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4-year-old boy critically wounded in Woodlawn shootingDavid Struetton September 4, 2021 at 2:43 am

A 4-year-old boy was in critical condition following a shooting Friday evening in Woodlawn on the South Side.

Paramedics responded for the child around 9 p.m. in the 6500 block of South Ellis Avenue, according to Chicago Fire Department District Chief Juan Hernandez.

The child was transported to Comer Children’s Hospital, he said. A 34-year-old woman was also taken to a hospital for lacerations related to the shooting.

At the scene of the shooting, shell casings littered the front yard of a three-story apartment building that had a shattered front window.

In June, a 4-year-old boy was wounded in an accidental shooting on the same block where Friday’s shooting occurred. Police said the child was hit in the hand and a 17-year-old boy was shot in the foot June 21. A 15-year-old boy scene leaving the home was arrested and charged with unauthorized use of a weapon.

Two 4-year-olds have been wounded in gun violence in Chicago this week.

On Tuesday, a 4-year-old girl was shot and wounded while she combed a dolls hair on the stoop of her home in Englewood. Police said she was caught in the crossfire of gunmen in two cars.

In August, a 4-year-old girl became the youngest person to die from gun violence in Chicago this year. Makalah McKay was accidentally shot by another child who found a gun Aug. 5 in the 6400 block of South Carpenter Street in Englewood.

Read more on crime, and track the city’s homicides.

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4-year-old boy critically wounded in Woodlawn shootingDavid Struetton September 4, 2021 at 2:43 am Read More »

White Sox second baseman Cesar Hernandez looking to expand his comfort zoneDaryl Van Schouwenon September 4, 2021 at 2:04 am

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — While Cesar Hernandez has struggled to find a comfortable hitting stroke since joining the White Sox, it has been helpful, he said that his new teammates made him feel comfortable since the day he arrived before the trade deadline.

“There are a good group of guys here,” Hernandez said through translator Billy Russo. “The Latinos have welcomed me in a good way, and the other guys have, too. I feel comfortable here. It has been easier than I was expecting.

“It’s good to be on a contender and to be part of that. This is a very good team and the goal is to be in a position to win it all. That gives you extra motivation.”

The switch-hitting second baseman, acquired from the Indians for left-handed pitching prospect Konnor Pilkington on July 29, is finding comfort knowing he can win a game with his glove while he waits for his bat to come around.

“As a professional baseball player I take pride in every aspect of the game because I know I can impact the game in any aspect,” Hernandez said. “I try to make up for the difference. If your hitting is down you can pick up the team or save a game with your defense.”

Hernandez entered Friday’s rain-delayed game against the Royals batting .211/.295/.289 with three homers in 30 games for the Sox. He batted .231/.307/.431 with 18 homers in 96 games with the Indians.

A Gold Glove winner with the Indians in 2020, Hernandez knows he’s not perfect defensively, either. He made three errors in one game against the Yankees on Aug. 15. But he has made plenty of good plays, which makes it easier to allow himself to flush that one bad day.

“I’m not used to that happening but it happens,” he said. “People who don’t make errors are in the stands. It’s easy for them.”

Hernandez and hitting coach Frank Menechino have been working on “adjustments,” Hernandez said, “so I can be the hitter I can be.”

Menechino recently said Hernandez was putting pressure on himself.

“He’s trying to hit his way out of this and we have to get him back to being patient, staying behind the ball, think base hits, take your walks and move forward,” Menechino said.

The magic number

The White Sox (78-56 going into their rain-delayed game against the Royals Friday) were off to their best 134-game start since 2006. Their magic number to clinch the AL Central title was 21.

This and that

Right-hander Ryan Burr was recalled from Triple-A Charlotte to take Lucas Giolito’s spot on the active roster. Burr was 2-1 with a 2.84 ERA over two stints with the Sox in 2021.

*Craig Kimbrel, unavailable Wednesday because of an undisclosed physical issue unrelated to his arm, per manager Tony La Russa, figured to be the ninth inning choice Friday. La Russa said “this is probably not a good day to push [closer Liam Hendriks],” he got five outs to earn his 31st save Wednesday.

*The Blue Jays claimed Jake Lamb on waivers. Lamb was designated for assignment by the Sox Wednesday.

