Illinois Football Recruiting Thread

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#202      
DeonThomas
With Bret considering hundreds of high school FB players each year, I tap into this thread only occasionally. And I always couple it with a quick peek into the 247 Big Ten Recruiting Rankings. Here's my 2-minute take:

2026: We're at #6 in the Big Ten and we have 37 signed recruits (five 4-stars); USC, Oregon, OSU and Michigan are the top 4; we're ranked #24 nationally

2027: We sit last at #18 in the conference, with just 8 recruits (and only one 4-star); Oregon, Michigan and USC lead the way. MINN is ranked #10 and already has 27 recruits


After losing a lot of guys this past season, I realize we'll probably have a very young team on the field in 2026 and we should see some of these 37 youngsters playing key minutes. But with a semi-manageable schedule this fall and Bret's coaching track record, we're all hoping for at least 7 wins.

QUESTION: Are we deeply concerned about 2027?
 
#206      
therealmiket86
mhuml32 said:
These are the helium cases where we would absolutely despise if they passed an IIlinois commit in the rankings.
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I mean the kid has gotten a ton of offers and just won state in the 100m and 200m so it makes sense. David Hill a prospect I like a lot jumping up to #11 is the head scratcher.

Kids moving up the rankings after a good performance is normal. Trae Taylor is now the number 1 qb after winning the elite 11. People get mad when the kid from Loyola academy jumps to a 4 star after he gets 1 p4 offer and he’s Michigan.
 
#207      
mhuml32
therealmiket86 said:
I mean the kid has gotten a ton of offers and just won state in the 100m and 200m so it makes sense. David Hill a prospect I like a lot jumping up to #11 is the head scratcher.

Kids moving up the rankings after a good performance is normal. Trae Taylor is now the number 1 qb after winning the elite 11. People get mad when the kid from Loyola academy jumps to a 4 star after he gets 1 p4 offer and he’s Michigan.
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There's a sizeable difference between reinforcing a known trait that is correlated to football performance and competing/winning a football event. Konkey's 247 account already listed him as a burner before winning state. He further reinforced that trait in a non-football event. Trae Taylor openly competed against other QBs in specific skills that are directly related to playing his position, not just football.

I'm not surprised nor arguing against his ranking improving. I just find it interesting that this kid has no reported offers 34 days ago and he was not ranked by 247 just 28 days ago, he also has not attending any football camps to compete against other wide receivers during that time, but he is now in the top-247 rankings. It shows the value of his speed, and speed for his position, but this feels like helium watch (Baseball America shout out)
 
#209      
lstewart53x3
DeonThomas said:
With Bret considering hundreds of high school FB players each year, I tap into this thread only occasionally. And I always couple it with a quick peek into the 247 Big Ten Recruiting Rankings. Here's my 2-minute take:

2026: We're at #6 in the Big Ten and we have 37 signed recruits (five 4-stars); USC, Oregon, OSU and Michigan are the top 4; we're ranked #24 nationally

2027: We sit last at #18 in the conference, with just 8 recruits (and only one 4-star); Oregon, Michigan and USC lead the way. MINN is ranked #10 and already has 27 recruits


After losing a lot of guys this past season, I realize we'll probably have a very young team on the field in 2026 and we should see some of these 37 youngsters playing key minutes. But with a semi-manageable schedule this fall and Bret's coaching track record, we're all hoping for at least 7 wins.

QUESTION: Are we deeply concerned about 2027?
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Concerned? Yes.
Deeply concerned? No.

Last time I checked, we were 18th in the B1G in total ranking, but 9th in the B1G in average rating.

The inquirer reporters have mentioned this is going to be a much smaller class than last year, so average rating is probably the number to pay attention to.

Still though, it’s likely to be a step back from last year. Which could be a pivot in strategy to save more money for retention and transfers. Seems like we lost a few pieces we wanted to keep this last offseason. They might want to ensure that doesn’t happen again.
 
#211      
DeonThomas
lstewart53x3 said:
Concerned? Yes.
Deeply concerned? No.

Last time I checked, we were 18th in the B1G in total ranking, but 9th in the B1G in average rating.

The inquirer reporters have mentioned this is going to be a much smaller class than last year, so average rating is probably the number to pay attention to.

Still though, it’s likely to be a step back from last year. Which could be a pivot in strategy to save more money for retention and transfers. Seems like we lost a few pieces we wanted to keep this last offseason. They might want to ensure that doesn’t happen again.
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The perfect man to respond. Makes sense.

TY!
 
#212      
Mr. Tibbs
CFB at the P4 (really the Super 2) level has evolved from a recruit a prep for a 4 (or 5) year experience to a transfer portal deal for 1-2 years.

not that we shouldn’t be striving to sign more highly rated 18 year olds , but Cignetti has proven what is possible if you can evaluate 21-22 year olds properly .

I’m not concerned . it’s a very fluid set of rules now and there simply is no such thing as assembling your roster for 3 years down the road like they used to . It’s now a “ let’s get 9-10 wins now and make the CFP” mindset .
 
#216      
jimbo72
90 days til we're padding up, I'm getting nervous 😓. Season starts in 3 months, wow.
 
#219      
Cook
altgeld88 said:
Actually, Annapolis is worth visiting for the dining at Cantler's Riverside Inn alone.

But, yeah, obvi on the chicks and parties.

My second cousin was a Midshipman at the Academy ~ 25 years ago. At some point the Mids apparently were not performing well in the classroom. Accordingly, the Commandant decreed that all of them were confined to quarters on Friday and Saturday nights for mandatory studying.

You can imagine the effectiveness. My cousin told me they just played video games. lol
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Yes! Love Cantler's
 
#220      
Ander1345
lstewart53x3 said:
Concerned? Yes.
Deeply concerned? No.

Last time I checked, we were 18th in the B1G in total ranking, but 9th in the B1G in average rating.

The inquirer reporters have mentioned this is going to be a much smaller class than last year, so average rating is probably the number to pay attention to.

Still though, it’s likely to be a step back from last year. Which could be a pivot in strategy to save more money for retention and transfers. Seems like we lost a few pieces we wanted to keep this last offseason. They might want to ensure that doesn’t happen again.
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For some it might help to think about it this way... Small 2027 class means they are really liking what we picked up in 2026. Means a lot of time(and money) will be spent retaining what we've picked up in 2025 and 2026.

Wouldn't be concerned unless the results arent there in this season and the next, or if the core players already here are lured away.
 
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