The 200 Level with Mike Carpenter: A Fighting Illini Fan Podcast

Mike Carpenter welcomes back old friend (and the titular chef of this episode title) Harry Black for some good conversation about sports, food, cartoons, and life in general.

Mike Carpenter speaks with Chicago Sun-Times columnist Steve Greenberg about covering sports during a pandemic, the current state of sports media, and Illinois basketball.  Oh, and this guy named Kofi Cockburn declared for the NBA Draft . . . so Carp hits on that, and what it means for next year's Illini team.

Mike Carpenter welcomes back Isaac Ambrose for a conversation about sports, the lack thereof, and life during a pandemic.  Carp also looks at next year's basketball roster and possible grad transfer additions, the Nancy Fahey extension, the likelihood of Lovie's extension, and the local media landscape.

Mike Carpenter catches up with Harry Black and Trevor Vallese while in the throes of a pandemic.  Harry fills us in about his experiences at ESPN during COVID-19, and Trevor and Carp share grocery shopping tips.

Mike Carpenter interviews one of his all-time favorite Illini, Cory Bradford, in a wide-ranging discussion including: the 1999 Big Ten Tournament run, Lon Kruger, Bill Self, the Seton Hall game, the Arizona rivalry, Frank Williams' greatness, Robert Archibald, and much more.

On the 15th anniversary of the greatest Illini basketball game ever, Mike Carpenter reflects on the classic win over Arizona.  Before he takes a trip down memory lane, he reacts to the Alan Griffin and Tevian Jones transfers.

As we live in a reality without live sports, Mike Carpenter decides to take a trip down memory lane on the 19th anniversary of Illinois' 80-64 win over Kansas in the Sweet Sixteen.  From the heroics of Frank Williams to the overall bruising nature of that special team, Carp recounts his memories from that year while doing a little play-by-play from the Illinois-Kansas game.

There's no sports to talk about, so we opened things up to the listeners!  Mike Carpenter responds to around 20 questions ranging the gamut from sports to music to movies.  As we go forward in this strange new reality, we look to stretch things out and invite more listener feedback and involvement.