The last dance for Chief Illiniwek?

[Goldmember]

The last dance for Chief Illiniwek?

August 31, 2006

BY DAVE NEWBART Staff Reporter

 

 

After 80 years, Chief Illiniwek on Saturday will begin what is likely to be his last year of dancing at University of Illinois football games, university sources said.

 

The chief, who will appear at the season opener at Memorial Stadium in Champaign, will also dance at home basketball games this winter.

 

But after that, he will no longer be an official university symbol, the sources said.

 

Although plans are still tentative, the school is hoping to transfer ownership of the Chief Illiniwek tradition to a group representing 27 former students who have appeared as the chief.

 

University officials recently met with a handful of those alumni, informally known as the Council of Chiefs. That group, university sources said, could decide what happens to the chief if he is to have an off-the-field life next year. Whether there will even be an official retirement for the chief has not been decided, but the school will not try to erase him from the history books, sources said.

 

Marking 80th anniversary

 

Steven Raquel, a spokesman for the council, said it would welcome the opportunity to decide the chief's post-university future.

 

"If the tradition is going to continue, it is in the best interest of fans and the university that it be entrusted to the people who know it best,'' said Raquel, chief in 1992-93.

 

Many former chiefs will be on hand to honor the 80th anniversary of the chief's first appearance, Oct. 30, 1926. The celebration is tentatively scheduled for the last Illini home football game, Nov. 11.

 

The university also will have to determine what to do with the chief logo, which no longer appears officially in any campus sports venue or on any Illini uniform but is for sale on officially licensed T-shirts and other merchandise. Sources said the school will likely stop licensing the use of the logo on official university merchandise but could transfer it to the chief group to protect it from abuse by outside parties.

 

While the plan to end the university's ownership of the chief is still in flux, it's unlikely to change if the NCAA's sanction against the school remains, sources said.

 

'Unbelievably negative effect'

 

The NCAA barred the school from hosting its postseason competitions after the organization declared the chief "hostile" and "abusive'' last August. It later allowed the school to keep the "Fighting Illini'' nickname but rejected all U. of I. appeals on Chief Illiniwek in the spring.

 

While school officials were furious over what they saw as an infringement of their autonomy, the school is wary of taking the NCAA to court, university sources said.

 

Illini Athletic Director Ron Guenther said in April that the NCAA's ruling will have "an unbelievably negative effect" on U. of I. sports programs. Officials said they hated to lose home-field advantage in tournaments and said the decision will hurt recruiting.

 

However, school officials were grudgingly willing to absorb the impact of the ban on fall and winter sports this school year while a plan is formulated. Athletics Department spokesman Kent Brown said only two teams -- women's soccer and volleyball -- could have hosted tournaments this fall. However, if the chief's last dance comes at the end of the men's basketball season -- and the NCAA accepts the school's tentative plan -- it's possible teams that play in the spring -- including men's and women's tennis, baseball and softball -- could be cleared to host events, sources said.

 

While the university is worried about alumni response to the plan, officials said they believe any negative impact on donations would be short-term. The fact that the NCAA effectively tied the board's hands could garner some sympathy from chief supporters.

 

'I don't agree that he is dead'

 

Anti-chief board member Frances Carroll on Wednesday said she was "happy, ecstatic and elated that this is coming to a reasonable end.''

 

Roger Huddleston, president of the Honor the Chief Society, was still holding out hope that the chief could remain, but he admitted things looked "grim.''

 

"I agree he is in intensive care, but I don't agree that he is dead,'' he said. He said he is waiting to see if any proposals to overturn the NCAA's ruling through state or federal legislation pan out. He is also watching a possible attempt by the University of North Dakota -- which was also sanctioned by the NCAA -- to take the NCAA to court.

 

Whatever happens to the chief, Huddleston said his group will make sure it is done respectfully. "We are not going to let him be burned in effigy,'' Huddleston said.

 

For the Peoria Tribe of Indians of Oklahoma, who are the descendants of tribes from Illinois and other states, the decision "has been a long time coming,'' said current chief John P. Froman.

 

Tribal leadership asked the U. of I. in 2001 to stop using the chief. "If it is offensive to one individual, it should be addressed in some appropriate manner, and it appears the university is addressing that,'' he said.

 

http://www.suntimes.com/output/news/cst-nws-chief31.html#

[LowerCaseRepublican]

Youppi for UIUC mascot!

 

The Chief is of a time but Youppi! is timeless.

 

Illini Athletic Director Ron Guenther said in April that the NCAA's ruling will have "an unbelievably negative effect" on U. of I. sports programs. Officials said they hated to lose home-field advantage in tournaments and said the decision will hurt recruiting.

