Lovie Smith: Our recruiting department led by James Kirkland, Pat Embleton, Nate McNeal and Cam Skelding did a great job
Lovie: Always about starting in state. Florida has been good to us in past and was this year. We wanted to make ground in Texas this year
Lovie: A lot is said about stars. We have our own system.
Lovie: This year, we were able to get two players playing in the All-America Game (Verdis Brown and Calvin Avery)
Lovie: Always starts up front We wanted to add some bulk.
Lovie: Recruiting battles go up until the last minute. That definitely happened with Verdis Brown.
Lovie: Been recruiting Verdis for more than a year. Whatever side of the ball he chooses, we'll play him.
Lovie: Calvin Avery is another good football player. Can make a case that he'll play right away.
Lovie: Jordyn Slaughter and Julian Pearl. Slaughter will play on line. Pearl brings some flexibility to group, whether it's DE, TE and if he keeps growing, maybe OL.
Lovie: Verdis Brown meant an awful lot. Once you get a chance to know Verdis, it's more than a football player we're getting.
Lovie: We were all waiting like you were to announce it. Found out a few minutes before. Exciting times. Pumped up about it.
Lovie: It all starts up front.
Lovie: Early signing period helps us. I'm in favor of it.
Lovie: I didn't know this many players would sign early. First time through don't know how it will play out.
5-6 schollies available
Lovie: We still have some other spots available. We're starting over another cycle. We still feel like we could add more players.
Asked #illini Lovie Smith if he could have a commitment and they could sign in February: "Yes it is"
(Coran Taylor)
Lovie: First order of business is to exhale a bit. Staff takes some time off. Football coaches convention in January and then more recruiting.
Lovie: We recruited St. Louis hard. Sometimes it just doesn't work out. We missed out on a couple guys. Eventually, we'll get some more.
Lovie: MJ Rivers is an outstanding QB. Good size. Strong arm. Athlete. Leader. Great leader in the locker room. The profile we want in the QB position.
Lovie: Great football in Texas. It took us making a commitment that we were going to get in the area. Coach Stoker did a great job down there. We have a lot of ties, a lot of connections.
Lovie: You have to make your own evaluation. You can't go off of someone else's evaluation. We should know exactly what we're looking for.
Lovie: Everybody that we sign, we felt could be a star.
Lovie: I wanted us to have 5 available scholarships for February period, including transfers.
Lovie: Verdis Brown will start out on defensive side of the football.
Lovie: Can't ever have enough CBs especially with spread offenses. Nick Walker gives us a St. Louis kid. Good matchup. Excellent speed, quickness.
Lovie: Could use a DE, LBs, can't ever have too many CBs. QB maybe.
Lovie: Transfer numbers "pretty normal. When you're new to a program, guys will leave and move on." After 2 years, they know whether they're a fit or not. If not, we wish them good luck.
Lovie: A general rule, if you have an athlete like Brown, first place you look to play him is on defense. (Lovie likes defense)
Lovie: We would like to have options on transfer market. Not anticipating any right now. We want to be able add good players to our roster and have a spot for that as often as possible.
Lovie: Kendrick Green, Lere Oladipo and Deon Pate are good football players that we'll add to the mix.
#illini not expected to add anyone else today. Coran Taylor still a possibility to sign in February. Told Illinois is still "all-in" on him.
https://twitter.com/JWerner247
