Illinois Football: Ranking the last 10 Illini recruiting classes

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Darius Millines (15) of Illinois makes an acrobatic catch against Tyler Stephenson (27) of Baylor during the first half of the Texas Bowl at Reliant Stadium on Wednesday, December 29, 2010, in Houston, Texas. (Photo by George Bridges/MCT/MCT via Getty Images) /

7. Class of 2010

One of the final recruiting classes for Ron Zook was the class of 2010. This class wasn’t great on paper and it didn’t really produce much talent on the football field. This class was also one of the reasons the beginning of the Tim Beckman era was so rough as well.

The class of 2010 produced one four-star recruit and 13 three-star recruits. This class checked in at No. 70 in the nation, which was much lower than Illinois fans were used to with Zook.

Chandler Whitmer was the only four-star to come out of this class. He was an in-state quarterback who should have helped the team win some ball games in the future. That didn’t happen, though. He ended up not playing for Illinois and suited up for UConn for three seasons of average football.

Darius Millines was supposed to be a special talent for this Illini team, but he really never panned out either. He was a high three-star recruit but his best season in Champaign was 32 catches for 319 yards. There were a few solid players who came out of this class, though.

Jonathan Brown was a great linebacker for the Illini. Houston Bates ended up transferring out of the program, but he is now in the NFL. Jay Prosch, who also transferred out, ended up going to the NFL as well.

Overall, this class disappointed on paper and with what they produced. The lone four-star saved them from being the worst class in the last 10 years.

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