After a great visit and conversation with Coach Lovie Smith, I am grateful to announce that I've committed to the University of Illinois pic.twitter.com/YeI3LnWPPc

— B - 7️⃣1️⃣ (@B_Daniels71) August 23, 2017

Whenever it rains, things just seem to instantly flood for Fighting Illini Athletics. A blowout loss and a few higher-profile injuries were bad enough for the football team this weekend, but some more news regarding one of the program’s few verbal commits broke on Monday night. Per Illini Inquirer, three-star cornerback/wide receiver Tony Adams (MO) suffered a torn ACL during a recent game.

NEWS: #illini football commit Tony Adams suffered a torn ACL, he told Illini Inquirerhttps://t.co/hbCXSXBT7N

— Jeremy Werner (@JWernerScout) September 13, 2016

The St. Louis native committed to the Fighting Illini over Missouri back on August 12. He’s currently rated as the No. 937 overall player in the country and No. 8 prospect from the state of Missouri.

Here’s to a speedy recover, Tony. We’re all looking forward to seeing you start your journey in the Orange and Blue next Summer.

Saturday was a lot of fun. While college football was making it's triumphant return, the birth of a new era was beginning in Champaign. It started at 7:00am when the new Illinois AD Josh Whitman went for a pregame run around campus with John Groce and a host of Illini fans. After tailgating for a bit in Grange Grove, Whitman watched his new football coach win his opening game in convincing fashion.

You can read more about that dominating 52-3 victory right here. Today, we're going to be taking a closer look at each Illini position group while rating them on a scale of 1-5 Champagne bottles.

*****

Fighting Illini Offense

Quarterbacks

Wes Lunt started the game off strong with a drive that saw him complete toss three passes for 22 yards and a touchdown. From there, the senior would finish the game 15/21 (71.4%) for 226 yards and 3 TDs. Lunt looked very calm and collected under center, and didn't really try to force anything in the season opener. It was also nice to see Chayce Crouch getting reps in the second half.

Running Backs

There was some good and some not-so-good out of the running backs. Kendrick Foster was good great with 4 rushes for 118 yards and 2TDs. Reggie Corbin impressed while logging 7 carries for 71 yards and a TD. Heck, even Tre Nation had a great debut with 8 carries for 47 yards. Ke'Shawn Vaughn ran well, but his numbers weren't the best against a weak run defense (17 touches, 49 yards, and a TD). He needs to be a dominating force next week if the Illini want to compete against the North Carolina Tar Heels.

Wide Receivers

Lovie Smith made it clear that running the ball would be a priority. That being said, any and all passing attempts will be critical in setting up the rushing attack this season. On Saturday against Murray State, the Illini were extremely successful in spreading out Murray State's 4-2-5 defensive scheme. Malik Turner was the most targeted receiver with 3 catches for 87 yards and 2 TDs, while Desmond Cain caught the 3rd and final passing TD for Illinois. Drops were limited, which was a refreshing sight after last season.

Tight Ends

Good to see Caleb Reams getting some catches in this game, as well as Andrew Davis. I would like to see Garrick McGee get them even more involved in the passing game, but I feel like that may be something we see next week against UNC.

Offensive Line

With the exception of blocking for Ke'Shawn Vaughn (which was a bit iffy sometimes), the line did a nice job of protecting Lunt while opening up gaps for a couple huge runs. Moving forward, controlling the line of scrimmage during Big Ten season will be crucial to setting up the rushing attack.

Fighting Illini Defense

Defensive Line

Murray State finished the game with -10 yards rushing. Gimel President and Chunky Clements were in the Racer backfield on every drive, and with a total of 6 sacks and 11 tackles for losses as a unit, the defensive line deserves a LOT of credit for their play. Racers' quarterback KD Humphries is a great player, and he wasn't able to get going the entire afternoon.

Linebackers

Hardy Nickerson was all over the field, finishing the game with a team-high 11 tackles. Behind him was James Crawford with 7 tackles. Both players were swarming the ball well, and here's hoping we see more of their dynamic play this season.

Secondary

TURNOVERS!!! 2 OF THEM!!! It was a little depressing to see that Murray State managed to find 175 yards through the air, but we have to tip the cap to Julian Hylton's play; not only was sophomore disruptive to the Racers' passing attack, but he intercepted a pass in his first start. Great stuff to start the year.

