Opinions: Celebraties shouldn't be politicians.
News: City Administration negotiates bids for water main breakage.
Sports: Leathernecks blow out the Oak hills Wolfpack 107-45.
Friday, January 19, 2018 - Vol. 118 Issue 45
Jimmy Pierson/Production Manager
By Isaiah Herard news editor
Since New Year ’s there have been rumors that Red Ox Restaurant and Lounge has closed permanently, with reports of employees filing for unemployment, however, the accusations are false and as of Jan. 9 the steakhouse has reopened for business. “We had to renegotiate our lease and after we renegotiate our lease we were able to open back up,” said Front End Supporter Ryan Dalbis. “For a few days we shut down and
then we reopened and now we’re restoring our normal lunch hours (11a.m.-4p.m.) on Jan. 30.” Owner Mark Meng said Macomb and other small towns are hard to sustain a business in because the inexpensiveness of small towns causes skepticism amongst its inhabitants when they meet higher priced items. “A lot of people think we are expensive, but we buy the topquality steak,” Meng said. “We buy black angus which is really expensive. It costs us $11 to buy a pound of beef and a pound can barely cut us one steak so
its very expensive. The people don’t know the expense on our end, but our prices compared to Bloomington and Springfield are significantly lower and we sell better quality food.” Another reason the flow of business is decreasing significantly for the Red Ox is due to the decrease in Western Illinois University’s retention. Considering the majority of their business comes from college students, reduction of students and faculty equates to less consumers. “We still depend on the college to provide our consumers,” Meng said. “When the
colleges lay off people and we slightly raise our prices the people feel we are more expensive. We can’t lower the quality, we don’t want to go that route we want to maintain our budget but it’s really hard for us.” Dalbis added to Meng’s sentiment and works to improve on the public relations aspect of Red Ox to re-establish its previous 30-year reputation. “For public relations, we’re closely following the website and the Facebook page,” Dalbis said. “We’ve made revisions on both of those and we’re monitoring it closely. We want to try and get more involved
with social media. We’ve done a first responders appreciation event and we just try to get as involved with the community as we can.” A major part of the problem is the death of Jim Gardner, who served as the previous owner of the Red Ox for over 30 years. Meng said Gardner sustained an everlasting relationship with the Macomb campus community. The community’s emotional attachment to Garner causes skepticism and hate towards Meng.
Red Ox
page 2
Jimmy pierson/Production Manager
By Isaiah Herard news editor
With roughly 15-blocks of water main reaching about 80 years of age, Macomb City Administrator Dean Torreson developed a reconstruction plan to replace the cast iron in the city and eliminate recurring water main breakage. The City Council granted Torreson and his staff the approval to apply for bids for the two-major water main
replacement projects earlier this month on Jan. 2. “After (80 years) long, over time the cast iron in the water main just gets rotten and the pressure in the mains will pop it,” Torreson said. “You can see it gushing out of the ground sometimes and it bubbles up. There’s one local MD that lives on Franklin that had three water main breaks directly in front of his place." According to Torreson, work in the southeastern part of Macomb could be
done through September of 2018, while work on the adjacent side of town, the northwest, is expected to take place until August. “It’s about over a million dollars’ worth of work replacing old water mains,” Torreson said. “We did get a grant from the state government for about $350,000. That’ll help with the northwest part of town and then we have water main in the southeast part of town that is breaking all the time.” If he and his staff acquire the
bids, Torreson will construct replacement of old cast iron water mains in northwestern Macomb that is expected to finish in the fall. Macomb got a $350,000 federal grant for work in the northwest. The remainder of funds for the $1 million project will come from the infrastructure support portion of the city sales tax in the amount of $75,000 and the city water fund in the amount of $577,000. Torreson said the debt service portion on city water bills would have to increase from
three to five dollars per month for each customer after May 1, to reimburse the missing water funds. However, the three dollars per month debt service charge on sewer bills won’t increase this year, but could be increased in the future should the city of Macomb use a $3 million Illinois Environmental Protection Agency loan to pay for improvements to the city sewer plant.
Water main page 3
2
Friday, January 19, 2018
NEWS
Alpha Kappa Alpha honors Dr. King
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Since Gardner ’s death, the Red Ox has undergone hate crimes including the removal of the ‘g’ in black angus, a derogatory slur to defame the reputation under new ownership. A native from China, Meng holds himself accountable for the Red Ox’s failure to reach its full potential. He admits he is accustomed to working and has a novice skill
set as it pertains to promoting a business and sustaining a prestigious level of public relations. “People have the wrong impression of me, they think I don’t know how to sell myself,” Meng said. “I don’t like to talk because I always like working. That’s a problem. I need to learn how to sell myself because public relations are very important, especially in a small town. Nobody cares about what I do for the community, it really does hurt my feelings.”
