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A very good, very solid career or a stellar career, one people talk about for years?
A decent senior season or a blockbuster senior year that makes waves throughout college basketball?
Which do you think James Augustine would rather have?

I’m sure he would rather have the latter and I know this much: If he does, Illinois will be a whole lot of fun to watch this college basketball season. This team won’t have Luther Head, Deron Williams and Roger Powell Jr., and it won’t be bringing Jack Ingram off the bench, but if Augustine decides to have a hell-raising final season — playing with a fury and determination that underscores his last hurrah — this Illini team can be a royal pain in the neck for anyone trying to compete against them.

I spent time with Augie Sunday in Chicago at the Big Ten Conference media day. Seems like it was just yesterday that he committed, then made a very favorable impression as a freshman. But he’s always been content to stay slightly in the background. He’s always had higher profile teammates that let him fly just under the radar, a place he said Sunday that he likes.

But now is the time for Augustine to go high-profile. He needs to flex his muscles and start playing with a real attitude around the basket. He needs to use that wonderful athleticism and soar over people, around people and (without fouling) through people. Sean May showed us you can go through people without drawing a foul, so we know it can be done.

I’ve picked the numbers 18 and 10 for Augie this season. That’s 18 points and 10 rebounds a night. Plus three or four blocks. Assuming his foot is OK, there’s no reason he can’t do that. Unlike last year, when the ball inevitably made its way back out to the perimeter, the ball will be going inside more often this season. Weber wants him to shoot, wants him to attack, wants him to dominate.

To a man, his teammates think he can do it. They have confidence in him and seniors have been known to rise up and do something special. I’m hoping Augustine does just that, because he’s such a fun player to watch. He is one of the best conditioned big men in the country and, if he can limit his fouls, he can be on the floor longer than most big men. He can maintain a breathless pace and even at his size, he’s one of the best natural runners on the Illinois team.

If Augustine can assert himself around the basket, he’ll draw defensive attention and someone will be open because of it. That’s when Illinois can start doing its inside-out thing. Feed it inside to Augustine, wait for the double team, then fire it back to an open Dee Brown or Jamar Smith. Or pass it to Brian Randle if his man has felt compelled to help on Augustine. And if his numbers are down a little because he’s always being double-teamed, great! That almost assuredly means good things are happening.

Most of all, I wish for Augie a season of good health. No matter what happens, a hard-working guy in his final year deserves to have nothing holding him back. Then it’s up to him.

It wasn’t all good news, but overall, I think the Orange & Blue scrimmage Friday night at the Hall turned out to be pretty encouraging.

Like many of you who may have attended, I was curious to see how players transferred stuff from practice onto the playing court in front of a crowd with referees. Among the highlights — and lowlights:

Shaun Pruitt showed some of the things Bruce Weber has been feeling good about. In fact, he showed more in this one scrimmage than he did all of last season. He probably wore down a little but he’s going to get some minutes and I now consider him a candidate to start at the ‘4.’

James Augustine moved better than he has and had 14 points and 11 rebounds. He wasn’t great, but he was steady.

Dee Brown didn’t have a great shooting night (4-for-10) but he got people involved (7 assists) and hit a 30-footer to end the third quarter.

Brian Randle flashed some of his athleticism around the basket but also flashed his inability to shoot. Too bad, because that won’t get cured overnight. And he had six turnovers to go with eight points and seven rebounds.

Jamar Smith was 3-for-4 shooting and was 1 for 2 from 3-point range. I like this kid.

Marcus Arnold was disappointing, even though he had seven rebounds. I had hoped for more from the Illinois State transfer.

Trent Meacham isn’t bashful about shooting. He was 5-for-14. Too bad he can’t play this season. He would figure in the mix.

Chester Frazier had cramps in his calf. He had six points and five assists, an OK first effort.

Calvin Brock ended up with nine points but his inability to shoot is more bothersome than Randle’s because he’s not going to get as many plays at the hoop as Randle.

C.J. Jackson ended up with very good numbers — 5-for-6 shooting, 10 points. He doesn’t do much yet, but he was opportunistic around the basket on this night.

Warren Carter hit two 3-pointers and had 10 points and seven rebounds. I wish he would be more aggressive.