Fighting Illini Other Stuff

Special Teams

For the most part, Illinois' special teams were fine on Saturday. Chase McLaughlin was perfect on PATs, and he absolutely drilled a 48-yard kick in the 4th quarter. Ryan Frain was consistent and the kick coverage did a nice job flipping the field throughout most of the game. However, there were way too many penalties on punt coverage and returns. Thankfully Murray State was the opponent, as that won't be able to fly against Power 5 teams.

Coaching

Lovie-ball looks really, really good in Orange and Blue. And while this was not a perfect game by the Illini by any means, the coaching staff had them prepared to isolate Racers playmakers and take them out of the game. Next week's matchup with North Carolina will be the first true benchmark in the 2016 season, and it could give an early indication of whether or not this team is bound for a bowl game.

The Fighting Illini athletic department is preparing Grange Grove for its second season, and they’ve announced several new pregame features for the tailgating zone. The most noteworthy addition is a ‘beer garden’ that’ll be selling $5.00 Coors Light inside of a tent.

Here are the details for that particular section:

A new feature of Grange Grove this year will be a covered beer garden. Illini fans can purchase $5 Coors Light inside the tent, so there will be no need to bring your own cooler!

All drinks purchased in the beer garden must remain inside the tent, and no outside drinks will be permitted inside the tent. The tent is open to Illini fans of all ages, but wristbands and ID checks will be required in order to purchase a beverage.

The beer garden will open three hours prior to kickoff and last call is 30 minutes before kickoff. The tent will close at kickoff.

Coming from someone who’d eventually like to see alcohol sales inside Memorial Stadium, I think this is a really great idea. The only minor bit of negative feedback I have is in regards to the location restriction. I understand that Illinois wants to prevent underage drinking, but why not just ID/wristband everyone that walks into Grange Grove? Doing so would allow patrons to wander around and enjoy all of the provided amenities. Plus, I think it’d be a fairly easy policy to implement considering there’s only a few entrances to the gated-off area.

An on-site location for Gameday Spirit will also be featured inside Grange Grove; the 900 square-foot space will be open starting at 10:00am on Saturday morning. Lastly, a variety of food trucks are set for fans, including Cracked, Good 2 Go, Caribbean Grill, Kona Ice, and The Dinner Bell.

These all sound like some more fantastic improvements to the tailgating experience. I’m looking forward to seeing how everything operates this weekend!

A great recruiting day just got even better for Fighting Illini football! During a ceremony at his high school, three-star defensive end and top target Olalere Oladipo (IL) announced a verbal commitment to Illinois over Penn State, Indiana, Michigan State, Duke, and California. According to 247Sports, Oladipo is the nation’s No. 778 overall player, and No. 13 in-state prospect.

Committed. #ILL pic.twitter.com/Np2OKQdc8Q

— Lere Oladipo (@OladipoLere) August 25, 2016

Oladipo is a fantastic addition for several reasons, but primarily because Illinois’ defensive line is a huge area of need for this recruiting cycle. The Illini are expected to lose a lot of talent to graduation, meaning there’s a very real chance that Oladipo could step in and play as a true-freshman. Moreover, it’s refreshing to see that Illinois is once again managing to land some of the state’s top talent. The program is mere months removed from signing a putrid three in-state prospects to their 2016 class (zero players in the Top 30), though that number has already increased to six under Lovie Smith.

If you’re able to spare a few minutes, I’d definitely recommend watching Oladipo’s HUDL tape (embedded below). The Huntley product fits exactly what Lovie Smith wants out of his linemen.

[Oladipo] is a very aggressive and nasty player on the gridiron; he's a big hitter that seems to relish contact, and he goes 100% until the whistle is blown. Oladipo has so far shown equal ability against the pass and run, although he'll need to work on his hand placement and technique to shed blockers more efficiently.

Overall, the 6-foot-3 lineman has excellent speed, quickness, burst, strength, and power. Oladipo seems to play with a joy and energy that should be contagious with teammates on the field. He has a high ceiling, making him an ideal candidate to kick off what needs to be a strong DL group.

The Orange and Blue also landed a commitment from four-star wideout Carmoni Green (FL) on Thursday afternoon. Combined, the two players have vaulted Illinois’ 2017 recruiting class up to No. 56 in the nation (+15) over the span of a few short hours. The current 11-man group is a great foundation, and it wouldn’t be surprising to see it improve even more with a strong season.

