In fairness, I think the defense generally got better as the season went along... 📂 Archived Message Posted by uofi1998 on April 30, 2026, 12:51:42, in reply to "100%" ...but it was not a good unit last year. A-Henry, the DC, needed to go... A-Henry, the personality, did not... but you don't get one without the other. Message Thread: | This response ↓ Football recruiting is looking pretty bleak right now - illini21 April 30, 2026, 8:35:29 Knowles, WR from Texas picked the beloved over TCU. Seems like a good pickup* - JacobRDaugherty June 22, 2026, 11:26:20 His Dad is a former world #1 doubles player, and current coach of world #4 Jessica Pegula* - PDO June 22, 2026, 11:46:07 can we use him to help beef up our tennis program? * - ijustkrushalot June 22, 2026, 12:22:54 I don't think he's eligible anymore* - PDO June 22, 2026, 19:32:12 we have a tennis program?* - bbonb June 22, 2026, 13:19:17 Continuing to deepen our white WR pipeline* - UofIL6 June 22, 2026, 11:30:00 Catch the ball, move the chains, win. I'm happy. - osklister June 22, 2026, 11:44:29 ...Knowles is ranked as the nation's No. 106 wide receiver and the No. 104 WR in Texas.* - osklister June 22, 2026, 12:21:03 He's ranked 104 overall in Texas * - larue33 June 22, 2026, 13:40:49 Now that I can logically comprehend. Thank you.* - DocWalk20 June 22, 2026, 14:04:02 Eh. Original subject line was a cut/paste from the linked article. Whatever. - osklister June 22, 2026, 17:07:55 There’s 103 better WRs in Texas? And only 2 more better outside of Texas?* - DocWalk20 June 22, 2026, 13:04:43 I’m sure it’s a typo of some kind* - OB25 June 22, 2026, 13:22:23 LOL, that's the rankings these guys rely on I guess. Florida, CA?? Plenty of other states too. :-O - osklister June 22, 2026, 13:18:35 Got a commit from a kicker named Ulysses * - jdl June 21, 2026, 14:53:05 Been quite the Odyssey to get our special teams to this level. - osklister June 22, 2026, 12:23:27 are we offering a Scholarship or a Grant?* - bbonb June 22, 2026, 13:21:23 That One Piece giveaway is no longer the weirdest trading card associated with Illini sports - RVA June 17, 2026, 19:38:50 Lol* - illini21 June 17, 2026, 19:43:45 Flipped a 3* RB from Colorado - jdl June 16, 2026, 15:08:40 Hey, I want to go play for fellow Floridian Neon Deon !! Wait, changed my mind. UIUC it is!! - osklister June 16, 2026, 15:18:39 rambling street corner hobo shit. - assassin June 16, 2026, 17:08:11 4 star WR Bennett Konkey announcing tomorrow - illini21 June 15, 2026, 13:50:17 looks like University of Illinois! - assassin June 16, 2026, 12:47:59 I knew it.* - Warrin'_Illini June 16, 2026, 13:11:11 Nice get* - UofIL6 June 16, 2026, 12:49:40 ...assuming he actually ends up here - IlliniSax05 June 16, 2026, 13:06:30 Hey, maybe he transfers in later in his career? JMHO, but your entire roster is one-year only. - osklister June 16, 2026, 13:11:48 yay speed* - illini21 June 16, 2026, 13:02:27 should move us up to 55th and ahead of Maryland for 17th in the B1G!* - ijustkrushalot June 16, 2026, 12:58:12 I thought you were joking. Yeesh.* - Warrin'_Illini June 16, 2026, 13:14:14 That was serious? woof.* - EffinIllini June 16, 2026, 13:30:22 From Geneva, IL. That's Illini Country.