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White Sox second baseman Cesar Hernandez looking to expand his comfort zoneDaryl Van Schouwenon September 4, 2021 at 2:04 am Read More »

Chicago Bulls Rumors: Lamarcus Aldridge would be wise to signRyan Heckmanon September 3, 2021 at 5:00 pm

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Chicago Bulls Rumors: Lamarcus Aldridge would be wise to signRyan Heckmanon September 3, 2021 at 5:00 pm Read More »

Cubs edge Pirates again for (gasp!) fourth straight victoryJared Wyllyson September 3, 2021 at 11:12 pm

For the first time since rattling off five straight wins against the Padres and Cardinals from June 8-13, the Cubs have a winning streak of at least four games.

Three-hit games from Michael Hermosillo, Ian Happ and Frank Schwindel — his included a go-ahead home run in the sixth inning — helped secure a 6-5 win over the Pirates on Friday.

“Those guys are really hungry, they show up early to work every single day,” interim manager Andy Green said. “They’ve been really, really good at doing everything that’s been asked of them. It’s exciting to see guys hungry, and fighting to win games, win jobs, win spots on the team for the future.”

Hermosillo hit his first home run at Wrigley Field and was a triple shy of the cycle.

“He’s had some big hits for us since he’s been here, but he strung a number of really good at-bats together today,” Green said.

Alec Mills cruised through four innings, giving up three hits while striking out four, but things got bumpy in the fifth. Anthony Alford and Hoy Park hit back-to-back home runs before Mills got through the rest of the inning.

A pair of errors in the sixth cut the Cubs’ lead to two runs. Colin Moran reached on a fielding error by Patrick Wisdom and scored later in the inning on a bad throw by Sergio Alcantara. Mills’ day was done after giving up a game-tying home run to Alford later in the sixth.

The Cubs’ pitchers combined for 13 strikeouts and no walks, and the bullpen has a 0.42 ERA during the team’s four-game winning streak. On Friday, Trevor Megill, Codi Heuer, and Rowan Wick combined for 3 1/3 hitless and scoreless innings.

“Those guys have been great,” Green said. “Hopefully this bullpen has come together for us [and] as we move forward, we’re going to look to guys like that to continue to emerge, and they’ll have stuff to prove. They’re pitching like that right now, and it’s fun to see.”

Happ stays hot

Ian Happ singled twice and doubled, giving him multihit games in consecutive days. Happ homered and singled in the series opener Thursday night. His home run was part of the Cubs’ five-run seventh inning.

“He’s really got it going right now,” Green said. “It feels like more early count aggression, from my vantage point, like he’s getting in the box with the intent to swing, intent to do damage, intent to impact the baseball quickly.”

After hitting well under .200 in June and July, Happ started heating up in mid-August. Entering the game, he had a .352 average over his last 15 games. He has homered in four of his last eight games. Friday marked Happ’s second three-hit game since Aug. 23 against the Rockies.

“I think sometimes he’s got such a good eye and takes his walks so well, those types of hitters occasionally work themselves into seeing a ton of pitches and maybe not bringing their aggression to the dish, but he looks locked in,” Green said.

Bote progressing

Manager David Ross said Thursday that things were “status quo” for David Bote, but Bote took batting practice and ran on the field before the game Friday. He has been out since Aug. 27 with a sprained ankle.

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Cubs edge Pirates again for (gasp!) fourth straight victoryJared Wyllyson September 3, 2021 at 11:12 pm Read More »

High school football scores: Week 2Michael O’Brienon September 3, 2021 at 11:05 pm

Please send scores and corrections to [email protected]

Thursday, September 2

NONCONFERENCE

Hoopeston 26, Seneca 21

Pritzker 28, UIC Prep 8

Kelly vs. Kennedy at Rockne, canc.

