Illini Family:
With the 2018 Illinois football season now concluded, I thought it important to share, in my own words, my view on the state of our program and our plans for the future.
No one is satisfied with our season, least of all those of us directly involved in the day-to-day work of Illinois Football. We endured several lopsided losses and expected to win more games. After studying the season, however, there were undoubtedly signs of progress:
Most importantly, having now spent three years developing a relationship with Coach Smith and watching his plan for our program take root and grow, I believe more today in him and our direction than at any point in our past. Lovie Smith is an exceptional football coach. He leads with great integrity, and he prepares our student-athletes to leave our program as men of purpose and impact. Every day, I have the pleasure of seeing his competitive fire, his work ethic, and his football expertise on full display, and I have great confidence that we are moving our program in the right direction.
In addition, this is a critical offseason for the football program, revolving around the retention and recruitment of players and coaches. Stability and programmatic support – not uncertainty and wavering leadership – are critical to making Illinois their destination of choice.
First, our young roster must age and gain the benefit of experience, maturity, and stability. We return a large core of gifted, game-tested players. We need them to stay together and continue the work they have begun, of building Illinois into a winning program.
Second, we need to complete another strong recruiting class, filled with talented, driven players who share in our vision for the coming greatness of Fighting Illini Football. Our concern is not with rankings but with building a capable roster motivated to maximize their potential and compete at the highest level.
Third, we need to retain our current coaching staff. I have gotten to know these men well, and they are exceptional leaders and sound football coaches. Each year their phones ring as the coaching carousel begins to spin, and it is important that we provide them with assurance about their respective futures with the Orange and Blue.
In the high stakes game of major college football, there is no room for equivocation. A hint of weakness in the athletic director or vulnerability in the head coach leaves the program wounded and unsteady. Indecisiveness fuels the negative narrative. And that negative narrative, as it grows in power, can create instability and push needed game changers – players and staff – away from our program and toward our competitors. We cannot allow such a narrative to develop. We must be "all in" on this rebuild of Illinois Football.
Stability is the unsung hero of successful programs, and we are committed to giving Coach Smith and his staff necessary time to build this program. Indeed, lack of stability is one of the biggest culprits for our current challenges, and a fifth coaching change in 14 years is not the answer. It would be unrealistic and unfair to give Coach Smith only three seasons and two recruiting classes to tackle the challenges he inherited – including turmoil in the coaching ranks, resultant limitations on the recruiting trail, lack of recent success, and facilities that were decades past their prime.
As such, we are finalizing terms to extend Coach Smith's contract by two years, through the end of the 2023 football season. By doing so, we intend to send a strong message to current and prospective players and coaches that Illinois has a bold vision, needed stability, and a commitment from the highest reaches of the university to build a winning program.
Just as we need to recruit and retain great players and coaches, we also need you. I recognize that not everyone will agree with this decision. As any athletic director will tell you, criticism comes with the territory. But my challenge to you is simple: do what you can to help our football program become successful. These student-athletes and these coaches deserve your full support. They are working tirelessly to represent you and our university with pride and distinction.
To move the program forward, we need you in the stands. We need you in the tailgating lots. We need you to remain active in the I FUND. We need you wearing your orange and blue and supporting your program. To make our vision our new reality, we must act like the program we aspire to be.
I ask for your continued support of Coach Smith, his staff, and our Illinois football players. With our resolve and your loyal support, we can work together to make 2019 the turning point for Illinois Football.
Yours in Orange & Blue,
-Josh Whitman
Illinois Director of Athletics
With the 2018 Illinois football season now concluded, I thought it important to share, in my own words, my view on the state of our program and our plans for the future.
No one is satisfied with our season, least of all those of us directly involved in the day-to-day work of Illinois Football. We endured several lopsided losses and expected to win more games. After studying the season, however, there were undoubtedly signs of progress:
- We doubled our win total from the 2017 campaign and compiled two more Big Ten wins than in the prior year. In addition, we were minutes away from an upset against South Florida that could have propelled our season in an entirely different direction and, just yesterday, we had several chances to beat a good Northwestern team before losing a one-score game.
- Our offense was one of the nation's most improved units, making significant advancements in national rankings for total yards and scoring per game.