Rich McBride didn’t shoot it well early, but he missed practice Thursday because of sore feet and Weber said he wasn’t sure he would play. He did nail a couple of NBA-distance bombs and finished with nine points.

The scrimmage was actually pretty exciting. The Blue team (Brock, Arnold, Augustine, Brown, McBride, Smith) was nine down early but ended up winning 58-55. The Orange team (Carter, Randle, Pruitt, Meacham, Frazier, Jackson) gave them a pretty good battle.

With so many spots open, you can see where the competition level is very good. That’s just a quicky report before we get booted out of the Assembly Hall.

A couple of days ago Bruce Weber called his staff together and he asked them these questions: So far in practice, who’s the biggest surprise? Who has done some things you didn’t expect to happen?

The first guy who was mentioned across the board was Shaun Pruitt. I’m writing about this tomorrow in the paper, but here’s a sneak preview of what Weber had to say:

“Shaun’s name came up with almost every coach. He’s a guy who has done some things. He’s not explosive, but he has a long reach. He has a nice lefty hook and now it’s gotten to the point where he can shoot his right-handed hook and be consistent. He gives us an inside threat. With Shaun, Marcus Arnold and James Augustine, we’ll have more of an offensive scoring presence that we did last year.”

That, Weber said, will be important because there’s no way Illinois will match last season’s scoring from 3-point distance. Pruitt went to the Pete Newell Big Man Camp while others attended a camp in Florida put on by IMG.

“What happens at the camp is that they reinforce some of the things we’ve been telling them, like how important footwork is. It helps coming from a different guy. Shaun developed confidence there. He was playing against some pros and some top college guys and he battled and did some things and came back more confident.”

The second player to get thumbs-up reviews as an early surprise is Jamar Smith, Weber said. “His shooting is uncanny at times. Everyone has negatives and positives. The problem for Jamar is his (lack of) strength. That will play a factor, especially at the defensive end. A lot depends on how that goes. If he can be solid and not kill you defensively, you have a chance to play him.”

Friday’s scrimmage will be four 8-minute quarters with bodies shuffled back and forth. They were planning to practice at the Assembly Hall today (Thursday) to acclimate the team to the shooting background and the routine of being at the Hall. “The more you do it, the more it helps them adjust,” Weber said.

I don’t know what the lineup will eventually evolve into. But I get the impression that Dee Brown would like it to become a three-guard attack again with Dee, Rich McBride and Jamar Smith along with Augustine and Randle. McBride and Smith can shoot and I think Dee likes the idea of setting them up for open shots, viewing them as different and unpolished versions of Deron Williams and Luther Head. I think there’s a comfort level in that for Dee. He hasn’t come right out and said that but, remember, those are the two players he chose when Weber suggested he start “bonding” more closely with some of the guys now that Deron and Luther had moved on. I don’t think it’s because he likes them better. Rather, it’s that they have the best chance to knock down shots and help pull the defense away from the basket.

I’m going to resist delving back into the Sherron Collins thing, even though there are some comments that are worth taking on directly. But one thing I’ve learned is that when it comes to recruiting — especially wherever Bill Self is concerned — Illini fans are going to conclude that he’s cheating. Kansas fans are going to conclude that Illini fans are full of sour grapes (and worse). And if any aspect of the process is questioned, there must be an ulterior motive.

I’ll just say this: I have spoken to Bill this past week a couple of times and he has pretty much laughed it all off. He can’t comment on the recruitment of an unsigned athlete, but he is well aware of the heated emotions that come with the topic.

I’ve also spoken with a parent of a high-profile former Illini player who wanted it understood in no uncertain terms that Bill Self was above board in every single aspect of their son’s recruitment. She understands that fans are upset that he left but wishes both sides could move past the personal stuff. I’m just passing that parent’s comments along.

So I’ll just add this: I hope Sherron Collins succeeds wherever he goes. As I wrote, he struck me as a pretty good kid. I am not surprised to read Anthony Longstreet’s comments and I hope his role was 100 percent in trying to help find Sherron the best possible college home. That I question some of that is simply my opinion and I’m entitled to it. Some times we all disagree. I reminded Bill that I felt the same way when a certain AAU coach seemed to have an undue interest in “steering” high school players while he was at Illinois and we both agreed that such influence was above and beyond. It made us both wonder, just as it makes me wonder now. Sorry, that’s just how I feel.

