Friday, February 1, 2008 11:07 PM CST
Eastern's announcement to follow Super Sunday
BY BRIAN NIELSEN Sports Editor
bnielsen@jg-tc.com
A few items from one of those dastardly days when snow takes away our inalienable right to go to a Friday night basketball game:
Finalists for Eastern Illinois’ athletics director apparently are selected with names to be released Monday.
Failing in attempts to get a head start on names, I have these thoughts:
n You would be hard-pressed to find four or five more viable candidates than Paul Lueken, who knows EIU from his time here as an assistant AD and who 14 years of experience as an athletics director at Slippery Rock.
n Speculation is that at least one woman will be a finalist, maybe more. This probably marks a first in Eastern athletics director searches.
One name mentioned is former Eastern Associate AD Deb Polka, now in a similar position at Old Dominion, either as a candidate or at least recommending a candidate to Eastern.
Polka over a period of weeks has not returned repeated phone messages or an e-mail message, which could have one jumping to the conclusion that (a) she is a candidate but trying to keep that or any interest in the job a secret or (b) she doesn’t like me.
Folks, b includes a much larger group and is as good of a bet as any.
More Florida speed is coming the way of Eastern Illinois’ football team as a wide receiver or maybe if needed a running back.
Shawn Williams of Coconut Creek has given his verbal commitment.
“Shawn is a great athlete, a great player for us,” Coconut Creek coach Robbie Owens said. “I just came here last February. He’s a versatile guy. He was a running back as a junior. As a senior he was able to move to receiver when I brought in a new offense.”
Williams had 34 receptions averaging 17 yards per catch and also averaged 6 yards on 45 rushes as a senior for Coconut Creek, which went 7-4.
Arkansas State, Central Arkansas, Southern Illinois, Florida International and Louisiana-Lafayette also expressed interest in Williams.
“I think coach Roc did a great job,” Owens said of EIU assistant head coach Roc Bellantoni, who recruits in Florida. “I think Shawn was to compete for a position right away. I think that kind of swayed into his decision. He wants to see what the upper type of football is all about.”
Next week figures to be interesting at Eastern where the athletics director finalists are likely to be announced on Monday, the football national letter-of-intent signing day is Wednesday and the Ohio Valley Conference’s marquee men’s basketball team Austin Peay is to visit on Thursday.
Charleston graduate Todd Strong attended Wednesday’s Lake Land basketball games, which would be understandable if he still was in Charleston but curious since he now coaches Highland’s boys basketball team.
The explanation was that Strong was accompanying his senior guard Wes DeGroof on a visit to Lake Land.
Strong said he has also received a call from Eastern Illinois assistant coach Chad Altadonna about the 6-foot-2 DeGroof, who is averaging 18.7 points while making 44 of 111 3-pointers.
Highland stood 13-9 at midweek with Strong saying one of his proud moments was a good showing by his team in a recent game when former Charleston baseball coach Bob Lawrence made the trip.
On Tuesday Highland is to play Edwardsville, the Charleston Holiday Tournament and Salem Invitational champion which was 18-0 before Friday’s action.
Closer to home, another Lake Land recruiting possibility could be Stewardson-Strasburg guard Ben Giertz, one of my favorite area players whose height in the program should come with an asterisk denoting “plays much bigger than that.”
Heard the suggestion recently that the Monday after the Super Bowl should be declared a holiday so no one should have to work while recovering.
No objections there but I do consider the whole concept of Super Bowl parties as one of the puzzling traditions in our society.
Why is it that the biggest and what should be the most interesting football game of the year is the one with all the food and extra people?
Some stinker like the Dolphins vs. the Rams, that’s when we should spice things with the good food and maybe some company. Why do we do it for the big game which should have fewer distractions?
Ask yourself that Sunday evening when someone’s wife or girlfriend watching football for the first time in a year asks during the third quarter ‘now which team is wearing the pretty uniforms again?’
But anyway, happy Super Sunday.
Brian Nielsen is sports editor of the Journal Gazette/Times-Courier. Contact Nielsen at bnielsen@jg-tc.com or 238-6856.
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love the game wrote on Feb 2, 2008 2:01 PM: