Illini Get Official Visit From Nation’s Best 2020 Offensive Tackle
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. -- One of the nation’s best offensive tackles in the 2020 recruiting class has decided to take an official visit to Illinois.
And the Illini football coaches couldn’t be more excited about this new development of five-star prospect Broderick Jones.
Jones confirmed via his Twitter account that he would arrive on Illinois’ campus on Wednesday just a few days after reportedly heading back to his home state for an official visit to Georgia.
Jones is ranked by Rivals.com at No. 5 overall and as the best offensive tackle prospect in the 2020 class. The 6-foot-6, 300-pounder verbally committed to Georgia in April 2018 but that pledge came when Sam Pittman was the offensive line coach with the Bulldogs. Pittman was hired as Arkansas’ head coach last month and this move led to Jones to not signing with Georgia during the early period and left many analysts questioning whether he’d reopen his recruitment. Jones’ official visit behavior is evidence he’s re-evaluating his options.
After his mid-week trip to Illinois ends, Jones will be at Georgia this weekend and has an official visit scheduled for Auburn on the following weekend on Jan. 31. Auburn has also changed offensive line coaches this month as Tigers head coach Gus Malzahn hired Ole Miss assistant Jack Bicknell Jr. as the program’s new offensive line coach. Auburn announced on Jan. 7 that veteran offensive line coach J.B. Grimes left the program to “pursue other opportunities”.
Illinois would certainly be seen as the massive underdog in the recruitment of Jones but Illini Now/Sports Illustrated did see Memorial Stadium’s video board and the Smith Family Football Facility being prepared for at least one on-campus visit.
If Jones were to sign with Illinois next month, the native of Lithonia, Ga., would likely slot into a starting spot at right tackle despite both of the Illini’s starting tackles returning for the 2020 season. The Illinois offensive line is losing only one starter from this past season (Alabama graduate transfer guard Ritchie Petitbon) but All-Big Ten selection Alex Palczewski did start the final 11 games of his freshman campaign in 2017 at guard.
Jones would be the highest-ranked player to sign with Illinois since five-star linebacker Martez Wilson signed with the Illini in 2007. He would be the highest-ranked offensive line prospect to sign with the Illini program since Martin O’Donnell, who is now the football radio analyst for the Illini Sports Radio Network, came to Illinois as a four-star prospect in 2003.
“Jones may be the best tackle talent in the country,” said John Garcia Jr., Director of Football Recruiting for Sports Illustrated. “I’ve seen him live three different times and he has looked better each time out over the last year to 18 months. He has an incredible length to combine with the quickness and footwork one would expect of a good basketball player, only increasing his ceiling once he focused solely on football from a physical and time management standpoint. Jones still has a lot of room to improve from a technical standpoint but it will be hard for any program to keep him off the field at the next level.”
Illinois had a lackluster early signing period as scholarship number limitations held them to inking only 12 prospects last month. However, Lovie Smith’s staff, which now includes two new assistant coaches, has been aggressively on the road this week trying to fill out the 2020 class and build off its first bowl trip in five years to create momentum for the 2021 recruiting class.
“I really believe this staff doesn’t look at the ratings and the star appeal at all,” Illinois football director of high school relations Joe Price said on Dec. 19. “Some of those (lower-rated) guys still fall through the cracks and yes, we may take a hit by taking some of those guys but they’ll fit what we do and then they get here and become really good for the University of Illinois.”