Friday, September 3

FOX VALLEY

Burlington Central at Prairie Ridge, 7

Cary-Grove at Crystal Lake South, 7

Hampshire at Dundee-Crown, 7

Huntley at McHenry, 7

Jacobs at Crystal Lake Central, 7

UPSTATE EIGHT

Glenbard East at Elgin, 7:30

Larkin at Fenton, 7:30

South Elgin at East Aurora, 6

Streamwood at Bartlett, 7:30

West Chicago at Glenbard South, 7:30

NONCONFERENCE

Payton 57, Rauner 8

Addison Trail at Lyons, 7

Antioch at Morris, 7

Arcola at Reed-Custer, 7

Batavia at Oswego, 7

Benet at Moline, 7

Bismarck-Henning at Dwight, 7

Brother Rice at Perspectives, 7:30

Canton at Marengo, 7:30

Carmel at Lake Forest, 7:30

Carver at Evergreen Park, 7

Catalyst-Maria vs. Schurz at Lane, 7:15

Chicago Academy vs. Collins at Rockne, 4:15

Chicago Military at Solorio, 7:15

Christ the King at Wheaton Academy, 7:30

Clemente vs. Amundsen at Winnemac, 4:15

Coal City at Bishop McNamara, 7

Conant at Buffalo Grove, 7:30

Crane at Marine, 4:15

Crete-Monee at Plainfield North, 7

Curie at De La Salle, 6

Dunbar vs. Comer at Eckersall, 4:15

Eisenhower at Thornridge, 7

Elk Grove at Schaumburg, 7

Fremd at Prospect, 7

Gage Park vs. Bogan at Stagg, 4:15

Glenbard North at Naperville North, 7:30

Grant at Taft, 7:30

Grayslake Central at Mundelein, 7:30

Grayslake North at Deerfield, 7

Herscher at Rochelle, 7

Hinsdale South at Oak Park-River Forest, 7

Hoffman Estates at Rolling Meadows, 7

Hope Academy at TF North, 6

Hubbard at Maine West, 7

IC Catholic at Marian Central, 7:15

Johnsburg at Wilmington, 7

Johnson at Lindblom, 4:15

Juarez at St. Francis, 7:30

Julian vs. Ag. Science at Gately, 4:15

Kaneland at Geneva, 7:30

Kankakee at Washington, Ill., 7:30

Kelly vs. Clark at Rockne, 7:15

Kenwood at Hillcrest, 7

Lake Park at Lincoln-Way Central, 6

Lake View at Marmion, 7:30

Lakes at Highland Park, 7

Lane at TF South, 7

Leyden at Proviso West, 7

Libertyville at Evanston, 7:30

Lincoln-Way East at Naperville Central, 7:30

Lincoln-Way West at Oswego East, 7

Lockport at Metea Valley, 7

Maine East at Round Lake, 7

Maine South at Warren, 7:30

Marian Catholic at Leo, 7

Metamora at LaSalle-Peru, 7

Minooka at Joliet West, 6:30

Montini at Sterling, 7

Morton at York, 7

Nazareth at Lemont, 7

Neuqua Valley at Wheaton-Warrenville South, 7:30

Niles North at Niles West, 7

North Chicago at Zion-Benton, 7

Notre Dame at Fenwick, 7:30

Oak Lawn at Stagg, 7

Ottawa Marquette at Chicago Christian, 7:15

Palatine at Hersey, 7:30

Phillips at Mount Carmel, 7

Plainfield South at DeKalb, 7

Plano at Manteno, 7:30

Providence at Wheaton North, 7:30

Proviso East at Hinsdale Central, 7:30

Rich Township at Joliet Central, 7

Richards at Marist, 6

Richmond-Burton at Aurora Central, 6

Ridgewood at DePaul Prep, 7:30

Romeoville at West Aurora, 7

St. Charles North at Lake Zurich, 7:30

St. Ignatius at Bremen, 6

St. Laurence at Brooks, 7:30

St. Rita at Louisville Trinity, Ky., 6

St. Viator vs. Morgan Park at Gately, 7:15

Sandburg at Glenbrook South, 7:30

Sandwich at Geneseo, 7

Shepard at Plainfield East, 7

Simeon at Bolingbrook, 6

Steinmetz at Reavis, 6:30

Stevenson at New Trier, 7

Streator at Ottawa, 7

Sullivan at Speer, 7:15

Sycamore at Oak Forest, 7

Thornwood at Tinley Park, 7

Tilden at Bradley-Bourbonnais, 7

UP-Bronzeville at Aurora Christian, 7

Waubonsie Valley at St. Charles East, 7:30

Wauconda at Riverside-Brookfield, 7:15

Waukegan at Vernon Hills, 7:30

Westmont at Lisle, 7

Wheeling at Barrington, 7:30

Willowbrook at Downers Grove North, 7

Woodstock at Bartonville Limestone, 7

Woodstock North at Harvard, 7

Yorkville at Plainfield Central, 7

Saturday, September 4

NONCONFERENCE

Andrew at Thornton, noon

Argo at Bloom, noon

Bowen at Englewood STEM, 3:30

Bulls Prep vs. North Lawndale at Rockne, 4

Chicago Richards at Little Village, 10 a.m.

