Illinois Football: 5 takeaways from the Illini recruiting class of 2018

CHAMPAIGN, IL - SEPTEMBER 09: An Illini cheerleader carries the Block I flag across the field after a touchdown during a non-conference college football game between the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers and the University of Illinois Fighting Illini, September 09, 2017, at Memorial Stadium, Champaign, IL. Illinois won, 20-7. (Photo by Keith Gillett/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
CHAMPAIGN, IL - SEPTEMBER 09: An Illini cheerleader carries the Block I flag across the field after a touchdown during a non-conference college football game between the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers and the University of Illinois Fighting Illini, September 09, 2017, at Memorial Stadium, Champaign, IL. Illinois won, 20-7. (Photo by Keith Gillett/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /
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CHAMPAIGN, IL – NOVEMBER 11: Head coach Lovie Smith of the Illinois Fighting Illini is seen during the game against the Indiana Hoosiers at Memorial Stadium on November 11, 2017 in Champaign, Illinois. (Photo by Michael Hickey/Getty Images) /

5. Illinois addressed key holes on the depth chart

Despite the class of 2018 just being a good class, the Illinois football team filled some holes in their depth chart. This was the overall goal of this class. Get the players that fill the massive voids left by departing members of the Illini.

The biggest hole on the team was at quarterback. Illinois had only one quarterback returning that played a snap in 2017. They needed to get more depth at this position and they managed to accomplish that goal. I am excited for Coran Taylor and MJ Rivers to suit up and push Cam Thomas for the starting job in 2018.

Another hole that needed to be filled was on both the offensive and defensive lines. Lovie Smith and the Illini managed to fill these holes as well. Calvin Avery and Verdis Brown will both be huge pieces at defensive tackle. Ezekiel Holmes will also be a nice development edge rusher for the Illini. Once he gets up to speed the Big Ten better watch out.

The offensive line – while extremely young already – added some nice pieces that bolstered their starting rotation and gave them more depth. Reuben Unije will fight for a starting spot this season, and I think he could win the job. He will be a great offensive tackle for the Illini. I really like what Jordyn Slaughter, Kievan Myers and Julian Pearl all bring to the table as well. While they might not start this season, all three will be backups or starters in the future. They all have talent and now the Illini can take an injury and not lose too much up front.

Another area that I wanted Illinois to address was at running back. The Illini have a great player in Mike Epstein carrying the rock but he was injured in 2017. Illinois didn’t have much depth behind him and this hurt the team. Now they have Jakari Norwood who is going to be fantastic. They also snagged Kenyon Sims, who I think is the most underrated player in the class of 2018 for Illinois. He is going to be great for this program.

Next: Projected Illini starting rotation with Courtney Ramey

I really like the players Illinois ended up getting for the class of 2018. They filled the voids in the depth chart and should be able to get more victories on the board because of this class. The future is bright and the movement is real. We will win.