The Illinois Coaching Staff

#79      

Dan

Dan
Admin
Dan
"New #illini assistants George McDonald and Kevin Kane meet the media via Zoom call Monday and Tuesday, respectively. We catch up with Bret Bielema on Wednesday." -JWerner247
 
#83      

Dan

Dan
Admin
Dan
George McDonald: Everything I am as a person, some good and some bad, it's all traced back to Illinois.

WRs coach George McDonald said he thought Illinois needed to hire Bielema when he first saw Bielema attached to the job.

George McDonald said Josh Whitman is the same as when he was a teammate, except he's lost a lot of weight. Gave each other a big bear hug when he interviewed.

George McDonald to @BobAsmussen: "You covered me when I was playing!"

Here's the big takeaway from George McDonald's opening presser with the #illini:

This place matters to him so much. It's authentic and very obvious.

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#84      

NJJ871

N
NJJ871
I really enjoyed that interview. Perhaps it's the (as Joey Wagner puts it) authentic and obvious way he cares about the UofI, but he's someone that I'm proud to have representing the University.
 
#85      

Deleted member 747867

D
Guest
Deleted member 747867
illini80 said:
So true. It’s been easier not having any expectations. Not fun, but easier. I’m not over board just yet until we see some results on the field and a full recruiting class, but there is more reason to be optimistic than there has been since Zook was hired.

I believe we hired the right guy. It just has to all come together and it could be a great ride.
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Good point about holding judgment "until we see . . . a full recruiting class." A large portion of the incoming recruiting class was signed by the previous staff. This is not to downplay any student-athlete headed to ILL, but rather, to point out that BB & Co's first "full recruiting class" will not come until after next season. So, hopefully, on field improvement will be demonstrated next season (regardless the W-L record), such that future recruits can see that the program is on an upward trajectory and be excited to join it.
 
#86      

Boomauer

Boomauer
Boomauer
Just wondering...anyone know if any of the former coaches have found employment yet? Will be interesting to see if and where they land jobs.
 
#88      

Dan

Dan
Admin
Dan
Kevin Kane came out with the "sleeping giant" phrase for Illinois.

Kevin Kane on using linebacker legacy in recruiting: "You have to. You stand on the shoulders of giants and those guys are giants."

Kevin Kane: There's a lot of great young coaches and experience on this staff already.

Kevin Kane's dad is a beer salesman. Said his plan was to join the family business. Then he went to Wisconsin with Bret Bielema in 2008. That changed it all.

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#91      

CV Illini

C
CV Illini
Ubermensch said:
This is a hell of a coaching staff.
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what took you so long seinfeld GIF
 
#93      

mhuml32

mhuml32
Cincinnati, OH
mhuml32
"Sleeping giant" is the ultimate buzzword on this board. I'm already ready for the posts of "Can we extend Kane and promise him to be Bielema's heir apparent?" in 2022.
 
#98      

Deleted member 747671

D
Guest
Deleted member 747671
This coaching staff is so impressive. We went from having nobody on the defensive staff that was qualified to call a defense to 3 guys that could've easily been hired as our DC. That's on top of a HC who was himself a great college DC. I am blown away by this staff. The last 2 announcements of the AHCs could've easily been the first 2 announcements as OC and DC and people would've been excited. I'm excited to see how HS recruiting shapes up and what we can do on the field in year 1. I think BB took this job with the intention of competing right away.