Downers Grove South at Glenbard West, 1:30

Elmwood Park at Walther Christian, 1

Fenger vs. Harlan at Gately, 4

Glenbrook North at St. Patrick, 5:30

Goode vs. Young at Rockne, 1

Hansberry vs. Butler at Gately, 1

Homewood-Flossmoor at Cahokia, 3

Hyde Park vs. Vocational at Eckersall, 4

Joliet Catholic at St. Louis Cardinal Ritter, Mo., 2

Lincoln Park vs. King at Eckersall, 1

Longwood vs. Roosevelt at Winnemac, 1

Mather vs. Prosser at Rockne, 7

Momence at Salt Fork, noon

Orr vs. Corliss at Gately, 7

Peotone at Farmersburg North Central, Ind., 2

Raby at Westinghouse, noon

Rochester at Loyola, 2:30

Rowe-Clark vs. Senn at Winnemac, 10 a.m.

South Shore vs. Dyett at Stagg, 4

Taylorville at St. Edward, 1

Von Steuben vs. Phoenix at Winnemac, 4

Washington at Back of the Yards, noon

Woodlawn vs. DuSable at Stagg, 1

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High school football scores: Week 2Michael O’Brienon September 3, 2021 at 11:05 pm Read More »

Biden walks storm-ravaged Louisiana: ‘I know you’re hurting’Associated Presson September 3, 2021 at 10:59 pm

LAPLACE, La. — Giant trees knocked sideways. Homes boarded up with plywood. Off-kilter street signs.

Less than a week after Hurricane Ida battered the Gulf Coast, President Joe Biden walked the streets of a hardhit Louisiana neighborhood on Friday and told local residents, “I know you’re hurting, I know you’re hurting.”

Biden pledged robust federal assistance to get people back on their feet and said the government already had distributed $100 million directly to individuals in the state in $500 checks to give them a first slice of critical help. Many people, he said, don’t know what help is available because they can’t get cellphone service.

Residents welcomed Biden’s presence, one of them drawing a sign with his last name and a heart for the dot on the “i.” They laughed and posed for selfies.

More formally, Biden met with state and local officials in LaPlace, a community between the Mississippi River and Lake Pontchartrain that suffered major wind and water damage and was left with sheared-off roofs and flooded homes.

“I promise we’re going to have your back,” Biden said.

He also planned a flyover tour of pummeled areas including Lafitte, Grand Isle, Port Fourchon and Lafourche Parish, where Parish President Archie Chaisson said 25% of the homes in his community of 100,000 were gone or had catastrophic damage.

The devastation was clear even as Air Force One approached New Orleans, with uprooted trees and blue tarps covering shredded houses coming into view. The road to LaPlace exhibited power-line wood poles jutting from the ground at odd angles.

Trips to natural disaster scenes have long been a feature of U.S. presidencies, moments to demonstrate compassion and show the public leadership during a crisis. They are also opportunities to hit pause, however temporarily, from the political sniping that often dominates Washington.

In shirtsleeves and boots, Biden was welcomed at the airport by Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards, a Democrat. Several Republicans, including Sen. Bill Cassidy and Rep. Steve Scalise, the House Republican whip, were also on hand.

Edwards said Biden has “been a tremendous partner,” adding that he intended to keep asking for help until the president says no.

In the aftermath of Ida, Biden is focusing anew on the threat posed by climate change and the prospect that disaster zone visits may become a more regular feature of the presidency. The storm has killed at 13 people in Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama, and at least 48 in the Northeastern U.S.

The president has pointed to that destruction to call for greater public resolve to confront climate change. His $1 trillion infrastructure legislation intends to ensure that vital networks connecting cities and states and the country as a whole can withstand the flooding, whirlwinds and damage caused by increasingly dangerous weather.

