Paq-man tonight.

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You know me like that.

How's P.J. Fleck doing these days?

edit...my bad, what about Justin McCareins.....

Sam Hurd, he's still around.[/quote]
Michael Turner
Larry English
Ryan Diem
Doug Free


All starters in the NFL


Plus your favorite player, camps: Garrett Ebeneezer Wolfe

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Illinois should hire Mike Leach tomorrow to take over the football program.

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CSFMB 2014 Nascar Pick 'em Champion

We don’t have a trillion-dollar debt because we haven’t taxed enough; we have a trillion-dollar debt because we spend too much. — Ronald Reagan

Well on his way to being a DI offensive coordinator. He is wide receivers coach at Rutgers currently.

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That's my purse! I don't know you!

PJ is a great guy who will never ever be out of work.

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CSFMB 2014 Nascar Pick 'em Champion

We don’t have a trillion-dollar debt because we haven’t taxed enough; we have a trillion-dollar debt because we spend too much. — Ronald Reagan

Illini quick fixes NEVER work.

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There goes one over the fence..Tru Link Fence..Beauty, Privacy Security....Call Tru Link.
Murph's Union 76 Truck Stop....A great Thanksgiving Tradition!!!!

WOO LIFE!!!!

I look forward to SIU fans coming back in a few months to talk about how their basketball team is better than UofI after SIU racks up some dominant wins against Northern Iowa and Missouri State.

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You know me like that.

That's not likely. Salukis are smarter than Huskies.

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Anybody here seen my old friend Bobby?
Can you tell me where he's gone?
I thought I saw him walkin' up to The Hill
With Elon, Tulsi, and Don

That about says it all.

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You do not talk to me like that! I work too hard to deal with this stuff! I work too hard! I'm an important member of the CSFMB! I drive a Dodge Stratus!

Loyola beat Indiana State. The MVC might be a little down this year.

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O judgment! Thou art fled to brutish beasts,
And men have lost their reason.

Please let me know when the expiration date is on a single win making one team better than the other. Until then, I will use the "Dr. Ken Rule" as I see fit, starting with:

NIU is a better team than Alabama, because the last time they played each other, NIU won.

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We are not talking about the laundry. We're talking about the actual players.

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You know me like that.

Don't worry, I got it.

Here is another example of the Dr. Ken rule (hypothetical):

SIU makes the Sweet Sixteen, Illini get bounced by Minnesota in the 1st rd of the Big Ten tourney and don't make the NCAA's. Illinois is still the better team and had the better season because they beat SIU in November at home.

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I've been hearing about the NIU game since 2008 on this board as the game that will show NIU has had a better program than UofI for a decade.

NIU had a perfect storm of advantages to make their point -

- Apparently, one of the best NIU teams of the decade as evidenced by their 8-1 record against non-UofI opponents
- Illini had lost 13 of their last 15 games against D-I opposition, including 4 in a row
- Freshman QB making his 2nd start against D-I
- New coordinators and schemes on both sides of the ball

And, with all that, NIU was still forced to kick a 50-yard field goal as time expired to cover the 8 point spread - also showing that their coach obviously had money on the game.

NIU had their chance. They blew it or they just weren't good enough. You can pick but the facts are the facts and just because Illinois subsequently has a bad loss later doesn't make NIU 9-1.

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You know me like that.

Simple question, should be a simple answer:

Who is the better team right now?

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Illinois.

Their QB play is better than it was in the NIU game. They'd probably beat NIU by 20 if they played again today.

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You know me like that.

You're delusional.

What are your feelings on Frank Caliendo?

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Illinois scored 28 with a one-dimensional offense. Do you think NIU is the only team that has improved in the NCAA?

Scheelhaase has thrown 11 TDs and 0 picks the last 4 games compared to 4 TDs and 7 picks in the first 6 games. Illinois would score 40+ if they played today and unless that Harnish kid has developed into Denard Robinson, I'm guessing NIU would still get their 17-24 points and call it a day.

And NIU is a secret recruiting ground for the F-bomb loving Hamas. Everyone knows it.