* - Warrin'_Illini June 15, 2026, 13:57:36 All-time Illini great Jim Klein went to HS there. - osklister June 15, 2026, 16:19:56 240p?? Shirley, you can't be serious. * - illinijohn June 15, 2026, 18:45:53 Bert signal* - OB25 June 13, 2026, 19:40:17 3 star Texas LB. Another outside of the top 1000, but offers are fine. - assassin June 13, 2026, 20:10:21 Is recruiting still looking bleak for us? Lots of three stars with good offer lists. - Warrin'_Illini June 15, 2026, 16:30:23 Brett is on PMT this morning. Haven’t watched it yet. * - harb June 12, 2026, 9:24:46 It was a fantastic interview. * - harb June 12, 2026, 14:06:12 We just added Unity QB Dane Eisenmenger to the 2026 class* - illini21 June 10, 2026, 15:34:38 so is this a signing that comes with NIL? i have no idea how any of this really works* - lcubed June 11, 2026, 8:43:22 I highly doubt it. - illini21 June 11, 2026, 8:44:48 there's gotta be some guys that vanish between spring ball and this fall - ijustkrushalot June 10, 2026, 15:47:57 All 4 commits this week are >1000 national composite ratings - UofIL6 June 9, 2026, 13:45:31 I actually have no problem with the HS recruiting lately. We aren’t capable of much better. - OB25 June 9, 2026, 16:14:02 I always look at the other offers the kids had rather than the composite score myself - bulldogmba June 9, 2026, 14:13:08 I try and look at it in terms of odds and timeline. - ijustkrushalot June 9, 2026, 14:51:21 Agreed, directionally, but never really know what offers are truly committable* - UofIL6 June 9, 2026, 14:17:14 Ryan Paulsen certainly has the offers of a top 1000 guy* - assassin June 9, 2026, 14:16:09 How is his recruiting compared to his time at Wisconsin? I'm going with 8-4 for next year but - Warrin'_Illini June 9, 2026, 14:06:12 I'd be thrilled with 8-4. Every single year. * - LovetheChief June 9, 2026, 14:10:41 Bert signal activated* - OB25 June 9, 2026, 12:40:37 WTH is a “Sladen Shack”?* - DocWalk20 June 9, 2026, 14:07:16 That's definitely something that got a fraternity kicked off campus at some point * - ijustkrushalot June 9, 2026, 14:45:45 Mississippi QB pipeline - jdl June 9, 2026, 13:06:52 MS QB that's more our speed - assassin June 9, 2026, 13:06:21 From Lompati, we traded down about 1400 slots in teh composite, but QB recruiting - UofIL6 June 9, 2026, 13:12:55 I like what i've heard about this kid but obviously it's a longshot he ever plays a down here* - illini21 June 9, 2026, 13:21:43 Obviously. * - illinijohn June 9, 2026, 16:27:06 Indubitably. - osklister June 9, 2026, 16:42:43 Per this site he had a offer from Kiffin - ATL June 9, 2026, 13:14:23 quarterback from Mississippi * - Poldark June 9, 2026, 13:06:17 We seem to be benefiting from Matt Campbell leaving Iowa State* - biclops June 8, 2026, 22:06:49 picked up another JUCO DL - assassin June 1, 2026, 16:48:56 JeffJ had some reporting on our DL players who transferred out (and a former DL assistant) - biclops June 1, 2026, 17:15:00 Illini bloggers love them some run-on sentences* - AintHatin June 1, 2026, 19:28:44 and... ellipses* - Tortillini June 9, 2026, 7:50:28 Nice, 3 years of eligibility too.* - Warrin'_Illini June 1, 2026, 16:50:01 CBS ranks Bielema #25 - biclops May 27, 2026, 18:50:52 have we tried getting the 5 star guys?* - VIV May 27, 2026, 14:10:12 I don't think we're even close to the level of budget needed for those dudes - UofIL6 May 27, 2026, 14:11:34 *Donates $20 more dollars to IFund* Howabout now?