At Friday’s briefing with local officials, Biden insisted the infrastructure bill and an even more expansive measure later on would more effectively prepare the country.

“It seems to me we can save a whole lot of money, a whole lot of pain for our constituents, if we build back, rebuild it back in a better way,” Biden said. “I realize I’m selling as I’m talking.”

Sen. Cassidy tweeted later that in his conversation with Biden, “we spoke about the need for resiliency. We agreed putting power lines beneath the ground would have avoided all of this. The infrastructure bill has billions for grid resiliency.”

Past presidents have been defined in part by how they handled such crises.

Seemingly casually, Donald Trump lobbed paper towels to people in Puerto Rico after a hurricane, generating scorn from critics but little damage to his political standing. Barack Obama hugged New Jersey Republican Gov. Chris Christie in 2012 after Superstorm Sandy, a brief respite from partisan tensions that had threatened the economy. George W. Bush fell out of public favor after a poor and unprepared response to Hurricane Katrina, which swamped New Orleans in 2005.

Scientists say climate change increases the frequency of extreme weather events — such as large tropical storms, and the droughts and heatwaves that create conditions for vast wildfires. U.S. weather officials recently reported that July 2021 was the hottest month recorded in 142 years of record-keeping.

Biden’s nearly eight-month-old presidency has been shaped in part by perpetual crises. The president went to Texas in February after a cold winter storm caused the state’s power grid to fail, and he has closely monitored the wildfires in Western states.

Besides natural disasters, the president has had to contend with a multitude of other challenges. He is searching for ways to rescue the 100-200 Americans stuck in Afghanistan after the longest war in U.S. history ended a matter of days ago. He is also confronting the delta variant of the coronavirus that has plunged the country into an autumn of uncertainty only months after he declared independence from the disease at a July 4 celebration on the White House lawn.

Ida was the fifth-most powerful storm to strike the U.S. when it hit Louisiana on Sunday with maximum winds of 150 mph, likely causing tens of billions of dollars in flood, wind and other damage, including to the electrical grid. The storm’s remnants dropped devastating rainfall across parts of Maryland, Pennsylvania, New York and New Jersey on Wednesday, causing significant disruption to major cities.

___

Associated Press writers Melinda Deslatte in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, and Christina Larson and Darlene Superville in Washington contributed to this report.

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Biden walks storm-ravaged Louisiana: ‘I know you’re hurting’Associated Presson September 3, 2021 at 10:59 pm Read More »

Chicago Bulls Rumors: Lamarcus Aldridge would be wise to signRyan Heckmanon September 3, 2021 at 11:04 pm

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Chicago Bulls Rumors: Lamarcus Aldridge would be wise to signRyan Heckmanon September 3, 2021 at 11:04 pm Read More »

Chicago organizer, storyteller remembered as a builder of communityElvia Malagónon September 3, 2021 at 10:26 pm

For Malik Alim, it seemed possible to change the world.

He was optimistic but in a practical way, searching for a social solution through policy changes, said Kevin Cao, who took a class about the intersection of policy and activism led by Alim at the Roosevelt Institute years ago.

“He was able to see a path forward,” Cao said. “He never gave up. He always stayed optimistic in an environment that really did not want him to be.”

Activists in Chicago have mourned the death of Alim, 28, since he was pulled from Mineola Bay along Fox Lake on Aug. 22. He was last seen struggling in Fox Lake after a tube he was on flipped over. It appeared that he died in an accidental drowning, said Jennifer Banek, the Lake County coroner.

This week, a resolution mourning Alim was adopted by the Illinois Senate. He was lauded as a community organizer and storyteller who “cultivated and nurtured community where he went; he encouraged people to envision a better world and to unite together to make it possible.”

Alim worked as a campaign coordinator for the Chicago Community Bond Fund, organizing more than two dozen events leading to the passage of legislation that will end the cash bail system by 2023. Gov. J.B. Pritzker described the bill as a step toward “dismantling the systemic racism that plagues our communities.”

Keisa Reynolds, the transitional executive director of the Chicago Community Bond Fund, said Alim was a thinker who was also a welcoming person and valued a sense of community, Reynolds said.