PUBLISHING AND CIRCULATION
ADVERTISING POLICY
Red Ox from front page
Emily Stieren/assistant news editor
Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority inc. hosts the Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service event to kickstart the semester and welcome back the Macomb campus community on Wednesday.
By Emily Stieren assistant news editor
The Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Inc. (AKA) hosted the Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service event on Wednesday in the Multicultural Center. The inspiring event was themed “I Have a Vision” to reflect on King’s famous and uplifting “I Have a Dream” speech. “We just wanted something to welcome back the campus because it’s a good event to start off the semester,” said AKA treasurer Gabrielle Love. “We definitely wanted to reach out to different minorities and spread awareness that we all can be unified. We don’t discriminate, so it’s not just for women, it’s not just for black people or anything. We just want people to come out and have a good time.” The gathering not only welcomed back familiar faces, but it provoked attendees to mingle and get to know one another. “We’re starting off with some icebreakers to get to know all the people that come out because we wanted a welcome back event as well,” Love said. “Then we’re going to go into
WC
quotes, so we’re going to say some inspirational quotes from King Jr. himself. We’re also going to talk about what made him say those inspirational quotes and how it makes everyone feel.” The participants got the opportunity to express their vision for the future with “vision boards.” The activity provided insight on the desires everyone had for a better future for the world and on Western Illinois University’s campus. “The importance of this event is to bring awareness that we all need to be unified,” Love said. “At the end of the day, this is what Martin Luther King Jr. fought for so maybe doing these vision boards will make them aware of what they can plan for in the future.” AKA Vice President Kai Carney believes that there should be more events catered towards African American history like the Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service event. The gathering allowed for attendees to gain more knowledge and appreciation for King. “This event is to inform people about Martin Luther King
STAFF MEMBERS editor-in-chief Nicholas Ebelhack NA-Ebelhack@wiu.edu news editor Isaiah Herard IA-Herard@wiu.edu assistant news editor Emily Stieren EN-Stieren@wiu.edu opinions editor Ryan Zurek RP-Zurek@wiu.edu
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Jr. and to just open up a more social aspect for the sorority,” Carney said. “It’s an uplifting event to learn some history and to see some new faces.” Everyone was given a bag of essential occurrences that happened in King’s life to conclude the event. “We are ending with a timeline event,” Love said. “Basically, everyone has to put in order the historical important events that happened in Martin Luther King Jr.’s life.” Participants were put into teams to test their newfound knowledge on the prominent leader. Not only did AKA address unity and acceptance, but their genuine kindness also led them to assemble school supplies for underprivileged students. “We were collecting school supplies in the beginning because with Martin Luther King (Jr.) Service Day, our service is to provide one million backpacks,” Love said. “We are collecting school supplies and backpacks for students who probably can’t afford them.” To keep up with AKA and their upcoming events, visit their social media pages at wiu_akas.
sports editor Devon Greene DJ-Greene@wiu.edu assistant sports editor Haley Richards H-Richards@wiu.edu edge editor Baylee Brynteson BM-Brynteson@wiu.edu copy editor Brie Coder B-Coder@wiu.edu proofreader Valerie Clemens VN-Clemens@wiu.edu
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Friday, January 19, 2018
NEWS 3
Serbia native now calls Macomb home By Marty Rogers courier staff
Aneta Gocmanac is a Western Illinois University sophomore, who was born and raised in Krusevac, Serbia. It wasn’t until three years ago that she had ever stepped foot in the United States. That day, which she remembers clearly, was the best and the worst day of her life. Gocmanac had left the only life she had ever known behind, but on the other hand, she had always been inclined towards a challenge, and moving to the other side of the world was just that. In Serbia, Gocmanac was a fierce competitor, trying her hand at dance, ballet, theater, volleyball, karate, swimming, soccer and gymnastics. In 2005, she was even a European Dancing Champion for her age group. In the classroom, she worked equally as hard. Unlike in the
United States, in Europe, students test into specialized high schools where they have a major, and when they graduate they receive a certificate for their sector. Gocmanac’s sector was Language, and by the time she graduated, she had a firm grasp on German, Latin, French, Bosnian, Macedonian, and Croatian and the five dialects of Serbian. Gocmanac distinctly remembers June 28, 2015, as the day the United States became her home. It was the day she was greeted by an entirely new culture, etiquette and system of laws. “Being at a new school is hard enough, but being on a new continent is scary,” Gocmanac said. Instead of cowering, she quickly made the foreign country her home. In the one year she spent at Hinsdale Central High School, Gocmanac was a member of nine clubs. One of which, the
Video Game Club, she was elected president of. At Western, Gocmanac has been no less involved. Last year she was in a two-person play, “Where have all the Lightning Bugs Gone.” She joined the University Union Board, on which she held the position of Welcome Week Leader and Chair of Collaborations and Traditions. She also joined Delta Zeta and played intramural volleyball with enough time for her psychology Pre-Med major and neuroscience minor. “The first time I stepped foot on Western’s campus, I felt at home”, Gocmanac said. And ever since, she’s been glad she made Macomb her new home. “I fell in love with the people here,” Gocmanac said. “They’re like family to me now, and I miss my friends in Serbia, but I wouldn’t trade being a Leatherneck for anything”.
