Chief Illiniwek is poised for his comeback.
University of Illinois student Logan Ponce, chosen last spring by former portrayers of Chief Illiniwek to be the 37th Chief Illiniwek, will dance in a replica costume in the Assembly Hall next month.
University students are organizing an event called "The Next Dance" in conjunction with the Illini football game against Ohio State on Nov. 15.
"It will be the dance everyone knows and loves," said Roberto Martell, UI student and president of Students for Chief Illiniwek, a registered student organization on campus.
Guests, expected to include former Chiefs and other supporters, will talk about the Chief's history. A multimedia presentation is also planned.
Organizers have not chosen a start time yet, pending the announcement of the game's kickoff, but they envision the Nov. 15 event as "a rallying point for the Illini Nation," Martell said.
"It's very exciting to see such support," Ponce said. "We've been planning a comeback performance for a while. This will provide a great, same-day atmosphere for the game."
Students announced the details at a campus press conference in front of the Alma Mater on Thursday.
Standing about 10 feet from the press conference, Bill Cook of Champaign quietly held a sign of protest.
"The university says the students have freedom of speech, but allowing them to rent out the space and allow these antics to return to their points of origin is outrageous," he said.
Cook was arrested in early 2002 over his protest of the Chief at a UI
basketball game at the Assembly Hall. He was convicted of resisting arrest and sentenced to probation.
Chief Illiniwek is "no longer the symbol of the university, but it seems like the university is sanctioning this" by allowing them to rent the space, he said.
Citing the students' right to freedom of speech, UI spokeswoman Robin Kaler has said the university has retired the Chief and is not supporting the event.
Students or groups associated with the university can rent the Assembly Hall, according to Kaler.
The last official appearance of Chief Illiniwek was on Feb. 21, 2007, at a men's basketball game at the Assembly Hall. A month later, the University of Illinois Board of Trustees voted to end the use of American Indian imagery, effectively retiring Chief Illiniwek.

The board's decision removed the university from the NCAA's list of universities subject to its sanctions on American Indian imagery. The NCAA's policy, issued in August 2005, prohibits postseason competition events at schools that have "hostile or abusive" racial, ethnic or national origin mascots.

 When asked whether the event makes the university in or out of compliance, NCAA spokesman Bob Williams said, “We are currently in contact with the U of I to determine the facts associated with this issue.”