Olalere Oladipo Highlights

SB Nation released their massive 2016 college football preview on Monday morning, and it included a new set of national power rankings from Bill Connelly. The Illinois Fighting Illini were slotted at No. 80 overall, putting them in the ‘Tier 6’ category for "mid-major up-and-comers and power-conference dead weight."

Before I touch on Illinois, here’s a look at where every Big Ten school is positioned. While Michigan was the lone school designated as a NCAA title contender, Michigan State and Ohio State followed closely behind in ‘Tier 2’.

Note: Projected S&P+ ranks have been denoted in parentheses because Connelly’s personal set of rankings differ from the statistics.

No. 5 Michigan (6)
No. 10 Michigan State (22)
No. 11 Ohio State (14)
No. 27 Penn State (28)
No. 30 Nebraska (26)
No. 31 Wisconsin (37)
No. 33 Minnesota (42)
No. 34 Iowa (38)
No. 41 Northwestern (46)
No. 53 Indiana (56)
No. 62 Maryland (62)
No. 72 Rutgers (87)
No. 80 Illinois (76)
No. 101 Purdue (88)

So, yeah, No. 80 does seem rather low for the Fighting Illini. However, as Connelly discussed in his previous look at the team, Illinois has a very wide range of potential win totals for the upcoming season, and it wouldn’t be completely farfetched to see them make a big run.

That said, the range of potential win totals is pretty broad. Illinois is given between a 34 and 66 percent chance of winning in six games; that means that if the Illini come in a little bit below their No. 76 S&P+ projection, they could end up in the 2-10 range. And if they rise into the 50s or so, an eight-win total isn't that far away.

2016 Schedule
Date	Opponent	Proj. S&P+ Rk	Proj. Margin	Win Probability
3-Sep	Murray State	NR	33.7	97%
10-Sep	North Carolina	27	-7.4	34%
17-Sep	Western Michigan	65	1.4	53%
1-Oct	at Nebraska	26	-14.7	20%
8-Oct	Purdue	88	7.0	66%
15-Oct	at Rutgers	87	0.0	50%
22-Oct	at Michigan	6	-22.4	10%
29-Oct	Minnesota	42	-3.1	43%
5-Nov	Michigan State	22	-9.6	29%
12-Nov	at Wisconsin	37	-11.4	26%
19-Nov	Iowa	38	-4.2	40%
26-Nov	at Northwestern	46	-8.2	32%
Projected wins: 5.0

Do you agree with Illinois’ placement in the power rankings? Make sure to cast your vote in the poll question and let us know what you think in the comments!

Former Fighting Illini running back Daniel Dufrene has passed away at the age of 29, The News-Gazette confirmed on Tuesday. Dufrene was a member of Illinois’ 2007 Rose Bowl team, and he ran for 1,234 yards during his career (2007-09).

The Fort Lauderdale, FL native originally signed with Vanderbilt out of high school and attended for one semester before transferring to a junior college. He eventually elected to join Illinois over other offers from UCLA and Louisville.

During his first year with the Orange and Blue, Dufrene played in all 13 games as a backup to Rashard Mendenhall. The biggest game of Dufrene’s career also occurred that season, as he played an integral role in Illinois’ upset of No. 1 Ohio State; he ended up with 106 yards on the ground, including an 80-yard rush on the team’s second play from scrimmage.

Dufrene continued to be a mainstay of Illinois’ backfield following Mendenhall’s departure. He saw a combined 217 touches over his final two seasons, resulting in 1,258 yards.

YEAR	CAR	YDS	TD	REC	YDS	TD
2007	47	294	2	3	9	0
2008	117	663	0	30	271	2
2009	63	277	3	7	47	0
TOTALS	227	1234	5	40	327	2

Funeral arrangements have yet to be posted, however a gofundme page has been set up to help cover the expenses. The following message was also shared:

In August of 2016, we lost a great light in our family. Words can't begin to explain the love we have for our brother, uncle, cousin, newphew, son, friend, teammate, and coach Daniel Dufrene.

With the tragic and sudden loss of our beloved Daniel, we ask if anyone can donate to funeral service to appropriately honor and celebrate the life and memory of the quiet, ambitious, energetic son of Haiti (By the way of the Bahamas).

We look forward to meeting everyone and thank you all for your prayers and well wishes.

Rest in peace, Daniel. Our thoughts and prayers are with you and your loved ones.

