BLOOMINGTON - Josh Brent had just finished basketball practice Tuesday evening. Perspiration rolled down his face, but not without a detour.

Each drop had to make its way around a broad smile.

It had been missing in recent weeks as the Central Catholic High School star lineman mulled his college choice. At about 3 p.m. Tuesday, it returned as the 6-foot-3, 305-pound Brent called University of Illinois football coach Ron Zook and committed to the Illini.

"It feels like the world is lifted off my shoulders," said Brent, about three and a half hours after committing. "It was like I couldn't go out in public with everybody asking me where I was going or have I made my decision yet. Now, I can just tell them that's where I'm going."

Brent, rated the ninth-best defensive tackle in the nation and the No. 5 recruit overall in Illinois by rivals.com, chose Illinois over Ohio State, Michigan and Wisconsin. Ohio State coach Jim Tressel visited him personally earlier this month at Central Catholic.

Also a Class A state champion shot putter, Brent sought a school where he could participate in track and field as well football. He said Wisconsin was the most receptive to the idea, but that Illinois will afford him the opportunity to do both.

"I would say overall comfort with the coaching staff and doing track and field were probably my two main factors that I wanted to make sure I had," Brent said. "The last four days, I didn't talk to any coaches … no text messages. I just reflected on everything, the pros and cons for every situation.

"I cleared my mind and I felt Illinois was the best choice for me. It was the best fit for me academically, athletically and socially."

Zook cannot comment on Brent until he receives his signed letter of intent in February. Brent said the Illini coach considers him "another piece of the puzzle … another piece to help Illinois get over that plateau and become a premier team."

"Last year, they weren't competitive (while going 2-9). This year, they were in every game and lost by less than one touchdown in most of them (while going 2-10)," Brent added. "And that's with 14 freshmen playing.

"With the class coming in, we have some great guys, guys who can fill some spots. The main thing is getting everybody on campus and knowing what they need to do and getting that chemistry going. I think we could have a very successful season."

Brent, rated 80th nationally among all recruits by rivals.com, was in on 80 tackles this year with seven quarterback sacks and 14 tackles for loss, helping Central to a 9-2 record. The all-stater also was a standout offensive lineman, but will play defense in college.

"That's the side I started out on, and I've only played for three years," Brent said. "It's what I know."

Brent was scheduled to announce for Illinois last Thursday at Chicago with Simeon High School star Martez Wilson. However, Central Catholic had a snowed out basketball game rescheduled for that night, and Brent also had visited Wisconsin the previous weekend.

"The visit to Wisconsin did make me second guess a little bit," he said. "I wasn't confident in making a decision on that day."

Wilson went ahead and committed to the Illini, and now Brent has joined him. He also will be reunited with Michael Hoomanawanui, a former Central star who was a freshman tight end at Illinois this season.

Brent said Hoomanawanui's presence in Champaign "helps," but added, "I tried not to think about it too much. There are over 30,000 people on the campus, so I'm not going to see him every day.

"If that was my only reason for going there, that would have been a poor decision on my part. He definitely wanted me to come there because he knows me and thought it would be a great place for me, but he also wanted me to do what was best for me and my family."

Central Catholic coach Bobby Moews called Illinois "a good fit" for Brent, saying, "I thought all along he probably felt the most comfortable there because Michael (Hoomanawanui) is there and he's known those coaches longer than anyone else he's been recruited by. He had to explore other options and see what was out there. But I know he'll be comfortable there and be happy there."

For now, Brent's focus will be on basketball. He is the starting center on a Central team which is ranked No. 9 in the state in Class A. The Saints open play in the State Farm Holiday Classic at 6 p.m. today at Illinois Wesleyan's Shirk Center.

"The past couple of weeks have been stressful," Brent said. "Even though we've been successful and I've been successful individually, it's still been very stressful. Now, I think with having fun I'll be more successful individually and we will be as a team."