UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS

Mike Small has been flattered by the notion he should be the next athletic director at Illinois — something he’s heard several times since Mike Thomas was dismissed in early November. The Illini men’s golf coach sees that possibility as an interesting challenge. Just not one he’s looking for at the moment. There’s more he wants do as a coach of the No. 1 team in the country and personally with his own professional career, in which he’s trying to make it on the Champions Tour. “I’m a coach first. I’m not interested in that, to be honest with you,” Small said Monday night as the guest on “The News-Gazette SportsPage” at the Esquire Lounge. “It’s a change in lifestyle I’m not ready for. It would be a challenge — something fun to tackle — but right now in my career and my life I have bigger things I want to do personally and professionally. “I’m confident this university will get a quality person (at athletic director). I’m excited to see who it is and go work for them every day.” -Scott Richey, The News-Gazette, Read More