Illinois Football: 5 Illini players to be excited about after spring practice

CHAMPAIGN, IL - NOVEMBER 05: Illinois Fighting Illini band members cheer on the football team during the Big Ten Conference game as the Illini take on the Michigan State Spartans on November 5, 2016, at Memorial Stadium in Champaign, Illinois. (Photo by Michael Allio/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /

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CHAMPAIGN, IL – NOVEMBER 25: Cam Thomas /

2. Cam Thomas

The worry on everyone’s mind right now is the quarterback position. Illinois entered spring practice with only one quarterback with playing experience and that was Cam Thomas.

Thomas is a 6-foot-2, 190-pound dual-threat quarterback for the Illini. Last season as a true freshman, he threw for 375 yards, zero touchdowns and five interceptions. He also only had a completion rate of 42.4-percent.

Illinois only started Thomas in two games and played him in a total of four games. His development is crucial this year if the Illini want to put more wins on the board. I was really encouraged by what I saw and what the coaching staff said about Thomas, though.

Thomas looked solid in the spring game, and he is developing a nice chemistry with his wide receivers. That is a going to be huge moving forward. In an interview with Bob Asmussen of The News-Gazette, Lovie Smith said he is putting Thomas in every situation at quarterback and there were some good throws and some bad. He also said Thomas is not game-ready yet as well.

Getting Thomas ready for the season is arguably priority No. 1 for this coaching staff. Without a quarterback, the team is going to flounder and we saw that last season. What Thomas showed us this spring, though, is encouraging.

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