The Boulder Is Shattered

I get the same advice all the time: "Be careful, Robert. You don't want to come off as a true homer." People see me waving the flag (sometimes literally) and want me to be aware that it can damage my credibility as someone publishing Illini words. It wouldn't take very much at all for Alioneye Robert to turn into Baghdad Bob.

I see it the other way. To act as if I don't want the team to win would be to live a lie. I understand the lines I cannot cross and I do not cross them. (And, sometimes, in a road game pressbox, I feel like I'm the only one telling the truth.)

I've been in press boxes since the Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl on the final day of 2011 and I can tell you that they've all completely changed. Back then, I was the only one suppressing cheers because everyone else was a newspaper beat writer. Now... I'm the only one suppressing cheers. They're muffled for the most part, but nearly everyone is pulling for the team. The Nebraska pressbox is basically just another fan section.

I have one goal: promote the athletes who choose the orange and blue. Promoting them requires access, which is why I continue to seek a credential despite moving my gameday location back into the stands in 2022 (I only go pressbox on the road now). I know I can never ask a "why won't you play Smith more?" question (fan angst should never enter that room), so I focus my questions on the growth of Illini athletics, good and bad.

Which is what I did yesterday. It felt like a moment. There were some good questions, and Whitman had given some good answers, but I just sat there feeling like no one was giving him the opportunity to say what he wanted to say. So I tapped into my "maybe it's better that there's a fan in the room right now?" side and asked this question.

You need to hear his answer. I don't care if you're in a meeting right now. Put one AirPod in your away ear and listen to all five minutes: