Top of the Morning, April 1, 2026
Apr. 1—Like so many of the friendly Illini fans who swarmed our lobby Tuesday, Ed Perry is hoping to come back next week to pick up another News-Gazette front-page poster. "I think this is the year," Perry said.
"We have the heighth and the strength and, of course, having a couple of young freshmen helps, too. " Perry was the first customer through our doors Tuesday morning after we announced on radio and social media that the initial batch of front-page posters had arrived. By 2 p.
m. , posters had sold out. Good news: More are on the way and will be available starting today.
If you can't make it to 2101 Fox Drive in Champaign, orders also can be made online at . Perry, a 77-year-old University of Illinois grad (Class of '72), suffered through Final Four losses in 1989 and '05. The current run, though, "has an old guy like me excited.
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