Customized golf cart debuts for University of Illinois football radio coverage

Yahoo Sports • 1 min read • Latest: Sep 1, 2026, 2:46 PM

Last updated Sep 1, 2026

Golf

Summary

A custom-painted golf cart featuring Illinois team colors and logos will debut during pregame radio coverage this Thursday. Built by Kirk Leman of Leman Paint Works, the vehicle will be used by Hayden Rook to facilitate interviews throughout the tailgate lots at Gies Memorial Stadium. The modified cart was showcased previously at the Mahomet Music Festival. This vehicle serves as a focal point for an expanded 60-minute radio program, which airs three hours prior to kickoff on WDWS and WSOY. The broadcast format includes segments with university police, the Marching Illini, and student ambassadors.

Source Links

Yahoo Sports

Key Details

•Kirk Leman modified a standard golf cart with orange-and-blue paint and Block I logos.
•Hayden Rook will use the cart to interview fans at tailgate locations starting Thursday.
•The 60-minute pregame show broadcasts on WDWS and WSOY.
•The program includes segments with university staff, student ambassadors, and the Marching Illini.

Latest Updates

2:46 PMYahoo Sports — Top of the Morning, Sept. 1, 2026

What they're saying

"
Sep. 1—The sweet ride at the center of our new "The News-Gazette Tailgate Show" drew a crowd at last weekend's Mahomet Music Festival. Credit goes to Kirk Leman, owner of Leman Paint Works in Forrest. He turned an ordinary golf cart into an orange-and-blue thing of beauty. The details are impressive, all the way to Block I logos on the centercaps. "I said, 'If we're going to do this, let's do ...
— Yahoo Sports

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