Illinois
Push for a racino in Illinois
![Push for a racino in Illinois Push for a racino in Illinois](https://harnessracingupdate.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/f-illinois.jpg)
After years of waiting on Hawthorne to build a racino, Illinois horsepeople are pushing for another plan.
by Neil Milbert
Illinois Harness Horsemen’s Association president Jeff Davis and executive director Tony Somone were at the state capital in Springfield last week trying to persuade state legislators to pass a bill during the spring session that was introduced by State Senator Pat Joyce to deny Hawthorne Race Course the power to veto any attempt to build a harness racino within 35 miles of the track.
The boundary was established as part of a sweeping 2019 gambling expansion law that empowered Hawthorne and Arlington International Racecourse in the Chicago metropolitan area and downstate Fairmount Park to build on-site casinos and divert a portion of the revenue for purses. It also allowed for a combination harness track/casino to be constructed in any of seven Cook County townships in southwest suburban Chicago.
“Our industry was so optimistic that the number of foals bred in Illinois skyrocketed the following year by 50 per cent,” Davis said to leaders of the Senate and House of Representatives on Thursday (April 11).
“But today, nearly five years later, while every other type of casino authorized in the 2019 bill has begun operations in some form, the horse racing industry is still waiting.”
The IHHA president pointed out that Arlington “is gone, and Hawthorne is now responsible for supporting two breeds of racing, [and] many of our horsemen have left for greener pastures to states that already have racinos and where there are better racing opportunities.”
Davis also said, “The great news is that Illinois can still join that group of successful horse racing states. But we need the promise of the 2019 bill to be realized with a new harness race track.
“Hawthorne has been promising regulators, legislators and our members for several years now that they are on the verge of a big announcement. In 2022 and 2023 at the race dates hearing, they told the racing board they would begin construction [at Hawthorne] by the end of the year.
“It is now April 2024. There is no evidence of any progress on Hawthorne’s part. Hawthorne has been unable to secure funding for its existing facility yet we are being asked to believe they will be able to secure funding for an additional location.”
A front-page banner story by Robert McCoppin in the Friday (April 12) Chicago Tribune dramatized the plight of the harness racing industry. “…The industry slowly withers” a sub-head concluded.
In 2020 interior demolition work began in preparation for construction of the casino, but that project stalled because of a combination of the COVID-19 pandemic, inflation and high interest rates.
Meanwhile, in spite of the disarray in the interior, racing has continued. This year the Hawthorne harness meeting that began last Sept. 9 ended on Feb. 12. The thoroughbred meeting got underway on March 23 and will continue through Oct. 13 after which the standardbreds are scheduled to return for an Oct. 19-Dec. 30 meeting. The bottom line for 2024 is a combined total of 49 programs for the harness horses and 62 for the thoroughbreds.
“Horse racing isn’t the only loser in this scenario,” Davis told the legislative leaders in addressing the status quo. “According to a recent study, The Rebuild Illinois Capital Program has been negatively impacted to the tune of $78 million. While legislators believed they were fixing the Illinois horse racing industry — in fact — the industry is worse off today than in 2019.
“So, on behalf of all the members of the Illinois Harness Horsemen’s Association we are calling for immediate repeal of the exclusive veto power that was given to Hawthorne in the 2019 legislation.”
Somone had this to say about the bill, “It’s a single sentence that would enable somebody else to come in and build. We hope Hawthorne can do it but we’re at a point where we don’t know what else we can do. If Hawthorne can’t do it, we want to give somebody else the opportunity. Five years ago, I didn’t think we’d have to fight to get on a level with Indiana, Ohio and Pennsylvania [where tracks have casino gambling pumping money into purses].”
Asked for an update on the situation by the Tribune’s McCoppin, Hawthorne issued the following statement:
“We remain fully committed to develop a new harness track to complement racing at Hawthorne as was intended by the legislation. We are the only Illinois business with the proven experience and wherewithal to do so. Our $400 million redevelopment of Hawthorne is the most significant investment ever made in the Illinois racing industry and is the beginning of an exciting new future for the tens of thousands of jobs we support across the state.”
