Customer Service Place an Ad Become a Carrier Contact Us About Us Mobile Edition E-Mail Updates Report Cancellation
| Subscribe Now Customer Service Place an Ad Become a Carrier Contact Us About Us Mobile Edition E-Mail Updates Report Cancellation
|
 |
 |
|
Weather  Calendar Obituaries Classifieds Jobs Autos Homes Rentals Coupons Ad Center |
Bloomington-Normal, Illinois
|
Home News Sports
Free Time Life Money Nation/World Opinion Blogs/Columns Archives Site Map |
| SportsFriday, October 27, 2006 8:18 PM CDT |
 Comments (7) |  E-mail this page |  Print this page |  Enlarge type |  Reduce type |  Search archives |  RSS feeds |  Add to My Yahoo! |
Next of Kindred: Will Denver stick around?
The question in August - the entire offseason, really - was, "Will Illinois State want to keep football coach Denver Johnson after this season?" Athletic director Sheahon Zenger took a wait-and-see approach, using this final year of Johnson's contract to evaluate the coach and his program. Nothing wrong with that. Johnson was 32-35 in six previous ISU seasons, not the kind of numbers which scream "new contract!" Last year's 7-4 record showed progress and potential, but Zenger wanted, and needed, to see more. Now, there is a new question regarding Johnson. It may be little more than a whisper at this point, but it is worth considering. That is, will ISU be able to keep Johnson after this season? The Redbirds enter Saturday's 1:37 p.m. home game against Youngstown State ranked No. 3 nationally in Division I-AA. They are 6-1 overall, 3-0 in the Gateway Conference and drawing crowds larger than most of us have seen at Hancock Stadium. The homecoming crowd of 17,237 for the Southern Illinois game Oct. 14 was the largest since 1971, and the sixth highest attendance in school history. The accuracy of Nos. 1 through 5 -- all registered between 1968 and 1971 -- is subject to debate. Another huge turnout is expected Saturday for Family Day. With Youngstown State rated No. 10 nationally, it will be the second matchup of top-10 teams at ISU in three weeks. Keep in mind Johnson's team is a late two-point conversion away from being undefeated. Even with that 24-23 season-opening loss at Division I-A Kansas State, the Redbirds are on the brink of history. A win Saturday would be their seventh in a row, matching the longest streak at ISU since 1932. With Missouri State (1-7), Indiana State (1-7) and No. 7 Northern Iowa (5-2) to play in the final three weeks, a 10-1 regular season is no longer fantasy, but a tangible goal. Finish 9-2 or 8-3, and the Redbirds still should make the Division I-AA playoffs for the first time since 1999. Todd Berry's team reached the national semifinals that year. A few days later, he was hired as coach at Division I-A Army. This Redbird team is capable of a similar run, and there is no escaping what that could mean for Johnson and the ISU program. The folks at the next level take notice when a coach wins championships and fills the stands. Berry won the Gateway title in 1999 and made the playoffs in back-to-back years. Yet, attendance was less than staggering. Not once did the Redbirds reach the listed capacity of 15,000 at Hancock Stadium. Berry was hired at Army by former ISU athletic director Rick Greenspan anyway, and you can bet Johnson's phone will ring if this season ends with a Gateway and/or national title and at least two standing-room-only crowds. Johnson would tell you this talk is wildly premature. The coach in him would remind you there is a lot of football to be played, that beating Youngstown State this week is the only concern. Sportswriters are not as enamored with the "one game at a time" theory. We speculate, and from this seat it appears ISU could have competition when it comes time to talk contract with Johnson. Barring a late-season collapse, he will bring leverage and, likely, options to the table. The football success has been a boost for Zenger's "Spread the Red" marketing campaign. Now, it could take more green to keep Johnson at ISU. He has surrounded himself with good players to be sure, including key transfers from I-A programs (running back Pierre Rembert from Michigan, receiver Pierre Jackson from Minnesota). He also has talented assistant coaches, led by coordinators Justin Fuente (offense) and Galen Scott (defense). Johnson, et al, have positioned themselves for a national title run despite a hobbled Laurent Robinson, arguably the team's best player. The All-American receiver has missed three games and seen limited action in three others since injuring an ankle against Kansas State. It speaks to the Redbirds' depth and the job the head coach has done. Keep it up, and he's sure to have one next year. Somewhere. Randy Kindred is a Pantagraph columnist. To leave him a voice mail, call 820-3402. By e-mail: rkindred@pantagraph.com . The Randy Kindred Blog is at www.pantagraph.com /blogs. Get area high school sports scores and statistics at Varsity Sports. E-mail this story | Print this story | Search archives | RSS Show comments |  Hide comments | Hide comments on all stories |
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||
 |
|
Top of Page | Home | News | Sports | Free Time | Life | Money | Nation/World | Opinion | Blogs/Columns | Archives | Site Map | RSS
Customer Service | 301 W. Washington St., PO Box 2907, Bloomington, IL 61701-2907 | Ph. 309-829-9000 | 800-747-7323
Copyright © 2008, Pantagraph Publishing Co. and Lee Enterprises. All rights reserved. | Terms of Use | Privacy Policy
|
Note: All views and opinions expressed in reader comments are solely those of the individual submitting the comment, and not those of the Pantagraph or its staff.
????? wrote on Oct 27, 2006 8:21 PM:
old bird wrote on Oct 27, 2006 5:47 PM:
local-yocal wrote on Oct 27, 2006 2:39 PM:
Fan wrote on Oct 27, 2006 2:38 PM:
tpguy wrote on Oct 27, 2006 11:04 AM:
farmer617 wrote on Oct 27, 2006 10:51 AM:
Redbird wrote on Oct 27, 2006 10:26 AM:
Please read the rules before posting comments.
You must be logged in to leave comments.
If you don't have a member ID, please register.