IW Lovie IIRC, Beason, too I think but I don't remember him actually playing for us so maybe he shouldn't count?
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Illinois Football Recruiting Thread
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"PleaseMakeABowlGame" to landing top 50 recruits .... how far we've come in just a few months
Cue "I am the one who knocks" Breaking Bad video clip
Well. Let’s just enjoy the first dimension right now. My favorite show as a kid was The Twilight Zone.
Good grief. I’m not sure I can process this much good news. I’ve been riding an Illini high since the bowl win. Now between the recruiting front and my son getting accepted to Grainger yesterday I’ve been shouting I-L-L around the house all weekend. I’m giddy with optimism for the future. Good times. Thanks, Bret and staff and everyone who’s involved making this possible.Best is yet to come …
We’ve got 4 more guys committed that haven’t even announced publicly yet …
Beason played the last few min of the PSU when he was with us. I remember the Elon story. We were recruiting the young man but decided to go to Elon. I believe he was an O lineman. At that time we were having difficulty getting an O lineman at the time.
If the staff's mindset is the same as many on this board, you're in no worrry.
madillini4
Ozamataz Buckshank
- Millywaukee
Not my best work but f*** it, it’s Illinois
Almost an understatement. Guy is an absolute miracle worker
mhuml32
Gesture of Northern Aggression
Fair to think this. For the first time in the post-transfer era, Illinois is going to have a bunch of commits that blue blood programs are going to continuously recruit to the bell.
Here's why it's different - this upcoming season has sky high expectations. It has justifiable expectations. The staff is returning at about the highest clip possible for the modern game. All of the factors are aligning towards the peak conditions of roster retention. Following the 2026 season is different - we should have expectations that a chunk of coaches are going to be looking for promotions. Lunney is probably taking the next 10 months to prepare for the (hopefully) awesome 2026 offense to push him to top candidate for P4 head jobs. Aaron Henry was already mentioned for the Clemson DC job, not crazy to think an elite year from Illinois' defense could get him head coaching looks. There will be position coaches that will get real looks at coordinator positions such as Jamison and Parker. NIL $ is going to help keep the preps in the fold. Bielema staying here will be another important factor. That said, relationships matter. If someone like Parker leaves, it will hurt the program from keeping him. All of that said....
We absolutely should be enjoying it! I'll just say that stressing about keeping everyone is annoying for some, but is a good sign. Having to fight to keep players is where your program should be to ensure you're bringing in the ideal foundation of prep talent. For example, Kingston Shaw just picked up offers from Kansas State and Michigan State the past few days. It might mean the staff will have to work a little harder to keep him in the fold but it's also confirmation that he's a guy worth keeping committed.
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This was not on my bingo card. I-L-L!!
mhuml32
Gesture of Northern Aggression
Some recruiting tidbits:
- Recruiting at Illinois has been so bad since early 2010's. Just now we are coming out of the wilderness. Just look at the wide difference to where things stood in 2021 compared to now.
- The average 2026 Illinois commit is the equivalent of Brayden Trimble, the best 2025 commit. Think about that for a minute.
- The 2026 class is averaging 11 P4 offers (besides Illinois). The 2021 class only had one player who even had 6 P4 offers (Pat Bryant).
- Recruiting at Illinois has been so bad since early 2010's. Just now we are coming out of the wilderness. Just look at the wide difference to where things stood in 2021 compared to now.
- The average 2026 Illinois commit is the equivalent of Brayden Trimble, the best 2025 commit. Think about that for a minute.
- The 2026 class is averaging 11 P4 offers (besides Illinois). The 2021 class only had one player who even had 6 P4 offers (Pat Bryant).
It seems on retention we have a lot going for us.
1. Lots of buzz right now should be adding to our NIL pot.
2. Bret is in kind of a sweet spot. Perceived to be excellent but not an up and comer that won't be here in 3 years.
3. Were talented but not so overwhelming that kids are doubting they can get on the field.
4. We're talented at every spot. Great players are really only going to reach their potential on good to great teams.
1. Lots of buzz right now should be adding to our NIL pot.
2. Bret is in kind of a sweet spot. Perceived to be excellent but not an up and comer that won't be here in 3 years.
3. Were talented but not so overwhelming that kids are doubting they can get on the field.
4. We're talented at every spot. Great players are really only going to reach their potential on good to great teams.
I care much more about how Biliema and staff value guys than how the so-called recruiting "experts" rank them. Over the last few years, we've had a bunch of 2/3 star guys who ended up producing like 4/5 star guys. If BB really wants a kid and gets him, that's what matters.
Some good points here. It's no secret... this hasn't been a program with continuous winning stability. Far, far from it. It now constantly finds itself in battles with blue bloods with these recruits. But it's coming off of a really good season to build off of, and has a damn good coach. Through all thick and thin, Bielema has proven to earn the trust.
IMO position coaches/coordinators will be the most essential factors.
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This is amazing, thank you
DevILLDawg
- Meredosia, Illinois
Any other year I'd be sounding this alarm...
No secret that we didn't capitalize on 2022 like most of us hoped.
Let's look at what these commits can be reassured by this year...
Defense
All-American Watch
1st Team All B1G X Scott...
Gabe Jacas
All-Conference Watch
Matthew Bailey--shoe in if healthy and !!!! you if you say differently
Miles Scott
Seth Coleman
Offense
All B1G Watch
JC Davis (Potential AA votes)
Luke Altmeyer (Likely 2nd or 3rd team)
Any of the 3 headed monster could have 1000 yards and make an All-B1G
Melvin Priestly primed to make a lower team
On top of all that! This team has a seemingly favorable schedule and the highest floor of any team outside of the blue bloods.
This is why I think we could have holding power with these commitments...
Seth Coleman isn’t back, is he??
illinidarrin
- from parts unknown
It's absolutely imperative to capitalize on this momentum. As excited as we are about this win, the point made earlier by mhuml is maybe more impressive to me. We've raised our talent floor significantly.
Where they going?
Can someone tell Bret that people need to get to bed at a decent hour.
The most important question HCs have to ask is "What kind of kid are we getting and how does he fit into our program?" Nick Saban has talked about this approach where the HC asks questions about recruits' backgrounds, their mentality, etc.
If you recruit kids on the basis of NIL, don't be shocked if they leave for a higher offer, etc.
Late to the game but….
Awesome time to be an Illini football fan on Feb 1.
Incredible recruiting roll. This is fun.
Awesome time to be an Illini football fan on Feb 1.
Incredible recruiting roll. This is fun.
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