allstate wrigleyville classic Archives

ESPN Gameday, Media Circus has Now Left Town

There was something surreal Friday about watching the lead story on the ESPN sports shouting shows (I’d refer to them as sports talk shows, but they’re actually just SHOUTING MATCHES) from the very exact location where the lead story originates. I’m speaking of course, about the Wrigleyville Classic, “Wallgate” and the afternoon hours I spent in the waiting room of the Chicago Cubs front office at WrigleyField.

Joining me was Northwestern student media, the School’s Information Department, and the NU Student Ambassador to ESPN Gameday. (I’m assuming he’s granted diplomatic immunity on trips to Champaign) We, the second city’s college football liaisons, watched our hometown get verbally blasted by PTI and Around the Horn as we waited to interview the College Gameday personalities, including the Queen of all Sports Media, Erin Andrews.

The actual circus, Barnum and Bailey to be exact, is still in town (Just ask the Bulls and Blackhawks about what’s forcing them on crazy long road trips), but the media circus is now long gone.

By Paul M. Banks

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Mikel Leshoure Breaks Illinois Rushing Record at Wrigley Field

MIKEL LESHOURE…YOU ARE RIDICULOUS!!!

With many apologies to Jeff Joniak of the Chicago Bears Radio Network, on Saturday, November 20th, 2010, at Wrigley Field, Mikel Leshoure truly was ridiculous.

With the entire Illinois offense on his shoulders, Leshoure rushed for an Illinois-school-single-game-record 330 yards on 33 carries, and in the process also set a single-game rushing record at Wrigley Field. It was the fifth-most yards in Big Ten history, fourth-most yards in a Big Ten conference game and the most yards in an FBS game since Navy’s Shun White ran for 348 yards on August 30th of 2008. [Read more…]

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LIVE! From Wrigley Field! The Allstate Wrigleyville Classic!

12:30 PM, Central: HELLO EVERYBODY!!!! It’s an exciting day in my neighborhood! This is Paul Schmidt, and I’m hunkered down in The Sports Bank’s underground secret auxiliary headquarters, and I’m getting fired up for a stroll down to Wrigley Field.

That happens often to me, as even when the Cubs are terrible, I get fired up for baseball at Wrigley, but today, I’m covering the first college football game at Wrigley Field since 1938!! It’s been so long since there was a college football game there that the two teams that played in that game, DePaul and St. Louis, don’t even have football programs any more!

It’s going to be a historic day at Wrigley, and just like Northwestern and Illinois, I’m proud to be a part of that history, as is THE CEO, Paul M. Banks (also covering the game). There’s a ton of story lines today, and we all know them at this point, and we’ll be revisiting ALL of them throughout the day, as we bring you all of the action and all of the sites and sounds from Wrigley! [Read more…]

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Northwestern Football Past, Present and Future with Leading Rusher Damien Anderson

Former Northwestern running back Damien Anderson will host an interactive Q&A session with fans at the Allstate Tailgate Tour before the Wildcats take on the Fighting Illini in the Allstate Wrigleyville Classic at Wrigley Field on Saturday, Nov. 20.

Anderson, who played for Northwestern from 1998 to 2001 and is the school’s all-time leading rusher, will be signing autographs and fielding fan questions from 1 – 2 p.m. at the Allstate Tailgate Tour, located at Wildcat Way at the intersection of Addison and Sheffield. The Allstate Tailgate Tour will be open from 10 a.m. – 10 p.m. on Saturday.

On the eve of the big game, I had an exclusive with Anderson where we discussed all things college football, and the incredible journey that has been his life.

By Paul M. Banks

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Catching up with Legendary RB Northwestern Darnell Autry

In 1995, the Northwestern Wildcats took the college football world by storm, they were so popular that they transcended college football; and became a pop culture story. After reaching their first Rose Bowl in close to 50 years, and having their first winning season in multiple decades, the storyline was more feel-good mid ’90s than the NBC sitcom Friends.

Their star player was a Heisman trophy finalist and sophomore theater major named Darnell Autry. The tailback carried the Cats to back-to-back Big Ten titles, before being selected in the 1997 NFL Draft where he had little to no success in stints with the Chicago Bears and Philadelphia Eagles.

I recently caught up to him and began our interview by reminding Autry how his team was bigger than Hootie and the Blowfish in back in1995.

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Wrigleyville Classic Illinois-Northwestern: Brutally Honest Game Preview

It will certainly will be a bowl game type environment when the Northwestern Wildcats host the Illinois Fighting Illini, their bitter instate rival, in the Allstate Wrigleyville Classic at Wrigley Field. The Friendly Confines, home of Major League Baseball’s Chicago Cubs, last hosted a football game on Dec. 13, 1970. Kickoff is set for 2:35 p.m. CT this Saturday with ESPNU televising to a national cable audience.

In order to feature the world famous Wrigley marquee in the set’s backdrop, ESPN’s College GameDay will be originating its Saturday broadcast from the corner of Clark and Addison. Meaning yes, Erin Andrews, Queen of all Sports Media will indeed be here in Chicago. GameDay usually selects one “novelty game” a season, and this year it’s right here in Chicago’s Lakeview East neighborhood.

The atmosphere will be further enhanced when NU moves it’s usual, traditional “Wildcat Alley” set of gameday activities down to Wrigleyville.

For Illinois, it’s essentially a “play-in” game as their postseason lives hang in the balance. You can sense the bowl game tension in Ron Zook’s voice in this video.

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Bowl Atmosphere coming to Wrigley Field for Illinois-Northwestern

A bowl game in Chicago?

Well, it certainly will be a bowl game type environment when the Northwestern Wildcats host the Illinois Fighting Illini, their bitter instate rival, in the Allstate Wrigleyville Classic at Wrigley Field. The Friendly Confines, home of Major League Baseball’s Chicago Cubs, last hosted a football game on Dec. 13, 1970. Kickoff is set for 2:35 p.m. CT this Saturday with ESPNU televising to a national cable audience.

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Logo for Illinois-Northwestern game at Wrigley Field Unveiled

Today, big wigs from the Chicago Cubs and Northwestern University came together to unveil the new logo for the Northwestern Wildcats huge college football match with Illinois.

Chicago Cubs Executive Chairman Tom Ricketts and Allstate’s Vice President of Marketing, Lisa Cochrane, joined Northwestern Head Football Coach Pat Fitzgerald and Director of Athletics and Recreation Jim Phillips at Wrigley Field today to unveil the official logo for the November 20 event.

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ESPN Gameday, Media Circus has Now Left Town

Mikel Leshoure Breaks Illinois Rushing Record at Wrigley Field

LIVE! From Wrigley Field! The Allstate Wrigleyville Classic!

Erin Andrews Talks About Wrigley Field College Football Controversy (Video)

Northwestern Football Past, Present and Future with Leading Rusher Damien Anderson

Only Using One End Zone at Wrigleyville Classic Tomorrow!

Catching up with Legendary RB Northwestern Darnell Autry

Wrigleyville Classic Illinois-Northwestern: Brutally Honest Game Preview

Bowl Atmosphere coming to Wrigley Field for Illinois-Northwestern

Logo for Illinois-Northwestern game at Wrigley Field Unveiled

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