Fighting Illini football moved training camp inside Memorial Stadium on Friday and, man, was it a beautiful night. The temperature was perfect, there was a decent fan turnout on the West side, and Illinois even got a huge commitment from Missouri offensive lineman Larry Boyd!

The actual football wasn’t too bad, either. I didn’t watch the Spring game (always have very little interest in that) so this practice marked my first time watching the team under Lovie Smith — which is still rather surreal, it’s gotta be said. My biggest takeaway was that the defensive line will indeed be Illinois’ strongest position group. I entered the gates expecting as much, and they more than delivered during their two hours in between the lines.

Dawuane Smoot was the most impressive player on the field. The senior defensive end is most known for his pass rushing ability, but I think he’s very underrated against the run. One 11-on-11 (no live tackling) play especially stuck out. On a simple handoff from Wes Lunt to Keshawn Vaughn, Smoot exploded into the backfield with an inside move and nearly got a hand on the ball carrier before the exchange took place. It’s hard to comprehend how someone with Smoot’s physical build can be so quick — I guess that’s why he’s being mentioned as a possible First Round pick.

Carroll Phillips and Rob Bain were doing well in 1-on-1 drills, as was just about everyone on the defensive side (more on that in a moment). Gimel President was even back on the field and playing well after suffering an injury on Monday. I was looking forward to seeing a few reps from redshirt-freshman Jamal Milan, but he unfortunately didn’t suit up in pads due to what looked like a minor foot injury. At least, I thought I saw him wearing some sort of boot/brace.

For as great as the defensive line looked, though, their offensive counterparts struggled equally as much. The starters played fine for the most part, but the second unit was having a tough night. This seems to be a reoccurring theme out of Champaign. Adam Solomon, for instance, stepped in for Christian DiLauro (he got shaken up a bit) and was getting blown up by Smoot on just about every play. Gabe Megginson was also displaying some growing pains; the redshirt-freshman showed flashes of his high ceiling, but Bain really took advantage of him in a best-of-three matchup.

Still, Illinois should be fine in this area granted their first-stringers can stay healthy. It could be an adventure during Big Ten play if two or more of them miss extended time.

ELSEWHERE:

• I admittedly didn’t spend too much time watching offensive drills, but Wes Lunt looked great as usual in the bits I did see. The senior was spreading the ball around with regularity, and he completed two fantastic downfield passes to Justin Hardee and Zach Grant. The former was actually called an incompletion by the ref, but he obviously knows nothing.
• I suppose this was inevitable with Lovie Smith at the helm, but Illinois spent quite a bit of practice time on special teams. While Smith was off to the side chatting with recruits, Bob Ligashesky was really working hard with the kickoff unit.
• Illinois might have a good walk-on kicker? Chase McLaughlin hit three field goals (25, 35, 45) at the beginning of practice to best David Reisner.
• Kendrick Foster looked like Illinois’ second-best running back last night. I think it’s great that he ended up staying in Champaign because he’ll likely be getting regular reps this season.
• Mikey Dudek was wandering around the field. We miss you, Mike.

In other news — I’m back on campus now! I’m hoping to make it out to more practices this week so you can probably expect more Twitter updates from the main TCR account. Make sure to hit that follow button below.

Big news for Fighting Illini football! Three-star cornerback/wide receiver Tony Adams (MO) announced his verbal commitment to the Orange and Blue on Friday night, opting away from the Missouri Tigers in the process. Adams was one of program’s top secondary targets, and he’s rated as the No. 1078 player in the country (No. 8 player from Missouri).

Thank you to everyone who made this day possible! I'm committing to the University of Illinois #Wewillwin pic.twitter.com/uAJIofEKoe

— T.A (@Iwill_suceed20) August 12, 2016

Adams has other scholarships on the table from Bowling Green, Central Michigan, Eastern Michigan, Illinois State, North Dakota State, Wyoming, South Dakota, Southeast Missouri State, and Southern Illinois.

Illinois became Adams’ first Power 5 offer after he impressed coaches during a St. Louis satellite camp in June. Missouri followed suit shortly after, and it quickly became a two-horse race for the 6-foot, 184-pound athlete. This is a big win for Lovie Smith and his staff because it signifies one of their first head-to-head wins over another big program.

Adams is the second defensive back to commit to the program, joining three-star corner Antwan Collier. The Fighting Illini recruiting class now has eight verbal commitments, though it still ranks last in the Big Ten.

