Mike Ekstrom To The Bigs

Mike Ekstrom,

Well played, sir.

Well played.

Best,
Bevormo

Beast In The Making

Hey Will,

Congrats on your first major league bomb last night.

I always knew you were a total beast.

Best,
Bevormo

Position Preview: Introducing Your 2008 Illini Quarterbacks

So it comes to this. In less than an hour the Illini open the season in St. Louis against the 6th ranked Missouri Tigers. The Illini, as has been documented in a number of recent posts on this blog, have a talented roster. But the key for the Illini in this game - and others - is their starting quarterback, Juice Williams.

Juice is entering his third season as a starter and improved a lot from his first to his second season. The Illini are counting on him to further improve on his accuracy and get the ball with regularity to the weapons the Illini have at receiver. If he is more accurate - and I think he will be - that will free up some space for the talented, but still unproven, running backs like Daniel Dufrene and Troy Pollard.

And also at quarterback are Eddie McGee and Jacob Charest. Both are monsters but I'm so excited for tonight's game I can't write anymore right now.

Position Preview: Introducing Your 2008 Illini Running Backs

Other than perhaps the placekickers, no Illini unit has more questions entering the 2008 season than the Illini running backs. Mendenhall's decision to leave after his record-breaking junior season - the right choice for him - leaves a big hole in the backfield, and a lot of touches available to the back who steps up and earns Zooker's confidence.

To start the season Daniel Dufrene will be that back. He showed flashes of breakaway talent last season, most notably with his 106-yard performance at Columbus against the Buckpeyes. He's a junior this season and has a great opportunity to be a two-year beast working with Benn and Juice.

Troy Pollard will also get touches. He looked awesome early last season before succumbing to a knee injury that knocked him out. He's now a redshirt-freshman and, assuming he comes back healthy, should be on the field for a lot of snaps.

Complicating the mix - in a good way - are two freshmen who bring a lot of buzz with them to campus. Jason Ford was the #14 recruit in Illinois but slid under the radar of a lot of the big time programs. People say he's going to surprise some people. The other freshman is Champaign Centennial grad Mikel LeShoure. He was teammates with Mike Locksley, Jr. and is well-known by the coaching staff. I look for him to make an impact on this offense.

At fullback is Rahkeem Smith. He's a junior and will be called upon to block for Juice, Dufrene and Benn. He's more than up to the task. Tyler Pacha, a senior who was a stud fullback in junior college, will likely back up Rahkeem.

Converted defensive back Darius Purcell, who some predicted would challenge for touches, transferred to North Dakota St. so he could go back to playing defense. Also on the roster are freshman Zach Becker and redshirt-freshman Mark Burgess. I don't know much about those guys, but no doubt they wear the orange and blue with pride.

Position Preview: Introducing Your 2008 Illini Wide Receivers and Tight Ends

Arrelious Benn is probably the best football player in the country. I'm not joking. He played nearly his entire freshman season with a dislocated shoulder and was still an absolute gamebreaker who broke a ton of freshman receiving records at Illinois and was named Big Ten Freshman of the Year. Now he is 100% healthy for the first time in his college career and, with the departure of Rashard Mendenhall, will be the #1 offensive weapon for Juice Williams and the Illini offense. Not only will Benn be the top target in an expanded Illini passing game, but look for Benn to get a significant number of carries out of the backfield and on reverses. The sky's the limit for this monster.

But the talent at receiver doesn't end with Benn. Jeff Cumberland is a big bodied converted Tight End who brings athleticism and size at one of the receiving spots. He looked really good in limited starts last season and could be a sneaky stud in the unit. He'll miss the Missouri game and possibly a few more with a stress fracture in his foot, but hopefully will come back healthy and beastly. Also in the starting mix are Chris Duvalt and Chris James. Duvalt is a junior, a former defensive back and an absolute burner. He'll outrun people when called to do so. James, a sophomore, started two years ago but redshirted last year with a knee injury. I think he'll enjoy coming back and taking passes from a more experienced - and accurate - Juice Williams.

Two other guys with experience who may get some starts are senior Will Judson and junior Marques Wilkins. Both played in nearly every game last season and Wilkins had the big 31-yard TD catch against the Buckfreyes. Judson is 5'8" and offers a speedy contrast to the larger Cumberland.

But you know what? Even though Benn, Cumberland, Duvalt, James, Judson and Wilkins offer a lot to be excited about, they aren't what really gets me excited about this Illini receiving unit.

So go ahead. Ask me what gets me the most excited?

Go ahead. Do it.

Do it.

What gets me most excited are the crop of speedy and talented frosh receivers the Zooker brought in. Headlining the class are two 4-stars who will be studs: Cordale Scott and A.J. Jenkins. I can't wait to cheer these guys on for the next four years. Also in the freshman class are Jack Ramsey and Fred Sykes. Ramsey is from Simeon and played high school ball with Martez Wilson. He is reportedly very fast and there is some buzz about him coming out of Camp Rantoul, though he also has had some academic issues to work out. Sykes is a recruit out of Tampa and, as everyone knows, every football player in Florida is a beast.

Speaking of Florida I don't want to even talk yet about the possible best receiver on the team not named Arrelious Benn. That player would be Jared Fayson, a transfer from Florida, who was one of the top recruits in the country a few years ago. He'll sit out this season but could be Juice's favorite target in '09.

Also listed at receiver for the Illini are Jack Eastman, Jason McGoey and Alex Reavy. According to a recent blog post from Mark Tupper, Reavy, a walk on, may get some playing time because he is a worker who doesn't make mistakes. A lesson to the young: coaches like that kind of thing.

