Even after 2007 I wasn't sold on Zook as a coach, merely as a recruiter (which was a huge component of success, of course). We never seemed to have complete teams under his leadership, position coaching seemed spotty, in-game decisions often suspect, and he just never seemed confident and in control. I saw him as fundamentally flawed. I hoped I was wrong. And then Beckman made him look like Tom Landry.
That's the answer I expected from anyone on board as a fan at the time. I wasn't walking yet

You're the definition of "long-suffering Illini football fan."