Sweeter Than the Sweet Sixteen

With the announcements of pairings for the NCAA championship tournament on Sunday, fans of the Southern Illinois Salukis got to witness the highest seeding ever for the Dawgs.

But perhaps of more interest to local sports fans was another tidbit about the tournament pairings: If both SIU and the University of Illinois win their first round games, the Dawgs would face the Illini in round two.

It might not mean much to some people, but to Saluki fans the match up has all the makings of a dream come true...a dream that started when Illinois' stole the Salukis head coach in 2003.

Illini Coach Bruce Weber had led the Salukis to back-to-back Missouri Valley Championships before the lure of the Big Ten and the University of Illinois stole him away. Most fans thought Weber made the right decision personally and professionally, but they hoped it would mean a chance for their Salukis to strut their stuff against the state's flagship school.

Weber's replacement Matt Painter led the Salukis to another great year and left them coachless again in 2004. When current Saluki Coach Chris Lowery made it through two seasons without heading to greener pastures, fans turned their dreams back to playing the Illini.

It might be a bit of an inferiority complex. Though SIU has been a significant mid-major in the basketball arena for years, its other sports teams were nothing to write home about until about three years ago.

Instead, SIU was best known as a party school, even though it was trying to shed that reputation. While people competed to get into the University of Illinois, SIU still had a reputation as the school Chicago-land parents sent their children to when they wanted them far away, but wanted to pay in-state tuition.

The University of Illinois is just 200 miles from SIU and light years away. State funding and national attention would always go to the Illini first as the flagship university. But SIU knew it had a great team and longed for the chance to prove it to their own state.

When approached about playing the Salukis, the University of Illinois wasn't particularly kind. Illini fans scoffed, especially as Weber led his team to two Big Ten Championships. The Illini would have nothing to gain and just embarrass Weber's former team seemed to be the sentiment in most places.

But now, now Saluki fans are eyeing the pairings and hoping for the Illini to upset number five seed Virginia Tech. It's nothing personal Virginia Tech, but these Dawgs want their day. If the Dawgs meet their ranking and potential and win in the first round, basketball fans south of Interstate 70 want to see the Illini across the court.

And, nothing personal Coach Weber, but we'd really like to beat the Illini on our way to doing something you helped us do in 2002. The only thing sweeter that the Sweet Sixteen would be beating the Illini to get there.