So with Cumberland hurt and already moved over to WR, it's worth asking who's going to start at TE? That's going to be Bloomington native Michael Hoomanawanui. He started midway through last season, has good hands and can lay down a block. I like this kid a lot. The Zooker also brought in two good recruits at TE who should get playing time: Hubie Graham, the #12 ranked TE in the country, and London Davis, a solid player out of Cahokia, IL. Let's be honest, has there even someone named "London" who wasn't a solid football player?

Position Preview: Introducing Your 2008 Illini Offensive Lineman

Ryan McDonald is a true monster. He's about to become a 4-year starter as a Big Ten offensive lineman, including starting at center for the Illini the last two seasons. This season he will again feed snaps to Juice and, at times, Eddie McGee, and will anchor the offensive line.

The other two studs on the O-Line are a couple of upperclassmen who need no introduction. At left tackle is senior Xavier Fulton, a former defensive player who redshirted in '06 and then came back last season and started every game on the O-Line. All he did last season was consistently open monster holes for Rashard and Juice. He'll no doubt do the same this season. On the other side of the line, lining up next to McDonald, is junior Jon Asamoah. He'll start at right guard and will put D-Linemen on their backsides with regularity.

Joining McDonald, Fulton and Asamoah as starters will likely be sophomores Randall Hunt and Ryan Palmer. Hunt is at left guard. He's a former prep schooler who played a bunch last season. Palmer played in 11 games as a frosh last season and is a potential monster.

Next on the depth chart are a number of kids who will push the starting group and, in a few cases, could become superstars. At center are seniors Eric Block and Mike Nabolotny. Block is from 'Nawlins, played a lot last year and is an able backup for McDonald. Nabolotny has played some TE in the past so presumably he is a solid athlete. No word though on why the Zooker moved him to the O-Line. Backing up at the guard spots are Jeff Allen, a freshman who was one of the Top 30 recruits out of the state of Illinois, and Jack Cornell, a redshirt frosh who picked the Illini over Nebraska and was a 4-star recruit coming out of Quincy Notre Dame. I sense beastly things for both those young guys. Finally, adding depth at tackle are freshmen Graham Pocic and Craig Wilson. Pocic was an All-Stater last year in the state of Illinois and another 4-star. He is huge and potential super-stud. Wilson I don't know a whole lot about but if I was a betting man I'd bet he's good.

The only real negative news about this unit is that two players who would have been key backups - Mark Jackson and Brandon Jordan - appear to no longer be with the team. Mark Tupper and others reported a few days ago that Jackson, along with safety Brian Gamble, had academic issues and were not currently part of the football program. Jordan is not currently listed on the roster on the Illini website and reportedly had academic issues in the Spring. Hopefully he is not gone for good. Given the absence of Jackson and Jordan, a number of other players - Chudi Aguanunu (Jr), Mike Garrity (R-Fr), Corey Lewis (Fr), Tyler Sands (Fr) and Ryan Sedlacek (Fr), may get a shot to move up the depth chart.

Position Preview: Introducing Your 2008 Illini Defensive Lineman

That's Will Davis wrapping up Troy Smith back in the '06 matchup between Ohio St. and Illinois. The Bucksleyes nipped out a 17-10 victory in that game but the Illini's game performance proved they could hang with the #1 team in the land. As you all know a year later the Illini took the next step and beat the (again) #1 Buckneyes in Columbus.

Now Will Davis is a senior and the leader of what promises to be a stud defensive line unit for the '08 Illini. Davis will start on one end, bookended with senior Derek Walker. Up the middle at DT are senior David Lindquist and, likely, sophomore Josh Brent. The unit was to have four senior starters, but Sirod Williams had season-ending knee surgery and will redshirt. He'll be back next year but his absence allows Brent to take over the starting role. Brent is one of the best recruits of the Zooker era and could be dominant.

Backing those guys up and likely getting a good amount of playing time are Doug Pilcher, Antonio James, Daryle Ballew and Jerry Brown. Pilcher is, by most reports, a max effort guy who makes up in work ethic what he lacks in talent. I'm going to enjoy watching him stuff running backs this season. Ballew is a redshirt freshman who some say could start now and may start before the season is over. Jerry Brown is a potential monster who had a sack last season against the Bluckteyes. James is a junior who has played most every game the last two seasons. He can get to the quarterback and adds depth to this skilled and experienced unit.

Next I've gotta mention the freshman group the Zooker brought in, a group that by and large looks to contribute immediately. The cream of the crop is Corey Liuget out of the state of Florida. What a snake by the Zooker. Urban Meyer can't be pleased. He will get his fair share of playing time this Fall at DE. Then you have yet another round of beasts from Dunbar high school in D.C. (the same school as Rejus and Vontae): ends Reggie Ellis and Ugo Uzodinma. Ellis is one of the top prospects out of D.C. this year - if not the top prospect - and Ugo isn't far behind. Another frosh is Glen Foster from Mt. Carmel, and rounding out the group are two guys with beastly names and, no doubt, beastly talents: Whitney Mercilus and Wisdom Onyegbule.

Also involved on the D-Line this Fall are redshirt sophomore Anterio Jackson and senior Bryson Whalen. Clay Nurse, who we mentioned in the linebacker preview, may also see time on the line. Jackson is a former All-Stater out of Fenger. Nurse played primarily on kickoffs last year but there is some buzz about him.