Football

For the first time since taking the job, Illinois head coach Bret Bielema was able to show what sets his June football camps apart from his competition and it’s the one-on-one instruction of his staff.

By Matt Stevens - IlliniGuys Football Writer/Analyst

July 13, 2022

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. -- Following his performance over the last two hours at the Illinois prospect camp last month, Ryan Kerscher spent over 15 minutes talking with the Illini offensive coordinator Barry Lunney Jr. 

Did the conversation result in a scholarship offer to the 2023 quarterback prospect from Walsh Jesuit High School near Cleveland? No. 

Was a preferred walk-on offer made? No. 

And maybe the important part of the ordeal, does Kerscher, who enters this 2022 season as the starting quarterback of a proud program that has gone from losing 27 of its last 30 games from 2017-2019 to an 11-3 season that is coming off a 2021 playoff run to the Division 2, Region 5 Final appearance, feel his time was wasted? No. 

"I was actually talking to (Lunney Jr.) a long time after this was all over about what I need to do in order to get a walk-on opportunity at the college level and he spoke with me for a long time about the process and what that would entail for any prospect like myself.”

Illinois athletics director Josh Whitman says a complete overhaul or “dream house scenario” regarding the east and south sides of Memorial Stadium would cost around $200 million. 

Matt Stevens, IlliniGuys Staff Writer

July 6, 2022

Photos courtesy of Craig. Pessman/University of Illinois athletics department

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. -- Fans should not expect any major renovation projects around Memorial Stadium to start anytime soon. 

By Steve Sturm - IlliniGuys Football Analyst

July 10, 2022

(Cover photo courtesy Teremun Lott's Twitter page)

Illinois continued its spate of early recruiting when it got a commitment from wide receiver Teremun Lott of Inlet Grove High School in Riviera Beach, Florida.  Lott is a 6'0, 170 pounder who transferred to Inlet Grove this year and managed to turn enough heads to earn his first Power Five offer from the Illini last week.  He jumped at the chance to play Big Ten football so Illini fans can look forward to seeing the speedy Lott in the fall of 2023.

What does he bring to the Orange and Blue?

By Steve Sturm - IlliniGuys Football Analyst

July 8, 2022

(Cover photo courtesy Calvin Smith's Twitter page)

I hope you've all looked at the articles or film on Mason Muragin before you read up on Calvin Smith, because checking out Muragin before you look into Smith will make you appreciate just what Illinois has in Calvin Smith.  Smith's production as a high school junior is impressive, though not as impressive as Muragin's, yet he accomplished all of that with only a small fraction of the skill that Muragin demonstrates.  Yet, Illinois was Muragin's only power five offer, while Smith counted at least 20 when the committed.  The difference is Smith's athleticism, because Muragin's skill can be taught yet there's no way to duplicate Smith's God-given talents.

What does he bring to the Orange and Blue?

I'm sure anyone can see that Calvin Smith is an elite athlete. 

By Steve Sturm - IlliniGuys Football Analyst

July 2, 2022

Thirty-one tackles for loss and 12.5 sacks, as a junior playing in Michigan's second toughest playoff division.  That should get anyone's attention right?  Well, Mason Muragin also only held one high major offer, from Illinois.  Muragin also had high major interest that would likely have materialized into another high major offer, but the fact is he was not fending off Big Ten recruiters and he was not likely to be doing so.  So, why the lack of interest?

What does he bring to the Orange and Blue?

By Kedric Prince - IlliniGuys.com Director of Recruiting 

July 4, 2022

Illinois assistant defensive backs coach Aaron Henry goes deep for another recruiting touchdown in his home state as today Illinois received a verbal commitment from Kenari Wilcher, a 6-foot-1, 175-pound athlete from Clewiston, Florida.

Illinois has done very well as of late entering the rich state of Florida for talent.

Wilcher is a great start for help at the DB position, but after meeting with Coach Henry on his recent visit, it all seemed like a done deal early. 