* - KingTalkyTiki May 27, 2026, 14:13:58 Right about now* - opossum jenkins May 27, 2026, 15:24:19 Funk soul brotha* - ATL May 27, 2026, 15:56:40 Game times set for non con- UAB 8PM, Duke 2:30, SIU 1PM* - assassin May 27, 2026, 14:08:06 Amtrak for Duke game now purchased* - JeffFrank May 27, 2026, 19:09:21 Chicago to Durham on the train? Brother that is a haul.* - Warrin'_Illini June 1, 2026, 17:17:18 UAB is at 8 PM on a Thursday night? WTAF? - IlliniOllie May 27, 2026, 14:12:34 Did not realize that was a Thursday night. wtf.* - EffinIllini May 27, 2026, 15:34:04 The Big Ten Network indeed does not care about renewals - assassin May 27, 2026, 14:14:35 UAB 8PM, on THURSDAY September 3 - Poldark May 27, 2026, 14:11:36 This post would seem to violate the Prime Directive. - complainant May 27, 2026, 16:13:25 We got a D2 defensive line transfer. - OB25 May 23, 2026, 18:47:19 This new guy sounds promising but the rest were mostly rotation guys - bjl63 May 23, 2026, 20:11:17 new JUCO commit: 3* DL - ATL May 15, 2026, 15:07:34 Still doesn’t play DL… err, um* - DocWalk20 May 15, 2026, 16:01:44 new commit: 3 star LB from St. Laurence - assassin May 15, 2026, 13:23:17 Are things still bleak for us? Seems like we're doing ok.* - Warrin'_Illini May 15, 2026, 14:02:47 results hazy, check again later. i'm also contractually obligated to complain about the DL here* - assassin May 15, 2026, 14:09:26 The new recruits are fine. They still don't play DL, but they're perfectly fine - UofIL6 May 15, 2026, 14:08:43 Indiana keeps rolling. - EffinIllini May 15, 2026, 13:10:06 And I predict he picks Illinois.* - Warrin'_Illini May 15, 2026, 13:55:50 I hate it so much* - illini21 May 15, 2026, 13:37:30 The new JUCO TE we brought in was just rated the #1 JUCO TE in the country - JacobRDaugherty May 14, 2026, 21:57:53 He doesn’t play DL - bjl63 May 14, 2026, 23:15:51 Will he be playing in 2026?* - assassin May 14, 2026, 22:16:14 Yes* - JacobRDaugherty May 14, 2026, 22:44:14 Apparently we offered Dez Bryant’s kid.* - bjl63 May 14, 2026, 18:44:59 Got another pretty solid OL - OB25 May 14, 2026, 9:03:59 I think he will be a better college player than Wagner. * - JacobRDaugherty May 14, 2026, 10:06:53 Only 3 commits but each one is top 600 composite. That's solid* - illini21 May 14, 2026, 9:25:59 Definitely, would love it more if we could find some defensive linemen* - OrangeSox May 14, 2026, 10:05:27 if we settle into something like 12-14 in the Big Ten with a small class I'm fine - ijustkrushalot May 14, 2026, 10:02:10 If we have 12-14 in this range, it's all good in my eyes... hate seeing the talent leave, but... - uofi1998 May 14, 2026, 10:28:02 Nice.* - Warrin'_Illini May 14, 2026, 9:20:17 Potters represent! - DocWalk20 May 14, 2026, 9:18:47 Signed a Juco TE - jdl May 13, 2026, 18:03:22 I’m officially starting to get nervous - snipes824 May 12, 2026, 10:51:28 Is the juice from the recruiters or the size of the bag they can offer? Probably a bit of - voiceofreason May 12, 2026, 16:04:29 I think it’s certainly both - snipes824 May 12, 2026, 16:18:11 I've heard him speak at his press conference when hired and two radio interviews with local media - illini21 May 14, 2026, 7:28:42 I like Roger Cooper though* - JacobRDaugherty May 14, 2026, 7:44:07 New to being an Illini fan??? - osklister May 12, 2026, 11:23:48 New to posting on this board without a * ?