Illinois Football Recruiting Thread

Status
Not open for further replies.
#2,626      

ILLINIWEK86

ILLINIWEK86
Dick Vitale walks into a bar..
Fisher
ILLINIWEK86
Robinson is the type of recruit that makes a difference in the teams success, even if he doesn't start. Really seems like the type of kid who is going to keep the guys ahead of him working hard. Hell, he might even be the best passer of all the QB's we have on campus next year. Obviously, whoever moves the ball down the field will be the starter. Our o-line however might make passing the ball our only option most of the time next season, and honestly this kid can throw. He might not the ideal size, but at the college level QB's of his size can have a ton of success in the right system.

Should be an exciting QB competition!
 
#2,627      

breadman

B
Herndon, VA
breadman
coryfor3 said:
Coran Taylor: "I like Rod Smith better than Garrick McGee. The hour that we had, we worked on more stuff than I ever had with McGee. We went over a lot of stuff. With McGee, we never went over anything. (Rod Smith) stays in touch with me. McGee barely texted me." #Illini
https://twitter.com/isaac_trotter2/status/961257635629715456

Yikes
Click to expand...

Love the straight shooting this young man is doing. ILLINI nation certainly appreciates it!!

Just finished watching some of his videos. WOW!! Our QB situation is going to be fun to watch.
 
#2,628      

lexwaldez

lexwaldez
lexwaldez
MA Illini said:
You missed the entire point of my post. I was responding to post/article's that I quoted in my posts which had the proposition that ASU commits were holding off until signing day to announce to build excitement for ASU.

The kids can do whatever he wants, it is a tough decision.
Click to expand...

I apologize. I did miss the entire point of your post. :) Thanks for clarifying. My bad. I can't even think of a good excuse. Oh well. My point is that these articles have to get readers and I think everyone reads entirely too much into everything.

As far as today goes, I'm excited to wind up this class. I'm sure many will be disappointed but I think the class is going to wind up being a good one (perhaps not by official ratings, but we're addressing needs and recruiting intelligently). Proud to welcome all the great kids coming into our program! And I am REALLY wanting to finish the coaching searches and get that all announced.

It's been another big year for us. Can't wait for all this to start translating into more success on the field. Welcome to the new Illini that signed!
 
#2,629      

Joel Goodson

Joel Goodson
ties will be resolved
Joel Goodson
ILLINIWEK86 said:
Robinson is the type of recruit that makes a difference in the teams success, even if he doesn't start. Really seems like the type of kid who is going to keep the guys ahead of him working hard. Hell, he might even be the best passer of all the QB's we have on campus next year. Obviously, whoever moves the ball down the field will be the starter. Our o-line however might make passing the ball our only option most of the time next season, and honestly this kid can throw. He might not the ideal size, but at the college level QB's of his size can have a ton of success in the right system.

Should be an exciting QB competition!
Click to expand...

3 is better than 2, or God forbid, 1 (I can count). Feel much better about QB now. Don't think any of these guys will be truly ready come fall, but we are in vastly better shape going forward.

FWIW, I really like Robinson. I think he'll give the other QBs a run. Let the cream rise.
 
#2,633      

Mike55

Mike55
Mike55
Staff not feeling good at all about Merlin. His family pushing hard to keep him in Arizona.
 
#2,635      

mattcoldagelli

mattcoldagelli
The Transfer Portal with Do Not Contact Tag
mattcoldagelli
coryfor3 said:
Coran Taylor: "I like Rod Smith better than Garrick McGee. The hour that we had, we worked on more stuff than I ever had with McGee. We went over a lot of stuff. With McGee, we never went over anything. (Rod Smith) stays in touch with me. McGee barely texted me." #Illini
https://twitter.com/isaac_trotter2/status/961257635629715456

Yikes
Click to expand...

when-i-see-someone-post-a-breaking-bad-spoiler-without-labeling-it-44894.gif
 
#2,636      

Hoppy2105

H
Little Rock, Arkansas
Hoppy2105
Mike55 said:
Staff not feeling good at all about Merlin. His family pushing hard to keep him in Arizona.
Click to expand...

The CBs, the articles, and the fact that we accepted another LB are all strong indications that this one won’t go our way.

