A real diaper dandy, baby! Whoa Illini!

Matt isn't claiming that just because Wednesday night was the first Illinois basketball game Mark ever watched, and it happened to be game in which the Illini set a school record for the biggest comeback in school history - overcoming a 23-point deficit in the second half to beat No. 19 Clemson (on the road!) - means that Mark is an Illinois good luck charm and that he will go to the U of I, where he will be the point guard on the 2029 National Championship team. No, Matt cannot guarantee that.

After all, Mark could conceivably be a shooting guard.

Oh, and Mark will never know that Matt almost turned the game off at halftime. When he hears the story Matt will have never given up on the Illini.

Two Illini videos

Did you know that before Matt met Lynne, she had never heard of the NCAA Tournament/March Madness? It's not that she saw it and just didn't care. She didn't even know it existed.
That seems impossible, since it's on constantly on TV in March and everyone in just about every office is filling out a bracket with the Illini, Albany, Indiana and Northeastern Illinois in the Final Four.
Just another way that marrying Matt has broadened Lynne's horizons.
In the meantime, enjoy these two YouTube videos. The first is a commercial that's been running constantly during the tournament. And even though it brings up that devastating 2005 national championship game, it's pretty funny.



The second, for hardcore Illini fans, shows the future. This video is awesome. These two high school teams were playing to go the state finals. Brandon Paul's team is down two with he gets fouled with 4.7 seconds left. He makes THREE free throws to put his team ahead. Then Jereme Richmond makes takes the ball up and...well, watch it.
And both Paul and Richmond are scheduled to join the Illini very soon. Good times.

It's gotta be the pants!

Matt finished his run Thursday night and got home just in time to watch the Illini square off against the lowly, pitiful, pathetic, no-good, very-bad, never-even-MADE-the-NCAA-tournament Northwestern Mildcats.
For the first 20 minutes, Matt was paying some bills, only halfway paying attention to the game. Illinois was down. Yawn. Seen it before. Only a matter of time.
Only...
They kept losing. And losing. And so Matt took drastic steps. He went upstairs and got out the Illini pants. They were a Christmas gift, but they are not to be used lightly. Only when a win is really needed. The pants are undefeated.
The Illini fell behind by 12.
But the Illini pressed, and Demetri McCamey tossed up a floater...and the Illini win!
Nice to win a game when you're only ahead for 2-1/2 seconds.
The pants remain unbeaten. It's gotta be the pants!

(Luckily, the pants will not be necessary when the Illini face the terrible, no-good, very-bad Loosiers this weekend.)

Back you to stand, against the best in the land

OK, you were promised some important wedding info in our next update. It's coming later today, honest. But would what sort of Matt Hanley blog would this be if there was nothing written about this:

Illinois 28, No. 1 Ohio State 21.

Wow. Juice Williams promises to get the extra inch on fourth down and delivers. Illinois beats the No. 1 team in the country for the first time since 1956, which is just slightly before Lynne and Matt were born.

Now, a lot of people are saying this win makes up for another Illinois-Ohio State game, where another No. 1, undefeated team lost. Matt's not so sure there's a connection, but he'll say this: Matt and Lynne drove to that 2005 game - the infamous detour through Michigan. Illinois basketball was undefeated, ranked No. 1. It was the first time Lynne thought Matt (and Alex and Luke and Keith) would cry because of a sports team. (They didn't. Much.) Afterwards the group was wearing orange in Columbus. Junior high kids were making fun of them. Matt is out looking for those kids right now.

Here's the only bad part of the big win: Every year, the Beacon News reporters have to sign up to work one holiday. Matt always picks New Year's Day, because he gets to write about the first baby of the year. After a year of arrests, stolen shrimp and murder trials, it's a nice change of pace. Of course, Matt never had to worry about Illinois playing in a New Year's Day bowl game before. Amazingly, that could actually happen this year. Matt feels a touch of the plague coming on already.

Oh yeah, the sandals? We just wanted to prove Matt can be clad head-to-toe in Illini gear and he isn't the least bit ashamed.

Oskee wow wow!!