Malik Alim, a campaign coordinator at for the Coalition to End Money Bond, died in a boating accident Aug. 22.Pat Nabong/Sun-Times file

Alim was pivotal in creating the #BreathingRoom Space that is housed in the Back of the Yards neighborhood as part of the #LetUsBreathe Collective, said Damon Williams, a co-director of the collective.

Alim helped rehab the space — at one point living in the building — while also shaping it into a hub for organizing and cultural events, Williams said. Alim coined the term “well pro,” meaning wellness and protection as an alternative to policing, Williams said. The collective aims to create a world without prisons and police, according to its website.

“Many of us came together in resistance to the oppressive violence of policing, and we came together with the belief that we have to create a new world and a new way of being,” Williams said. “And a new way of taking care of each other, and a new way of actually protecting ourselves from harm and from violence, transforming our behavior toward more healthy relationships.”

Alim also worked at the University of Illinois at Chicago, helping reimagine the space at the Chicago Justice Gallery as its gallery manager and event planner, said Barbara Ransby, the director of the university’s Social Justice Initiative. Alim was keen on visuals and what would be compelling to young people who came in, Ransby said.

He organized a concert with Taina Asili, a New-York based Puerto Rican singer and activist whose music touches on liberation, Ransby said.

“I think the spoken word was very important to him and making words and ideas accessible through art and through sound production,” Ransby said.

About a month ago, Chakena Perry felt like she left Chicago Votes Action Fund in good hands when Alim succeeded her as president of the group’s board of directors.

Perry, who worked at Chicago Votes from 2013 to 2021, described Alim as an amazing storyteller. Alim opposed disenfranchisement at the ballot box.

“He tried to incorporate all the voices that we’re attempting to influence,” Perry said. “We work with incarcerated individuals, previously incarcerated folks, and the artist community. He was big on equity.”

They met in 2014 at a Black Youth Project 100 meeting, and their paths crossed again at Chicago Votes’ DemocracyCorps Fellowship. The group teaches young people about grassroots basic of democracy while trying to develop the next generation of leaders, according to its website.

“The students that we were working with in the classroom, we were teaching them stuff about the legislative process,” Perry said. “That’s one of my favorite memories of Malik because he has a really cool way of we can be serious about things, but we also have a sense of humor.”

Alim had two children, one of which was with his life partner, Kristiana Rae Colon.

For Cao, 23, the class with Alim has stayed with him, in particular his message of finding a calling. Cao is attending medical school and wants to work on aging equity issues.

“There was a lesson he taught us: You have to envision a better world in order to achieve it,” Cao said. “That just stays with me. He knew that you could always make a better world.”

Elvia Malagon’s reporting on social justice and income inequality is made possible by a grant from The Chicago Community Trust.

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Chicago organizer, storyteller remembered as a builder of communityElvia Malagónon September 3, 2021 at 10:26 pm Read More »

Man charged with fatally stabbing bank worker in lobby of River North branch officeSun-Times Wireon September 3, 2021 at 10:10 pm

A man has been charged with fatally stabbing a bank worker in the lobby of a River North branch office Wednesday.

Jawaun Westbrooks, 35, faces one felony count of first-degree murder in the death of 24-year-old Jessica Vilaythong, Chicago police said.

Vilaythong was attacked around 11:10 a.m. Wednesday “after having a brief conversation” with a man inside the Chase Bank branch at 600 N. Dearborn St., police and fire officials said.

Westbrooks was allegedly identified as the suspect and officers took him into custody soon after the stabbing, police said.

Chase Bank closed the rest of their downtown branches Wednesday as a precaution, a spokesman said.

“We are devastated by the passing of our colleague Jessica Vilaythong and extend our deepest sympathies to her family and loved ones during this incredibly difficult time,” the spokesman said. “Jessica was a wonderful person and valued employee. She was extremely outgoing, passionate, hardworking, and quick to help clients. We will miss her greatly.”

Westbrooks was expected to appear in court Saturday.

Westbrooks, whose family has said he struggles with mental illness, was accused in 2014 of attacking two women with a hammer as they walked on the lakefront path near Navy Pier.

He was charged with two felony counts of aggravated battery with a deadly weapon in that incident. Westbrooks was later found not guilty by reason of insanity, according to court records.

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Man charged with fatally stabbing bank worker in lobby of River North branch officeSun-Times Wireon September 3, 2021 at 10:10 pm Read More »

Illinois hopes to continue roll against UTSATerry Towery | APon September 3, 2021 at 10:00 pm

CHAMPAIGN — New coach Bret Bielema took the first step last week toward restoring relevance to a tired Illinois football program by beating favored Nebraska in an early Big Ten conference matchup.

But questions linger in Champaign. Is Illinois as good as it looked in beating the Huskers with its backup quarterback? Is Nebraska really that bad?

Some of those questions may be answered Saturday night (6:30 p.m., BTN) when an underrated and dangerous Texas-San Antonio opens its season at Illinois (1-0, 1-0 Big Ten).

In his first year as coach last year, Jeff Traylor led the Roadrunners to a respectable 7-5 record. UTSA had one of the best running attacks in college football, ranking No. 18 in the nation and gaining 216 yards per game on the ground.

Traylor understands his opponent and was full of praise for Bielema, who coached at Wisconsin before a stint at Arkansas.

“Illinois is a very coach Bielema-looking team,” Traylor said. “He’s won three Big Ten championships at Wisconsin and took Arkansas to three bowl games in a row. Watching that Nebraska game, you can tell he’s already made his presence felt at Illinois. They are a good football team.”

ROADRUNNERS RUN

UTSA is above all else a running team. The Roadrunners are led on the ground by running back Sincere McCormick, who carried 249 times for 1,467 yards and 11 touchdowns in 2020.

UTSA is known for holding onto the ball. The Roadrunners only averaged 0.9 turnovers per game in 2020, 12th in the nation.

If there is a weakness in the Roadrunners’ offense, it’s the passing game. Last year, UTSA threw for just 193.6 yards per game, which ranked No. 99 in the nation.

Senior Frank Harris is back at quarterback. While his team concentrates mostly on the running game, with Harris rushing for 528 yards last season, he can pass when he needs to. Harris had a 63.6% completion rate last year, when he threw for 1,630 yards.

ILLINOIS QB QUESTION

Illini starter Brandon Peters went down early in Saturday’s game against Nebraska with an injury to his left (non-throwing) shoulder. While Bielema wouldn’t completely rule him out for the UTSA game, he seemed to indicate that Rutgers transfer Artur Sitkowski, who shined against the Huskers, would be making his first start at Illinois.

In three seasons at Rutgers, Sitkowski threw eight touchdown passes and 20 interceptions. Last week, he was 12 of 15 passing for 124 yards, two touchdowns and no picks.

“Art’s a guy that was just impressive once he got here, so I wasn’t surprised at how he handled the moment,” Bielema said. “I didn’t know how he was going to play (against Nebraska), but I knew the handling of it wouldn’t be an issue. It’s just his demeanor. He’s so serious, but he also has a good light to him.”

Sitkowski took his coach’s praise in stride, but made it clear he’s already moved on.

“It’s just one game,” Sitkowski said. “We gotta look forward to UTSA. It’s a long season and we have a lot of things we have to do. That game’s behind us.”

ILLINOIS WIDEOUTS

Much of the buzz early this season has been about the newly configured Illinois receiver corps. Along with several starters returning, former QB Isaiah Williams was converted to receiver to take advantage of his speed and athleticism. The move paid off and Williams made six catches for 41 yards and a touchdown against Nebraska.

Also moving to wideout is speedy defensive back Marquez Beason, who had a summer hamstring injury. Beason began practicing with the team on Tuesday, but Bielema wouldn’t say if he can be ready on Saturday.

“He is making great strides,” Bielema said. “We’re hoping to get him back sooner rather than later.”

VETERAN TEAMS

Illinois has 41 seniors on its roster, including 21 super seniors who received an extra year of eligibility because of the pandemic. The super seniors represent the most in Power Five. Illinois’ 20 other seniors still have one year of eligibility remaining following this season — if they choose to use it — and are listed as juniors on the roster. Combined, Illinois and UTSA will field 77 seniors.

“They obviously mirror us, in that we are both veteran football teams. I don’t think I’ve seen that many seniors on the field before,” Bielema said.

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Illinois hopes to continue roll against UTSATerry Towery | APon September 3, 2021 at 10:00 pm Read More »