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You know me like that.

No, but that's also a completely different topic. Do you think Illinois has really improved overall? (Please take a moment to remember their latest effort before answering).
As far as the QB play, NIU's has greatly improved as well since the U of I/NIU game.



You are no longer allowed to ride with me to Detroit for the pizza bowl. I will still consider splitting the hotel room in Ypsilanti in an effort to keep down the overall costs.

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Can I get in on this too? I know that Illinois beat Purdue but Illinois lost to Minnesota and therefore I can try and convince myself that it was just a fluke that Illinois was better that day.

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You do not talk to me like that! I work too hard to deal with this stuff! I work too hard! I'm an important member of the CSFMB! I drive a Dodge Stratus!

Illinois' defense played poorly against Minnesota, just like they did against NIU.

I took a look at Harnish's stats since that game and I don't see that if they played again that he would do better than 76% completion and 10 yards/carry.

So, considering that he was the entire offense that day, I would conclude that NIU would do about the same or worse offensively.

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You know me like that.

40? Akron put up almost that amount against them in the 3rd quarter. I am unbiased in this debate and I think the Illini would play in the 50s against NIU will holding the Huskies under 30.

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O judgment! Thou art fled to brutish beasts,
And men have lost their reason.

Sure, you can get in on this. As we all understand, the winner of the most recent meeting is forever the better team until another head-to-head matchup can determine otherwise.

Let's check back over the results. Let's see - NIU vs. Purdue.........

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And here we have the problem with College football...alumns thinking with their hearts instead of their heads.

Illinois couldn't beat a 1-9 Minnesota team...how in the world would they beat NIU? NIU has improved more since playing Illinois that Illinois has.
Where do you stand on Zook remaining head coach?

I think they should dump the Zookmiester & sign Mike Leach to a 5 year contract

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CSFMB 2014 Nascar Pick 'em Champion

We don’t have a trillion-dollar debt because we haven’t taxed enough; we have a trillion-dollar debt because we spend too much. — Ronald Reagan

Aren't you pretty much doing the exact opposite of that with Dr. Ken though?

NIU went 5-3 against a really bad conference. Purdue went 4-4 in one of the best conferences in the country and beat one of the top teams in all of college football.

It doesn't last forever but it certainly lasts for the rest of the season.

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You do not talk to me like that! I work too hard to deal with this stuff! I work too hard! I'm an important member of the CSFMB! I drive a Dodge Stratus!

This is something that I never ever thought I would see...

11-14-10 Jeff Sagarin NCAA football ratings
56 Northern Illinois A = 73.23
57 Texas A = 72.84

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CSFMB 2014 Nascar Pick 'em Champion

We don’t have a trillion-dollar debt because we haven’t taxed enough; we have a trillion-dollar debt because we spend too much. — Ronald Reagan

Is the concept of an upset so hard to understand? Minnesota caught Illinois and beat them. If they play 10 times Illinois wins that game 9/10 times.

Oftentimes in college football it's not a matter of who you play but when you play them. Illinois was a textbook example of a team coming off a hard fought and demoralizing loss leading to them keeping an inferior team in the game. That team then made a play and pulled it out.

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You do not talk to me like that! I work too hard to deal with this stuff! I work too hard! I'm an important member of the CSFMB! I drive a Dodge Stratus!

Just so I'm clear, Illinois played NIU, this season, with these players, and beat them.

But, my notion that they would do it again shows that I'm thinking with my heart.

NIU fans are great. They spend years telling you that they are a better program, they play the game and lose, and two weeks later they are a better program again.

There is really nothing further to be gained here.

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You know me like that.

You don't really believe this. Right?

They play a 10 game series, 5 at each place - and the only one Minnesota wins is the one at Champaign that just occured?

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NIU received 37 votes in the latest AP poll.
They received 30 in latest coaches poll.

Illinois got....hold on still counting.....carry the one.....none in each poll. Not one vote by the media or the coaches.

I'm guessing that consensus among everyone, locally and nationally, is that NIU is a better team right now than Illinois.

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