Illinois
Warmer winters and a hotter Gulf of Mexico could be contributing to more tornadoes in Illinois, experts say
![Warmer winters and a hotter Gulf of Mexico could be contributing to more tornadoes in Illinois, experts say Warmer winters and a hotter Gulf of Mexico could be contributing to more tornadoes in Illinois, experts say](https://www.chicagotribune.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/CTC-tornado-sirens-weather003_176296785.jpg?w=1024&h=711)
Illinois saw more tornadoes than any other state in 2023. Byron Hurley experienced that reality firsthand after three tornadoes touched down near his Chatham home in central Illinois last year.
“My house got hit on May 7. May 14 was a nasty supercell that hit Chatham,” Hurley said. “We also got some large hail on July 23. I rode that storm out in my car, taking cover at a drop-off area at a church just outside Chatham.”
According to Matthew Elliott, a meteorologist at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Illinois experienced 118 tornadoes last year — the third most in its history. The numbers have not yet been finalized, Elliott said, but are unlikely to change.
The number of tornadoes in any state fluctuates significantly from year to year, said Jeff Frame, a professor of climate, meteorology and atmospheric sciences at the University of Illinois. According to Frame, the biggest component is the state’s number of “outbreaks.”
The Glossary of Meteorology, published in 2000, describes a tornado outbreak as multiple tornado occurrences caused by the same weather event.
The third biggest tornado outbreak on record in Illinois occurred March 31, 2023, with 36 tornadoes in one day. The second largest outbreak was 50 years ago in 1974. Frame said most years with high numbers of tornadoes see at least one tornado outbreak.
“Weather patterns in 2022 were not conducive to a lot of thunderstorms and tornadoes,” Frame said. “But in 2023, they were helped along by a couple of big events, starting with a large tornado outbreak across the U.S.”
The 2023 numbers were a significant increase from the 34 tornadoes recorded in Illinois in 2022. Nationwide, NOAA preliminarily confirmed 1,269 tornadoes in 2023.
Studies have also found climate change may be affecting tornado patterns. Victor Gensini, a professor at Northern Illinois University, said climate change can affect the conditions necessary to create tornadoes.
Tornadoes need instability –– warm moist air near the ground with cooler temperatures higher up –– and wind shear –– a change in wind speed or direction –– to form. Instability is more potent in the warm seasons, and shear is usually stronger in the winter.
As winters get warmer, Gensini said, there can be more instability and more shear –– leading to more winter tornadoes.
“It kind of has been a good example of what to expect with a warming climate with a much warmer winter, a much earlier start to spring, in a much faster start to tornado season,” Gensini said. “But we’re not sure if that’s a climate change signal or if that’s a signal of just weather or climate variability.”
According to Elliott, data has been inconsistent on the impact of climate change on tornadoes. But, he said, the times of year and the locations of tornadoes seem to be changing.
Walker Ashley, a professor of Earth, atmosphere and environment at Northern Illinois University, said increasing temperatures in the Gulf of Mexico may be affecting the number of tornadoes in states to its north –– including Illinois.
A hotter Gulf increases low-level moisture, which creates conditions ripe for tornadoes, Ashley said
“If the Gulf of Mexico is heating up under climate change, and we’ve seen it’s running hot, that increases your moisture and your instability,” Ashley said. “It makes sense the eastern part of the United States would heat up.”
Still, researchers cautioned against holding climate change entirely responsible for changing weather patterns in Illinois.
Technologies used to detect and predict tornadoes have adapted significantly over the last few decades, and are likely to have affected the number of tornadoes observed and recorded in Illinois –– especially since the state’s tornadoes tend to be low in intensity.
According to the National Weather Service, nearly 37% of tornadoes in northern Illinois from 1950 to 2017 were EF0 — the lowest intensity a tornado can be. Only 2% were classified as “violent.”
Out of the 22 days with tornado activity in 2023, four days caused injuries, two days saw property damage, and there were no days with crop damage, according to NOAA.
![A wall sits partially collapsed on the 1500 block of North Fremont Street after strong storms passed through the area, June 13, 2022 in Chicago. During the event a tornado warning was issued for the Chicago area by the National Weather Service. (Armando L. Sanchez/Chicago Tribune)](https://i0.wp.com/www.chicagotribune.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/ctc-weather-4_176714091.jpg?fit=620%2C9999px&ssl=1)
Hurley said the tornadoes that passed by his home in Chatham only caused tree damage. A conservationist who does storm chasing in his free time, Hurley said he followed multiple other tornadoes in Illinois last year, including one that started near Loami, 10 miles west of Chatham, on Aug. 6.
“I saw the beginning. … I had a great view of the wall cloud and bowl funnel near Loami but only got to see it briefly before falling too far behind,” Hurley said. “On Aug. 6, I got hailed on in Taylorville as well. It was a wild year, that’s for sure.”
Taylorville is about 30 miles southwest of Chatham.
Frame added that metropolitan areas throughout Illinois have also expanded in the past couple of decades. While lower-level tornadoes in rural areas may have gone undetected in the past, cellphones and population sprawl make them harder to miss in the 21st century.
“What we’re able to do is detect a lot more of these tornadoes with more spotters, better reporting technology, cellphones and internet, and better radar technology,” Frame said. “In 1960 you’re just never going to see those reports, because the technology and the infrastructure wasn’t there.”
While experts remain conflicted about the impacts of climate change on the number of tornadoes, they said Illinois residents should remain on high alert.
“It’s been an active year,” Gensini said. “I think we all need to be anticipating more of these tornado disasters. And that’s regardless of what’s happening with the frequency of climate change. Climate change is playing a role, an important role, but it’s not the only role.”
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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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