"Barely 19 months after his final carry, the former Pittsburgh Steeler works as a staff writer for "Ballers," a new series on HBO."

- Craig Meyer, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

After retiring from football in 2014, former Illinois star Rashard Mendenhall has found a career in Hollywood as a staff writer for the HBO series "Ballers." Mendenhall appears to really be enjoying the gig, too, as he told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette that it's "something that I hadn’t envisioned, but it’s been more perfect than anything I could have envisioned."

"Monticello coach Cully Welter was beginning to get a little worried when early summer came around and he still hadn't found a defensive coordinator for next season. He was at the University of Illinois' super regional baseball game against Vanderbilt when someone brought up the name Matt Sinclair to him."

- Justin Conn, Herald Review

Former Illini football staffer Matt Sinclair is the new defensive coordinator at Monticello high school. You may remember that Sinclair was arrested in November of 2013 for pointing an unloaded gun out his vehicle window while driving back from Illinois' win at Purdue. After resigning from his position, he was later convicted of aggravated unlawful use of weapons and was sentenced to 18 months of probation and 100 hours of public service.

Sinclair was a linebacker at Illinois before joining the Ravens in 2005 as an undrafted free agent; he also had brief stints with the Dolphins and Redskins.

"Guess what I’m going to ask them in August when we come back and meet before two-a-days? More. You’ve been at six. You better be more than six. Just get better."

Tim Beckman via Bob Asmussen, News Gazette

The Illinois football staff was out in full force at Wednesday's Illini Quarterback Club Meet 'N Greet. Beckman shared his expectations for the team and, to no surprise, he thinks the group should be better than last season. It's obviously another a huge season for the fourth year head coach and he may not be able to afford a repeat performance of the 2014 season this time around.

#SportNews

Rick Brunson: "My son always wanted to go to Villanova." - VU Hoops
Rick Brunson chats with the Chicago Tribune saying, "Jalen wanted to have a chance to play in a Final Four."

Why does Adidas keep making college teams wear hideous garbage? - SBNation
Adidas must be stopped for its crimes against uniforms.

Cole Hamels no-hits Cubs, ups trade appeal - SBNation
Sunday morning's baseball includes Cole Hamels' first career no-hitter, Josh Hamilton's return to Anaheim, and a botched trade for Johnny Cueto.

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