Water main from front page
“It’s an inconvenience and expensive. The breaks will happen whether it’s cold outside or hot outside,” Torreson said. Although deficiencies in the water mains aren’t hazardous, Torreson acknowledged the water main breakage affects residents who are connected to the water main valve. A temporary solution would be shutting off valves to isolate sections of pipe, but everyone between the valves will be without water through an extensive time frame. “The water main breakage puts everyone in the vicinity out of service for a while and it costs us a lot of money to fix those breaks even though we have our own crew,” Torreson said. “Then they’ll have a boil order probably until we’re put back in service. They’ll have to boil they’re water for a day, maybe 24 hours or so.”
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Gocmanac takes a chance and moves away from Serbia, the country where she was raised, to fulfill her goals and further her education.
Friday, January 19, 2018
4 OPINIONS
Last week at the 75th Golden Globe Awards, media magnate Oprah Winfrey was honored with the Cecil B. DeMille Award, for outstanding contributions to the world of entertainment. When Winfrey received the award on stage she also delivered a masterful acceptance speech. The powerful speech served as a rallying cry against the issues currently plaguing Hollywood, specifically citing the slew of sexual harassment and abuse cases we’ve witnessed in the public sphere for the past few years. While there was no direct mention of this during the night, save a joke by host Seth Meyers before she took the stage, Winfrey's speech ignited a discussion about her as a potential presidential candidacy in the next election. Social media, both civilian and professional, was filled with discussion, both in support of and against the idea. Winfrey herself even commented on
the possibility, fueling the fire by admitting that she wasn’t against the thought. While the commotion has calmed down and public opinion from all political sides has mostly landed against the idea, the fact that the thought gained so much traction highlights a growing problem in America’s political system. The trend of giving political power to celebrities began with Donald Trump and Ben Carson’s candidacies in the 2016 election, but unfortunately the turmoil since Trump was elected has somehow failed to convince the voting public that electing people with zero political experience is a horrible idea. In fact, the number of celebrities we as a country consider for presidential office has only grown since the last election. To be fair, I think 2016 was the first time many American citizens realized that it was a real possibility. But just because we can, doesn’t mean that we
should. In the months since Donald Trump was elected as president, many Americans have lost faith in our government, as news reports showed the countless complications, scandals, and social gaffs our new president and his staff have encountered, far beyond the typical growing pains of a new administration. The cause of these consistent embarrassments is simple – Trump, moral ambiguity aside, has no idea what he is doing. How could he? This is the first governmental position he has ever held. He never learned through serving time in local government or Congress, or with how to manage and solve political problems on smaller scales. We as voters should have learned from this. Seats of such power and influence should be given to people who know how to fill them. Yet, it seems almost every day there is a new celebrity trending on Twitter for dropping hints about running for president. Winfrey, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and Trump all still have support bases to run in the next election. Even Kanye West has fans who sincerely think he
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should be president. This isn’t me bashing these people, or trying to insult them. Winfrey and Johnson, specifically, have been role models of mine for years, and have my deepest respect for all they have accomplished. But none of these people have any business being the president of the United States. Their accomplishments in business and culture, while impressive, do not prepare them to lead one of the most powerful nations in the world. Success in one field, no matter how great, does not mean instant success in another. ` I have no doubt that some people who read this article will laugh at me for writing it. They’ll tell me that I’m putting too much credit in internet memes, that these kinds of “campaigns” are just jokes and nothing more. But I would remind those people how many Americans thought Trump’s candidacy was also a joke. For every person who talks about one of these movements with humor, there’s another who sincerely supports that candidate. Sarcastic or genuine, these people are proving a disturbing reality – we as a
nation don’t take our elections, or the positions behind them, as seriously as we used to. And that’s scary. When we elect a president, we are giving them power over a part of our lives. We are looking at the rest of the world and saying, “this is the person that we have chosen to speak on our behalf.” Since our country’s beginning, people have worked decades and decades just to earn the chance to run for this job. It is irresponsible of us to give it to someone who has never held a political office in their life, regardless of what party they belong to. I want to restate that I’m not trying to disrespect the people I’ve mentioned in this article. If they really are interested in going from active citizens to government representatives, I encourage them to run for office on the local level. But the president of the United States is not an entry-level job. We owe it to each other as neighbors and to the world, that we are to hold our leader to a higher standard. The world today is too volatile for an unprepared or ignorant president. We can do better. We need to do better.
Friday, January 19, 2018
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OPINIONS 5
New year, new you, Worry about and a new New Puerto Rico, Years resolution not H&M's ad Ringing in the New Year means lots of “New Year, New Me” and lots of New Years resolutions. Unfortunately, it’s also about this far into the year that a lot of those New Years resolutions are quickly dissolving. Either you are coming back to school and it’s just a little too cold to get yourself over to the gym, or maybe the distractions of being back around all your friends has your motivation at an all time low. This is why if you ask me you shouldn’t waste your time making New Years resolutions at all. It’s simply a set up for failure. According to the Huffington post, only 8% of New Years resolutions are successful. This means that if you make yourself a resolution there is approximately a 92% chance that you are not going to follow through with it. According to Business Insider, 80% of those resolutions don’t even make it past February. So as won-
derful as it seems to convince yourself that the New Year is going to bring you new motivation and in return a “new you”, you are really just setting yourself up to begin your year with a failed goal. Whether you made a New Years resolution this year and it has already failed or you are still successfully working at it, I propose to all of you to change your mindset on how to bring in the New Year completely. Instead of having the pressures of what you “must” do in the New Year, look at it as a new coming of opportunities and enter the year with zero pressures weighing down on you. Albert Einstein once said, “Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.” When it comes to New Years resolutions it is not uncommon that some of us have made the same goal
for numerous years because for some reason you weren’t able to stick to it in the past years. The pressure of entering the New Year with the feeling of having to do something can actually have the opposite effect that we are looking for. When you enter the New Year with a positive heart and open your mind to new opportunities you will find that your goals will actually be met in the time frame that they are naturally meant to. Perhaps you are meant to lose that 20 pounds you want to, but forcing it in January could be a set up for failure versus perhaps around May you get the drive in your heart to want to work on your summer body and you lose it then. The internal push of wanting to reach your goals when your heart and mind is fully ready to will be much more successful than forcing it upon yourself just because of the date on a calendar. Setting goals and wanting to better yourself is not just a once a year task, approach 2018 with an open mind and positive attitude and when you are ready to tackle those goals let the timing fall into place.
Recently, there was a bunch of talk about H&M’s recent clothing designs for children. Featured, there was an African American child wearing a hoodie that depicted the words, “Coolest monkey in the jungle.” Creating controversy over that certain design. Personally, I don’t see the problem. It’s more of a “if the shoe fits,” type of situation. I understand the fact that they should have chosen their designs more carefully but the situation in general isn’t that serious. H&M has never been one of those bad corporations that have faulty apparel or one to make silly mistakes, such as this one. But the incident has gone too far and has gotten too much attention. Celebrities, normal twitter users, and other social media users all protested against buying any H&M merchandise. That is understandable because it is their time and money. But the whole situation is not that serious and needs to be forgotten. What should be getting more attention is our fellow state, Puerto Rico. After all, they’ve just gone through a traumatic time due to Hurricane Maria. CNN recently published an article about the fact that “Puerto Rico is lacking nationally in a shortage of medical supplies.” Daily, Puerto Rico’s citizens that have been injured by Hurricane Maria have no supplies to treat their wounds. Hospitals go through hundreds to thousands of IV bags and other medical supplies. And with the lack of supplies, it leaves the patients dependent on these hospitals that no longer offer a suitable treatment. It’s not as if
they can go to the next town over because the entire state is in this dilemma. Puerto Rico is a part of the United States but it seems as if we’ve done nothing to help. Instead we focus our attention on a corporation and its silly design. H&M makes billions of dollars everyday, especially now since so much attention has been focused on them. And as stated before, it’s the people's decision on where they decide to place their money and time. But aren’t we missing the bigger picture here? An entire state is in need of our help and especially money, yet we give both to irrelevant factors. It’s not as if the government or even our President are going to focus the states attentions on Puerto Rico either. As horrible as that is, it’s the truth. Leaving us, as American citizens the ones who can help. Because we really should be working together in order to help save innocent lives. While we continue to become pressed and blinded by silly children's apparel. Everyday medical supplies in Puerto Rico deplete, and there are those who are inching close to death while we sit and worry about a billion dollar corporation. Puerto Rico isn’t able to support patients who come in needing treatment. Not to mention production being very fragile since one of the biggest medical manufacturers resided in Puerto Rico. It’s often hard to distinguish the important things going on in the world when social media distracts us so. But that doesn’t mean we should just take a seat while innocent lives are at risk. Especially since irrelevant issues like the H&M designs have died down.