In 2019 Carey partnered with video gaming magnate Rick Heidner for a proposed new harness track/casino outside the 35-mile boundary and they were awarded a Dec. 6-29, 2020 meeting by the racing board.
However, a Tribune story alleged that a bank that had funded Heidner had organized crime connections and Gov. J.B. Prtizker reacted by refusing to sell the state land that was to be used for the track and the racing board revoked the dates. Heidner was subsequently exonerated by the gaming board but by then it was too late to restart the project.
At last fall’s racing board hearings for 2024 dates, Carey said, “We have completed preliminary market diligence for a stand-alone harness track and racino and will continue to move that forward once financing for the casino development at Hawthorne is completed. We have to do our own racino first.”
Earlier last year Greenway Entertainment Group proposed an end to Hawthorne’s veto power, telling the Illinois Senate Executive Committee that this would enable its investors to build a $300 million harness racino on an 80-acre site inside the 35-mile boundary in Richton Park but nothing has materialized.
According to members of the Hawthorne management team, they were never approached about any fully-funded racino ventures inside the boundary.
Carey has rejected suggestions that he open a temporary casino at his track, emulating casinos in Chicago, Waukegan and Rockford that were legalized by the 2019 gambling expansion bill.
When asked to weigh in on the 35-mile controversy Illinois Thoroughbred Horsemen’s Association president Chris Block told the Tribune: “We’d love to see the harness guys have their own track and we could run at our track. But this doesn’t help us get a racino built at Hawthorne.”
The unseen culprit in the ongoing controversy is Churchill Downs, Inc., the corporation that owned Arlington.
When the late Dick Duchossois — who rebuilt tradition-rich Arlington into what Architectural Digest described as “the world’s most beautiful racetrack” after its grandstand and clubhouse were destroyed by fire in 1985 — merged the track with CDI in 2000 he did so because he believed joining with the most iconic track in North America would ensure the continuation of world class racing at Arlington.
For nearly two decades Arlington and its CDI overlord lobbied for legislative approval to make the track into a racino.
But then shortly before the passage of the gambling expansion act that could have made it a reality, CDI purchased a 61 per cent interest in Rivers Casino. It is the state’s most profitable casino and is located about a 20-minute drive from Arlington.
When the expansion act was passed CDI did a sudden and stunning about face and announced it was selling the track property for development. The Chicago Bears bought the 326-acre site for $197.2 million in February 2023 with the stipulation that there would be no racing or casino gambling at the track, thereby wiping out two nearby competitors for betting at Rivers Casino.
Faced with a higher-than-expected property tax bill, the NFL team tore down the opulent track to reduce the assessed value of the property. The original plan to make a state-of-the-art football stadium the centerpiece of a development with housing and retail businesses is in limbo and the Bears now are focusing on trying to put their proposed stadium on Chicago lakefront property near their current home Soldier Field.
“Let’s not forget the true devils, Arlington and CDI, who have left Illinois racing in this predicament,” said ITHA executive secretary Dave McCaffrey, a standardbred owner and former IHHA president. “And let’s also take a look at [the thoroughbred track] Fairmount Park. They said they were going to spend $60-70 million to make it a casino but they haven’t done a thing down there.
“It has been frustrating to live through the delays at Hawthorne and Hawthorne has a little criticism coming but compared to Churchill and Fairmount, the people at Hawthorne are the flat-out saints of Illinois racing. Without Hawthorne there would be no thoroughbred or harness racing [in the Chicago metropolitan area].”
