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| SportsTuesday, August 14, 2007 11:29 PM CDT |
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Brent among those freshman turning heads at Illini football camp
RANTOUL — Martez Wilson looks like he could outrun a Corvette. Josh Brent and D’Angelo McCray look like they could dig in and hold off a bulldozer. They are freshman stars-in-waiting for the Illinois football team, three prized recruits in coach Ron Zook’s heralded class of 2007. Even though all three look destined to make a contribution this season, there are constant reminders that freshmen must still negotiate a tricky and constant learning curve on the way to that stardom. Learning, we’re reminded in football, is a necessary evil that tends to rob speed from the quickest players and limit fury from the strongest. It’s why Zook is cautious in his assessment of just how much even the best freshmen can contribute in their first season. “One thing I learned a long time ago, particularly early, is not to get too high or too low on a freshman,” Zook said. Wilson, a 6-foot-4, 236-pound linebacker from Chicago Simeon, looks taller and leaner than his advertised size. He looks almost thin, but when he’s running full speed there’s no doubt about his rare athleticism. The trouble is, when he lines up at linebacker and the ball is snapped, there are plays during which he’s uncertain what to do. So Wilson takes a half-step to his right, stops, pauses, then backpedals to his left. All of a sudden the play is over and this ultraquick linebacker has never reached half-speed. Zook’s analysis sounds convoluted, but it make sense. “He’s only going to be as good as the things he can do fast,” the coach said. “There is no way of knowing yet what he’ll be able to do but when you are down there in the briar patch, things happen fast.” Wilson is concentrating on defense, but he’s hoping for a chance on offense, too. “By the middle of the season I might be playing a little offense,” said Wilson, who wants a crack at wide receiver. As for Brent and McCray, they arrived as massive, bookend defensive tackles who instantly give Illinois a pair of wide-bodied run-stuffers. Brent, a 6-foot-2, 320-pounder from Central Catholic, was already turning heads with his advanced play when he suffered a sprained knee Saturday night. He’ll be out for a week or so, but Zook clearly likes Brent’s chances to join the defensive line rotation immediately and perhaps be an integral part of the goal line defense. “He’s been very impressive in one-on-one drills,” Zook said. “There’s a suddenness to Josh and you can’t coach that. It’s exciting.” McCray is a 6-4, 315-pounder from Jacksonville, Fla. He’s being monitored closely after undergoing arthroscopic surgery on his knee in January. McCray said he is virtually pain-free, although the knee does accumulate some fluid. What they have in common is a massive lower base, each with tree-trunk thighs that helps them anchor spots in the defensive middle. “Those two guys have the biggest helmets,” Zook said, laughing about his huge freshmen. Like Wilson, though, they are learning the playbook and trying to reach a point where they can play more on instinct and quick reaction. When that happens, they’ll begin to show real progress. All three of them arrived as prep All-Americans. But rather than show up acting like know-it-alls, Zook said the freshmen arrived asking questions and turning to upperclassmen for direction and advice. Get area high school sports scores and statistics at Varsity Sports. E-mail this story | Print this story | Search archives | RSS Show comments |  Hide comments | Hide comments on all stories |
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