* - DocWalk20 May 12, 2026, 12:47:00 He puts a "*" on his posts that contain messages, because...well... osklister. - KingTalkyTiki May 12, 2026, 15:44:46 SJO lineman Cameron Wagner to Oregon* - illini21 May 11, 2026, 12:14:25 Pretty sure he said "my home for the next 4 years..." How many people do NOT transfer today? - osklister May 12, 2026, 9:42:02 Ben Miller continues to impress* - opossum jenkins May 12, 2026, 5:05:21 Bart? * - larue33 May 12, 2026, 10:53:00 Yes* - opossum jenkins May 12, 2026, 15:37:46 This really isn't because we didn't get him, I don't understand the ranking and offers - JacobRDaugherty May 12, 2026, 10:44:15 Meh. At least in this case. In no way do we measure up to Oregon* - bjl63 May 12, 2026, 10:26:15 We actually got a commitment and it looks like a pretty good one. - OB25 May 9, 2026, 11:49:44 That looks solid… and presumably a fit for the new scheme * - uofi1998 May 9, 2026, 12:51:58 Nevermind. My brain is faulty. * - uofi1998 May 9, 2026, 12:52:55 Nice. Thought he’d end up at Iowa* - illini21 May 9, 2026, 12:31:51 Bert’s long time chief of staff heading to Oklahoma. - uofi1998 May 4, 2026, 21:52:17 He’s deputy athletic director at OU so seems like a step up - CanHartlebHireSnider May 9, 2026, 13:22:01 Bert on recruiting - illini21 May 1, 2026, 15:41:07 While I agree that spending big on HS players in football seems awfully risky… - OB25 May 1, 2026, 15:51:06 I can't imagine trying to be head ball coach in the NIL era. Basketball at least has much smaller - Warrin'_Illini May 1, 2026, 15:49:33 I'm disappointed in in state recruiting this class - Poldark May 1, 2026, 15:43:37 This is the deepest in-state class in like forever. Pretty much confirmed we have no $$* - UofIL6 May 1, 2026, 16:17:38 #InBretITrust* - ATL May 1, 2026, 15:42:17 On the flip side, I was just thinking this week about how we've gone 19-7 with two bowl wins - Blazer April 30, 2026, 16:44:32 Hard to trust the plan on the defensive front, though - bjl63 April 30, 2026, 17:01:26 Definitely agree there is reason for concern - Blazer April 30, 2026, 17:17:46 I do have confidence the offense will be pretty good - bjl63 April 30, 2026, 17:21:37 IDK how good Angelo McCullom is, but... - uofi1998 April 30, 2026, 17:06:15 He went to Texas a&m - snipes824 April 30, 2026, 17:29:14 Lost another to S Carolina. I’m not as upset at losing these guys - bjl63 April 30, 2026, 17:39:08 I think we’re gonna get a really good education on how our success in 2024 and 2025… - opossum jenkins May 12, 2026, 15:45:04 I fear you may be right to some degree - bjl63 May 12, 2026, 15:49:41 I think we screwed up and had used all our budget by the time those guys started jumping ship. - OB25 April 30, 2026, 18:22:17 Then we didn't have much budget (which is a different issue)* - UofIL6 April 30, 2026, 18:35:40 100p* - UofIL6 April 30, 2026, 17:57:59 Agreed* - snipes824 April 30, 2026, 17:50:39 The secondary will be rendered useless - bjl63 April 30, 2026, 17:18:41 I was kind of thinking about our lack of draft picks - CanHartlebHireSnider April 30, 2026, 16:47:08 He's earned a ton... - uofi1998 April 30, 2026, 16:46:53 Agreed this offseason has been a real head scratcher - Blazer April 30, 2026, 17:19:44 real quick roster glace... I have 92 players who could be back next year (with a 5 in 5 rule) - ijustkrushalot April 30, 2026, 14:25:54 put another way, we have 73 guys that could have 2+ years with the program after this year - ijustkrushalot April 30, 2026, 14:30:19 The argument would be received a better if our top targets weren't (seemingly) all going elsewhere* - uofi1998 April 30, 2026, 16:36:27 Let's see how it goes this year. I was a much bigger Aaron Henry defender - JacobRDaugherty April 30, 2026, 8:44:12 It's easier to apply hindsight a few months removed - OrangeSox April 30, 2026, 10:00:06 Also the “first 3 games” included western Michigan and western Illinois - snipes824 April 30, 2026, 12:46:27 The score belied the actual run of play in the Duke game.