Editorial Policy The editoral views of the Western Courier shall be confined to this editorial and are to be separate from news coverage otherwise noted. The editoral presented is based on the ideas and views of the WC editoral board.Columns are the opinions of the columnists alone and should not be construed as the opinions and beliefs of the WC staff as a whole.
Letters & Local Forum Policies E-mail letters to the Editor and Local Forum messages to micour@wiu.edu. Letters should not be more than 350 words in length. The author’s name and phone number must be included for verification purposes. Failure to include such information will lead to the letter being discarded. The WC staff will edit letters in cases of timeliness, obscenity length and grammer, and we do not guarantee publication of all letters.
2018 Spring Semester Editorial Board Editor-in-Cheif - Nicholas Ebelhack News Editor - Isaiah Herad
Edge Editor - Baylee Bryntesson Opinions Editor - Ryan Zurek
Friday, January 19, 2018
6 SPORTS
Football
from back page
A vision that ended after a heartbreaking loss at Weber State University is how the Leathernecks finished off their season. After that loss, Western also lost the heart of their team in linebacker, Brett Taylor and Jaelon Acklin, who put together the best single season a Leatherneck wide receiver has ever had. Elliot will be put to the ultimate test trying to find their replacements. “We have some positions that we need to fill, re-strengthen and add depth to, but that’s everybody in the country,” Elliot said. “We have key positions that we are very aware of that we need to add recruits and bring guys in to add some depth next year… throughout
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the evaluation process you have to evaluate not only the football player, but identifying great young men, like Taylor and Acklin.” Elliot is the right candidate to take on the role of being Western’s newest head coach. Elliot and company was part of the decision to start there. Soon to be senior quarterback McGuire was not expected to start when he was a sophomore, but Elliot and the coaching staff saw something in him that paid off and led the Leatherneck’s to a playoff appearance. With Elliot and McGuire leading the way for the Leathernecks, it will not be long until football fans see the future player-coach connection on the field to lead the Purple and Gold to a shot at the FCS National Championship.
Men’s Basketball from back page
With thirteen minutes left in the half, freshman point-guard Kobe Webster made a successful 3-point shot that sparked a Leatherneck rally. The Leathernecks slowly began to inch their way back into winning position with efficient offense and suffocating defense. Soon after Webster’s shot, sophomore guard C.J. Duff made a 3-point shot that put the Leathernecks within four points of the Mastadons. As the clock began to run down, Western slowly fell behind again. When the score read 58-66, a good free throw by Webster sparked another Leatherneck rally. Western closed the gap within the last three minutes of the game, and
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tied up the score, making it 68-68 at the buzzer, sending the game into overtime. With five minutes set on the clock, the Leathernecks had one more opportunity to earn their first conference win of the season. Ancrum was the first player to score in the half, but the Mastodons quickly picked up the pace and surpassed the Leathernecks, putting the score at 74-72. As each possesion became increasingly important, the Purple and Gold answered the call. After being fouled, Gilbeck made a successful free throw that put the Leathernecks within one point of IUPU. As the clock wound down, the Leathernecks and the Mastodons battled it out for the win. With
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one second left in the game, Webster made a successful shot that put the Leathernecks in the lead. As the final buzzer sounded, the score was 75-74 that gave Western the hardfought victory. The Leathernecks finally had their first conference win, which is what they had ultimately been striving for. Webster raked up a total of 24 points for the Leathernecks, making him the leading scorer for Western. Closely following Webster, Ancrum earned a total of 23 points. Gilbeck led the team defensively, earning a total of 3 blocks throughout the course of the game. Western will play against the South Dakota State Coyotes on Saturday. Twitter: beccalangysxo
