Illinois Football: Illini still representing well in the NFL

It is no secret that the Illinois football team has struggled over the last decade.

I feel like I have heard so many people from different fanbases bash the Orange and Blue for one reason or another. We haven’t won a lot of games. Our coaching situation was a mess for a few years in there. Everything seemed to be going wrong. But the ship has leveled out. We are back on the rise again with a solid roster and a coaching staff that knows what it is doing.

Even through all of the mess of the past, there has always been one thing that has stayed consistent. Illinois has been able to put players into the NFL. Now I realize NFL Draft history hasn’t been the best, especially from the Tim Beckman era. He didn’t groom a lot of players for the NFL and, when he was disgracefully dismissed from his position with the Illini, he left the cupboard pretty bare.

But Illinois still represents well in the NFL. The news of Hugh Thornton coming out of retirement and the Washington Redskins signing him makes me happy. He is a good offensive lineman who will do great things for the Redskins. His signing also gives Illinois 21 players on NFL rosters. Yes, that is right, 21 players.

I know 21 players isn’t nearly the amount of an Alabama, Ohio State or you name the big-time powerhouse program. But 21 is a respectable number considering the winning woes we have had the last decade. We also have more players in the NFL than a lot of other teams.

Out of the Big 12, Illinois has more players in the NFL than Baylor, Iowa State, Kansas, Kansas State and Texas Tech. That is half of their conference. We also have more players in the NFL than five ACC teams which include Duke, Georgia Tech, Syracuse, Virginia Tech and Wake Forest.

Illinois has more players in the NFL than four Pac-12 and four Big Ten teams as well. The Pac-12 programs that have fewer include Arizona, Colorado, Oregon State and Washington State. The Big Ten programs that have fewer include Indiana, Minnesota, Northwestern and Purdue. We are also tied with Maryland at 21. Out of the SEC, we only have more than one team and that is Kentucky.

Over the past half-decade or so, I would venture to say we have one of the worst records among power-five conference teams. We have been able to put 21 players into the NFL despite the lack of winning. With this regime in place and the talent we have on the roster, just imagine how many players we can get playing on Sundays when we start putting W’s on the board.