Illinois
Transfer portal big man commits to the Illinois basketball program
The Illinois basketball team received a massive boost from the transfer portal on Tuesday night.
Through nearly a month of the offseason, the transfer portal has been a wild ride for the Illini. The festivities started with Dain Dainja transferring out. Since then, two more Illinois players – Sencire Harris and Amani Hansberry – have also departed.
Brad Underwood has done a great job combating the outgoing players. Entering the week, the Illini had secured commitments from Tre White, Jake Davis, and Kylan Boswell. That group got a little bit bigger in the past 24 hours too.
On Tuesday night, Carey Booth took to social media to announce that he was committing to Illinois. We needed some serious frontcourt help, and the answer is in the form of a former top-70 recruit.
Coming out of Brewster Academy in New Hampshire, the 6-foot-10, 203-pound forward was a four-star recruit who was ranked as the No. 55 player in the class of 2023. He was also the No. 13 power forward in the country and the No. 2 player coming out of New Hampshire.
Despite a lot of big-time programs pursuing Booth, he decided to commit to Notre Dame. In the lone season in South Bend, Booth averaged 6.4 points and 4.3 rebounds per contest. After playing in 33 games and averaging 19.9 minutes per game, Booth decided to find greener pastures. He is now in Champaign.
First off, I love the size that Booth brings to the table. Illinois is a fairly small team, and Booth will step in as the tallest player on the roster from day one.
Booth has a willingness to shoot from all levels of the floor too. He isn’t just a paint player. This kid can stretch a floor and pull the opposing big man out of the paint. That is going to be an asset to slashers like White.
The athletic ability and movement are going to be nice to see in the Illinois lineup. Booth can fly around the court and get to the rim with his size and athletic ability. He doesn’t stand around either. Booth is always on the move, which gets him open looks.
When I look at Booth, I see a ton of potential. He isn’t one of these players who hasn’t gotten his career off the ground, so he is looking for a new home. This kid has the potential to not only be a good player, but I think he could blossom into a first-round NBA Draft pick.
A suspect in a deadly stabbing was apprehended early Sunday morning following a pursuit from Cicero that ended up on Chicago’s Far South Side.
Around 10:30 p.m. Saturday, Cicero police were called after Ubano Diaz, 73, was tsabbed in the 3200 block of South 54th Court in the west Chicago suburb. Diaz was taken to Mount Sinai Hospital, where he died, Cicero police said.
Police immediately identified a person of interest, who was found driving out of the town. They launched a pursuit as the suspect headed northeast on the Stevenson Expressway.
At 1:21 a.m. Sunday, Illinois State Police were called in to assist Cicero police with the pursuit as the suspect cruised up the Stevenson Expressway at California Avenue.
The pursuit kept going along the Stevenson and Dan Ryan expressways before finally ending at 119th Street and Vincennes Avenue west of I-57 in Chicago’s Morgan Park neighborhood.
The driver of the vehicle was taken into custody at that point, Cicero and Illinois State Police said.
There were no crashes or injuries during the pursuit.
Police believe the stabbing was an isolated incident, and there was no threat to the public.
State police did not specify the route of the pursuit.
One person is dead after a fire inside a condo complex in south suburban Glenwood on Saturday evening.
It happened around 5 p.m. in the 900 block of 194th Street.
Glenwood fire officials said that crews responded to a second-floor unit inside the three-story building that was engulfed with flames.
It was confirmed that one person died in the fire. Their identity was not released.
Neighbors in adjoining condos were displaced. The Red Cross was working to provide further assistance to those affected.
Glenwood fire said they are working with the state fire marshal to investigate what led up to the blaze.
The 2025-26 FCS playoffs consist of a 24-team bracket with play starting on Saturday, Nov. 29 and concluding on Monday, Jan. 5. The top 16 teams seeded and the top eight seeds receive automatic byes to the second round, while the rest of the 24-team field (the remaining 16 teams) play in the first round.
Here’s everything you need to know for the Division I Football Championship postseason.
FCS championship bracket
Click or tap here to view the bracket
FCS championship schedule
All times Eastern
Quarterfinals
- Friday, December 12
- Saturday, December 13
Semifinals
- Saturday, December 20
- Semifinal 1 | 4 p.m. ET | ABC
- Semifinal 2 | 7:30 p.m. ET | ESPN2
National Championship
FCS championship rounds, dates
- Selection show: 12 p.m. ET Sunday, Nov. 23 on ESPNU
- First round: Saturday, Nov. 29
- Second round: Saturday, Dec. 6
- Quarterfinals: Friday, Dec. 12 through Saturday, Dec. 13
- Semifinals: Saturday, Dec. 20
- National championship: Monday, Jan. 5 on ESPN at 7:30 p.m. ET
FCS selections
The bracket selections for the 2025-26 FCS Championship was on Sunday, Nov. 23, 2025. The bracket was be revealed via a selection show on ESPNU at 12 p.m. ET and a selections release.
Eleven conferences (or conference partnerships/alliances) earn automatic bids to the playoffs. The FCS Championship Committee selects the remaining 13 at-large bids.
AUTOMATIC BIDS: Click or tap here to see all 11 of the clinched auto-bids
FCS championship history
North Dakota Dakota State is the reigning national champion, winning its 10 title in 2024 with a 35-32 win over Montana State. Here’s every FCS champion and runner-up from the past decade:
| Year | Champion | Coach | Score | Runner-Up | Site |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | North Dakota State | Tim Polasek | 35-32 | Montana State | Frisco, Texas |
| 2023 | South Dakota State | Jimmy Rogers | 23-3 | Montana | Frisco, Texas |
| 2022 | South Dakota State | John Stiegelmeier | 45-21 | North Dakota State | Frisco, Texas |
| 2021 | North Dakota State | Matt Entz | 38-10 | Montana State | Frisco, Texas |
| 2020 | Sam Houston | K.C. Keeler | 23-21 | South Dakota State | Frisco, Texas |
| 2019 | North Dakota State | Matt Entz | 28-20 | James Madison | Frisco, Texas |
| 2018 | North Dakota State | Chris Klieman | 38-24 | Eastern Washington | Frisco, Texas |
| 2017 | North Dakota State | Chris Klieman | 17-13 | James Madison | Frisco, Texas |
| 2016 | James Madison | Mike Houston | 28-14 | Youngstown State | Frisco, Texas |
| 2015 | North Dakota State | Chris Klieman | 37-10 | Jacksonville State | Frisco, Texas |
Click here for a full list of every champion since 1978.
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