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For Rent Available now: Close to campus, clean studio apartments, excellent condition, reasonable rent, and partly furnished. Ceiling fans and a/c. Professionally maintained. No pets. Semester leases offered. Call 309 837 4369 and leave your phone number if not there. Email: MandKhousing@gmail.com ALL APARTMENTS - ALL INCLUSIVE Get control of your budget. Know exactly what you are spending each month. Each apartment includes free a/c, free heat, free electricity, free water, free cable tv, free hi speed internet, and free off street parking. Laundry on site. No noise policy. Bus stop across the street. Close to campus. Well maintained. Studios are $460/mo, One bedrooms are $620/mo. Call Doug at 309-255-8179 for an appointment. Westen Investments still has affordable 1-4 Bedroom Apartment/Houses available. Be sure to check out our website (www.westeninvest.com) to see our available listings, and call our office at 309-833-5995 to schedule a showing. Be sure to follow us on Facebook and Twitter to win prize giveaways! APARTMENT FOR RENT: FOR QUIET PERSON. ONE BEDROOM APARTMENT FOR RENT LOCATED AT 314 West Carroll ST Macomb, Ill 61455. Available end of August 2017-new carpeting yearly lease SMALEST FURNISHED IN MACOMB $345.00/month - HEAT & AC INCLUDED private entrance, off-street parking included call for appointment309-837-4748 or 255-5075 woodburning fireplace, ask for Paul. For Rent: Little Swan Lake, 30 min from campus. 2br, 2bth, heated double car garage with work area. $600 per mo. (309) 335-2206 after 6:00 pm, may leave message anytime. Spacious 3 Bedroom Upper in Duplex close to campus and Jackson St. All utilities furnished and appliances Includes cable and internet 18/19 school year $375.00 per Br Ph 309 255 8086 Please leave message
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Friday, January 19, 2018
I was born in El Paso, Texas so naturally; I grew up a Chicago Bears fan. My family pressured me into the whole situation and I, like every other 0-10-year-old, lacked originality so I just rode with it. When I was around 12 years old, my family and I moved to Oklahoma. I left home for the first time in my life and gained some friends and a really basic sense of originality. The year was 2009. The New Orleans Saints were tearing up the NFL and cruised to a 13-0 record. The team was so much fun, and they had the coolest demeanor to them. I figured if I was going to sprint away from the Bears, I should go to a successful team and jump on a bandwagon that I could thoroughly enjoy. It proved to be the best decision I have ever made, because ever since, the Bears have been the most terrible football team I have ever seen. I remember being a fan during the Rex Grossman and Brian Griese days and being more embarrassed than I have ever been in my whole life to stand by a team. The year I jumped on the Saints bandwagon, they won the Super Bowl. My family and I went out to this Mexican restaurant and watched the game on the little TV’s they had in there. I will never forget the onside kick after halftime, or the Tracy Porter 72-yard pick-6 on Peyton Manning that sealed our victory.
with Somebody (Who Loves Me)” by Whitney Houston was blaring in the background, but then there's a twist and the writers decided to snatch your soul, along all your happy feelings and set them on fire? Then, when there was nothing left but ash, they swept it up into a blender and they blended your ashes up with some acid and poison to the soundtrack of “Hurt” by Johnny Cash, which is easily the most depressing song of all time, just to make you feel worse? For me, that movie was “Marley and Me.” I had so much fun watching that movie because I love dogs and it was such a feel-good movie. Then, the writers showed their true colors and revealed that they hate my happiness and me and killed off Marley. It’s a foregone conclusion that animal deaths are far worse in movies than a human death. This Saints’ season felt so much like “Marley and Me.” I had an extremely fun time watching my puppies grow up into solid NFL players and grow back into contenders in the increasingly difficult NFC. My puppies were being trained and growing up better behaved, and the children were growing up and loving the new dog. Then the Minnesota Vikings came around. The Vikings used to have a nickname, “Purple People Eaters”, well, for my purposes we’re going to call them the Purple Puppy Eaters. The divisional round of the NFC playoffs started off in the worst possible way for New Orleans. They couldn’t get any offense going and the new best quarterback of all-time, Case Keenum,
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A Saints fan says goodbye I’ve stuck with them through the Bounty-gate scandal, the middle school caliber defense years, and all the other piles of terribleness that has followed since. I expected the same to happen in the 20172018 season because there was nothing that told me they were going to be any better. However, the Saints had one of the best draft classes of 2017 and snagged a plethora of influential rookies. But even as I saw the Saints kicking the NFL in the face, I still couldn’t grasp the dreams of going to another Super Bowl. It was like I was sent to the Twilight Zone because it was such a different team than I was used to. We were a run-first offense and had a good defense. Usually, Drew Brees had to pass for 657 yards and 13 touchdowns per game, and even then we would still lose by 75 points because our defense looked like they had baby deer legs and were playing on ice. Near the end of the season is when I started to buy in, they beat the Atlanta Falcons in a revenge game after the loss in week 13. Then they beat the Carolina Panthers in week one of the playoffs. It was such a great surprise and I was so joyful that I actually had a good team again. Have you ever seen a movie that you had such a good time watching that you were transported up into the clouds and the happiest song of all time, “I Wanna Dance