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Illinois
2025 Illinois four-star WR Terrence Smith commits to Hawkeye football – Hawk Fanatic
![2025 Illinois four-star WR Terrence Smith commits to Hawkeye football – Hawk Fanatic 2025 Illinois four-star WR Terrence Smith commits to Hawkeye football – Hawk Fanatic](https://hawkfanatic.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/p-2.jpeg)
IOWA CITY, Iowa – For the Iowa football team, this weekend has been productive and rewarding, both on the field and now on the recruiting trail
It started with a 40-0 victory over Illinois State on Saturday in which the Iowa offense under new offensive coordinator Tim Lester produced five touchdowns, including three scoring strikes from quarterback Cade McNamara and two touchdown catches by true freshman receiver Reece Vander Zee.
And then on Sunday, Iowa received a verbal commitment from 2025 four-star receiver Terrence Smith.
The 6-foot-4, 185-pound Aurora, Illinois native picked Iowa over Minnesota, Iowa State and Purdue.
Smith, who is also an accomplished basketball player, is ranked as the No. 49 wide receiver nationally in the 2025 recruiting cycle by the On3 Industry Ranking, which is a weighted average that uses all four major recruiting companies.
Veteran recruiting analyst Tom Lemming, who lives in the Chicago area, is very familiar with Smith and likes his potential.
“He’s one of the better receivers in the Midwest,” Lemming said Sunday. “He’s got really good size and great hands. He can run. He’s got everything you need in a wide receiver.
Smith is the 15th player to commit to Iowa’s 2025 recruiting class and the first receiver to join the class.
He took an official visit to Iowa in June and his recruitment has been priority for Iowa head coach Kirk Ferentz and his staff.
Smith is also the sixth player from Illinois to commit to Iowa’s 2025 class.
Lemming is impressed with Iowa’s recent recruiting success in Illinois.
“This past year, they’ve been doing an excellent job in Chicago,” Lemming said. “They’re bringing in ball players that can play, really good athletes.”
Illinois
9 Takeaways From BYU Footballs Decisive Win Over Southern Illinois
![9 Takeaways From BYU Footballs Decisive Win Over Southern Illinois 9 Takeaways From BYU Footballs Decisive Win Over Southern Illinois](https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/c_crop,w_3370,h_1895,x_0,y_72/c_fill,w_1440,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto/images/voltaxMediaLibrary/mmsport/cougs_daily/01j6ntggjcss954az3mb.jpg)
BYU did on Saturday night what, apparently, no one in the Las Vegas desert thought they could: dominate SIU by 28 points. BYU’s retribution over the Salukis was a swift and sure 41-13 win that, honestly, wasn’t as close as the score indicated. Some say you can’t learn anything from a win over an FCS opponent but that wont stop us from trying. With that said, here are nine things we learned from BYU’s 1-0 start.
1. Jay Hill: Football Coach
If you are reading this, odds are you have called in sick for something much less than a heart attack. Some spent most of Friday night fearing Coach Hill’s life was in jeopardy only for him to have a headset on in the BYU press box the following night. That kind of dedication to BYU football is enough to make you want to run through a brick wall.
2. Its time to give Jake Retzlaff a fresh start
Go with me on a hypothetical journey. Imagine a world where Kedon Slovis never gets hurt and yesterday was Jake Retzlaff’s first start at BYU. Imagine a world where all you knew about him was that he was the no. 1 junior college quarterback in his class and had a full year to grow into a P4 starting quarterback. Now imagine that Jake Retzlaff put up the exact same stat line in his first start: 66.7% completion percentage, 348 yards, 12 yards per attempt, 3 touchdowns, and 0 interceptions. What would your impressions of him be if that’s all you knew?
An abysmal 2023 aside, Jake Retzlaff was awesome last night. Yes it was an FCS opponent, but plenty of other quarterbacks played FCS teams this week and didn’t play as well as Jake. Retzlaff’s 89.0 PFF grade ranked 16th nationally and 3rd in the BIG12 through week 1 behind only Shadeur Sanders and Noah Fifita. His completion percentage adjusted for drops was 73.3% with an average depth of target (ADOT) of 13.5 yards. The last two instances of a BYU quarterback throwing for a better adjusted completion percentage on a deeper ADOT was Jaren Hall against Utah Tech in 2022 and Zach Wilson vs North Alabama in 2020.
