Illini Football 2026

#102      
the juiceman cometh
jmw said:
What you have to lose is that player. Having a freshman show some potential on the field just means he has more offers elsewhere at the end of the season.
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And if you don't play a guy who is good enough to play he's also going to go elsewhere, just for less money.

The other problem is if you don't develop your recruits and then bring in transfers because your recruits aren't good enough, then you have to out-bid other programs for those guys.

At least with a guy who is already in your program you have a relationship and hopefully some good will. This might get you a slight discount. Outside transfers are not giving you any discount.
 
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#103      
Joel Goodson
the juiceman cometh said:
And if you don't play a guy who is good enough to play he's also going to go elsewhere, just for less money.

The other problem is if you don't develop your recruits and then bring in transfers because your recruits aren't good enough, then you have to out-bid other programs for those guys.

At least with a guy who is already in your program you have a relationship and hopefully some good will. This might get you a slight discount. Outside transfers are not giving you any discount.
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that's a bingo!
 
#104      
kmunt09
I don't understand the "hide the talent" narrative.

To those, I ask, what are your options? Forfeit the rest of the season? Play the inferior player in Boyd? Go Wildcat the rest of the season?

Clayton will continue to start, and if Houser comes back, who starts from there on will be dependent on Clayton's performance in the meantime.
 
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#105      
aaeismacgychel
kmunt09 said:
I don't understand the "hide the talent" narrative.

To those, I ask, what are your options? Forfeit the rest of the season? Play in inferior player in Boyd? Go Wildcat the rest of the season?

Clayton will continue to start, and if Houser comes back, who starts from there on will be dependent on Clayton's performance in the meantime.

Even Altmyer had to be slowly phased back in because Paddock was excelling in his absence.
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To be clear I’m not advocating for not playing young talent. I am simply saying that the more game tape of young talent that performs well, the higher their market value will be. And in this NIL market with limited loyalty and cash being king, there unfortunately isn’t zero consequence to playing young talent as being suggested, i.e. I don’t view this as a strict duality of only good or only bad. More this is something where you play the players that give you the best chance to win now or in the future and then deal with the consequences. Every team deals with this- but when you also are on a tighter budget than most, it does make competing narratives to feel more like double edged swords. I mean it’s not like we weren’t raided last year for young talent.
 
#106      
jmw
kmunt09 said:
I don't understand the "hide the talent" narrative.

To those, I ask, what are your options? Forfeit the rest of the season? Play the inferior player in Boyd? Go Wildcat the rest of the season?

Clayton will continue to start, and if Houser comes back, who starts from there on will be dependent on Clayton's performance in the meantime.
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I’m not saying I agree with hiding the talent, but when the question was “what do we have to lose” I think there’s a lot more moving pieces now. And I’m certainly not in favor of playing the inferior player. I interpreted the original question as the opposite. Do we play to win now? Or play the underclassmen, deal with the growing pains during a down year, and play to win next year?
 
#107      
Joel Goodson
jmw said:
I’m not saying I agree with hiding the talent, but when the question was “what do we have to lose” I think there’s a lot more moving pieces now. And I’m certainly not in favor of playing the inferior player. I interpreted the original question as the opposite. Do we play to win now? Or play the underclassmen, deal with the growing pains during a down year, and play to win next year?
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we play to win. and deal with the consequences later
 
#109      
the juiceman cometh
Joel Goodson said:
we play to win. and deal with the consequences later
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This is the answer. This isn't a pro league with a draft. Losing doesn't give you a better shot at bringing in talent. In fact, the opposite is true.

For one, winning means you're going to get more NIL investment in your roster. Whether that's legit NIL from companies that see value in advertising with your players, or whether that's just the kind of NIL that's a method for boosters to funnel money to players.

Second, while money may be the predominant factor in most recruitments, it's probably rarely the only factor. Players want to play for programs that win, and the more you win, the more of a shot you have to land recruits. I imagine that for a similar role, most recruits are taking the program that's demonstrated an ability to win if the money is equal, and may even take less to play for a winner.
 
#110      
CDRUSN
Surround Clayton with a burner receiver like Platt (assuming he comes back in two weeks at close to 100%} along with the elite Dixon and greatly improved Clement, Trimble, and Feagin. Combine that with a running attack featuring Laughery and that big bruiser Barnett, give him some protection, and I could see him continue to grow in skill and confidence each week through the rest of the season. The offense is good enough to get us to 6-6 and a bowl game, if only the defense can step up, make a few third down stops, and rise from abysmal to mediocre. Play defense like they did in the first half against MSU, not the complete train wreck they were in that horrible second half. We have 2 weeks to figure some things out, and put an acceptable product on the field that does not get completely demolished by Oregon.
 
#111      
Joel Goodson
the juiceman cometh said:
This is the answer. This isn't a pro league with a draft. Losing doesn't give you a better shot at bringing in talent. In fact, the opposite is true.

For one, winning means you're going to get more NIL investment in your roster. Whether that's legit NIL from companies that see value in advertising with your players, or whether that's just the kind of NIL that's a method for boosters to funnel money to players.

Second, while money may be the predominant factor in most recruitments, it's probably rarely the only factor. Players want to play for programs that win, and the more you win, the more of a shot you have to land recruits. I imagine that for a similar role, most recruits are taking the program that's demonstrated an ability to win if the money is equal, and may even take less to play for a winner.
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that's a bingo!
 
#113      
therealmiket86
CDRUSN said:
Surround Clayton with a burner receiver like Platt (assuming he comes back in two weeks at close to 100%} along with the elite Dixon and greatly improved Clement, Trimble, and Feagin. Combine that with a running attack featuring Laughery and that big bruiser Barnett, give him some protection, and I could see him continue to grow in skill and confidence each week through the rest of the season. The offense is good enough to get us to 6-6 and a bowl game, if only the defense can step up, make a few third down stops, and rise from abysmal to mediocre. Play defense like they did in the first half against MSU, not the complete train wreck they were in that horrible second half. We have 2 weeks to figure some things out, and put an acceptable product on the field that does not get completely demolished by Oregon.
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Assuming we beat Maryland. Where are the other 2 wins?
 
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