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Illinois Football: Top 8 Illini targets confidence level for 2019

By Rees Woodcock

MINNEAPOLIS, MN - OCTOBER 21: Head coach Lovie Smith of the Illinois Fighting Illini looks on during the game against the Minnesota Golden Gophers on October 21, 2017 at TCF Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Golden Gophers defeated the Fighting Illini 24-17. (Photo by Hannah Foslien/Getty Images)
MINNEAPOLIS, MN - OCTOBER 21: Head coach Lovie Smith of the Illinois Fighting Illini looks on during the game against the Minnesota Golden Gophers on October 21, 2017 at TCF Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Golden Gophers defeated the Fighting Illini 24-17. (Photo by Hannah Foslien/Getty Images) /
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Illinois Football
CHAMPAIGN, IL – OCTOBER 14: Illinois Fighting Illini fans are seen during the game against the Rutgers Scarlet Knights at Memorial Stadium on October 14, 2017 in Champaign, Illinois. (Photo by Michael Hickey/Getty Images) /

1. Shammond Cooper – Confidence 6 out of 10

The Illinois football team has been after Shammond Cooper for a while now. He is a player who would help take the Illini class of 2019 from really good to legendary.

Cooper is a 6-foot-2, 195-pound inside linebacker from Trinity Catholic High School in St. Louis, Missouri. He is rated as a four-star recruit who is the No. 237 player in the class of 2019 and the No. 8 inside linebacker in the nation.

The recruitment of Cooper has been tough, but he did trim his list down in March. He included Oklahoma, LSU, Georgia, Florida, Ohio State, Texas, Kentucky, Missouri, Texas A&M and Illinois on that list.

I believe Illinois is still squarely in the middle of the Cooper recruitment. 247Sports has them as the favorite at 86-percent, but I am not sure if it is that high. But, I do think the Illini are right there for his commitment.

Oklahoma is the team that scares me when it comes to Cooper’s recruitment. They seem to have a huge pull around that area and have been able to secure some commitments from St. Louis in the past. They are the biggest threat right now.

Illinois’ pull is the coaching staff and then they added Cooper’s head coach Cory Patterson to the staff as well. That made the pull even stronger. They also have a huge need at linebacker, and Cooper would start day one.

It will be interesting to see how Cooper’s recruitment plays out. As of right now, though, I think Illinois is right in the middle – if not in the lead – for his commitment.

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