Bill also laughed about my comments praising Weber’s offense vs. his offense. “Even the triangle offense looks pretty good when Michael Jordan is running it,” he said. True, Weber’s motion looked mighty good in the hands of Deron Williams, Luther Head and Dee Brown and it might not look as good this season. But I recall liking his motion offense when he was at Southern Illinois, and there were no first-round NBA guards running the show there. So on that point, he and I will disagree.

Now, let’s move to the season at hand.

At basketball practice Tuesday it’s obvious that James Augustine is still not 100 percent. He sprained his ankle a while back, but it’s his foot that is bothering him. He’s had a lot of foot problems throughout his career and when I asked him about it, you could tell he was a little frustrated by it. “It’s OK,” he said, not very convincingly. James has exceptional bounce and that’s not there right now. I know trainer Al Martindale (one of the best in the business) is working with him and I would expect James to return to his pogo stick ways soon. But for now, the hop’s not where you’d like it.

The pace at practice is breathless. Weber ran them silly for the better part of three hours. Back and forth, up and down, quicky breaks for water. Then free throws. One of my favorite things he does is line up half of the squad (the blue team, for instance) for a running drill. It’s back and forth, end-to-end, about six times. But before they run, he’d call out a player such as Shaun Pruitt or Warren Carter. “If you make a free throw your team doesn’t have to run.” Talk about pressure! That’s big-game pressure, because all of your teammates are looking at you with something at stake. The first time he called out Pruitt he missed and everyone had to run. So Weber called him out again later and this time Pruitt swished the free throw, winning a reprieve for his mates. When Carter was put on the line, he also made his free throw.

Dee Brown was very impressive. That’s no surprise, but after his broken foot, he’s moving great, shooting the ball well and bringing full-court leadership. He makes so much noise during practice with constant hand-clapping and chatter. When Dee is gone, someone will have to take that over or that’s going to be one very quiet gym.

I also continue to be impressed with both freshman guards, Chester Frazier and Jamar Smith. Frazier looks like a Dee Brown knockoff, although a bit taller and perhaps more slender (Dee looks rock-solid). Jamar has a sweet stroke. If he carried about 15 more pounds and strength, he could really be something. His liability now is that he’s so light that he gets knocked around. But if he can shoot it, he’ll play.

Brian Randle might lead the team in rebounding. He’s always around the basket, sneaking in from right and left and far away. He just has a knack for getting to the rim and his defense looks extremely good. He’s a 6-8 athlete who can guard a point guard, shooting guard, small forward or power forward. If asked, he could probably bump around with a center.

There are games between the opener on Nov. 18 and the Oregon game Dec. 10, when semester break begins. That’s 10 games in 23 days, a pretty good pace. That’s going to be a fascinating time, watching Weber piece together combinations and settle (hopefully) on a lineup. Who’s going to play hard and defend? Who can score? Who are the surprises? It’s so much different than a year ago, when we pretty much knew the lineup and the top subs.

Different, yes. But a whole lot of fun. Let’s get started!

Just got back from Illini basketball practice and if there’s one player causing an early buzz, it’s Shaun Pruitt.

I don’t mind telling you that surprises me, but I consider that to be a welcome surprise. Teammates and coach Bruce Weber say that Pruitt has stepped up his game and is showing he wants to be a part of the mix. That’s often a much-needed first step: Showing you think you’re ready by taking it guys in practice. Pruitt is competing and getting some things done on the low block.

Pruitt went to a big man camp this summer and his teammate, James Augustine, thinks it paid off. Augustine, who has attended his share of big man camps, said some are better than others. “Some are just OK but some are very good. The one Shaun went to obviously agreed with him and you can see the improvement. He’s just playing with more confidence. He is relaxed.”

It’s a big jump from an early buzz in practice to actually having a reliable impact in Big Ten Conference games. But it has to start somewhere. So it will be interesting to see Friday night if Pruitt can make an impression in the Orange & Blue scrimmage.

I think the coaching staff is kind of waiting for Warren Carter to step it up. They think Carter is more talented than Roger Powell, but the question for Carter is this: Can he match Powell’s heart? Carter will have to answer that question. He’s 6-10, athletic and can score, so there’s no question there’s a role for him on this team. But in order to make a major impact, he’ll have to play with passion and the same kind of energy Powell brought to the court. They are hoping Carter starts to show that more clearly.

