CHAMPAIGN  The folks in the ivory towers don''t usually like to roll the dice, especially when it comes to money.

   If Option A is a guaranteed $400,000 and Option B is a possible $1 million, they''ll usually take the sure thing.

   But two years ago, when even the sure thing wasn''t working, University of Illinois athletic director Ron Guenther decided to gamble. And he picked Bill Yonan to roll the dice.

   "Go," Guenther said to Yonan, "and sell our radio network."

   That sound you hear while driving down Kirby Avenue is the cash register ringing in Yonan''s office.

   In its second year, the in-house Illini Sports Network will make $775,000. That puts Illinois fourth in the Big Ten. Illinois cleared $525,000 in 1995-96. Next year, Yonan is hoping to make $1 million.

   The timing couldn''t be better for the school, which is adding women''s soccer next school year and softball soon after. At the UI''s Department of Intercollegiate Athletics, every dollar counts.

   "I think it''s ahead of schedule," Guenther said. "The value of programming has to do with who''s listening and who''s watching and who''s reading. The value of all the media outlets are increased as the teams are more successful."

   Uh-oh, then a 2-9 football season must be devastating, right? Nope. In that area, Guenther wasn''t willing to gamble. Many of the advertising commitments are three- to five-year deals.

   "As you come to the end of your sales agreements you''ve got to put another proposal forward," Guenther said. "Hopefully, as the proposals are going forward, things are more successful."

   Before Guenther decided to bring the radio network in-house, the school went through a string of syndicators. Raycom, Learfield, TBC and Rasmussen all took a shot at UI sports. None of them paid the school $775,000.

   Learfield couldn''t fulfill its $875,000 bid to the school in 1991.

   Roger Gardner, Learfield vice president and general manager, said his company miscalculated the value of the Illinois network. Learfield asked for a break from the school.

   Illinois reopened its radio rights after a year with Learfield. TBC Sports of Champaign won with a bid of $600,000. After three years, that deal ended.

   If the school had gotten what it was supposed to from the bids, it still might be with a syndicator. But it didn''t work out.

   "It''s almost inconsequential what the number they bid is," WDWS'' Jim Turpin said. "It''s how much they pay that counts. You can bid $900,000, but if you only give the University of Illinois $100,000, they''ve only made $100,000. Here, they''ve made $775,000 for sure."

   Getting into the radio business wasn''t as easy for the UI as flipping on a switch and calling a couple big companies.

   Yonan answered his own ad. Before coming to the UI in 1993, Yonan was associate advertising director for Time Inc.

   He isn''t working alone. Assistant athletic director Warren Hood handles the business end. Sports information director Dave Johnson is responsible for setting up the network.

   "You need to focus on it," Yonan said. "It can''t be just a throwaway job for a current staff member. This whole sponsorship and radio thing, it''s huge in terms of revenue. It''s not one of those things you can take a peek at once in awhile."

   Bringing the radio rights in-house allowed the school to combine it with its sponsorship program and its Fighting Illini newspaper.

   When he started talking to possible advertisers, Yonan found it easier to sell than he expected. Companies liked dealing with someone from the university.

   "I think it''s very important that whoever is representing DIA feel very passionate about the advertising opportunity," Yonan said.

   Learfield''s Gardner said a syndicator can build the same type of feeling for its clients.

   "I believe you can be passionate about a product without being a graduate of the school," Gardner said.

   But Learfield has 10 radio networks to worry about, including five in the Big Ten. Yonan is working with only one.

   When the school took the network in-house, it didn''t set up a radio tower near the Bielfeldt Athletic Administration Building. The UI has a deal with WDWS to produce the games. WDWS also carries the broadcasts locally.

   Both sides are happy.

   Before the current arrangement, Turpin frequently had to deal with unhappy syndicators.

   "The rights holders in the past have bid astronomical amounts of money for these rights," Turpin said. "I don''t think anybody has made any money doing it up until now. It became a rather tense situation between affiliates and those rights holders. They were having a bad time, and they were giving us a bad time. It just wasn''t pleasant.

   "Now, the DIA is making some money. We''re making some money."

   If it''s all working so well, why haven''t other schools taken their radio networks in-house?

   You need someone willing to run it.

   "If this was such a wonderful deal, everyone would be doing it," Turpin said. "The problem is that not everyone has Bill Yonan on their staff. If you''re at Iowa, and you suddenly decide, ''We''re going to take this in-house and do it the way Illinois did,'' you better have a guy that''s experienced in dealing with ad agencies and sponsors of the magnitude of the ones he''s been able to attract. For it to work, it''s up to them to sell the advertising, which he''s done a helluva good job."

   Michigan State went through a bidding process in October and considered bringing its network in-house. But it didn''t have someone on staff able to handle the advertising.

   Minnesota has one year left on its deal with WCCO. The school is looking into bringing it in-house after that contract expires.

   "We''re all in the business right now of looking for additional avenues of revenue," Minnesota senior associate athletic director Jeff Schemmel said.

   Schools also have to consider the costs of an in-house network. Yonan said Illinois will gross about $1.3 million this year. That means $525,000 in expenses.

   Part of that expense, Yonan said, pays the network''s way onto a Chicago station. This year, UI games are on WJJD in Chicago. Next year, The Score is expected to take WJJD''s spot.

   The Chicago market never has been an easy one for Illinois to crack. And even if it had an affiliate, Illini games frequently were bumped by Chicago pro sports.