Recruiting
Recruits
The Fighting Illini signed a total of 25 recruits.
US college sports recruiting information for 2017 recruits |
Name |
Hometown |
High school / college |
Height |
Weight |
Commit date |
Mike Epstein RB |
Fort Lauderdale, Florida |
St. Thomas Aquinas HS |
6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) |
185 lb (84 kg) |
Aug 6, 2015 |
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: |
Ricky Smalling WR |
Chicago, Illinois |
Brother Rice HS |
6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) |
189 lb (86 kg) |
Apr 26, 2016 |
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: |
Kendall Smith WR |
Bolingbrook, Illinois |
Bolingbrook HS |
6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) |
170 lb (77 kg) |
Apr 26, 2016 |
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: |
Cameron Thomas QB |
Richton Park, Illinois |
Marian Catholic HS |
6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) |
180 lb (82 kg) |
May 31, 2016 |
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: |
Vederian Lowe OG |
Rockford, Illinois |
Auburn HS |
6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) |
352 lb (160 kg) |
Jun 12, 2016 |
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: |
Marc Mondesir LB |
Chicago, Illinois |
St. Rita HS |
6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) |
210 lb (95 kg) |
Jun 12, 2016 |
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: |
Tony Adams WR |
St. Louis, Missouri |
St. Louis University HS |
6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) |
185 lb (84 kg) |
Aug 12, 2016 |
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: |
Larry Boyd OG |
St. Louis Missouri |
Trinity Catholic HS |
6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) |
310 lb (140 kg) |
Aug 13, 2016 |
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: |
Carmoni Green WR |
Miami, Florida |
Miami Central HS |
6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) |
192 lb (87 kg) |
Aug 25, 2016 |
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: |
Olalere Oladipo DE |
Huntley, Illinois |
Huntley HS |
6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) |
238 lb (108 kg) |
Aug 25, 2016 |
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: |
Ra'Von Bonner RB |
Cincinnati, Ohio |
Sycamore HS |
6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) |
210 lb (95 kg) |
Sep 27, 2016 |
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: |
Delshawn Phillips LB |
Highland Park, Michigan |
Garden City Community College |
6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) |
215 lb (98 kg) |
Dec 14, 2016 |
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: |
Howard Watkins OG |
Cincinnati, Ohio |
Colerain HS |
6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) |
280 lb (130 kg) |
Dec 19, 2016 |
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: |
Kendrick Green DT |
Peoria, Illinois |
Peoria HS |
6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) |
270 lb (120 kg) |
Dec 22, 2016 |
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: |
Nate Hobbs CB |
Louisville, Kentucky |
Male HS |
6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) |
170 lb (77 kg) |
Dec 23, 2016 |
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: |
Owen Carney DE |
Miami, Florida |
Miami Central HS |
6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) |
232 lb (105 kg) |
Dec 25, 2016 |
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: |
James Knight S |
East St. Louis, Illinois |
East St. Louis HS |
6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) |
210 lb (95 kg) |
Jan 16, 2017 |
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: |
Louis Dorsey TE |
Jacksonville, Florida |
Ribault HS |
6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) |
220 lb (100 kg) |
Jan 21, 2017 |
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: |
Alex Palczewski OT |
Prospect, Illinois |
Plant HS |
6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) |
260 lb (120 kg) |
Jan 20, 2017 |
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: |
Deon Pate DE |
Jacksonville, Florida |
Trinity Christian Academy |
6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) |
246 lb (112 kg) |
Jan 30, 2017 |
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: |
Bennett Williams CB |
Watsonville, California |
Saint Francis HS |
5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) |
192 lb (87 kg) |
Jan 31, 2017 |
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: N/A |
Dawson DeGroot S |
Fort Myers, Florida |
Fort Myers HS |
6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) |
190 lb (86 kg) |
Jan 31, 2017 |
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: N/A |
Jamal Woods DE |
Hueytown, Alabama |
Hueytown HS |
6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) |
240 lb (110 kg) |
Feb 1, 2017 |
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: |
Bobby Roundtree DE |
Largo, Florida |
Largo HS |
6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) |
230 lb (100 kg) |
Feb 1, 2017 |
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: |
Isaiah Gay DE |
Rocky Mount, North Carolina |
Northern Nash HS |
6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) |
215 lb (98 kg) |
Feb 10, 2017 |
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A Rivals: N/A 247Sports: ESPN: N/A |
Overall recruiting rankings: |
- Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight.
- In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.
Sources:
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Schedule
Illinois announced its 2017 football schedule on July 11, 2013. The 2017 schedule consisted of 7 home and 5 away games in the regular season. The Fighting Illini hosted Big Ten foes Indiana, Nebraska, Northwestern, Rutgers, Wisconsin, and traveled to Iowa, Minnesota, Ohio State, and Purdue.[1]
The Fighting Illini hosted two of the three non-conference opponents, Ball State from the Mid-American Conference and Western Kentucky (WKU) from Conference USA, and traveled to South Florida from the American Athletic Conference.