 

ROTFLMAO.

 

Yes, changing a mascot would make us lose home field advantage and hurt recruiting..suuuuuuuuuuuure. Then again, nothing can really help the Illini football teams.

[IlliniKrush]

Youppi for UIUC mascot!

 

The Chief is of a time but Youppi! is timeless.

ROTFLMAO.

 

Yes, changing a mascot would make us lose home field advantage and hurt recruiting..suuuuuuuuuuuure. Then again, nothing can really help the Illini football teams.

Actually, with all the alumni money they might lose out on, it could hurt the athletic program. Pretty logical.

[LowerCaseRepublican]

Actually, with all the alumni money they might lose out on, it could hurt the athletic program. Pretty logical.

If an alum refuses to give money because of the mascot, they're a f***ing idiot. I'm not going to help the school because they got rid of something that has nothing to do with academics or their success in sports! Yep, that sounds so brilliant of them.

 

The Chief vs Youppi!: An Objective Analysis

http://virarenae.blogspot.com/2005/03/chie...e-analysis.html

[shipps]

Actually, with all the alumni money they might lose out on, it could hurt the athletic program. Pretty logical.

it has nothing to do with the alumni silly.bruce weber actually brings chief illinwek along on recruiting visits.

[Dick Allen]

I hate all things U of I but I really don't see what the big deal with the Chief is. But, if it really offends some people, I really don't see why it would, but if it does, dump him. The Chief definitely hasn't had a very good effect on the Illinois football program the past several years, and I really doubt any sane individual would actually think the Chief is even remotely responsible for any of the basketball team's success. If alumni are going to stop sending cash to the program because of the Chief's elimination--------WOW, the U of I is even creepier than I thought.

[CanOfCorn]

I wonder if the descendents of the Illini tribes are offended by the name Illinois? Or perhaps by the town of Peoria? Or Kaskaskia? Or Cahokia? Maybe we should just change the name of all of those towns to something along the lines of Smith and Jones? I like it, this could be the new address:

 

John Doe

123 Anywhere St.

Chicago, Jones 60601

 

Yes, I do understand that some people can be insulted by the Chief, but there's a point where it's gone too far. The Chief is treated with the utmost respect. No baby-kissing. No hawking for the camera. No fights with other symbols. NO THROWING OF BURNING SPEARS INTO THE GROUND. No goofy smile. Not called Redskins.

 

Actually, the biggest problem I have is that the NCAA is taking matters into it's own hands. This is an organization that is supposed to keep the playing fields even between colleges under its mantle. Not judge them on what they are called or what traditions they have. If someone wants to sue the university in a court of law, that's fine and I'll take that decision. But, the NCAA is not the authority on these matters.

[RockRaines]

it has nothing to do with the alumni silly.bruce weber actually brings chief illinwek along on recruiting visits.

Why? If you score alot of points, this fake indian chief will do a gay little dance for you.

 

I wonder if the descendents of the Illini tribes are offended by the name Illinois? Or perhaps by the town of Peoria? Or Kaskaskia? Or Cahokia? Maybe we should just change the name of all of those towns to something along the lines of Smith and Jones? I like it, this could be the new address:

 

John Doe

123 Anywhere St.

Chicago, Jones 60601

 

Yes, I do understand that some people can be insulted by the Chief, but there's a point where it's gone too far. The Chief is treated with the utmost respect. No baby-kissing. No hawking for the camera. No fights with other symbols. NO THROWING OF BURNING SPEARS INTO THE GROUND. No goofy smile. Not called Redskins.

 

Actually, the biggest problem I have is that the NCAA is taking matters into it's own hands. This is an organization that is supposed to keep the playing fields even between colleges under its mantle. Not judge them on what they are called or what traditions they have. If someone wants to sue the university in a court of law, that's fine and I'll take that decision. But, the NCAA is not the authority on these matters.

Yes that makes sense. Naming a city after the area where the tribe lived is very much the same as a college student dressing up in "ceremonial" garb doing a fake gymnastics-based routine at halftime of a game. Why dont we just have all the cheeleaders take communion every time the team scores, would that be ok with you?

[SleepyWhiteSox]

Why? If you score alot of points, this fake indian chief will do a gay little dance for you.

Yes that makes sense. Naming a city after the area where the tribe lived is very much the same as a college student dressing up in "ceremonial" garb doing a fake gymnastics-based routine at halftime of a game. Why dont we just have all the cheeleaders take communion every time the team scores, would that be ok with you?

 

lol

 

Although you'll probably get the argument that the ridiculous dance is "authentic," I agree with what you're saying.

 

And the supposed sentimental attachment to a silly mascot is far too exaggerated...