Recruiting Thread

[thedoctor]

Can someone give me a summary on Benn, Wilson, Austin, and Hughes? Like what posistions they play, talent level, etc. I never follow this stuff closely anymore.

 

link to illinois prospect list

 

this has profiles of each of those guys.

[Fotop]

In regards to Benn, from the insider articles that I have read the leaders at this point are ND and UI. He still has interest in FSU, and a good visit would certainly help their cause, but in the end I would be surprised if he ends up somewhere besides ND or UI.

 

In regards to Austin, FSU would be wise to stay away. There are some serious character issues with that guy(to go along with a boatload of talent). Some even speculate that the brawl in Miami might have even sparked his interest. I think he is pretty much down to Miami and USC, and I would be surprised if he lands somewhere else.

 

Of the 4 guys listed(Austin, Benn, Hughes, and Wilson), I think UI has the best chance of landing Wilson. He has recently stated that UI and OSU are his clear leaders at this point with UI a slight favorite(can an OSU fan verify if they have even offered to Wilson at this point?). If I were a betting man, I would say that Wilson will be at the UI next year AS IT STANDS NOW. Hughes might follow him, which would make for a nice package deal. Benn will likely decide between UI and ND(as stated above), so they are in good shape with him. I highly doubt they get Austin though.

 

I am getting a little nervous about my Irish. I have a bad feeling that they are going to finish 2nd with a lot of top recruits. They should still be able to pull in a top 10 class(maybe even top 5), but they might miss out on key positions like DT and to a lesser extent LB.

 

If you're worried about the Irish not being able to out-recruit a team that has one big ten win in the past two years, you should be much more worried about the future of the program rather than a single recruiting class.

 

Plain and simple, U of I gets one of those players (Benn, Austin, Wilson, Hughes). There's just too many good teams running at those guys to feasibly believe that UI has a legit shot at landing multiple. I personally think they land wilson, benn and hughes go to ND, and austin goes to miami. But that's just my two cents.

 

FYI, hughes and wilson have stated that they are not a "package deal." They might end up at the same school, but supposedly it isn't a major factor.

[whitesox61382]

If you're worried about the Irish not being able to out-recruit a team that has one big ten win in the past two years, you should be much more worried about the future of the program rather than a single recruiting class.

 

Plain and simple, U of I gets one of those players (Benn, Austin, Wilson, Hughes). There's just too many good teams running at those guys to feasibly believe that UI has a legit shot at landing multiple. I personally think they land wilson, benn and hughes go to ND, and austin goes to miami. But that's just my two cents.

 

FYI, hughes and wilson have stated that they are not a "package deal." They might end up at the same school, but supposedly it isn't a major factor.

 

I am not worried about the UI specifically. I am worried about recruiting in general. I have read a handful of insider articles about ND prospects(Miller, Little, Donald, Benn - to name a few), and they aren't encouraging. ND will still likely land a top 10 class so it is hard to get too upset, but ND was on more top 100 calibur recruits list than any other school at the beginning of the process so to not land the top class would be a little disappointing. I am also a little concerned about the defensive side of the ball. Top offensive recruits want to play for Weis and his offensive system, but the defensive recruits have been a little reluctant to commit.

 

Furthermore, not every recruit views things with the bias optimism that you and I veiw ND with. Just like any team can beat another on any given Saturday, a top recruit can surprise people and pick a lesser thought of school over a traditional power(it happens all the time). From what I have read, UI has a good shot of landing Benn, Wilson, and Hughes at this point(Austin is a longshot). Wilson currently favors the UI, Benn is likely 50/50 between ND and UI, and Hughes is up in the air with 4-5 schools having a decent shot(including ND and UI).

 

Also, I never said that Hughes and Wilson were a package deal, I was just stating that they would be a nice package if they decided to go to the same school, which is a decent possibility since they have many of the same schools on their lists.

[Rex Hudler]

I cannot fathom why a top player would choose to come to Illinois to play football right now. That program absolutely sucks and it doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that Zook isn't much of a coach. All of the Arelious Benn's in the world won't help Illinois compete with the upper echelon in the Big Ten unless something else changes.

[aboz56]

Just wondering how my new sig looks?

[Rex Hudler]

Just wondering how my new sig looks?

 

I like it. Like your avatar better, however. Who is it, by the way?

[aboz56]

I like it. Like your avatar better, however. Who is it, by the way?

Ashlee Simpson, post nose-job.

[He_Gawn]

I wonder if that's her "O" face.

[Spod=Ratings]

Just wondering how my new sig looks?

 

Doing it a year in advance because you know'll he'll be gone after one year?