If the family wants him to stay home, I think it’s time for us to accept that he is almost assuredly going to choose ASU.

I would love to be wrong, but I’ll bet my beach house he isn’t coming here.
 
#2,637      

South Farms

S
near Ogden & Rt 83
South Farms
The staff was most likely told he isn’t coming here , maybe not definitively , but they know what he said to them . And so they went and offered the lad from Fresno . Now if Robertson has a last second change of heart and dons the orange & blue cap, we oversign by one and the director of player personnel figures out how to make it work .

It usually is pretty easy to find room on the roster and in the class for any 4* or 5* recruit that wants to sign on at the 11th hour .
 
#2,638      

UIGrad03

U
UIGrad03
Everything about McGee—from his interviews, to his demeanor, to his body language, to the product on the field—suggested he was not fully engaged in his role at UI.
 
#2,640      

South Farms

S
near Ogden & Rt 83
South Farms
Lovie says there is one more spot open and they should know soon .

Are they still hoping for Robertson and setting the fandom up for great drama ?

Or should we get off that already and expect to hear about Dylan Wyatt ?
 
#2,641      

Dan

Dan
Admin
Dan
[youtube]Bbi8zgWJxkA[/youtube]
[youtube]KdDyAHR5dpg[/youtube]
[youtube]YiKEJBAS7MQ[/youtube]

Lovie: We have a great product, a great university. We're building on the football field. New facilities. A lot of great things happening to get guys on board.

Lovie: State of Illinois has a lot of great players and great programs. We'll always start there and in St. Louis.

Lovie: Got into Texas this year, and Florida has paid big dividends. Also want to get into Atlanta.

Lovie: 50 of 85 scholarship athletes recruited by us. Moving in the right direction.

Lovie: James Kirkland has spent most of his life evaluating players. Every player we offer, James looks at. He's OK'd them.

Lovie: Pat Embleton does a great job then putting forward how to recruit them. Comes down to how to finish the job.

Lovie: "We have a guy in mind" for last scholarship.

Lovie: Could still add transfers. "We still have options as we go forward."

Lovie: What we would like at the QB position is accuracy but also a guy who can buy time with his feet.

Lovie: I love the early signing period. IN an ideal world, I think you should be able to get married at any time. If they could sign earlier, I think that'd be a good thing.

Lovie: In our system (in pros), we've had some great LBs. If you're a LB out there, we feel good about how we can develop our LBs here.

Lovie: Kirkland, Embleton, McNeal went out and recruiting for us with several openings.

https://twitter.com/JWerner247
Click to expand...
 
Last edited:
#2,642      

Deleted member 649710

D
Guest
Deleted member 649710
With the class now in, I'd say the results are pretty good. Not great, not excellent, but pretty good. Lovie has now stacked two full, pretty good classes in a row. That's a nice foundation for the future.

DEFINITELY an improvement in skill and athleticism over Beckman, Cubit and the last couple Zook years.

NOT nearly as good as Zook's early run of four strong classes. Also, not good enough to compete with the upper half of the BIG. But at least now we've got some decent young athletes. A couple years in the weight room and getting experience on the field should get the team to middling, which is an improvement from doormat status. Slow, but steady improvement.

Now Lovie needs to take the next step, by getting a couple more WINS on the field next season, and pulling in more four-star talent. With a decent base of young talent, a new OC, a key hire with an "in" to an impressive St. Louis talent pipeline, a major facilities upgrade on the way, and offers out to the class of '19 much earlier in the cycle, he's got some cards to play with.

:chief::chief::chief::chief::chief:
 
#2,643      

Dan

Dan
Admin
Dan
[YOUTUBE]HuYRkkRiZvw[/YOUTUBE]
 
#2,644      

ChiefIllini

C
ChiefIllini
I'd like to label this class a B. It feels like we pulled some great guys.

That being said looking at it from the outside, I'd find it challenging to say this recruiting cycle was anything other than average at best. We definitely filled area's of need and our lines are looking set, but the lack of talent is still very evident.

And now that being said, this is still a step in the right direction. Theres maybe a handful of guys that could come into UIUC and recruit top 25 classes, and none of them are going to be our HC. Building from the inside out is a great move. Worried about the LB corp, but if any group of coaches can get the most out of these LB's, its our staff. CB/WR/RB are really weak in this class as well, but our current roster probably lets us take a year off from getting any major players at those positions.
 