Tony Adams Highlights

While Fighting Illini football was busy wrapping up their second training camp practice on Friday, a trio of in-state defensive backs were on hand to check out campus. Illini Inquirer and 247Sports reported that class-of-2018 prospects Tyrik Henderson (Carol Stream), Greg Newsome (Carol Stream), and Derric Lee all made the trip to watch the team and tour facilities.

Henderson has been rated as an early three-star recruit by both scouting services, and he has scholarship offers from Purdue, Toledo, Central Michigan, and South Dakota State. Newsome is Henderson’s high school teammate at Glenbard North teammate, and he’s also received interest from the Rockets.

Lee, a 6-foot cornerback from Waubonsie Valley high school, has already heard from several other Power 5 programs including Missouri, Penn State, and Indiana.

Additionally, class-of-2019 offensive lineman Trevor Keegan was also in town for his own unofficial visit. According to his 247Sports profile, the big 6-foot-5, 270-pound sophomore already has a scholarship offer from Northwestern.

The first practice of 2016 Illinois football training camp has finally arrived. Coaches and players will participate in a total of 16 practices between now and August 20, and all sessions will be open to the public. Interestingly enough, though, it also sounds like the Fighting Illini will be looking to add a few more bodies before the season starts.

Though it hasn’t been officially announced by the school, Lovie Smith told Mark Tupper that the program will hold walk-on tryouts for full-time students later this month.

Smith has also announced he will hold tryouts for walk-on (non-scholarship) players. Full-time students are asked to attend an informational meeting at 5 p.m., Aug. 22 at the squad room on the lower level of the football complex at Memorial Stadium.

The actual tryouts will be held Aug. 25.

From what I can tell this tryout isn’t anything new for the Fighting Illini, as Google indicates something similar has taken place since at least 2012. I’d be willing to bet that this type of tryout has been around a lot longer than that, too, because it’s a fairly common practice for college programs.

For students interested in showing up, here’s what was required from 2015 candidates. I’d imagine the updated prerequisites will be similar this time around.

To participate in the tryout, a student must be currently enrolled full-time at the University of Illinois and must show official documentation of having passed a physical, including a sickle cell test, within the last six months. If needed, students can get a physical exam, with sickle cell test, at the McKinley Health Center on campus. Students also must bring their University ID to the meeting.

Students with the proper documentation will have a tryout Thursday, Sept. 10, provided they have completed the necessary requirements.

So this sounds like a really cool opportunity for former high school players on campus. There’s an approximately 0.01% chance of ever seeing playing time, but contributing to the scout team would be pretty damn cool, especially with Lovie Smith as the head coach.

We’ll make sure to update this post if/when Illinois confirms the tryout.

Illinois football’s Wes Lunt was named to another preseason watch list on Thursday. The Fighting Illini senior is an early candidate for the 2016 Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award, which is given to the nation’s top quarterback based on character, citizenship, scholastic achievement, leadership and athletic accomplishments. The award is exclusively for college seniors and four-year juniors on track to graduate. You can view the entire 42-player list right here.

Lunt joins Tommy Armstrong (Nebraska), J.T. Barrett (Ohio State), CJ Beathard (Iowa), Bart Houston (Wisconsin), Mitch Leidner (Minnesota), Tyler O’Connor (Michigan State), and John O’Korn (Michigan) as one of eight Big Ten players mentioned.

This is Lunt’s third honor of the preseason; he has also been named to watch lists for the Davey O’Brien Award (top quarterback) and Maxwell Award (top college player) last month.

Barring an injury during training camp, Lunt will be Illinois’ starting quarterback for the third-straight season. In 2015, he passed for 2,761 yards and 14 touchdowns while only throwing 7 interceptions. Which, all things considered, was a pretty fantastic year given the amount of uncertainty surrounding the program.

After a long, headline-filled offseason, Fighting Illini football will return to Champaign on Thursday morning for the start of Fall training camp. The Orange and Blue will participate in 16 practices from August 4-20, and all sessions will be open to the public. Putting fanfare aside, though, Lovie Smith and his new coaching staff have inherited a program and roster full of question marks.

1. Will Lovie Smith make an impact during his first season?

Let me preface this section with a big, blinding disclaimer: I believe that Lovie Smith is a huge upgrade over Tim Beckman and Bill Cubit as a football coach. That being said, it is unrealistic for him to turn the program around overnight. Remember these are all Beckman/Cubit recruits, and it will be for multiple years to come.

