Walter Young
Illinois Football Recruiting Thread
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I'd put Alvarez in front of Fry if order matters.
Nonetheless, what Bret is doing is amazing and I love it, but using your program comparatives also means that is has to lead to long-term, sustained success. The jury is still out on that if you will. Alvarez and Fry changed those programs so much so that they have been routinely successful ever since.
altgeld88
- Arlington, Virginia
I'm confident that if Bret stays the culture he has built will persist and we'll prosper. To the heights that Alvarez and Fry attained consistently? Perhaps not b/c it's an 18-team conference with stiffer competition in a much more competitive overall D-1 landscape.
Good observation. On the other hand, I am of the opinion we also have more upside than Wisconsin or Iowa. If, and it's a huge if, if we would ever pull Chicagoland and the Chicagoland "audience" our way in a more significant proportion than current level, our potential is enormous.
SuperMetroid
- Evanston
everything except the misspelling of Ayo’s name.
agree
it’s never been done really since the early 1960’s, but the potential is there for us to attract 500,000 new “fans” from metro Chicago if we were to ever start winning 8-9-10 games every year .
it can be done . it’s not impossible .
it’s just not likely given the makeup of the conference now , and the possibility of 2 more strong teams getting added in the next 4-6 years.
8-10 wins every year may end up too tough a bar, but a bowl game every year is not. that's where and how you start to build a formidable program.
Name checks out.
Well sure but they can probably sell playing time for one, and two, have ya ever been to LA? It’s beautiful. We aren’t gonna win every battle and that’s okay.
I love what Bret has done and is doing, but it's too soon to even start to compare him with Fry and Alvarez. Years 3-5 of the Turner era were even better than years 2-4 of the BB era in that we won a big title under RT. I do believe that our talent level is higher going into year 5 and our foundation is more solid and I'm highly confident Bret will end up much more successful.
yea, I dont mean a minimum of 8 wins EVERY YEAR, but certainly in that 8-9-10 range often
we need to have a ranking number next to our name to get publicity in the fall, and that means starting out 4-0 or 5-1 often
starting out 2-2 or so in September makes it tough
oh no, what happened with smith
altgeld88
- Arlington, Virginia
I agree with you that it's way early to compare BB with Hayden and Barry. I can't, however, think of anyone else in my lifetime in the BT who has put in motion something that looks like it will retain traction over many seasons. I haven't allowed myself to believe that until this spring. And my OP spoke solely of turnarounds, not long-term outperformance.
To me, the difference between BB and all of his predecessors (including the Zooker and White, who reeled in the best talent for us in my lifetime) is that he has built a solid foundation of sustainably recruiting top talent, establishing a brand, and building a rep of beginning consistently to develop dudes and get them into the League. Zook was a monster recruiter but couldn't coach his way out of a paper bag, let alone be a competent CEO of a coaching staff. Turner had no interest in recruiting after a brief flurry, which is why 2003 was such a disaster. Frankly, I was stunned that Zook could salvage that train wreck in a mere three seasons.
But BB is the whole package, residing in a sweet nexus of maturity, wisdom, swagger and energy. And, as Rod Tidwell would say, I dig that about him. (Thank goodness he's not hanging on by a very thin thread.
)texillwek
🔶🔹🔸🔷
Forever my GOATI agree with you that it's way early to compare BB with Hayden and Barry. I can't, however, think of anyone else in my lifetime in the BT who has put in motion something that looks like it will retain traction over many seasons. I haven't allowed myself to believe that until this spring. And my OP spoke solely of turnarounds, not long-term outperformance.
To me, the difference between BB and all of his predecessors (including the Zooker and White, who reeled in the best talent for us in my lifetime) is that he has built a solid foundation of sustainably recruiting top talent, establishing a brand, and building a rep of beginning consistently to develop dudes and get them into the League. Zook was a monster recruiter but couldn't coach his way out of a paper bag, let alone be a competent CEO of a coaching staff. Turner had no interest in recruiting after a brief flurry, which is why 2003 was such a disaster. Frankly, I was stunned that Zook could salvage that train wreck in a mere three seasons.
But BB is the whole package, residing in a sweet nexus of maturity, wisdom, swagger and energy. And, as Rod Tidwell would say, I dig that about him. (Thank goodness he's not hanging on by a very thin thread.
That is about as cool of a commitment video as you can possibly have, narrated by an NBA player - well done!
Mackovic was building something pretty sustainable before he left - we finished 3rd, 1st, 2nd and 5th in the big ten before he left. Plus he had the number pick in the NFL draft in George. would have been a different history of illinois football if he stayed IMOI agree with you that it's way early to compare BB with Hayden and Barry. I can't, however, think of anyone else in my lifetime in the BT who has put in motion something that looks like it will retain traction over many seasons. I haven't allowed myself to believe that until this spring. And my OP spoke solely of turnarounds, not long-term outperformance.
To me, the difference between BB and all of his predecessors (including the Zooker and White, who reeled in the best talent for us in my lifetime) is that he has built a solid foundation of sustainably recruiting top talent, establishing a brand, and building a rep of beginning consistently to develop dudes and get them into the League. Zook was a monster recruiter but couldn't coach his way out of a paper bag, let alone be a competent CEO of a coaching staff. Turner had no interest in recruiting after a brief flurry, which is why 2003 was such a disaster. Frankly, I was stunned that Zook could salvage that train wreck in a mere three seasons.
But BB is the whole package, residing in a sweet nexus of maturity, wisdom, swagger and energy. And, as Rod Tidwell would say, I dig that about him. (Thank goodness he's not hanging on by a very thin thread.
DevILLDawg
- Meredosia, Illinois
Does Indy Illini Fan know about this?
I wouldn't be surprised if this one isn't over yet.
I wouldn't be surprised if this one isn't over yet.
I'll ride with Rankin.... ILL
altgeld88
- Arlington, Virginia
I've maintained that here before, too, and was gently reminded that Mack did so with White's recruits. And it's undisputable that he lucked into getting George, who transferred from Purdue to Illinois (and Mike White), and sat out in '87, solely because Purdue hired option-offense-oriented Fred Akers from Texas, replacing Leon Burtnett, who had resigned after the '86 season and favored a pro-style offense.
Accordingly, I've moderated my esteem of what Mackovic achieved here, though I certainly enjoyed his teams. '88-'90 were great fun, '91 not as much. I still recall watching Monday Night Football in 1990 and seeing a promo for an Illinois game the following Saturday. We were ranked ~ #5. Memorable.
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OrangeBlue98
Iowa is not in a great spot right now (LvilleILL1)
- Des Moines, IA
Long-term, I'd like to think an average record of 8-4 would be a good benchmark for the program. I don't ever foresee Illinois getting to Ohio State levels, but averaging 8-9 wins a season means there'll be a season or two where 10 or 11 wins happens (of course, that also means some seasons with 6 or 7 wins).
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