Mike Cagley, IlliniGuy July 4, 2022 All photos in […]

Mike Cagley, IlliniGuy July 4, 2022 Happy 4th of […]

By Larry Smith/IlliniGuys Staff July 3, 2022 We've all […]

By Steve Sturm - IlliniGuys Football Analyst

June 29, 2022

(Cover photo courtesy Jaheim Clarke's Twitter page) 

You know how Bret Bielema has been stocking up on Illinois players?  There's one very large exception.  At cornerback, Illinois has added nothing but Floridians under Assistant Coach (and Florida native) Aaron Henry.  In fact, when Jaheim Clarke arrives on campus in 2023, the entire cornerback room might just be filled with native Floridians. Do I have a problem with that?  Absolutely not, because Florida has large pockets of the type of athlete who succeed at skill positions and Clarke is yet another cornerback addition from the area that I just love.  Clarke is listed as a safety under both main recruiting services and he played there for much of 2021, but Illinois looks at Clarke as a cornerback and I'm fully behind that decision.

What does he bring to the Orange and Blue?

According to multiple publications, USC and UCLA are in […]

Illinois athletics director Josh Whitman suggests that modern-day college athletics has a nationwide public credibility problem and needs massive innovation.

By Matt Stevens - IlliniGuys Football Writer/Analyst

June 28, 2022

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. -- Illinois’ athletics director isn’t committed to the idea of the NCAA being the national governing body going forward. 

“It’s going to be very different and there’s two parallel issues that we all know at some point will intersect,” Whitman said. “One, what is the future of the NCAA? What is the future of the Power Five Conferences? The second is what are the benefits? What are we providing to our student-athletes? We need to find more ways to financially benefit our student-athletes.” 

In his two-hour, annual roundtable session with local reporters Tuesday, Whitman echoed his support for the ideas stated directly from the Supreme Court in the recent 9-0 ruling against the NCAA as a governing body in the Alston case and the continually rising revenues from media deals. 

With the current era of college athletics including the legality of name, image and likeness deals along with player movement via the transfer portal, Whitman stated Tuesday he isn’t convinced his school’s athletics department should be governed by the NCAA office in Indianapolis any longer. 

Illinois athletics director Josh Whitman clearly doesn’t want to currently lose the one thing that gives his football program a shot at national relevancy - being in the Western Division of the Big Ten.

By Matt Stevens - IlliniGuys Football Writer/Analyst

June 27, 2022

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. -- When asked if he had a stance on whether the Big Ten Conference eliminating football divisions, Josh Whitman chose six words and one line. 

“Not one I want to share,” the Illinois athletics director said on June 2 at the grand opening of Atkins Golf Club in Urbana.

The six-word comment was another sign of Whitman showing his strong talent of being strategically dismissive of a simple question. It was also a sign that Illinois is on losing side of a fight that will be stopped by technical knockout sooner than later. It was impossible to believe the Illinois athletics director doesn’t have an opinion, so “no” was off the table. He couldn’t have said “yes I do, no comment” because Whitman knew the reporters, including yours truly who asked the question, believed he’d just spent spring meetings in Arizona, less than two weeks prior, discussing such a topic. 

In case you have been living under a rock for several months, divisions in Power Five Conference college football are going into the extinct category along with ties, the triple option offense and coaches wearing suits on sidelines. 

A few weeks after attending a showcase camp at Illinois and less than 48 hours from his official weekend weekend in Champaign, 2023 tight end prospect Nathan Guinn is committed to the Illini.

By Matt Stevens - IlliniGuys Football Writer/Analyst

June 27, 2022

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. -- One year ago, Nathan Guinn was an overlooked defensive edge rusher.  Fast forward to today and he's a prep athlete who parlayed a productive month of June to become a tight end committed to a Big Ten program.

Guinn, a 2023 prospect who stands 6-foot-6 and 220 pounds, elected to give a verbal commitment to Illinois just a few days removed from his official visit weekend in Champaign. 

The Vero Beach (Fla.) High School product traveled over 1,000 miles to attend the first Illini Showcase Camp on June 11 and it was fairly obvious from the first few minutes of drill work at the camp why Guinn was willing to make this gamble.

By Kedric Prince - IlliniGuys.com Director of Recruiting

June 27th, 2022

(Cover photo courtesy Kedric Prince/IliniGuys)

The class of 2023 continues to be good to Illinois. Today they received a verbal commitment from speedster Teremun Lott, a 6-foot-0 170-pound wide receiver from West Palm Beach, Florida, who has decided the Midwest is where he wants to play college football.