Training Camp Day 2 Notebook: Lovie Hints At Illini Starting DTs
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. -- After losing all starters on its defensive line, Illinois has started to piece together some new pieces and answers to its front four.
Illinois head coach Lovie Smith, who will also make the defensive calls for the second straight season, seemed to indicate who will line up as his interior defensive tackles when the Illini open the 2020 season at No. 19 Wisconsin on the Oct. 23-24 weekend.
In his Zoom media conference with local and statewide reporters Tuesday morning, Smith more than indicated that two seniors will line up over the football in the Illini defense. The three-technique, or the pass-rushing defensive tackle who lines up over the shoulder of an offensive guard, will be senior Jamal Woods. The Illinois zero technique defensive tackle, who will primarily line up directly with the center, will be South Carolina State graduate transfer Roderick Perry.
“Our system is about what we have up the middle and it always has been about that since the beginning of time,” Smith said Tuesday. “Jamal Woods is still here and he’s played a lot of football. He’ll be our three-technique ”
Woods, a 275-pound senior, started four games last season at defensive tackle and provided 14 tackles, 5.5 tackles for loss, 0.5 sack, one forced fumble in the 2019 season. The Hueytown, Ala., native, who was a three-star prospect by 247Sports.com in the 2017 recruiting class, had three tackles and 1.5 tackles for loss in the 24-23 win over then-No. 6 Wisconsin last year in Champaign. Woods, who flipped back and forth from defensive end and tackle in his freshman year, started the first four games at tackle in the 2018 season before a season-ending injury derailed his sophomore year.
Illinois senior defensive tackle Jamal Woods had 14 tackles, 5.5 tackles for loss, 0.5 sack, one forced fumble in the 2019 season.
Michael Glasgow/University of Illinois athletics department
Perry, who committed to Illinois in late July just days after South Carolina State, along with practically all Football Championship Subdivision programs, cancelled its fall football seasons and chose the Illini over an offer to play his final college season at Florida, currently ranked No. 3 in the latest Associated Press Top 25 poll. Before the NCAA postponed the FCS national championship tournament until at least the spring semester due to the coronavirus pandemic, Perry was selected as a preseason All-America candidate at the FCS level.
“Rod Perry is really going to play good football for us this season so pretty solid there (at defensive tackle starters),” Smith said.
Roderick Perry had 34 tackles, 14.5 tackles for loss, 4.5 sacks and a forced fumble last season for a South Carolina State team which finished 8-3 overall and captured the school’s 17th league crown and seventh MEAC championship. Perry arrived at Illinois in late July as a graduate transfer.
Michael Glasgow/University of Illinois athletics department
In terms of depth at defensive tackle, Smith mentioned 340-pound Calvin Avery as a possible instant contributor as the former Under Armour All-America selection out of high school has played sparingly in 24 games the past two seasons. Smith also mentioned Tuesday that junior Deon Pate could be in the mix and noted that 270-pound freshman Jer'Zhan “Johnny” Newton, a consensus three-star prospect in the past 2020 recruiting class, has “shown flashes early on”.
“When I say we kind of like what we’re going into (the 2020 opener) with, I’m talking about our two-deep,” Smith said.
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Lovie Not Expecting Any More Roster Casualties Before Padded Practices Begin Wednesday
Smith said Tuesday he’s not expecting any further roster casualties as the final 2020 roster is made out Wednesday - the day the Big Ten Conference is allowing shoulder pads to be installed into practice schedules.
Smith confirmed Monday night’s news of wide receiver Edwin Carter electing to put his name in the transfer portal after having two injury-plagued years with Illinois.
“You’ve heard me say this before but sometimes divorce is good for both parties,” Smith said Tuesday. “The University of Illinois just isn’t for everybody sometimes.”
According to an evolving tally done by Illini Now/Sports Illustrated, Illinois is back down to 82 scholarship players as the Illini typically like to hold scholarships back for transfer opportunities either in the middle of the fall or in the following spring.
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‘I think that’s a cop out’: Lovie Doesn’t Believe Sloppy Opening Month Comes From Lack of Preparation Time
As we reported Monday, the Illini head coach has said he’s tried to encourage his players to watch as much college football on television as possible in the previous Saturdays while the Big Ten Conference was in a pause.
However, the 62-year-old doesn’t believe the lack of a spring football practice schedule and a condensed fall camp calendar has resulted in sloppy play in this first month of games across the country. Despite 10 of the 72 Football Bowl Subdivision teams having a turnover margin of minus-3 or worse, Smith believes programs have had plenty of time to get ready for this strange start to the 2020 season.
“Nah, I think that’s a cop out when people say this is sloppy play or tackling is bad because of this or that,” Smith said. “Nobody is scrimmaging during training camp. That went out a long time ago. Think of a heavyweight fighter. They’re not beating each other up. They spar. I’ve been in situations where we haven’t had a big offseason program and in the end there was still pretty good football. Watch the NBA playoffs right now. They’re playing pretty good ball. Baseball is playing pretty good. The Lightning won the Stanley Cup. They played pretty good hockey. For me, there’s been a winner in every game so somebody is playing pretty good football.”