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Zook invades Irish's S. Side stronghold
Frosh WR Benn, soph QB Williams featured as Illinois' spring workout draws 2,000 fans to St. Rita
April 15, 2007
BY HERB GOULD Staff Reporter
First, Illinois snatches a couple of hot recruits whom Notre Dame wanted. Then it works out at St. Rita High School in the heart of the Irish's South Side turf.
''I didn't know that,'' Ron Zook said Saturday, wrinkling his nose after Illinois scrimmaged before a hearty crowd of about 2,000 at Pat Cronin Field, the scene of some fierce Catholic League battles. ''Does that mean we're not allowed to come here?''
Of course not. It's just another sign Zook is serious about putting the fight back in the Fighting Illini.
Even if admission was free, Illinois officials had to be pleased with the turnout on an otherwise bleak and frosty spring day. That's especially true considering Illinois has won eight games in the last four years.
Lured by the opportunity to see freshman receiver Arrelious ''Rejus'' Benn and to gauge whether sophomore Isiah ''Juice'' Williams has learned to take something off his fastball, Illini fans left only a few gaps in the grandstand at St. Rita, 7740 S. Western.
It's easy to see why football powers around the nation wanted Benn, who enrolled at Illinois in January to get a jump on his college career.
Benn has speed, no question. But the 6-2, 210-pound blur also is built like a linebacker, which helped him show his stuff on back-to-back plays that came early.
First, the Washington, D.C. prep star caught a little ball in the flat and used a 360- degree spin to turn a two-yard nothing into a 16-yard sideline dance. Then he took an inside handoff up the middle for 14 more yards.
Benn didn't surprise sophomore cornerback Vontae Davis, his former Washington Dunbar teammate.
''He should have the kind of impact on offense that I did on defense,'' said Davis, who made some freshman All-America teams last fall. ''He wants the ball in his hands. He's a self-driven person who just wants to get better. He likes to compete. He's going to be good because he likes to compete.''
Benn wound up with three catches for 38 yards and one run for 14.
''I expected him to make big plays,'' Williams said. ''But coming out here and making guys miss was something I didn't expect so early. He's improving every day. It should be exciting when the season gets here.''
Williams' performance wasn't as uplifting, partly because the bar is set higher for a sophomore, especially a quarterback who remains the linchpin in Zook's Illinois revival effort.
Williams completed just 5 of 16 rockets -- or, rather, passes -- for 50 yards and threw into coverage at the goal line on first down, resulting in an interception.
''Juice told me he learned something,'' Zook said. ''He wanted to come home and do so well, and he was a little bit tight, and he forced and pushed. He hasn't had this kind of day all spring. But he said, 'This was good for me because I got excited. And I realize I have to be level.'
''If that's the lesson he learned, that's the most productive thing we could have done for him.''
Backup Eddie McGee completed 7 of 10 passes for 84 yards and ran four times for 27 yards, even outrushing Williams (four rushes for nine yards). But that only means Illinois might not be as thin behind Williams as it looked.
The Zook ship is all about Williams. And it will be interesting to see if Williams and Benn can hook up more at Illinois' spring game Saturday in Champaign.
Zook said he'll look at making another trip to Chicago to scrimmage next spring.
''I didn't realize how excited our players would be to come up here,'' he said.
They're as eager to get going as their fans are.
---------This man needs to be bitch slapped----------
Frosh WR Benn, soph QB Williams featured as Illinois' spring workout draws 2,000 fans to St. Rita
April 15, 2007
BY HERB GOULD Staff Reporter
First, Illinois snatches a couple of hot recruits whom Notre Dame wanted. Then it works out at St. Rita High School in the heart of the Irish's South Side turf.
''I didn't know that,'' Ron Zook said Saturday, wrinkling his nose after Illinois scrimmaged before a hearty crowd of about 2,000 at Pat Cronin Field, the scene of some fierce Catholic League battles. ''Does that mean we're not allowed to come here?''
Of course not. It's just another sign Zook is serious about putting the fight back in the Fighting Illini.
Even if admission was free, Illinois officials had to be pleased with the turnout on an otherwise bleak and frosty spring day. That's especially true considering Illinois has won eight games in the last four years.
Lured by the opportunity to see freshman receiver Arrelious ''Rejus'' Benn and to gauge whether sophomore Isiah ''Juice'' Williams has learned to take something off his fastball, Illini fans left only a few gaps in the grandstand at St. Rita, 7740 S. Western.
It's easy to see why football powers around the nation wanted Benn, who enrolled at Illinois in January to get a jump on his college career.
Benn has speed, no question. But the 6-2, 210-pound blur also is built like a linebacker, which helped him show his stuff on back-to-back plays that came early.
First, the Washington, D.C. prep star caught a little ball in the flat and used a 360- degree spin to turn a two-yard nothing into a 16-yard sideline dance. Then he took an inside handoff up the middle for 14 more yards.
Benn didn't surprise sophomore cornerback Vontae Davis, his former Washington Dunbar teammate.
''He should have the kind of impact on offense that I did on defense,'' said Davis, who made some freshman All-America teams last fall. ''He wants the ball in his hands. He's a self-driven person who just wants to get better. He likes to compete. He's going to be good because he likes to compete.''
Benn wound up with three catches for 38 yards and one run for 14.
''I expected him to make big plays,'' Williams said. ''But coming out here and making guys miss was something I didn't expect so early. He's improving every day. It should be exciting when the season gets here.''
Williams' performance wasn't as uplifting, partly because the bar is set higher for a sophomore, especially a quarterback who remains the linchpin in Zook's Illinois revival effort.
Williams completed just 5 of 16 rockets -- or, rather, passes -- for 50 yards and threw into coverage at the goal line on first down, resulting in an interception.
''Juice told me he learned something,'' Zook said. ''He wanted to come home and do so well, and he was a little bit tight, and he forced and pushed. He hasn't had this kind of day all spring. But he said, 'This was good for me because I got excited. And I realize I have to be level.'
''If that's the lesson he learned, that's the most productive thing we could have done for him.''
Backup Eddie McGee completed 7 of 10 passes for 84 yards and ran four times for 27 yards, even outrushing Williams (four rushes for nine yards). But that only means Illinois might not be as thin behind Williams as it looked.
The Zook ship is all about Williams. And it will be interesting to see if Williams and Benn can hook up more at Illinois' spring game Saturday in Champaign.
Zook said he'll look at making another trip to Chicago to scrimmage next spring.
''I didn't realize how excited our players would be to come up here,'' he said.
They're as eager to get going as their fans are.
---------This man needs to be bitch slapped----------