Culturally, Lovie is known for his stingy defenses that force turnovers, his commitment to running the ball, and unflinching loyalty to Rex Grossman. The good news is that the Illini already have pieces in place to fit with what Lovie brings to the table. Illinois was fourth in the Big Ten last season in turnover margin, and second in the conference in interceptions with 13. It’ll be up to Taylor Barton (led the team with four picks last year) and Jaylen Dunlap to continue to turn over other teams and give the offense a short field. The Illini also return sophomore Ke’Shawn Vaughn as their feature back, and he expects to carry a heavy load. He led the squad last year with 723 yards while splitting carries with Josh Ferguson, but his carries will increase as his role expands and the offense shifts away from Cubit’s spread to new offensive coordinator Garrick McGee’s pro-style approach. I’m putting the over/under on Vaughn’s yards this season at 1,100. That’d be the most Illinois has had since Mikel Leshoure ripped off 1,697 yards in 2010.

2. Will Wes Lunt emerge as one of the Big Ten’s best passers?

This is the number one non-Lovie Smith question surrounding the Illinois football team. Wes Lunt, while the arm talent has had NFL scouts drooling for years, hasn’t been particularly dominant in his first two seasons as a starter. There have been some reasons why (injuries derailed his sophomore campaign, along with Reilly O’Toole getting hot down the stretch; his wideouts did him no favors last season — more on that in a bit) but Lunt hasn’t really even had that breakout game where he’s put it all together. Yes, he threw for 456 yards against Western Kentucky in his second career start in Champaign, but he’s topped the 300-yard threshold just three times in 18 appearances since. One of the more frustrating parts was that Nathan Scheelhaase (an incredible competitor, very mobile, and extremely smart quarterback, however he had a below average arm) threw for 3,272 yards the year prior to Lunt under Cubit’s tutelage. That offense was so rare because it featured Scheelhaase, a four-year starter, and four senior wide receivers in Steve Hull, Spencer Harris, Miles Osei and Ryan Lankford, who all worked together to create a product that was greater than the sum of its parts. Lunt hasn’t had that kind of supporting cast, and there have been many instances in the past two seasons where the Illini tried to ramp up the tempo and get rolling, only to be bogged down by confusion at the line of scrimmage, resulting in panic timeouts and/or red-face-yelling-Bill Cubit.

Perhaps putting less on Lunt’s plate will be the best thing for him, and establishing a rushing game is absolutely critical because Lunt is one of the most immobile quarterbacks I’ve ever seen. Seriously, he has -239 yards rushing in his three collegiate seasons and he has a total of zero career games with positive rushing yards. When defenses can pin their ears back and rush him, there’s nowhere for Lunt to go. Lunt has the talent — now it’s time for the production.

3. Who will be Illinois’ backup quarterback?

So Jeff George Jr. killed it at the spring practice. He was slinging pinpoint passes left and right, throwing touchdowns with ease and grace. The legend grows and grows, right? Beware the offseason effect. Given such a tiny sample size, it’s impossible to draw any conclusions for the backup quarterback battle. All we know is that George can make those plays, with no idea whether he can do so consistently or with a defense who’s spent a week watching him on film. The ultimate hope here is that this question is moot, that Wes Lunt can stay healthy, yada yada yada. But Lunt’s body has given Illini fans plenty of reason to pay attention to the backup QB battle as camp unfolds. As it stands, that battle seems to favor Chayce Crouch. The only QB on the roster with playing experience whose name is longer than seven letters, Crouch should begin with the backup nod and brings size and running ability. George and Fitzgerald can’t match his mobility, and Crouch would have to struggle in camp (or in a game as a backup) for either of the other two to get a shot.

Assuming Lunt starts the year healthy, this battle could very feasibly last into the regular season, with the hope being that a couple season-opening romps provide for some garbage-time reps. All three should have their eye on the starting job for next season when prized recruit Cam Thomas enters the fray.

4. Will we see improvement from the wide receiver corps?

To put it mildly, the Fighting Illini receivers struggled last year. OK — maybe "struggled" isn’t the best way to put it. Robert compiled actual statistics over at Illini Board, and they were stunningly terrible. Through the first 8 games last year (I couldn’t find end of season tallies), the unit dropped 50 passes. It gets worse, believe it or not, when you realize how the mistakes impacted the offense. Those 50 drops took away at least 512 yards, 23 first downs, and 6 touchdowns. Not a single offense in America can overcome such a deficiency.

