It’s too early to hate on Illinois football’s 2010 class

Quick: What do Jon Asamoah, Chris Duvalt, Dere Hicks and Michael Hoomanawanui have in common?

Well, all of them are seniors.

They also all consistently contributed on the field during their final two seasons.

Oh, and all of them were virtual unknowns coming out of high school — rated as two-star prospects by recruiting Web site Scout.com

Now, quick: what do Jeff Cumberland and Rahkeem Smith have in common?

Both are seniors.

Both possess crazy size and athleticism, and both played sparingly during Illinois’ 2009 season.

Oh, and both were ultra-hyped, four-star prospects coming out of high school according to scout.com.

See where I’m going with this?

Wednesday was signing day, and the 2010 recruiting class hasn’t been getting a warm reception here in Champaign.

Most students I’ve talked to are pretty pessimistic about next fall’s group of freshmen.

But to all those losing sleep about how Ron Zook’s recruiting prowess is gone, the program is going down the drain, etc., I’ve got news for you.

Don’t panic ... yet.

Yes, the 2010 class contains mostly no-names, and yes, Zook’s in-state recruiting this year was absolutely abysmal — he landed just three of the top 30 prospects in Illinois.

Then again, shouldn’t this be expected? The Illini have hauled in some of the most highly regarded prospects in school history in the last three years, yet only won three games in 2009.

Still, Zook knows talent when he sees it. He’s coached Rashard Mendenhall, Vontae Davis and Arrelious Benn (not to mention countless studs during his days at Florida), and he wouldn’t offer a scholarship to just anyone.

Zook probably believes every player in this class possesses enough talent to someday contribute on the field.

Big-time recruits like Mendenhall and Benn have gotten Zook most of the hype here at Illinois. But he’s also brought in plenty of highly touted prospects who ended up as busts, as well as a lot of unknown, underrated players who ended up developing into consistent contributors.

Illini faithful will just have to hope there are a few of those guys in this 2010 group.

Look at the 2007 recruiting class — Zook’s best (according to the recruiting services) while here at Illinois. He brought in two five-star prospects, Benn and linebacker Martez Wilson, and both have basically shown why they were so coveted as high schoolers (Wilson underachieved in his first two seasons but began showing some promise at middle linebacker before getting injured last fall).

However, the other two highly rated prospects in the ’07 recruiting crop were four-star offensive lineman Jack Cornell and four-star defensive tackle DeAngelo McCray. Have you seen much of either?

Yeah, didn’t think so.

Cornell appeared in only two games last season, while McCray never played a down in Champaign and eventually transferred to Eastern Illinois in ‘08.

This trend continued into the 2008 class too, as many of its top prospects (Corey Liuget exempt) haven’t panned out.

Most notably, receiver Cordale Scott and tight end Hubie Graham, who were both four-stars coming out of high school, decided to transfer from Illinois after playing sparingly during their first two seasons.

On the other hand, that same ‘08 class picked up a few hidden gems.

Offensive tackle Jeff Allen has started 17 games in his first two years as an Illini, while fellow sophomore Tavon Wilson was named one of the team’s defensive MVPs for 2009.

How many stars did recruiting “experts” give Allen and Wilson? Two and three, respectively.

What I’m saying here is not that all big-name recruits turn into a McCray or a Graham.

Actually, the 2009 class contained a perfect example of the opposite — Terry Hawthorne came in as a four-star prospect and contributed right away in the secondary, recording 30 tackles and one interception as a freshman.

But the 2009 class also brought in Walter Aikens, a two-star safety nobody had heard of who stepped in for an injured veteran and finished the year with 32 tackles.

Recruiting is about talent first and luck second.

Sometimes you find a sure thing like Hawthorne, and sometimes you bank on finding an underrated stud like Aikens.

There are tons of recent big-time recruits who bombed out at programs across the country. Just Google search “Darrell Scott, Colorado” or “Ryan Perrilloux, LSU.”

There were also plenty of no-name prospects who ended up as All-Americans — see “Dion Lewis, Pittsburgh” and “Pat White, West Virginia.”

Recruiting rankings can’t measure heart and passion, or a player’s work ethic and dedication to succeed.

Eventually, it’s just up to the players, not the recruiting Web sites, to decide.

If they work hard, they’ll succeed — now all we can do is wait and see.

Pete is a junior in Media. He can be reached at pzervak2@illinimedia.com.