Football Recruiting Spotlight - Jamarrion Harkless
Steve Sturm, IlliniGuys Football Analyst
June 16, 2022
Jamarrion Harkless was the biggest, and best, catch of the recent recruiting weekend.
Football Recruiting Spotlight - Jamarrion Harkless
Steve Sturm, IlliniGuys Football Analyst
June 16, 2022
Jamarrion Harkless was the biggest, and best, catch of the recent recruiting weekend.
Underwood Convinced Baylor Transfer Matthew Mayer’s Potential Hasn’t Peaked
Illinois head coach Brad Underwood said Wednesday he feels new forward Matthew Mayer has yet to reach his potential development despite being a highly attractive transfer portal signing.
By Matt Stevens - IlliniGuys Staff Writer
June 15, 2022
(Cover photo courtesy Trevor Ruszkowski/USA Today Sports)
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. -- Whether it’s been while recruiting him years ago as a high school prospect, seeing him on the opposing sideline two years ago in Indianapolis or now, Brad Underwood says he’s always been convinced of two things about Matthew Mayer.
Illinois' newest signing out of the transfer portal is a player Underwood has coveted for several years going back to when he was a Top 100 prospect out of Westlake High School in Austin, Texas. However, despite being on preseason All-Big 12 teams along with preseason Naismith and Wooden Award watch lists before the tip of the 2021-22 season, the Illini head coach is convinced the 6-foot-9, 225-pound forward still has the potential to improve his overall game in his final season of college basketball in Champaign.
“I think it’s about continuing to become that guy who is a consistent 40 percent from three,” Underwood said. “I think we have the opportunity to get him those looks and him potentially being a focal point of what we want to do on that end will help him grow in those areas as well.”
Football Recruiting Spotlight - Cal Swanson
Steve Sturm, Football Analyst
June 15, 2022
Illinois' football staff had fans roaring with delight with their first three additions in their recent recruiting weekend.
Illini Golf Programs Feel Atkins Home Course Can Be Future Championship Site
Illinois officials have pointed toward the newly opened Atkins Golf Club as a future Big Ten Championship and NCAA Regional host facility.
Matt Stevens, IlliniGuys Staff Writer
June 14, 2022
URBANA, Ill. -- Mike Small has experienced as a player the feeling of winning a championship on a home course and now has the opportunity to pass that along to his current players.
Recruiting: Illini Commit Patrick Farrell "We're not done yet"
Kedric Prince - IlliniGuys.com Director of Recruiting
June 16, 2022
Illinois football recently picked up four verbal commitments, keeping them among the nation's best in 2023.
Nathan Guinn Gamble of Traveling 1,000 Miles to Illini Camp Pays Off With Scholarship Offer
Nathan Guinn, an unrated 2023 tight end prospect from Vero Beach (Fla.) High School, receives scholarship offer after an impressive showcase camp performance.
Matt Stevens, IlliniGuys Staff Writer
June 13, 2022
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. -- It’s not typical for a player entering his senior season to travel over 1,000 miles to an open college camp in the hopes of securing a scholarship offer from that program.
Recruiting: Thomas Haugh Plans an Illinois Visit After Zoom Meeting
Kedric Prince - IlliniGuys Director of Recruiting
June 13, 2022
The big man search for Illinois is not over.
Recruiting: James Brown Still Soaring this Summer
Kedric Prince - IlliniGuys Director of Recruiting
June 12, 2022
St. Rita High School in Chicago is loaded with basketball and football recruits these days.
Did Vegas Get the Over/Under Right with Illinois Football?
Zain Bando, IlliniGuys Student Correspondent June 12, 2022 The […]
Recruiting: Spotlight on Illini Commit Rico Jackson
By Steve Sturm - IlliniGuys Football Analyst
June 11, 2022
Bret Bielema and his staff put together a huge recruiting weekend last week and it produced a bumper crop of commitments. The first one pulled the trigger just about as soon as he got off the plane in Champaign, so I'll start with him. Rico Jackson of Fort Lauderdale is the first offensive lineman from the area to choose the Illini, but taking a player of this caliber is a no-brainer. Jackson is early in the recruiting process yet already has at least ten high major offers, including a reported offer from Michigan.
What does he bring to the Orange and Blue?
Recruiting: Illini Women Add Much-Needed Size
By Kedric Prince - IlliniGuys.com Director of Recruiting
June 10, 2022
Former Illinois basketball coach Nancy Fahey and her staff knew their lack of size was a problem for them. Assistant coach John Patterson left the states to find one.
Liisa Taponen is 6-foot-5, strong with a great upside, but, more importantly, she will be able to rebound and make layups.
Patterson shared with IlliniGuys previously, "It's not a secret we need size badly. We recruit players in the states; we do well, but in the end they pick other programs. I spent a lot of time out of the states, and found Taponen. She's strong, and doesn't really know how good she can be."
Recruiting: Spotlight on Illini Commit Zachary Aamland
By Steve Sturm -- IlliniGuys Football Analyst
June 10, 2022
(Cover photo courtesy Pittsburgh Sports Now)
Illinois has worn a path to the Hun School in New Jersey for recruits since Bret Bielema took over and they dipped into that talent pool again this week when offensive linemen Zachary Aamland pledged to the Illini. One of the first articles I wrote for IlliniGuys was about Owen Anderson from the Hun School, and I'm having flashbacks because once again I'm having a hard time evaluating their players because of the distinctly different type of competition they're facing. You see, the Hun School has become a football hotbed because it takes guys with low major offers and turns them into high major recruits while in prep school. However, it is still playing the prep school circuit on the Eastern seaboard and the low enrollment and talent level of those schools leads to some crazy results. The Hun School went 9-0 this year with a combined score of 374-63, so when you see the Hun players sometimes winning 11-on-11 battles on some of these highlights, you should keep in mind that they did that virtually the entire season so part of the reason for their success is that they're playing woefully undermanned competition. However, as with my piece on Owen Anderson, I can hardly contain my excitement about this guy because I see the type of athleticism and strength that should translate to the next level regardless of whether he's facing underwhelming competition now.
Recruiting The Portal: Illinois Still Looking To Add Size
By Kedric Prince - IlliniGuys.com Director of Recruiting
June 9, 2022
The Illinois men's basketball program figures it is still one big man away from maybe finalizing the 2022-23 basketball roster.
The Pete Nance situation is puzzling at best. I cannot blame Nance for really looking for the right fit, as this is his last go round.
For those who are members on our IlliniGuys message board, I have shared that Illinois will always have another card up its sleeve.
I wasn't sure there was any steam coming from the Illinois end regarding former DePaul and Western Kentucky big man Jaylen Butz, but sources have confirmed that this is someone who might get added to the roster.
Strategies for the 13th Illini Basketball Scholarship
Connor Cagley, IlliniGuys Basketball Writer June 8, 2022 After […]
Illini’s Dumont de Chassart Qualifies For 2022 U.S. Open
Illinois’ current top player and two-time Big Ten Golfer of the Year selection Adrien Dumont de Chassart survived sectional qualifying to earn a spot in the upcoming 2022 U.S. Open.
Matt Stevens, IlliniGuys Staff Writer
June 7, 2022
Adrien Dumont de Chassart has survived one of the most mentally and physically exhausting one-day challenges in all of golf.
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