LET IT FLY @jretz11!!
📺: https://t.co/zDOxM9A89H pic.twitter.com/Pgc2y0DEU0
— BYU FOOTBALL (@BYUfootball) September 1, 2024
The film is just as impressive as the stats. Jake showed why he won the starting job with throws like the one above. Watch it. If you are not impressed, watch it again. This ball travelled over 60 yards in the air and right into Jojo Phillips chest for a touchdown. Even the camera man was evidently shocked that ball traveled that far. There is only one quarterback in the state, let alone the BYU roster, that can make that throw, and he made it twice on Saturday.
There were misses to be sure, but second viewing, those misses had more to do with receiver timing (50% of the fall camp reps will do that) and the degree of difficulty of throws rather than the mechanical issues and poor decision making that plagued him a year ago. Most importantly, Retzlaff had zero turnover-worthy plays and made every layup in yesterday’s game, going 4/4 on throws behind the line of scrimmage. It’s certainly not time to crown Jake as the next great BYU quarterback, but coming into the game, BYU fans weren’t sure if Jake Retzlaff was capable of being an FBS level player. At a minimum, his performance put those questions to bed. Time will tell if this was a one-hit wonder or if Retzlaff is a legitimate P4 quarterback, but yesterday was good enough to earn Jake a second chance at a first impression.
3. Chase Roberts is WR1
Chase Roberts message to his Quarterback was evident in his play: “I am available whenever you need me.” Roberts had 7 catches on 8 targets and was 2/2 on contested catch opportunities. All 7 catches went for first downs including two crucial 4th down conversions. The eye test showed Roberts being a big-bodied receiver with sure hands, improved speed and elusiveness to be a true WR1 in the Big12 conference.
4. BYU’s corners are very young
Jakob Robinson did Jakob Robinson things last night. He was targeted just once in 20 attempts, and that one attempt resulted in an interception. The stat sheet looked good for the rest of the BYU secondary, but the film showed plenty of youth . I counted at least three different times an SIU wide receiver got behind the BYU corner group, even if the passes fell incomplete. That makes sense. Evan Johnson, Therrian Alexander, Jonathon Kabeya and Marque Collins were all playing their first meaningful snaps at the FBS level, but the next 11 games will feature quarterbacks that can expose a young secondary if they don’t grow up quick.
5. BYU’s front seven looked stout for week one
BYU was gashed by SIU quarterback DJ Williams’ scrambling ability, but allowed just 2 yards rushing to everyone else on 10 carries. Defensive tackles Blake Mangelson and John Nelson were the stars of the show, accounting for 4 of BYU’s 10 total pressures. That’s a positive sign for a BYU team that has gotten little, if any, meaningful production from the interior defensive line since Khyris Tonga. Isaiah Bagnah and Ephraim Asiata both showed enough flashes opposite Tyler Batty to inspire confidence in the defensive line’s progress this offseason.
The linebackers were stellar all night long, while all 19 “stops” (a play that constitutes a failure for the offense) were forced by the linebackers and defensive line. BYU forced a punt or turnover on 9 of 11 SIU possessions, allowing an average of just 3.8 plays on those 9 drives, largely due to the pressure applied by the BYU front seven.
6. You can catch a football, side step a defender, switch the ball to the opposite hand, and fumble without ever possessing the football
Who knew?
7. There seems to be a drop-off between LJ Matin and the rest of the running backs
The coaching staff was clearly trying to limit LJ Martin’s reps as he recovers from an offseason shoulder injury, but at a certain point, they couldn’t keep him off the field. Martin averaged a near yard more per carry then BYU’s three other running backs and seemed to have the combination of vision, elusiveness and power that made Tyler Allgeier a BYU legend. If he can stay healthy, BYU’s run game will be better. But at 3.8 yards per carry as a team, BYU’s ground game didn’t show enough last night to warrant a ton of optimism without him.