[aboz56]

Doing it a year in advance because you know'll he'll be gone after one year?

Actually that's EJ's message to Rose....

 

And that's one more year than he'll be playing at Illinois, unless I'm missing something. Go back to recruiting 2 and 3 star recruits, Bruce.

[Heads22]

I'm hearing rumbles that Rivals #96 **** SG P'Allen Stinnett has recommitted to ISU, which would round out a very nice first class for McDermott. a 5*, a 4*, a 3*, and a yet to be determined German.

[WHarris1]

Go back to recruiting 2 and 3 star recruits, Bruce.

 

Ya man f*** all those 2 stars we're landing.

[whitesoxfan101]

Benn and Bussey's team were on ESPNU last night btw. I TiVo'ed it and watched it this morning, and both of them were impressive. Benn's mix of speed, power, and leaping ability make him a sure fire stud at the next level IMO. Bussey isn't a very good QB, but he has great speed (faster than Benn even it looked like) and was knocking people out on defense. I think he may end up as a safety or even an outside linebacker in college, depending on how much weight he can gain.

 

As for the Illini, Justin Bocot from Bloomington is the guy your looking at in 2007. Very talented PG, but his attitude issues have held him back. This year he's SUPPOSEDLY gotten over that because he wants offers from Iowa and Illinois. Bocot is a higher rated recruit than Bill Cole actually, at least on Rivals (Bocot is #8 in Illinois, Cole #10), but he's no Eric Gordon.

[Heads22]

101, you follow recruiting, or so I have noticed. Do you think McDermott can maintain or improve this level of recruiting, which was really never attained with Morgan/Eustachy, even with what should be a downish year coming up?

[Spod=Ratings]

Actually that's EJ's message to Rose....

 

And that's one more year than he'll be playing at Illinois, unless I'm missing something. Go back to recruiting 2 and 3 star recruits, Bruce.

 

Any news on when rose is going to make a desicion?

[whitesoxfan101]

101, you follow recruiting, or so I have noticed. Do you think McDermott can maintain or improve this level of recruiting, which was really never attained with Morgan/Eustachy, even with what should be a downish year coming up?

 

The Gordon thing made me look sooooooooooo stupid (but then again, same went for everybody else) but yeah I do follow recruiting. Even if you guys suck this year, it's only one year, so that's not going to keep recruits away. In fact, a new coach and the chance for PT might help recruiting to an extent, that along with being in the same league as Texas, OU, Bobby Knight, Kansas, etc.

 

The one problem for McDermott in regards to recruiting is that he's young and has never coached outside the midwest or in any major urban areas, which means he's not buddy buddy with the HS and AAU coaches of top programs, which is half the battle in regards to recruiting. I would assume he will start where he knows things and recruit the midwest (and looking at current verbals in '07 and '08, looks like that's the plan) until he can expand his horizons. And that is where winning comes in, if he can get Iowa back to Eustachy levels, he's a young coach with a lot to sell recruitingwise.

 

Actually that's EJ's message to Rose....

 

And that's one more year than he'll be playing at Illinois, unless I'm missing something. Go back to recruiting 2 and 3 star recruits, Bruce.

 

Huh? EJ and Rose will obviously be gone after 1 year, but damn, take it and ignore everybody else. Those 2 could EASILY Carmeloize the Hoosiers.

[Rex Hudler]

Huh? EJ and Rose will obviously be gone after 1 year, but damn, take it and ignore everybody else. Those 2 could EASILY Carmeloize the Hoosiers.

 

While that is possible, let's not get ahead of ourselves. There are sophomores on rosters this year that everybody thought would only stay one year. Nothing is a done deal and making that assumption is a little premature before they have even played their 1st game of their senior year of HS.

[whitesoxfan101]

While that is possible, let's not get ahead of ourselves. There are sophomores on rosters this year that everybody thought would only stay one year. Nothing is a done deal and making that assumption is a little premature before they have even played their 1st game of their senior year of HS.

 

I'd agree 99 percent of the time, but these 2 are 2 of the best guards to come along in a decade, and are top 5 locks. And I'd be saying this even if both went to Illinois btw.

[Rex Hudler]

I'd agree 99 percent of the time, but these 2 are 2 of the best guards to come along in a decade, and are top 5 locks. And I'd be saying this even if both went to Illinois btw.

 

I don't doubt that is what you and 99% of people out there think, but there are way too many things that can happen between now and then that would prevent that from happening. It may happen, but it is far from a forgone conclusion. Hell, Gordon may enjoy playing in his home state so much he chooses to stay. Rose, I don't know enough about, so my guess is he would be more likely to jump right away.