* - uofi1998 April 30, 2026, 12:47:56 100% - snipes824 April 30, 2026, 12:50:04 In fairness, I think the defense generally got better as the season went along... - uofi1998 April 30, 2026, 12:51:42 Not sure there will ever be a season where we face a gauntlet of QB’s like we did in the first 8 gms - OB25 April 30, 2026, 13:21:17 We faced 2,7,9,13,19,20 in SP+ offense last year - CanHartlebHireSnider April 30, 2026, 14:47:54 I honestly thought the offensive and special teams were worse in the Wisconsin game* - JacobRDaugherty April 30, 2026, 18:27:45 I can’t complain a bit about what Bret has done to make us relevant again - bjl63 April 30, 2026, 14:37:00 I feel like 1 bad year in the current climate hurts a whole lot worse than it used to... - uofi1998 April 30, 2026, 16:37:47 This. EXACTLY. Prior to Bertie-Bert: Zooker, Beckhead, Cubit, Lovie. - osklister April 30, 2026, 16:31:57 For the record, I was a bigger defender of Henry than the board then. I thought he was fine - JacobRDaugherty April 30, 2026, 11:57:09 I also don’t really think Aaron Henry is going to be the difference in our recruiting. - OB25 April 30, 2026, 10:16:46 None of this makes any sense to me except that our resources are being diverted to basketball. - uofi1998 April 30, 2026, 10:32:30 as it should be...money goes further in bball and we actually have a chance at a chip - digs April 30, 2026, 16:48:28 Doesn't seem like something Josh would do * - jdl April 30, 2026, 11:47:23 I don't disagree... but donors put their money where they want to. - uofi1998 April 30, 2026, 12:23:39 I'm sure there's some built in historical bias there - jdl April 30, 2026, 12:39:54 I could also see it as in basketball, it feels like your money has more of an impact - IlliniOllie April 30, 2026, 12:54:15 So are we just bad at recruiting? - AintHatin April 30, 2026, 11:50:31 Last year's class was the best in a long time - jdl April 30, 2026, 11:59:43 I have to think the significant amount of staff turnover had some impact. - uofi1998 April 30, 2026, 12:12:31 I think I heard Bret say the coaching assistants do less recruiting now - jdl April 30, 2026, 12:41:37 JMHO, but closers-people who negotiate the final NIL deals. Eh. Here we are. - osklister April 30, 2026, 13:21:30 Maybe we can convince Mark Cuban to enroll at Illinois* - uofi1998 April 30, 2026, 13:22:08 Hey, all he's got right now is some kind of certificate from a Juco in Indiana. - osklister April 30, 2026, 16:33:51 we've all forgotten with how mostly disappointing the portal and this class so far are - assassin April 30, 2026, 11:57:38 Don't think this new defensive staff is going to help with recruiting at all - illini21 April 30, 2026, 8:46:39 IMO the scheme change is 100% out of desperation - bjl63 April 30, 2026, 11:29:06 Bret doesn't exactly hide his disdain publicly for the amounts others get to spend... - uofi1998 April 30, 2026, 12:15:17 I think Thomas and Bradford can be plus recruiters. I am still high on Archie and Parker. I think - JacobRDaugherty April 30, 2026, 9:53:59 « Index   Searching