Illinois was back out on the practice field today from 2:20 to around 5:15. Helmets, shoulder pads, and gym shorts.
Out today: Kenyon Jackson, Vederian Lowe, Jake Stoker, Caleb Reams, Henry McGrew, Sam Mays, Dre Brown, Kendrick Foster, Evan Jones, James Crawford, Titot Odenigbo.
Reggie Corbin and Larry Boyd dressed but only went through warmups. Scheduled days off for Mike Dudek and Tony Adams. Crawford has a wrap on his right knee but it didn't look like anything serious.
Scouts were at practice from the Bucs and Vikings, including Illini great Scott Studwell who is director of college scouting for the Vikings.
Kickoff team from left to right: Chris James, Stanley Green, Dele Harding, James Knight, Jake Hansen, Julian Jones, Christian Bobak, Tre Watson, Cameron Watkins, Ahmari Hayes. C
Best walk-ons? RB Christion Bobak, TE Bobby Walker, and LB Jimmy Marchese
OFFENSE NOTES:
* It was a good day for the passing game. With so many cornerbacks out, it was easy pickings at times for the wideouts. Good days for Carmoni Green, Malik Turner, Kendall Smith, and Ricky Smalling. Green gets open a lot, but he has a couple of drops the last few days. Smalling isn't 100 percent yet. Needs to get his legs after missing time. But he's really good.
* Garrick McGee is high on freshman tight end Louis Dorsey and believes he will be a star player at Illinois. Dorsey was really active today and got knocked around a bit. But he had a lot of catches, including a diving play in the back of the EZ for a touchdown.
* Jeff George Jr. has improved the last few days and is probably the best passer on the team right now. He's making better decisions and making some plays on the move. He had two consecutive TD's to Ricky Smalling, one on a fade route and the other throwing to Ricky's back shoulder.
* With Boyd out, Christian DiLauro has moved to the strong side along with guard Nick Allegretti. Those two work well together. On the quick side its guard Alex Palczewski and tackle Gabe Megginson. Megginson probably had his best practice of camp. He held his own vs. Bobby Roundtree.
* Andrew Trainer is playing musical jerseys. He was 85 then 78 yesterday. Today he was wearing No. 74.
DEFENSE NOTES
* Rough day for the cornerbacks with so many guys out. Starters were Ahmari Hayes on the boundary side, and Frank Sumpter on the field side. Chris James and Cameron Watkins, who have been playing nickel, both got reps at corner.
* I continue to be impressed with freshman free safety Bennett Williams. They played quite a bit of cover-2 today, and he ranged really well in half-field coverage. He came out of nowhere to get a PBU against Carmoni Green down the seam when it seemed like Green was in the clear for a TD.
* Lovie Smith talked about freshman defensive end Bobby Roundtree in the post-practice interview. Roundtree is a lot bigger than he was when they recruited him. He's a weight room warrior. The question isn't whether or not Roundtree will be good, it's how good will he be?
* While the offense made strides today, the defense did win several series when they were working on goal line offense / defense. The linebackers, especially Jake Hansen, stuffed up the middle really well. And DT's Tymir Oliver and Jamal Milan are hard to move.
* Interceptions by Christion Abercrombie and Jake Hansen vs. Chayce Crouch and Jeff George respectively.
Practice on Friday is at 2:20, then on Saturday at 9am.
What are your questions?
Out today: Kenyon Jackson, Vederian Lowe, Jake Stoker, Caleb Reams, Henry McGrew, Sam Mays, Dre Brown, Kendrick Foster, Evan Jones, James Crawford, Titot Odenigbo.
Reggie Corbin and Larry Boyd dressed but only went through warmups. Scheduled days off for Mike Dudek and Tony Adams. Crawford has a wrap on his right knee but it didn't look like anything serious.
Scouts were at practice from the Bucs and Vikings, including Illini great Scott Studwell who is director of college scouting for the Vikings.
Kickoff team from left to right: Chris James, Stanley Green, Dele Harding, James Knight, Jake Hansen, Julian Jones, Christian Bobak, Tre Watson, Cameron Watkins, Ahmari Hayes. C
Best walk-ons? RB Christion Bobak, TE Bobby Walker, and LB Jimmy Marchese
OFFENSE NOTES:
* It was a good day for the passing game. With so many cornerbacks out, it was easy pickings at times for the wideouts. Good days for Carmoni Green, Malik Turner, Kendall Smith, and Ricky Smalling. Green gets open a lot, but he has a couple of drops the last few days. Smalling isn't 100 percent yet. Needs to get his legs after missing time. But he's really good.
* Garrick McGee is high on freshman tight end Louis Dorsey and believes he will be a star player at Illinois. Dorsey was really active today and got knocked around a bit. But he had a lot of catches, including a diving play in the back of the EZ for a touchdown.
* Jeff George Jr. has improved the last few days and is probably the best passer on the team right now. He's making better decisions and making some plays on the move. He had two consecutive TD's to Ricky Smalling, one on a fade route and the other throwing to Ricky's back shoulder.
* With Boyd out, Christian DiLauro has moved to the strong side along with guard Nick Allegretti. Those two work well together. On the quick side its guard Alex Palczewski and tackle Gabe Megginson. Megginson probably had his best practice of camp. He held his own vs. Bobby Roundtree.
* Andrew Trainer is playing musical jerseys. He was 85 then 78 yesterday. Today he was wearing No. 74.
DEFENSE NOTES
* Rough day for the cornerbacks with so many guys out. Starters were Ahmari Hayes on the boundary side, and Frank Sumpter on the field side. Chris James and Cameron Watkins, who have been playing nickel, both got reps at corner.
* I continue to be impressed with freshman free safety Bennett Williams. They played quite a bit of cover-2 today, and he ranged really well in half-field coverage. He came out of nowhere to get a PBU against Carmoni Green down the seam when it seemed like Green was in the clear for a TD.
* Lovie Smith talked about freshman defensive end Bobby Roundtree in the post-practice interview. Roundtree is a lot bigger than he was when they recruited him. He's a weight room warrior. The question isn't whether or not Roundtree will be good, it's how good will he be?
* While the offense made strides today, the defense did win several series when they were working on goal line offense / defense. The linebackers, especially Jake Hansen, stuffed up the middle really well. And DT's Tymir Oliver and Jamal Milan are hard to move.
* Interceptions by Christion Abercrombie and Jake Hansen vs. Chayce Crouch and Jeff George respectively.
Practice on Friday is at 2:20, then on Saturday at 9am.
What are your questions?
