Why are Harnisch and Persa on the West squad and AJ Jenkins on the East squad of the East-West Shrine game?

Mercilus is the only Illini going pro. They say he's projected as a 1st round type guy but I've seen and would expect a 2nd/3rd-round position. Terry Hawthorne I think will be playing on Sundays but is sticking around for his Senior year.

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My Maserati does 186.

Mercilus will be a LB in the NFL.

AJ Jenkins will be a mid round pick.

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Dr. Ken, what do you think of the new coaching staff in Champaign? I think Mike Thomas made a huge mistake in not hiring Mike Leach. The Illini could be real bad for many years. Then again, who the hell knows?

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CSFMB 2014 Nascar Pick 'em Champion

We don’t have a trillion-dollar debt because we haven’t taxed enough; we have a trillion-dollar debt because we spend too much. — Ronald Reagan

My guess is on the guys being on diffrent sides, is that there trying to even the amount of players on each team, it could be like one team has 70 and the other 60.

If Illinois is a consistent 7-5, I will be pleased. If they throw in the possible 10-2 once in a while, Beckman will be a god.

I can see only one graduating NU player in the draft. Jeremy Ebert is in the Eric Decker mold of receivers. Persa and Dunsmore could also get a practice squad role methinks.

I was never on the Leach bandwagon. Too much baggage in my opinion.

I guess this is basically what I would have chosen - an up-and-comer that can reenergize the program through good, fundamental football. No more bonehead coaching decisions, questionable play calls, and ridiculous miscues on special teams, etc.

The problem with that approach is you can't really know if you've gotten the right guy since, pretty much by definition, you've taken an unknown. I like that the guy seems a little out there. But, his inability to get his coaching staff together is an early red flag.

On the flip side, I've heard rumors of some positive recruiting news so that seems promising. This is what everybody wanted - to get rid of Zook. I, also, thought it was time for a change. I'd rather have this than a retread like Charlie Weis. I mean, what was realistically out there?

So, basically, I'm cautiously optimistic. There is talent. I just hope this guy can actually coach people up. Based on his history, I think that is a possibility.

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My Maserati does 186.

I hear Illinois fans say that but I don't think it is generally true. That is basically was Zook was. After those first 2 disastrous years, the last 5 years he was a .500 coach with a 2-1 bowl record and a Rose Bowl appearance and people couldn't wait to launch him.

If fans would really settle for 7-5 type season, there are going to be some crappy games in there. Illinois fans have demonstrated that they think Illinois should win just about every game.

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My Maserati does 186.

Not that anything the guy says is ever right but Kiper has him going to play opposite Clay Matthews as the an outside linebacker in the 3-4 scheme as the first round pick of the Pack. I think the guy will be taken by then but I have heard very good things if in fact Kiper is correct on this one.

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That's my purse! I don't know you!

I know this is old news, but I was a little surprised to see that Illinois lost $350K just in unsold tickets for their bowl game. And that doesn't include the cost to get the team to the bowl... that ain't cheap either. Illinois should have just stayed home.

I was just getting ready to point this out. Statements like this from fans sound good, but are rarely true. I do not think Illinois fans would be happy with going 7-5 every year.

Now having said that, I would be happy if Indiana could get to 7-5 every year.

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"He is a loathsome, offensive brute
--yet I can't look away."

I'm guessing he's a late round guy, 5th round at best. He's fast but he's not that big.

Barely over 6-feet but he's got good speed and hands. I think he can be productive and would probably be a pretty good late-round pickup.

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My Maserati does 186.

I would gladly take Leach's "baggage" along with the unbelievable success that he has had as a college football coach. He would have been great for ticket sales & recruiting too.
It just seems to me like they took a page out of the Bears management & hiring strategy by going small time & hiring guys who most other teams wouldn't consider hiring.

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CSFMB 2014 Nascar Pick 'em Champion

We don’t have a trillion-dollar debt because we haven’t taxed enough; we have a trillion-dollar debt because we spend too much. — Ronald Reagan

7-5 is better than all but one year under Zook. Zook only finished the regular season with a winning record once. If Beckmann has a winning record for 5 straight years, that would be amazing. That said, if he goes 7-5 for 5 straight years, he will eventually be looked at as a failure for not continuing to improve the program. But lets face it, Illinois football is a joke and has been almost every year for about 30 years. If any type of winning consistency would occur, it would be welcomed whole-heartedly by most Illinois fans.

I will put this here.

It may not be over, a report of Florida State possibly to the Big 12.

http://sports.yahoo.com/news/ncaaf--flo ... _F4sU5nYcB