led his offense to a 17-0 lead at halftime. This was the slow death of Marley. Marley was starting to show his arthritis, began to go deaf, and an attack of gastric dilatation volvulus almost killed us. But then something miraculous happened. We began to recover. Brees showed why he is an alltime great quarterback and led the offense to a miraculous comeback. He found the sophomore receiver Michael Thomas for a 13-yard touchdown that put the Saints on the board for the first time. Then, he found Thomas again in the fourth quarter after an interception by Marcus Williams, who looked like he was on his way to becoming a Saints legend. The score was 17-14 and the Saints were back in the game and alive, just like my good boy Marley. The Purple Puppy Eaters then got on the board for the first time in the second half with a Kai Forbath field goal that pushed the lead to 20-14. Forbath wasn’t putting down Marley that easy though. Brees led the Saints’ offense and found the breakout rookie Alvin Kamara on an insane 14-yard touchdown pass that gave the Saints their first lead of the game. Yet Keenum wouldn’t let Marley survive. He led the offense into field goal range and Forbath hit another field goal to take back a 23-21 lead. With 1:29 left in the game, Brees showed off the clutch factor and led the Saints in field goal position. Kicker Will Lutz strutted on the field with a swagger that I’ve never seen before and nailed a 43-yard field goal like he was kicking in practice to give the Saints a 24-23 lead with 25
seconds left. This was the point in the movie where I thought that Marley was going to make it. Marley recovered from his battle with gastric dilatation volvulus and maybe we were actually going to get a happy ending. Then the Vikings ripped my heart out of my chest. After three plays that only left Minnesota on their own 39-yard line, there were 10 seconds left. New Orleans was having their Mardi Gras celebration and planning for the NFC championship. But on 3rd and 10, Keenum found Stefon Diggs on the sideline with two Saints defenders in the vicinity. This was the moment that took rookie Marcus Williams from legend, to most hated man in New Orleans. Williams whiffed on a tackle that allowed Diggs to take the ball 61-yards and win the game with a walk-off touchdown. Diggs euthanized Marley. It was one of the most heartbreaking moments in my life. Now all I see are memes on Twitter and people sending me Snapchats mocking my trauma. The world grew cold for a night and all I could do was wallow in my selfpity and sadness while sitting in the dark in my Brees jersey. Once I finally mustered the strength to get out of bed, I went and found a shovel and buried the jersey in my backyard. This is my goodbye to Marley and to the 2017-2018 New Orleans Saints. You were so much fun and I had a great season. I know Marley can never come back, but my Saints can. The puppies will grow to be the new Marley and we will return.
Leathernecks hope to warm up in Charleston By Bradley Piros courier staff
Michael Rinella begins his pole vault,
goleathernecks.com
MACOMB Ill. – It might be the middle of a very frigid and harsh winter here in Macomb, but the Western Illinois track and field teams are back in action this weekend as they’re looking to heat things up when they take it back indoors. The Leathernecks head into their third meet of the season, as they travel across state and participate in the John Craft Invitational. The Eastern Illinois University Panthers will be hosting this invite inside their Lantz Indoor Field House, as this will be the second time the Leathernecks head over there this season. The Leathernecks are coming off of a rough performance as they participated in the University of Northern Iowa Open Invitational last Saturday. The UNI Panthers dominated majority of the events but Western did shine in a couple of them. To give them a little credit, it was their first time competing in over a month due to winter break and they weren’t competing with their complete roster. Continuing on, Western had a couple of strong showings in the men’s and women’s 400-meter
dash. On the men’s side freshman Dylan Smerillo came in a close second place with a time of 50.96 seconds. The women’s division came in third and fourth behind two UNI Panthers. Sophomore Megan Reed recorded a time of 1:04.12 while her senior teammate Raytoria Richardson came in right behind her at 1:04.22. Moving forward, a couple of women got the job done for Western in field events as freshman Amelia Peterson came in first in the long jump with a mark of 17-09 1/2 (5.42 m), but she wasn’t done there. She also recorded a mark of 36-11 (11.25 m) in the triple jump, which put her in first place. Following her was Reed in second as her jump came in at 35-07 3/4 (10.86 m). Needless to say, some underclassmen are getting the job done for Western, and they only continue to get better each meet. Also looking ahead, head coach Nick Maas only had good things to say, “We still have some things to learn about meet day preparation, but we are young and the group is eager to learn. They are really coming together as a team and trusting each other more every day, which is a great sign of team
