From CBS 2 Chicago:
The mascot will perform for the last time on Wednesday, at the U of I's last regular season basketball game, a news release from the university said.
U of I Board of Trustees President Larry Eppley announced plans earlier to retire Chief Illiniwek single-handedly on Friday, under pressure from Illinois State Senate President Emil Jones, the Daily Illini reported late Thursday.
"The Chief Illiniwek tradition inspired and thrilled members of the University of Illinois community for 80 years," Eppley. "It was created, carried on, and enjoyed by people with great respect for tradition, and we appreciate their dedication and commitment. It will be important now to ensure the accurate recounting and safekeeping of the tradition as an integral part of the history of the University."
Responding to widespread complaints from Native Americans and others, the NCAA in 2005 deemed Illiniwek a "hostile and abusive" use of American Indian imagery and barred the university from hosting postseason sporting events.
Eliminating Illiniwek makes the school eligible to host postseason NCAA championship events.
There's a ghost of a chance the Chief may survive. A lawsuit by two former Chiefs was filed yesterday to keep the tradition alive.
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