Illinois Football: 5 storylines to begin Illini training camp
1. The quarterback position might already be set
Heading into the 2018 season, I thought there might have been a quarterback competition. Illinois had a nice group of quarterbacks coming in and Cam Thomas was returning for his sophomore seasons. But, that might not be the case.
It looks like the quarterback position might be set already. From what I have seen through the first day of camp, AJ Bush seems to be emerging as the starting quarterback.
Bush is the graduate transfer who picked the Illini this past spring. Coming out of Norcross High School, Bush was rated as a three-star recruit who was the No. 1732 player in the class of 2014. He picked Nebraska originally. From there, he ended up transferring to Virginia Tech and now he is in Champaign.
If I had to bet who the starter would have been to enter 2018, I would likely have put money on Thomas. I thought MJ Rivers could have been the starter and I think he has the most potential – he threw a 92-yard touchdown in practice – but now it looks like Bush could emerge.
Quick hits during a water break:
— Robert Rosenthal (@ALionEye) August 3, 2018
+ Dominic Stampley is a surprise.
+ Defense is just so young.
+ Rod Smith needs to be mic’d up for every practice.
+ AJ Bush much more likely to win the QB job than I thought driving up here today.
Bush has always been touted for his running ability. He also has a cannon for an arm. I am curious to see if he can get enough accuracy to do damage in the passing department, though. Whoever emerges as the starting quarterback, hopefully, they can take the Illini to a bowl game. For now, it looks like Bush could be in the lead for the job.