8. The offensive line has improved from last year
The offensive line had a really strong showing. SIU blitzed on 16 of 35 dropbacks, but managed only 7 pressures and on the night. For reference, against SUU last season, SUU generated 10 pressures on 32 drop backs, despite blitzing only 8 times. No single lineman allowed more than 2 pressures according to PFF, while 5 of the top 6 lineman posted a grade of 74.6 or higher. Perhaps most notably, left tackle Caleb Etienne graded out as the third best offensive player last night, behind only Jake Retzlaff and Chase Roberts. Improvement indeed.
9. BYU football’s trajectory is pointed up
BYU did what what P4 teams should do to FCS teams, and that is a massive improvement over where they were a year ago. BYU’s last game versus an FCS opponent featured a nearly identical score with a completely opposite feel. In 2023, BYU outgained SUU by just 48 yards and managed 46 rushing yards on 2 yards per carry. Fast forward one year, and BYU dominated a significantly better FCS team in every facet of the game. BYU outgained SIU by 296 yards, more yards than BYU gained in 7 of their 12 games in 2023. They eclipsed the 400 yard mark for the first time in 644 days and held an opposing offense to under 235 yards for only the second time in the last four seasons.
Does any of this mean BYU will imminently compete for a Big12 title? No. But there is no shame in finding satisfaction in the idea that for the first time in nearly 2 years, BYU looked like a competent, complete football team.
Illinois
11 True Freshmen Played for BYU Against Southern Illinois
![11 True Freshmen Played for BYU Against Southern Illinois 11 True Freshmen Played for BYU Against Southern Illinois](https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/c_crop,w_2537,h_1427,x_0,y_94/c_fill,w_1440,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto/images/voltaxMediaLibrary/mmsport/cougs_daily/01j6q24mbgpj847h48ss.jpg)
When BYU released its depth chart for Southern Illinois, 10 true freshmen were listed on the depth chart. BYU offensive coordinator Aaron Roderick said everyone on the depth chart would play and he was right. Against Southern Illinois, 11 true freshmen played on either offense or defense for BYU. 5 out of the 11 played 10 or more snaps, led by former four-star recruits Faletau Satuala and Cody Hagen.
- Faletau Satuala (S) – 14 defensive snaps played
- Cody Hagen (WR) – 13 offensive snaps played
- Therrian Alexander (CB) – 12 defensive snaps played
- Tommy Prassas (S) – 11 defensive snaps played
- Ephraim Asiata (DE) – 10 defensive snaps played
- Tei Nacua (WR) – 8 offensive snaps played
- Jonathan Kabeya (CB) – 6 defensive snaps played
- Viliami Po’uha (DE) – 3 defensive snaps played
- Orion Maile-Kaufusi (DE) – 3 defensive snaps played
- Dom McKenzie (WR) – 1 offensive snap played
- Ryner Swanson (TE) – 1 offensive snap played
Some of the most talented players in the BYU football program are freshmen. If BYU can keep this core of young players together, it would bode really well for the future of the program. Competing for a Big 12 championship in 2024 is probably unrealistic, but competing for a championship by 2026 should be the goal for everyone in the program. This young core has the chance to get BYU to that level if they reach their potential.
Faletau Satuala and Cody Hagen will be fascinating to follow in 2024. They are both in very deep rooms and, on the surface, it doesn’t look like they will be needed to play a lot unless injuries occur. They are both so talented, however, that they might be impossible to keep off the field by season’s end.
Hagen was a contributor on special teams, so it doesn’t look like they plan to redshirt him in 2024. Hagen could start to make the case to be in the regular rotation at wide receiver. Faletau Satuala played meaningful snaps against the Salukis. He was the first free safety off the bench after Tanner Wall and Micah Harper.
This list also highlights the importance of recruiting high-caliber recruits. The higher the star rating, the more likely they are to be ready to contribute early. It’s no surprise that the first few names on the list were highly-coveted recruits.
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