The players met with compliance representatives Tuesday before practice to review the dos and don’ts of tickets, making sure players handle their tickets within NCAA regulations. I’m sure there’s also some talk about how to best handle the avalanche of ticket requests they are sure to get (how to politely say NO). It’s a necessary session, just as it will be when they talk about the dangers of gambling and what to do if approached by a gambler. This is an annual exercise all teams go through.

Friday’s scrimmage is technically sold out, because it was part of the season ticket package. Face value for tickets is $10 and it’s open seating. If you want to go and don’t have a ticket, find someone with season tickets and see if they are using all of theirs. This is usually a game with empty seats, so not everyone goes. Tipoff is at 7 p.m. and a 45-minute autograph session will follow (one item per person, no coming behind the table to pose for photos).

When Michigan State put a 61-14 whipping on Illinois back on Sept. 24th, I think most of us felt that was the low point in Ron Zook’s first season as Illinois football coach. Wrong we were.

Saturday’s 63-10 homecoming loss was worse and only the kindness of Penn State coach Joe Paterno kept the scoring from being way more embarrassing. Maybe 100 points would have been a stretch, but if Penn State had wanted, 80 would have been easy.

Let’s hope this was the low point.

I’m not going to give this the smart-aleck treatment. I can only imagine how difficult it is to turn around a program while being athletically inferior to other teams in the Big Ten. So Zook will get two seasons or so to re-stock the shelves and to teach players how to do it his way. But he just has to stop saying “we’re closer than you think” because that doesn’t wash when your team is getting its brains beat in the way Illinois has been often this season.

If he thinks this is close, keep it to himself. To most of us, it isn’t close at all.

Can he get there? Sure, he can. But it’s not like he’s on the brink of making it happen. It’s not “one or two breaks away,” as they’d often like you to believe. It’s going to take time and rather than conclude right now that he can’t get it done, I’d suggest a big-time dose of patience that gives him the chance. That will stretch into next season.

Zook points out that Penn State struggled when these current seniors were youngsters getting a lot of playing time. Now, with veterans playing in a number of key spots (and with some outstanding young players in there, too), Penn State is soaring again.

“If we’re playing like this in two years then we’ve got a problem,” Zook said after the rout. “But I don’t think that will happen. I think we’ll be playing like (Penn State) is.”

On Saturday, there were problems all over the field. But the defensive problems run deep. I’m hoping a good deal of it is attributed to playing youngsters and Decatur freshman Brit Miller got his first collegiate start at linebacker. But it’s painful to watch, with blown assignments and missed tackles and a pack of players running free en route to the end zone.

I hope this was the low point. But with Wisconsin coming in next weekend, with road games at Ohio State and Purdue remaining, and with a home game against high-scoring Northwestern, who knows? Any of those teams could ring up 50 points. I’m hoping the Penn State game was the low point, but, honestly, I can’t be sure that’s the case.

Sherron Collins’ decision to commit to Kansas over the weekend, after attending the Jayhawks’ Midnight Madness event, is peculiar to say the least

It’s not that Kansas isn’t a great basketball school. It is.
It’s not that he wouldn’t have been bowled over by the atmosphere at Midnight Madness. I’m sure he was.
And it’s not that he couldn’t find success at Kansas and beyond. He very well could.

But no matter how these things turn out, it’s always intersting to see who is pulling the strings in the recruitment process and some of the behind-the-scenes things make you scratch your head in wonder.

When Collins came to Illinois on a previous visit, he told the coaches he wanted to commit. Right then. On the spot. Let’s get it over. This is where I want to be. But his coach, Crane Tech’s Anthony Longstreet, told Collins he wouldn’t let him commit just yet. He wanted to wait.

Longstreet said he felt Collins should take a visit to Kansas. And even though he wanted to play at Illinois, they’d make a courtesy visit to the Jayhawks, then return to Illinois (on Oct. 22) and have an announcement the next week. OK, Collins said. They’d do it that way.