growth. During the last few races, the whole team was surrounding the track and cheering. Next week, we should have the full roster competing with many in their normal events." Expect only the best from the Leathernecks as everyone is excited to get back to business. Coming back from break is an exciting time all around, and as of now, the season is in full swing from here on out. The Leathernecks won’t get another off week until transitioning into outdoor season, where they’ll only have a twoweek gap which includes spring break. Western will have two back-to-back meets in February, and then round off the regular indoor season in Champaign Illinois when they travel to the University of Illinois for the annual Orange and Blue Invite. It gets a lot tougher for the Leathernecks moving forward, but for now they’re just going to take it one meet at a time, and continue building as a team. Look for an exciting meet this Saturday when they head to their cross-state rivals over at EIU. The meet is set to start at 10 a.m. that chilly morning. Twitter: bradjp08
Elliot carries the torch Monday, August 21, 2017
By Mat McClanahan senior staff
It feels like yesterday, the once Leatherneck head coach Bob Nielson turned his back on the Leathernecks after a trip to the playoffs to be the head coach of conference foe - University of South Dakota. Now, just two years later, the Leathernecks are facing adversity once again. Head coach Charlie Fisher is leaving Macomb, Ill. to take on a role as the pass game coordinator and wide receiver coach at Arizona State University to team up with NFL legend and ESPN personality Herm Edwards. The Leathernecks found their answer to their vacancy in house and hired Jared Elliot, former offensive coordinator. “It’s a dream come true for me, I am so proud to be the head football coach here at Western Illinois,” Elliot said. “I have said this many times, but I do not take this lightly, it’s a great opportunity to lead the rich tradition of Western Illinois football, it’s an honor for me to represent Western, and take the foundation we
have laid the passed two years and move forward.” Elliot started his tenure at Western Illinois University in 2016 with coach Fisher and the Leathernecks have not looked back since. After Fisher left his post, it seemed like a good football mind to take the job. After all the last two seasons, Western has had the best receiver in the Missouri Valley Football Conference (MVFC) and helped push Leatherneck quarterback Sean McGuire to an all-conference caliber season. Elliot has taken the reigns of this program, but nothing is going to change. “The unique thing we have here, comparing to other coaching changes, I have been here, so I have been a part of laying this foundation,” Elliot said. “We put a lot of work in this program the last two years. A lot of the stuff already in place is part of who I am and it’s what I believe in, that’s why Charlie Fisher hired all of us here, we all shared the same vision.”
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VISUAL PRODUCTION CENTER
Jared Elliot alongside Director of Athletics, Matt Tanney on their Jan. 4 press conference.
Necks handle Mastadons in OT By Becca Langys courier staff
Kobe Webster hits a defender with a crossover on the three point line.
PEDRO AVILA/PHOTO EDITOR
MACOMB IL. - The Western Illinois men’s basketball team took on Indiana University Purdue University, Fort Wayne on Wednesday in Western Hall. The Leathernecks successfully added another win to their record in a highintensity game that went into overtime. Due to multiple successful shots by IUPU, Western quickly fell seven points behind the Mastodons. Western quickly picked up the pace and eventually clawed their way back, in large part due to a few successful shots from junior center Brandon Gilbeck, eventually surpassing the Mastodons due to a clutch 3-point shot made by senior guard/forward Dalan Ancrum. The Leathernecks did not maintain their lead for long, eventually fallling behind once again due to a successful IUPU 3-point shot that put the score at 16-15. The Mastodons ran with the lead, and scored an additional ten points before Western had a chance to put any more points on
the board. The Leathernecks found themselves down double-digit points after the offensive drought. As the first half continued, the Leathernecks attempted to claw their way back into the lead, but were never able to successfully overcome the Mastodons. The half finished with a score of 26-36, IUPU in the lead. As the second half of this matchup rolled around, both teams were ready to come out and fight for the win. The Leathernecks put points on the board first, thanks to a successful shot made by Ancrum. The shot shot did little in sparking a Leatherneck comeback. Throughout the majority of the second half, both the Mastodons and the Leathernecks were successful in their shots. The Leathernecks remained around ten points behind the Mastodons for a sizeable portion of the second half.
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