#2,645      

Qwiksilvur

Q
Qwiksilvur
ChiefIllini said:
I'd like to label this class a B. It feels like we pulled some great guys.

That being said looking at it from the outside, I'd find it challenging to say this recruiting cycle was anything other than average at best. We definitely filled area's of need and our lines are looking set, but the lack of talent is still very evident.

And now that being said, this is still a step in the right direction. Theres maybe a handful of guys that could come into UIUC and recruit top 25 classes, and none of them are going to be our HC. Building from the inside out is a great move. Worried about the LB corp, but if any group of coaches can get the most out of these LB's, its our staff. CB/WR/RB are really weak in this class as well, but our current roster probably lets us take a year off from getting any major players at those positions.
Click to expand...

Some of this appears to be assistant coach based. What Coran said today regarding McGee is insane, and Paul Williams is rumored to have been let go for recruiting failures as well. It looks like OC Smith tried to correct some of those short-comings as fast as he could. That being said, I don't know what to say about the LB's.
 
#2,646      

Deleted member 649710

D
Guest
Deleted member 649710
ChiefIllini said:
I'd like to label this class a B. It feels like we pulled some great guys.

That being said looking at it from the outside, I'd find it challenging to say this recruiting cycle was anything other than average at best. We definitely filled area's of need and our lines are looking set, but the lack of talent is still very evident.

And now that being said, this is still a step in the right direction. Theres maybe a handful of guys that could come into UIUC and recruit top 25 classes, and none of them are going to be our HC. Building from the inside out is a great move. Worried about the LB corp, but if any group of coaches can get the most out of these LB's, its our staff. CB/WR/RB are really weak in this class as well, but our current roster probably lets us take a year off from getting any major players at those positions.
Click to expand...

I agree with all of this, especially the part about building strong lines. I think we now have some good QB prospects. I would have liked to see a QB grad transfer, a stud LB and a stud WR, but other than that, I think the haul is decent. Rebuilding is going to be a long, slow process, but I think that this is heading in the right direction.

As I've mentioned earlier, the LB position is concerning, and if the recruiting services are to be believed, there aren't many 2019 class difference makers at that position within our natural recruiting area other than Cooper -- and that kid will get offered by EVERYONE.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
#2,647      

Illiniaaron

I
Geneseo, IL
Illiniaaron
I don't follow the football recruiting very closely, but just looking at the Illini's recruiting ranking it looks like we are only ranked ahead of Rutgers in the conference for 2018 by most people/groups that rank classes. I understand the optimism of a lot of the posters here, heck you have to be an optimist in general to still be a fan of the Illini. But what are people really getting excited about? Does Lovie have some kind of pixie dust he will sprinkle over these players to make them better? I want to be excited as much as the next fan but I just don't see it.
 
#2,648      

ChiefIllini

C
ChiefIllini
Qwiksilvur said:
Some of this appears to be assistant coach based. What Coran said today regarding McGee is insane, and Paul Williams is rumored to have been let go for recruiting failures as well. It looks like OC Smith tried to correct some of those short-comings as fast as he could. That being said, I don't know what to say about the LB's.
Click to expand...

I think we went a little too big too often on a lot of guys, especially LB's and it hurt us in the end. We still got guys, but I doubt we were looking to add as many 2 star guys as we did. Being aggressive recruiting wise is how you land talent that pushes you over the edge. I think we should've held off one more year just to get a few more quality mid 3 star guys in here, but im happy with the class.
 
#2,649      

South Farms

S
near Ogden & Rt 83
South Farms
it would be great if we could land the 2 or3 lads from Trinity Catholic that are 4* or highly rated 3*.

We also need to land 2 or 3 or 4 of the Illinois top 10 players .

We really need that dynamic , splashy 4* kid who can become the pied piper and convince other recruits to commit.

We have had some real solid blue collar classes with Lovie. Now we need some pizazz . Would be great if we could get the class ranking in the top 6-7 in the conference. I know the class size is like 13 or so now, but I get it grows to at least 17 or 18 when all is said and done. There seems to be a natural attrition of 4-5 a year even in programs that are stable or with long time coaches.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.