Both the Illinois basketball and football teams are trying to get to a point of being national contenders again.
The last time both of these teams made the postseason in the same sports calendar year was in 2010. That was the year the basketball team, somehow, sneaked into the NCAA tournament as a No. 9 seed despite having a 19-12 record in the regular season and losing to Michigan in the Big Ten Tournament. They played No. 8 UNLV in the first round and advanced on to play No. 1 Kansas. Illinois fought tough but fell to the Jayhawks by 14 points.
The football team entered this season only two years removed from a magical Rose Bowl run. They didn’t play badly that year under Ron Zook but still finished with a 6-6 record. That was good enough to get them to a bowl game against Baylor. The Illini went into this game against soon-to-be Heisman Trophy winner Robert Griffin III and beat the Bears down. Illinois won the game 38-14.
This was the last time Illinois had a chance to experience a winning program on both the court and the field. The big question now remains, who will be the best team when 2020 rolls around?
I think the obvious answer would be the basketball team. They are closer to the mean than the football team and they have an easier time with recruiting. In addition to the recruiting being easier, one big-time recruit can change the basketball program for the next three or four years. Football recruiting is more of a collective effort.
Which #Illini team will be better by 2020? #Illinois
— Writing Illini (@WritingIlliniFS) August 2, 2017
While the football team is further away than the basketball team, it seems like Lovie continues to pick up steam on the recruiting front. He has many big-time targets looking at the program right now and a solid season in 2017 will help with recruiting tremendously.
The football team also has a better coaching staff as well. That doesn’t take away from the basketball coaching staff, but the football team has a lot of firepower when it comes to coaching. Lovie is a known commodity in the football world. He also has a well-known offensive and defensive coordinator in Garrick McGee and Hardy Nickerson, respectively.
Next: Quick look at the Illini Big Ten schedule for 2017-18
Much of Illini Nation think the basketball team will be better, though. In a five minute poll, with obvious flaws, 86-percent of Illini fans thought the basketball team would be better than the football team. This is all speculation right now but I disagree. I think the football team has the momentum right now and will continue building and gaining momentum. I am going to take a chance and pick the football team to be the better program by 2020.