But somewhere along the line — and somehow — Collins was convined he should be at Kansas. Don’t waste your time analyzing this from a basketball standpoint. Of course Weber’s motion offense appears to be a better fit for a guard who covets a professional career, just as it was for Deron Williams and Luther Head and Dee Brown (and Chester Frazier and Jamar Smith, etc…) This isn’t about basketball. It’s about a coach steering a kid some place and whenever that happens you have to wonder why? Why overrule a young man’s instincts? Guide, but don’t decide, that should be the coach-player rule.

Of course, Collins hasn’t called the Illini coaches since his decision was made (for him?). Calls to him have gone unanswered. Even calls to his uncle, who at one point appeared to be in Illinois’ corner, have gone silent.

I was in Indianapolis in July and conferred with other reporters who listened to Collins speak at the Nike All-Ameican Camp. You could not help but come away from that meeting feeling that Illinois was in great shape. And you’re a fool if you believe any of this was about one school “out-working” another. Illinois did everything it could do, above board, and came away empty.

I’m not accusing anyone because I have no proof of misbehavior. But I am always uncomfortable when outside influences seem to make the recruiting decision rather than the player himself. And one can’t help wonder why that outside influence felt so compelled to dictate the young man’s decision.

Bruce Weber has no choice but to move on. If he lands Derrick Rose and Eric Gordon, he’ll be in great shape at the guard position. And, Gordon, who said he had such a good time at Illinois’ “Madness” event Friday night, might be back on campus this weekend for another visit. Even now, with Chester Frazier looking better than first believed, and Jamar Smith possibly a shooter of great merit, Illinois is not desperate at the guard spot. And don’t forget: Weber has a commitment from the one thing Illinois has rarely had — a skilled big man. Brian Carlwell is going to be a 7-footer who will do some significant damage before all is said and done.

I hope Collins’ decision works out well for him. I just wish I thought it was a decision he made on his own.

All in all, a pretty nice start to the Illini basketball season. The organizers did a nice job coordinating the Illini Madness Friday night at the Assembly Hall. That’s a first-rate highlight film that recaps highlights through the season and gives a nice look back at the post-season. It’s ironic, though. On the one hand Bruce Weber wants his team to forget about last season. On the other hand, the university loves showing films of last season to the fans and to the recruits.

Personally, I love watching the highlight stuff and have no intention of forgetting last season. Everyone needs to understand, however, that this team will be different and with different expectations.

Observations from the scrimmage: McBride looks very good, really sleek compared to his body type last year. And he threw up some monster 3s, a couple of which were snapped off from nearly 30 feet. Weber said this would be the one game where there would be no penalty for bad shots and McBride apparently wanted to take advantage of it.

Augustine was really missing his hops, so I assume his ankle is bothering him more than we were led to believe. You could really see it in the 3-point shooting contest. He had no lift on his shot.

I’m excited about the two freshmen guards. Jamar Smith has a great stroke and Chester Frazier is quicker than I imagined. They both need polish, no doubt, but there’s a lot of potential there. And I like the progress Warren Carter has made over the summer. He’s bigger, stronger and ready to take on a significant role.

I talked to Eric Gordon after the scrimmage and he said Illinois continues to head his list of five finalists (Illinois, Duke, Arizona, Missouri and Indiana). Seems like a very nice kid. All Illinois can do is keep showing him the love, which he said he felt last night.

I’m writing this before Illini Madness actually begins, mainly for our desk guys who need some copy to play with. Derrick Rose and Eric Gordon are in the house. Eric Shang Ping is not, because he’s ill and is unable to make the trip.

Media day was earlier this afternoon and I’ve written an opus on Dee Brown that will run Sunday. (Too long for our limited space on Saturday morning, I fear). Dee seems to be in the best spirits I’ve ever seen him in. He’s upbeat and appears at peace. No doubt his academic schedule (only an internship in the sports information office) has contributed to his rosy mood. But I think he may have reached a stage where he’s grateful for what he has and isn’t going to get upset about what he doesn’t have (an NBA roster spot just yet).

Warren Carter looks much bigger through the upper body. I noticed it immediately. He has grown from 183 pounds when he arrived to 218. I’ll be curious if fans notice it, too. He sounded very confident about possbily starting. Marcus Arnold is so anxious to play that Bruce Weber said he is having trouble sleeping at nights. They’ve actually had to talk to him about it, trying to calm him down. He said it’s just been such a long, long wait that he can’t wait to get back on the floor.