 

But just because a guy is good enough to jump to the NBA doesn't mean that is what he will or should do.

[ZoomSlowik]

I'd agree 99 percent of the time, but these 2 are 2 of the best guards to come along in a decade, and are top 5 locks. And I'd be saying this even if both went to Illinois btw.

 

While that might be true, Charlie Villanueva, LaMarcus Aldridge, Darius Washington and Malik Hairston all probably thought they'd be one and done as well just to name a few. Those guys were rated just as high. You never know.

[aboz56]

Rose is one and done.

 

He's the best pure PG to come out of HS in a long time.

 

If he came out this season, he'd be a top 5 pick, maybe top 2 or 3.

 

Barring an injury or unforseen problem, he'll be playing college for one season.

[nitetrain8601]

Rose is one and done.

 

He's the best pure PG to come out of HS in a long time.

 

If he came out this season, he'd be a top 5 pick, maybe top 2 or 3.

 

Barring an injury or unforseen problem, he'll be playing college for one season.

 

Not really. He reminds me alot of Jason (stop calling him "Jay") Williams. He's not even the greatest guard in his class. I'd take OJ Mayo over him easily.

[CanOfCorn]

While that might be true, Charlie Villanueva, LaMarcus Aldridge, Darius Washington and Malik Hairston all probably thought they'd be one and done as well just to name a few. Those guys were rated just as high. You never know.

 

 

Take LaMarcus Aldridge out of that, he was hurt a good chunk of his freshman season and didn't really help the 'Horns all that much. I don't consider an injury as a reason someone stays for their sophomore season...in other words, if he was healthy, he was gone.

 

And Rex, in response to your comment about why anyone would want to go to Illinois now, since they've only won 1 Big Ten game in two years...that's precisely why. I think there are only four positions on the Illini that are set for next year: Juice, Akim Millington, J Leman, Jason Reda and MAYBE Vontae Davis. I would think every other possible position is up in the air. If you want to play right away with a team that is obviously making strides, this is the team. And don't forget Zook's recruiting ability.

 

I'm not saying, I'm just saying.

[Soxbadger]

There are plenty of bad programs where you can play right away.

 

The question is why do top recruits some times chose to go to an OSU, switch positions, and then wait 2-3 years before ever seeing a down of football?

 

Because that is how you get drafted and make money.

 

Illinois is no where close to being a respectable program. And Zook is no where close to being a good coach. He was not a good coach at Florida and he had talent.

 

How many people get to inherit a Sophmore QB who almost won the heisman?

 

Very few.

 

Then he took that player, and almost destroyed his career. Grossman went from a top 10 pick to middle of the first round, behind Kyle Boller.

 

http://www.centralohio.com/ohiostate/stori...all/726099.html

 

That article was written before Leak ever played a down for Florida. As you can see the strength of Zook was his "recruiting" but unfortunately recruiting is hit or miss. When you have a coach who can not coach, it does not matter what talent you have.

 

If you look at what Meyer has done with Florida, it just shows that Zook will never be a top college level coach. He may be a guy who can lay the foundation with some recruits, but you need some one on the field who understands the game.

[CanOfCorn]

There are plenty of bad programs where you can play right away.

 

The question is why do top recruits some times chose to go to an OSU, switch positions, and then wait 2-3 years before ever seeing a down of football?

 

Because that is how you get drafted and make money.

 

Illinois is no where close to being a respectable program. And Zook is no where close to being a good coach. He was not a good coach at Florida and he had talent.

 

How many people get to inherit a Sophmore QB who almost won the heisman?

 

Very few.

 

Then he took that player, and almost destroyed his career. Grossman went from a top 10 pick to middle of the first round, behind Kyle Boller.

 

http://www.centralohio.com/ohiostate/stori...all/726099.html

 

That article was written before Leak ever played a down for Florida. As you can see the strength of Zook was his "recruiting" but unfortunately recruiting is hit or miss. When you have a coach who can not coach, it does not matter what talent you have.

 

If you look at what Meyer has done with Florida, it just shows that Zook will never be a top college level coach. He may be a guy who can lay the foundation with some recruits, but you need some one on the field who understands the game.

 

We are talking about 17 y.o. kids here. They want to play and believe if they play they will get noticed. I know what you are saying, but if that was the case then programs like Boise State and TCU would never be good. Zook is not a great coach. But he knows what to tell kids to get them to come to his University. If I remember correctly, most of Florida's roster is still Zook players...except for Tebow, of course.

 

Kids want to play...do they want to make money in the NFL? Sure. But they want to play.