Chicago Invitation Challenge Moved to Chicago

According to Notre Dame’s website and the Sears Center itself, the Chicago Invitation Challenge has been moved from the Sears Center in Hoffman Estates to the UIC-Pavilion in Chicago. For those who already have tickets I do not know what this means. The Sears Center has had some major finance issues which is likely the cause of this move. To be honest, I’m not shocked that a large arena in the far west suburbs that doesn’t serve as the home to any major team is having financial problems. I am, however, a little disappointed that the location which this tournament was moved to is UIC. A team that isn’t even in the event. Yes, playing at Welsh-Ryan would give NU a home court advantage, but I bet considering the number of ND alums who live closer to Evanston than the west side of Chicago that many ND fans wouldn’t have cared. Then again, at least the Chicago Invitation Challenge is now in the city its named after. That does make more sense. Now, we need to have teams (like UIC) who are from Chicago instead of teams that the Chicago media think are from Chicago like Notre Dame.

Also: NU beat Eastern Michigan in football today 27-24 and Wildcat Nation is about to panic after a win. That, I think, is almost a good sign. I'll have more on the reasons to panic or not later.

Basketball Schedule Update

Some folks over at Rivals have done some work and have put together the latest news on NU's hoops schedule. Here's a link: http://northwestern.rivals.com/showmsg.asp?fid=58&tid=131188900&mid=131188900&sid=901&style=2

You'll see the 'Cats start with four home games. Three of them are "should wins" but the biggest one is against Butler who stands a very good chance of being a top-25 team to open the year. I bet the Big Ten Network is going to love having that game, since we know ESPN won't be showing it.

NU's opener against NIU is probably thanks to Jim Phillips making a connection with his former staff. I think it's a good opener as I like playing local (or at least semi-local) teams. NU also his Chicago State at home on March 3rd.

North Florida comes back to Evanston on December 16th, that was a 40-39 Kevin Coble buzzer beating put back last time NU hosted them. I hope it's not so close this year.

Of course, all NU fans are looking forward to that game in the Chicago Challenge vs Notre Dame on November 27th.

Finally, I hope to see everyone in Evanston on Saturday when the football 'Cats take on Townson. I'll be the one wearing the 1931 National Champs shirt (yeah, I'm still pushing that).

Go Cats!

A Reminder on CIC Tickets

I got a reminder from a friend today and want to pass it along. At lunch today my friend reminded me tickets for the Chicago Invitational Challenge game between Northwestern and Notre Dame are currently available. You have to order through the Sears Center or Ticket Master, but you can order the tickets now as opposed to waiting for Northwestern to start offering tickets. While the odds are plenty of seats will be available for this event, I decided today I wanted to order tickets now just to make sure I got the best seats possible. The last thing we want is for all our friends from South Bend to grab all the seats at center court. So, whether you order them now or later, let’s paint the Sears Center purple and show support for our Wildcats on the short road trip to Hoffman Estates.

Field Set for Chicago Invitation Challenge: NU and ND to play on Nov. 27th

The following teams will play in the Chicago Invitation Challenge at the Sears Center in Hoffman Estates on November 27 and 28. EDIT: Northwestern and Notre Dame will play on the 27th.

University of Notre Dame
Northwestern University
Iowa State University
Saint Louis University
Liberty University
Mississippi Valley State University
Tennessee State University
Kennesaw State University

Some early round games in the CIC will be played at Welsh-Ryan, I believe this a great event for NU to play in and I am looking forward to it.