Should be a fun night. I’ll try to post something else either after the Madness or early tomorrow morning. Thanks.

Illini Madness will usher in the basketball season Friday night and who’s at the event — and who’s not — is always interesting to note.

Eric Gordon will be there, and that’s the best news of all. My newspaper buddies in Indiana tell me he’s fantastic and Illinois continues to be held high in his remarks. His final four are Illinois, Duke, Arizona and Missouri with Indiana still hanging around. I believe his grandfather might be coming with him and his grandfather has been here before. His father, however, is not coming and he’ll be a key component to Gordon’s decision. I’m sure Bruce Weber is working on getting Gordon on campus with his dad.

Bill Cole of Peoria Richwoods will be there, as will Michael Tisdale of Riverton. Derrick Rose of Simeon won’t be, but I believe the staff is OK with that and is more interested in getting him on campus with his mother and family for a heart-to-heart sitdown. In his case, that could be more important than the glitz of Illini Madness.

The interesting one is Eric Shang Ping, the 6-9 Chinese center who is now at Illinois Central College. He was at The Winchendon School near Boston but didn’t like it there and transferred. He has relatives in the area. Some who have seen Ping can’t believe he got away from the Chinese national team. His two greatest qualities are the effort with which he plays and his passing skills. He is a great worker and a gifted passer who battles and has skills. He’s not skinny but needs more development. One issue will be academics, mainly because some of his early courses at Illinois Central College may not count. They were introductory courses so he may have some catchup to do. His coach at Illinois Central, of course, is former Illini Tony Wysinger.

Sherron Collins is scheduled to visit on Oct. 22 during homecoming. I don’t know what to make of his situation. It sounds like Kansas has hit him with the full court press, but you never know.

There will be other kids on hand, including some young ones and the key kids from St. Joseph’s and Lincoln Park.

I think Weber is concerned about the turnout Friday night at the Assembly Hall. He’d like it to be full or nearly full — and loud as hell — to give the recruits a feel for what it’s like on game night. And he’d like it to be orange. He loves the “Paint the State Orange” T-shirts that will be given to the first 8,000 students.

I’ll be watching the scrimmage to see how well Dee and Augie are moving, how confident Brian Randle looks, how aggressive Marcus Arnold, Warren Carter and Shaun Pruitt are and how well Calvin Brock, Jamar Smith and Chester Frazier handle themselves. And I’m hoping Rich McBride plays as well as we’ve ever seen him before. It’s time for McBride to step up big, and for Augustine to play like a senior who cares about becoming a millionaire.

Last Sunday, on Ron Zook’s weekly day-after teleconference, he floated the notion that “we’re not very far away,” saying there were many examples when plays were there for the taking but came up short for a variety of very fixable reasons.

I’ve heard that before. In fact, I heard it from the guy who sat in Zook’s office the last several years, Ron Turner. And I wasn’t buying any of it. I didn’t want to write that “Illinois is close” when two weeks ago we’d had a 61-14 score.

But to tell you the truth, I could see his point Saturday against Indiana. There were at least a dozen plays that could have resulted in good things for the Illini and almost none of them happened. Why? I’m not sure, but I do know that winning teams make those plays happen and losing teams rarely do.

Tim Brasic’s fumble. Derrick McPhearson stepping out of bounds on his 51-yard apparent touchdown. The botched onside kick (a good call that should have worked). All of those plays, in addition to dropped passes and stuff like that. It’s frustrating for Zook and his staff and those players. They desperately need someone to make a big play and no one seems able to step up and make it happen.

You saw Saturday what Zook was so excited about when he got the commitment from McPhearson. He has the capability to break the big play. Now Illinois just needs about 12 more of those guys.

I’m glad basketball is starting soon, if only because it will take a little of the spotlight off the football team. I think they’re struggling mentally right now and need this bye week to clear their heads. I still think Zook and his staff will come up with some answers. But, as I said in my column, we may not see them this season.

Ron Zook must have come into his weekly Tuesday press conference ready to burst if someone said the magic word. Sure enough, the magic word was “recruiting.” Before a reporter could complete his question (and it was going to be a pretty benign question about how a coach approaches recruiting in his first year as head coach when the team is not doing well), Zook snapped into gear and delivered a scattered but pointed response.

