CHICAGO — Joey Gelman was certain Brett Lerner was going to be a sports journalism star.
Whether Lerner was writing or broadcasting on the radio or television, the 20-year-old University of Illinois student who died in a car accident Friday night had "it."
"He was really making strides, really making headway in the industry, not just through student outlets," said Gelman, 22, of Bucktown. "It's tough to see one of our own not see his dream."
Gelman, a U. of I. senior and Francis W. Parker School graduate, honored Lerner on Monday night during the Illini Drive radio show, which he has hosted for the past two years. Lerner, of Buffalo Grove, and Curie graduate Daniel Collins are Gelman's co-hosts.
Monday's 'Illini Drive' program on WPGU was a tribute to Lerner:
The Illini Drive show usually airs from 6-7 p.m. in Champaign, but it was delayed to a 7 p.m. start so the hosts could attend Lerner's funeral in Long Grove on Monday. The 65-minute extended show Monday night featured current and former U. of I. journalism students talking about Lerner's dedication to the business and his promising future. A few times, the hosts and guests broke down in tears.
"My voice probably cracked a couple times within my opening bit I had on him," said the senior Collins, 24, of Gage Park. "I believe we did pretty well throughout the show because that's what Brett would want us to do."
Lerner, who had stints with the Big Ten Network, ESPN C-U, Illini Productions and The Daily Illini student newspaper, died in a car accident on his way to a high school football assignment Friday night outside of Urbana-Champaign.
"He was driving to work," Gelman said. "We do that every day covering what we love in sports journalism. He was doing what he loved and what we all love to do."
Gelman said he's received countless messages on Facebook and Twitter after the show.
"I think we did it justice," Gelman said. "It's really been difficult for all of us, but doing the show I think will help us moving forward."
Said Collins: "I'll never forget my radio partner, Brett Lerner."
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