How Illinois Football Fans Can Fly Out of Champaign During Bowl Season
Somewhat lost amid the hype leading up to Illinois' showdown with No. 1 Oregon last week and the resulting hangover after a 38-9 defeat was this fact: The Illini are going bowling.
Confirmation actually arrived a week ago, in Illinois' 21-7 win over Michigan in the Rededication Game and 100th Anniversary celebration of Champaign's Memorial Stadium, which explains why NCAA bowl eligibility – six wins – for the Illini may have been a bit overlooked. Look, there was a lot going on.
But now that we've all had a chance to stop and catch our breath – and remind ourselves and loved ones that, no, the sky is not falling – it's a good time to consider what bowl eligibility for No. 24 Illinois (6-2, 3-2 Big Ten) means.
For one, it means holiday-season travel for the team, along with all the hassle that comes with it. But given that Illinois hasn't won a postseason game since something called the Fight Hunger Bowl in 2011, those inside the program probably aren't batting an eye – and plenty of fans who will want to say they were in the house when the Illini finally won another will start considering how to make it happen. It may be easier than you think.
Champaign-Urbana residents and other locals often think of anything longer than a road trip requiring a flight out of Chicago or Indianapolis (which, by the way, requires an initial, and subsequent, road trip). But fans interested in following the Illini to Florida (Orlando), Tennessee (Nashville) or North Carolina (Charlotte) – the most current projections – also have the option of hopping a flight out of Willard Airport in Savoy, just south of Champaign.
Last week I traded emails with Andrew Smith, Willard's assistant director of operations and maintenance, who assured that flights out of the local airport would be available to those destinations – through Enovy and Air Wisconsin, subsidiaries of American Airlines – during bowl season.
Two caveats: First, Willard doesn't offer direct public flights to those (or many other) cities. Smith said the airport's commercial schedule currently offers direct flights only to Chicago O'Hare and Dallas-Fort Worth airports. A connection would likely be required for a bowl-game trip.
Additionally, Smith suggests that it's a good idea to start setting up any bowl trip out of Willard immediately, not least because of holiday travel and other eager Illini fans. "Our flights traditionally carry a high load factor, meaning they are often full or nearly full," he said. "I would recommend planning and booking as early as possible to secure a seat."
So if Willard is bustling on a typical day, surely the airport staff can't be enthused about the idea of the additional clamor of bowl season heaped atop their usual loads. Not so, says Smith.
"A big bowl game would likely increase general aviation as well as commercial traffic and would require additional coordination/work, but it would be 100 percent worth it," Smith said. "I can guarantee the rest of the staff feel the same."