(I love it when he gets cranked up!)

In translating my tape, his response doesn’t make a lot of sense, mainly because he was speaking in quick little bursts and they rarely tied into complete sentences. “I don’t know that it has all that much to do with it,” he began, going on the offensive. “Recruiting is recruiting. How much do players look at that? He’s not going to look at whether it’s the first year or the second year. It’s what you have to sell. A recruit is not going to a school because of wins and losses entirely. It’s an opportunity to get a degree, somewhere to feel good, to be in a winning program. Yes, winning is important.

“It’s easier to recruit here than other places I’ve been. Young guys coming out of high school want an opportunity to play. If they feel confident they will get a degree and all those things you are supposed to be going to a school for…and theyare confident the program is going in the right direction…:

OK, somewhere in there is both an answer and a legitimate question.

First, the question: When a program has not being going in the right direction, when a program has been involved in far fewer winning seasons and bowl appearances than other schools also recruiting the athlete, how do you convince that recruit the program is going in the right direction? That’s a fair question. Where’s the proof of the “right direction.” Really, at this point aren’t you asking a kid to have a little blind faith?

Now, the answer: When a program is going great, a coach sells the tradition and the probability that the recruit will be involved in bowl games, national TV exposure and a chance at a future in the pros. When a program is not going well, a coach sells the opportunity to play immediately and be a part of building a better future. And that’s fine, too. The questioning Tuesday was merely an attempt to find out what Zook is selling nowadays. And how he’s packaging it.

I’m still trying to figure Ron Zook out. He seems to have staffers clip articles and scan the Internet for stuff, then report back to him. I guess there’s been some stuff on the Internet about Illini recruiting (maybe about verbal commitments taking additional visits) and it probably had him ticked off. So when the subject was broached, he went off a little.

To be fair, when his portion of the press conference was complete, he apologized to the reporter who asked the original question. No big deal. But for some reason, the subject of recruiting was his hot button on Tuesday.

You know our football sights are set at a different level than those we use in basketball when we consider a four-touchdown loss to be something of a victory. And yet that’s kind of how I feel while sitting here in the Kinnick Stadium press box, a couple hours after Illinois lost to Iowa, 35-7.

How is that possible?

Well, you have to take into consideration what happened last week, when Illinois suffered an historic defensive collapse in a 61-14 loss to Michigan State. That game was embarrassing, particularly in the way Illinois failed to cover receivers and failed to tackle ball-carriers. So in some ways, there was no where to go but up.

I said last week I wasn’t looking for an Illinois victory at Iowa. I’m more realistic than that. This was Iowa’s homecoming and the Hawkeyes had won 20 straight at home. Anything is possible, but what I was looking for was a return to the level I felt Illinois had reached two weeks ago at Cal.

In that game, Illinois showed for a little more than a half that it belonged on the same field with a very good football team. Cal won, but Illinois left the West Coast feeling as though it had made progress.

Then last week.

So this week I was simply hoping for a return to Cal status. Play like you have a right to be on the same field. Move the ball. Tackle. Cover. Fight.

Illinois did those things and could have trailed 14-9 at the half if Jason Reda had connected on three field goal tries. Instead, two were blocked and one whistled wide. Each time, he kicked the ball low and coach Ron Zook, who has made a big deal out of explaining that missed place kicks are not always the fault of the kicker, didn’t even try to present that line of defense. They were just lousy kicks.

Illinois loses this game even if Reda connects, so that’s not the point. The point is that Illinosi was generally competitive for a half and moved the ball pretty well throughout the game. If it had the play-makers and confidence to stick the ball in the end zone, then upsets are possible. For now, it’s just a case of getting the train back on the tracks.

Next up is Indiana. This might realistically be the only game Illinois can win the rest of the way. If Illinois can contiunue to move the ball, can find the end zone and not rely on field goals, and can force turnovers on defense (it forced two against Iowa), it will have a chance.

Special teams play has been horrible and I don’t understand that. I do understand the troubles on defense and some of the growing pains on offense, but I thought Zook would have them playing bang-up special teams. That hasn’t happened and hopefully Reda’s confidence is not shattered. Defense might not improve a lot this season. But special teams play should.