Illinois Football: Who Signed and Who’s Next for 2017
Lovie Smith and the Illinois Football team are bringing in a very impressive group of talent into Champaign next season.
This fan base is fired up, and there is more to come. The class of 2017 is currently ranked No. 35 in the country by Scout.com.
Who Has Signed:
- Owen Carney (***) DE, Miami, FL
- Nate Hobbs (***) CB, Louisville, KY
- Kendrick Green (****) DT, Peoria, IL
- Howard Watkins (***) DT, Cincinnati, OH
- Delshawn Phillips (****) OLB, Garden City, JUCO
- Dwayne Lawson (***) QB, Garden City, JUCO
- Ra’Von Bonner (***) RB, Cincinnati, OH
- Carmoni Green (****) WR, Miami, FL
- Olalere Oladipo (***) DE, Huntley, IL
- Larry Boyd (***) OG, St. Louis, MO
- Tony Adams (***) CB, St. Louis, MO
- Marc Mondesir (***) OLB, Chicago, IL
- Vederian Love (***) OG, Rockford, IL
- Cam Thomas (***) QB, Chicago Heights, IL
- Ricky Smalling (****) WR, Chicago, IL
- Kendall Smith (***) WR, Bolingbrook, IL
- Mike Epstein (***) RB, Fort Lauderdale, IL
Who Is Next:
- Jeff Thomas (****) WR, East St. Louis, IL
The current Illini signees are recruiting Thomas very hard. Everyone knows how huge of a get this one would be.
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Thomas was voted MVP of UA All-American Game and is gifted with brilliant speed. If he signs, Lawson (QB) will have plenty of offensive weapons to work with.
- Alex Palczewski (***) OT, Mount Prospect, IL
Illinois currently has a couple of offensive linemen signed to the class of 2017. Palczewski would round it out nicely. He plays tackle, and the current class boasts two guards.
- Louis Dorsey (***) WR, Jacksonville, FL
Dorsey is another wide receiver and Illinois has already signed plenty, but more offensive weapons never hurts.
Dorsey also gives Illinois another signee from FL, and that solidifies the state of Florida as a pipeline state for recruiting.
- Tucker Day (**) P, Brentwood, TN
Day would be Lovie Smith’s first punter at the U of I, and he is a very solid player. He is a top 10 punter in the nation by 247sports.com.
- Zion Debose (***) DE, Spencer, NC
Debose is a very talented player, and he will commit on Feb 3. He will bring in much-needed depth to the defensive line as some D-Lineman will be entering the NFL draft or graduating this year.
Next: Breakdown of Illini Production Returning for 2017
There are more recruits I could add to this list, but we will just have to watch all of this unfold. I am beyond excited for this class, and I do believe We Will Win.