- We emerged as one of the most dynamic running attacks in football, with more than 240 yards rushing per game, an improvement of almost 140 yards from the previous season. We were among the nation's leaders in explosive runs, and running back Reggie Corbin recorded the first 1,000-yard season by an Illini runner in the last eight years.
- For the second consecutive season, we fielded one of the youngest teams in college football, with only nine seniors and 24 total upperclassmen, both the fewest in the nation.
- On the other end of the spectrum, underclassmen accounted for nearly 80% of the roster and 60% of the total starting lineup. In the last two seasons, we have played 41 true freshmen who, in total, have accounted for 118 starts – numbers unprecedented in our program's history.
- More than 30 starters and significant contributors are expected to return in 2019.
- The team was riddled with injuries during the 2018 season. Players missed a total of 114 games due to injury, including more than 65 combined games by projected starters.
- In terms of our roster, this staff has successfully attracted more top tier talent to Champaign than we have seen in a decade, with several players in each class choosing Illinois over tradition-rich Power 5 programs.
- In July 2019, we will open the doors on the Henry Dale and Betty Smith Football Center, the new 110,000-square-foot home of the Illinois football program. This building, which will be among the finest facilities of its kind anywhere in the country, represents the most sweeping upgrades to player and staff spaces in generations.
Most importantly, having now spent three years developing a relationship with Coach Smith and watching his plan for our program take root and grow, I believe more today in him and our direction than at any point in our past. Lovie Smith is an exceptional football coach. He leads with great integrity, and he prepares our student-athletes to leave our program as men of purpose and impact. Every day, I have the pleasure of seeing his competitive fire, his work ethic, and his football expertise on full display, and I have great confidence that we are moving our program in the right direction.
In addition, this is a critical offseason for the football program, revolving around the retention and recruitment of players and coaches. Stability and programmatic support – not uncertainty and wavering leadership – are critical to making Illinois their destination of choice.
First, our young roster must age and gain the benefit of experience, maturity, and stability. We return a large core of gifted, game-tested players. We need them to stay together and continue the work they have begun, of building Illinois into a winning program.
Second, we need to complete another strong recruiting class, filled with talented, driven players who share in our vision for the coming greatness of Fighting Illini Football. Our concern is not with rankings but with building a capable roster motivated to maximize their potential and compete at the highest level.
Third, we need to retain our current coaching staff. I have gotten to know these men well, and they are exceptional leaders and sound football coaches. Each year their phones ring as the coaching carousel begins to spin, and it is important that we provide them with assurance about their respective futures with the Orange and Blue.
In the high stakes game of major college football, there is no room for equivocation. A hint of weakness in the athletic director or vulnerability in the head coach leaves the program wounded and unsteady. Indecisiveness fuels the negative narrative. And that negative narrative, as it grows in power, can create instability and push needed game changers – players and staff – away from our program and toward our competitors. We cannot allow such a narrative to develop. We must be "all in" on this rebuild of Illinois Football.
Stability is the unsung hero of successful programs, and we are committed to giving Coach Smith and his staff necessary time to build this program. Indeed, lack of stability is one of the biggest culprits for our current challenges, and a fifth coaching change in 14 years is not the answer. It would be unrealistic and unfair to give Coach Smith only three seasons and two recruiting classes to tackle the challenges he inherited – including turmoil in the coaching ranks, resultant limitations on the recruiting trail, lack of recent success, and facilities that were decades past their prime.
As such, we are finalizing terms to extend Coach Smith's contract by two years, through the end of the 2023 football season. By doing so, we intend to send a strong message to current and prospective players and coaches that Illinois has a bold vision, needed stability, and a commitment from the highest reaches of the university to build a winning program.
Just as we need to recruit and retain great players and coaches, we also need you. I recognize that not everyone will agree with this decision. As any athletic director will tell you, criticism comes with the territory. But my challenge to you is simple: do what you can to help our football program become successful. These student-athletes and these coaches deserve your full support. They are working tirelessly to represent you and our university with pride and distinction.
To move the program forward, we need you in the stands. We need you in the tailgating lots. We need you to remain active in the I FUND. We need you wearing your orange and blue and supporting your program. To make our vision our new reality, we must act like the program we aspire to be.
I ask for your continued support of Coach Smith, his staff, and our Illinois football players. With our resolve and your loyal support, we can work together to make 2019 the turning point for Illinois Football.
Yours in Orange & Blue,
-Josh Whitman
Illinois Director of Athletics
