Lovie looks to be in big trouble, recruiting-wise, in Champaign. The Illini have three commits in their 2018 class. They just picked up a commitment from a two-star CB whose other offers were from Illinois State, North Dakota State and South Dakota State. Their two-star OL had one other offer, from Northern Illinois, and their three-star QB didn't have any other offers -- though we can assume he would have picked some up if he hadn't committed early. There are just five of the Top 20 and nine of the Top 30 recruits left in Illinois. I imagine they'll have to resort to the Juco route to fill out their class.
When Lovie was hired, I, like many others, thought he was a good coach and a good guy, but I questioned whether he could get it done in recruiting after 20 years away from the college game. Those questions were apparently valid. I had a high school coach tell me that Lovie's camps were very low energy and that kids were bored. He said that there just wasn't a lot of "juice" compared to others he'd been to, including NU's. But it's going to be awfully hard for a veteran like Lovie, who's been to a Super Bowl, to change his ways.
When Lovie was hired, I, like many others, thought he was a good coach and a good guy, but I questioned whether he could get it done in recruiting after 20 years away from the college game. Those questions were apparently valid. I had a high school coach tell me that Lovie's camps were very low energy and that kids were bored. He said that there just wasn't a lot of "juice" compared to others he'd been to, including NU's. But it's going to be awfully hard for a veteran like Lovie, who's been to a Super Bowl, to change his ways.