So will we see any improvement this Fall? It’s hard to say at the moment. I’m optimistic that the players can improve under their new coaches, but the depth chart makes it really hard to say for certain. Deep-ball threat Geronimo Allison has graduated and, though that isn’t a huge loss, his departure is compounded by the fact that Mike Dudek will likely miss a second-straight season due to injury. That means we’re looking at junior Malik Turner, sophomore Desmond Cain, and senior Justin Hardee — who missed 2015 with a foot injury — as the starters heading into camp; they combined for 92 receptions and 1,000 yards last year.

Is Turner ready to be the No. 1 option in the passing game? Who will step up as a playmaking threat? Can sophomore Sam Mays become a reliable target? Hopefully the Illini can answer these questions in the coming weeks.

5. Can the Fighting Illini secondary evolve under new guidance?

At each level of the defense, you want someone who you can point to as the leader of that group. Last year, Jihad Ward, Mason Monheim, and Clayton Fejedelem filled those roles for Illinois, and all three are gone. Dawuane Smoot is the heir apparent on the Illinois defensive line, and Hardy Nickerson transferring from Cal saves a lackluster linebacking corps, but the secondary is one of the most interesting position groups to watch as camp opens.

Lovie has made his career coaching defensive backs into attackers, and after losing three of the roster’s four best defensive backs, Lovie has a tall task. Taylor Barton jumps out as the leader of the third level, but he’ll be tasked with being THE playmaker behind Nickerson unless his cohorts show improvement. There’s reason to be optimistic that Lovie can be something of a revelation for guys like Caleb Day, Jaylen Dunlap, and Darius Mosely, who have been inconsistent at best in their time in orange and blue. If those guys can pick up on the fundamentals (which under Lovie includes creating turnovers) and be more confident in trying to make big plays, the dividends could be huge for the Illini. Turnovers lead to short fields, which lead to offensive rhythm, points, and victories.

6. Can Hardy Nickerson Jr. and Dawuane Smoot be dominant?

According to CBSSports, Nickerson is the fourth-best inside linebacker draft prospect, while Smoot is the second-best defensive end. In order for its defense to be good, these guys have to live up to the hype. Smoot showed flashes of being unblockable with eight sacks last season — he’s trimmed down to 255 lb. for 2016, and could have a Whitney Mercilus-type season. Paired with fellow speed rusher Carroll Phillips on the other side, and the Illini figure to have a formidable assault on opposing passers. Nickerson increased his production last season at Cal as the year wore on, ending with double-digit tackles in six of the final eight contests of the season, including a 16-stop effort in the regular season finale against Arizona State. Illinois lost a lot of experience on defense — especially in the linebacking corps — so it will be up to Nickerson to assert himself not only as a sure tackler, but as a leader and mentor to guys like James Crawford and Julian Jones.

Big news for Lovie Smith and the Fighting Illini! After members of the coaching staff began celebrating a commitment, three-star cornerback Antwan Collier announced his verbal to Illinois via Twitter. The Florida native is the No. 1078 overall player in 247Sports' class-of-2017 composite rankings.

Committed to Illinois pic.twitter.com/EpGG8vMCqc

— Antwan Collier (@9millyy_ac) August 1, 2016

"I want to thank all the coaches that gave me scholarships to their school and I would like to thank God, my parents, teammates, and coaches for supporting through the recruiting process. At this time I will be committing to the University of Illinois #WeWillWin #Illini"

~ Antwan Collier

Great start to the first day of official offer letters! Go Illini! #keepaniontheillini! pic.twitter.com/lwWegnbnyp

— Lovie Smith (@LovieSmith) August 1, 2016

I-L-L-I-N-I! The columns are hot! #WEWILLWIN pic.twitter.com/8E9CZ3SfEM

— Josh Sternquist (@kta1927) August 1, 2016

According to his 247Sports' profile, Collier also had additional scholarship offers from the following programs (Power 5 bolded): California, Cincinnati, East Carolina, Florida International, Florida Atlantic, Iowa State, Louisville, Maryland, Middle Tennessee State, N.C. State, Nebraska, Oregon State, Purdue, Southern Mississippi, Central Florida, South Florida, and Utah.

The Fighting Illini now have seven verbal commitments for the class-of-2017. The Orange and Blue are still last in the Big Ten, but the they've drawn just about even with Purdue.

Antwan Collier Highlights