Over the last couple of years, St. Louis has emerged as one of the hotbeds in the Midwest for high school football talent, and a fertile recruiting ground for Lovie Smith and the Fighting Illini.

Taking advantage of the bye week following the loss at South Florida, Lovie and his staff hit the recruiting trail. One of the stops for the Illini head coach was at St. Louis Lutheran North to watch 4-star defensive end Ronnie Perkins.