Date |
Time |
Opponent |
Site |
TV |
Result |
Attendance |
September 2 |
11:00 a.m. |
Ball State* |
Memorial Stadium • Champaign, IL |
BTN |
W 24–21 |
42,505 |
September 9 |
7:00 p.m. |
WKU* |
Memorial Stadium • Champaign, IL |
BTN |
W 20–7 |
41,923 |
September 15 |
6:00 p.m. |
at No. 22 South Florida* |
Raymond James Stadium • Tampa, FL |
ESPN |
L 23–47 |
35,404 |
September 29 |
7:00 p.m. |
Nebraska |
Memorial Stadium • Champaign, IL |
FS1 |
L 6–28 |
43,058 |
October 7 |
11:00 a.m. |
at Iowa |
Kinnick Stadium • Iowa City, IA |
BTN |
L 16–45 |
69,894 |
October 14 |
11:00 a.m. |
Rutgers |
Memorial Stadium • Champaign, IL |
BTN |
L 24–35 |
35,675 |
October 21 |
2:30 p.m. |
at Minnesota |
TCF Bank Stadium • Minneapolis, MN |
BTN |
L 17–24 |
45,243 |
October 28 |
11:00 a.m. |
No. 5 Wisconsin |
Memorial Stadium • Champaign, IL |
ESPN |
L 10–24 |
42,101 |
November 4 |
11:00 a.m. |
at Purdue |
Ross–Ade Stadium • West Lafayette, IN (Rivalry) |
BTN |
L 10–29 |
46,027 |
November 11 |
11:00 a.m. |
Indiana |
Memorial Stadium • Champaign, IL |
BTN |
L 14–24 |
40,195 |
November 18 |
2:30 p.m. |
at No. 8 Ohio State |
Ohio Stadium • Columbus, OH (Rivalry) |
ABC |
L 14–52 |
105,282 |
November 25 |
3:00 p.m. |
No. 23 Northwestern |
Memorial Stadium • Champaign, IL (Rivalry) |
FS1 |
L 7–42 |
30,456 |
*Non-conference game. Homecoming. #Rankings from AP Poll released prior to game. All times are in Central Time. |
- Schedule Source:[2]
Game summaries
Ball State
|
1 |
2 |
3 |
4 |
Total |
Cardinals |
7 |
0 |
14 |
0 |
21 |
Fighting Illini |
6 |
10 |
0 |
8 |
24 |
Overall record |
Last meeting |
Result |
1–0 |
2007 |
W, 28–17 |
WKU
|
1 |
2 |
3 |
4 |
Total |
Hilltoppers |
0 |
0 |
0 |
7 |
7 |
Fighting Illini |
3 |
10 |
7 |
0 |
20 |
Overall record |
Last meeting |
Result |
1–0 |
2014 |
W, 42–34 |
at South Florida
|
1 |
2 |
3 |
4 |
Total |
Fighting Illini |
2 |
7 |
0 |
14 |
23 |
No. 22 Bulls |
9 |
14 |
14 |
10 |
47 |
Overall record |
Last meeting |
Result |
First meeting |
Nebraska
|
1 |
2 |
3 |
4 |
Total |
Cornhuskers |
7 |
14 |
0 |
7 |
28 |
Fighting Illini |
0 |
3 |
3 |
0 |
6 |
Overall record |
Last meeting |
Result |
3–10–1 |
2016 |
L, 16–31 |
at Iowa
|
1 |
2 |
3 |
4 |
Total |
Fighting Illini |
3 |
10 |
3 |
0 |
16 |
Hawkeyes |
7 |
10 |
7 |
21 |
45 |
Overall record |
Last meeting |
Result |
38–32–2 |
2016 |
L, 0–28 |
Rutgers
|
1 |
2 |
3 |
4 |
Total |
Scarlet Knights |
7 |
14 |
7 |
7 |
35 |
Fighting Illini |
3 |
7 |
0 |
14 |
24 |
Overall record |
Last meeting |
Result |
2–1 |
2016 |
W, 24–7 |
at Minnesota
|
1 |
2 |
3 |
4 |
Total |
Fighting Illini |
7 |
0 |
0 |
10 |
17 |
Golden Gophers |
7 |
0 |
3 |
14 |
24 |
Overall record |
Last meeting |
Result |
29–37–3 |
2016 |
L, 17–40 |
Wisconsin
|
1 |
2 |
3 |
4 |
Total |
No. 5 Badgers |
7 |
10 |
0 |
7 |
24 |
Fighting Illini |
0 |
3 |
0 |
7 |
10 |
Overall record |
Last meeting |
Result |
37–40–7 |
2016 |
L, 3–48 |
at Purdue
|
1 |
2 |
3 |
4 |
Total |
Fighting Illini |
7 |
3 |
0 |
0 |
10 |
Boilermakers |
7 |
6 |
3 |
13 |
29 |
Overall record |
Last meeting |
Result |
44–42–6 |
2016 |
L, 31–34 |
Indiana
|
1 |
2 |
3 |
4 |
Total |
Hoosiers |
0 |
14 |
3 |
7 |
24 |
Fighting Illini |
0 |
0 |
7 |
7 |
14 |
Overall record |
Last meeting |
Result |
45–23–2 |
2013 |
L, 35–52 |
at Ohio State
|
1 |
2 |
3 |
4 |
Total |
Fighting Illini |
0 |
0 |
7 |
7 |
14 |
Buckeyes |
28 |
10 |
7 |
7 |
52 |
Overall record |
Last meeting |
Result |
30–67–4 |
2015 |
L, 3–28 |
Northwestern
|
1 |
2 |
3 |
4 |
Total |
Wildcats |
0 |
14 |
14 |
14 |
42 |
Fighting Illini |
7 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
7 |
Overall record |
Last meeting |
Result |
55–50–5 |
2016 |
L, 21–42 |
References
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Venues | |
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Bowls & rivalries | |
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Culture & lore | |
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People | |
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Seasons | |
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National championship seasons in bold |