lee Isbell Jr. will be the university’s 11th chancellor, the UI system announced this week. Isbell is currently the provost at UW-Madison. He will take over Aug. 1, pending approval by the Board of Trustees.
Big Ten hails ‘new era’ after House settlement approval

3 weeks ago | thechampaignroom.com | Stephen Cohn

Jack Jungmann It may be one of the biggest changes to college athletics EVER. A judge approved the so-called House settlement on Friday, paving the way for schools to begin paying athletes directly. NIL will still exist, but this will change NCAA sports forever. The three federal antitrust lawsuits involved in the case claimed the NCAA illegally limited the earning power of college athletes. That will no longer be the case.
Illinois Basketball has ANOTHER chance to seize the spotlight

3 weeks ago | thechampaignroom.com | Drew Pastorek

On this episode of “Oskee Talk” I’m joined by Pleas Honeywood and TCR’s Said Bravo makes his podcast debut. Said shares his background as an Illinois student and offers a crash course on the Champaign social scene (2:45). We recognize history-making performances from Illini track & field (18:50), discuss the hoops’ rematch with UConn (23:03), and review some of the latest NBA mock drafts (35:50). We also recap football’s kickoff times and newest transfer addition (54:11).
All of Illinois’ Madison Square Garden games under Brad Underwood

3 weeks ago | thechampaignroom.com | Stephen Cohn

Photo by Evan Bernstein/Getty Images If there’s something Brad Underwood likes in non-conference play, it’s challenging his teams AND getting the Illini on the national stage. The 2025-26 season will be no different, with Jon Rothstein reporting on Monday that Illinois will play UCONN at Madison Square Garden on Black Friday. It will be Underwood’s sixth MSG game since joining the Illini in 2017. Here’s a look at the first five: I did not cry at this game.
Illini legends on 2026 College Football Hall of Fame ballot

3 weeks ago | thechampaignroom.com | Stephen Cohn

Photo by Mitchell Layton/Getty Images Two Illinois legends are on the 2026 ballot for the College Football Hall of Fame. Kevin Hardy and Simeon Rice are two of the 79 players on the 2026 ballot, alongside nine FBS coaches. No Illini has earned induction since Moe Gardner in 2022. Eighteen Illinois players are in the HOF. Hardy and Rice went No. 2 and No. 3 overall in the 1996 NFL Draft.
Reigning national champ Rose Yeboah qualifies for NCAA Outdoor Championships

3 weeks ago | thechampaignroom.com | Drew Pastorek

The Illinois Fighting Illini track & field teams were well-represented at the NCAA West Preliminaries this past week in College Station, Tex. Twelve Illini competitors advanced to next week’s NCAA Outdoor Championships, highlighted by 2024 national title-winner Rose Yeboah, who earned the chance to defend her championship in high jump. Yeboah qualified for this year’s meet by clearing the bar at 1.84 meters.
Illinois’ Bret Bielema roasts Ole Miss, SEC troll on X

4 weeks ago | thechampaignroom.com | Stephen Cohn

Photo by Wesley Hitt/Getty Images We don’t need to rehash this part, but, yes, Bret Bielema’s tenure at Arkansas wasn’t legendary. Over five years in the mid-2010s, Bielema went 29-34 overall and 11-29 in the SEC. Clearly, things are going better at Illinois, where he’s 28-22 and 18-18 in the Big Ten over his first four seasons. But when an Ole Miss troll came at Bielema on X (his favorite platform) on Friday, the Illini’s head coach was having none of it.
Kickoff times for Illinois’ first three games announced

4 weeks ago | thechampaignroom.com | Stephen Cohn

Photo by Julio Aguilar/Getty Images Get ready to play under the lights. Illinois’ first two home games will both be played at night, according to a news release on Thursday. The Illini’s season opener is Friday, Aug. 29 at 6:30 p.m. vs. Western Illinois. That game will air on Peacock. Then Illinois will head to Duke for an 11 a.m. game on Saturday, Sept. 6 on either ABC or ESPN. Then it’s back to Champaign for a night game with Western Michigan (6 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 13) on FS1.
Illinois is boosting its NCAA Tournament profile before even taking the floor

1 month ago | thechampaignroom.com | Drew Pastorek

On this edition of Oskee Talk I’m rejoined by Brandt Dolce & Pleas Honeywood to wrap up the men’s golf season (2:47) and discuss basketball’s enticing matchups against Alabama (9:18) & Tennessee (14:36) as well as scheduling the proper tier of teams (25:32). We also chat about the latest additions to Brad Underwood’s staff and Shauna Green’s roster (30:13). Finally, we unveil our list of desired hoops opponents (47:57). Join the conversation! Click HERE to listen!
Illinois’ recruiting momentum is REAL

1 month ago | thechampaignroom.com | Drew Pastorek

On this edition of the Oskee Talk podcast I’m rejoined by Brandt Dolce & Pleas Honeywood to recap the end of baseball season and history-making performances for Illini track & field (2:41). We also discuss the commitments of King Liggins (15:37) and Nasir Rankin (24:27) as well as Illinois football’s major recruiting momentum (33:45). We also project Illinois’ season win total (40:36) and give predictions on who will lead the Illini in touchdowns (62:11).