Illinois Football: Athlon Sports nailed it with the Illini QB situation
The Illinois football team had a miserable 2017 campaign that only amounted to two wins the entire year.
After those two wins, the Illini went on a 10 game losing streak that included nine double-digit losses. In the 10 straight losses, Illinois only managed to put up 14.1 points per game, which is just an awful stat. They were essentially averaging two touchdowns per game. There is no surprise that they didn’t win a single game in that span.
Honestly, the main reason for the bad Illinois season was the quarterback play. The Illini had three main quarterbacks on the roster who threw for a combined eight touchdowns and 19 interceptions. Two of those quarterbacks are gone – Jeff George to transfer and Chayce Crouch to retirement – and now Illinois is left with sophomore Cam Thomas.
Athlon Sports came out with a ranking of all the starting quarterbacks in college football for 2018. There are 130 teams in college football, and the No. 1 quarterback according to this ranking is Will Grier from West Virginia. No. 2 on the list is Tua Tagoviloa from Alabama. I could continue on throughout the entire list, but I don’t have all day to type this.
To find Cam Thomas – the projected Illinois starter heading into the 2018 season – you have to drop all the way down to No. 116. Thomas comes in right behind Tevaka Tuioti of New Mexico and right ahead of Drew Eckels of Western Kentucky.
Now, some fans might be mad that Thomas is this low, but I don’t understand why you would be mad. Thomas threw for 375 yards, zero touchdowns and five interceptions as a true freshman. He had a 42.4-percent completion rate in the time he did see on the field. The only thing he did well on the field was run the ball. He actually ended up being our third-leading rusher on the season.
Honestly, with the way Thomas played last season, I am surprised he isn’t a little lower on this list. But, the little write-up that Athlon did on Thomas this upcoming season is spot on. He has had a full offseason under his belt as the starter. He has that experience from last season as well. There were times he had good passes last season. Illinois has a nice stable of wide receivers to help him along too.
I also like the fact Illinois is bringing in quarterback competition. This ranking is based on Thomas being the starter, but I think transfer AJ Bush or potentially one of the incoming freshmen could challenge for the starting job. There is no guarantee Thomas will be the starter. At worst, though, the newcomers will push Thomas to get even better.
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So, while the Athlon ranking makes some fans upset, I think it is exactly how it should be. We need to see something from Thomas this season. I think the quarterback position will take a step forward in 2018. It won’t continue being a liability. This will be an exciting year for Illinois football.