Champaign – Lovie Smith took his time hiring a new linebacker coach. The job had been open since Hardy Nickerson, who was also the defensive coordinator, announced his departure in late October.
Finally, Smith announced on Wednesday the hiring of his son Miles Smith as the new llinebacker coach. Smith had been serving in the position on an interim basis. The move isn’t without controversy, but the Illini head coach focused on the positives during his national signing day press conference.
“As a general rule, you don’t necessarily have to have a lot of experience to be a good football coach,” Lovie said. Everyone needs a start. I feel real comfortable about our guys. Everybody that’s been on my staff right now has been critiqued and I’m pumped up about going forward.”
If Illinois performs well on the field this fall all of the concerns about youth, inexperience, and nepotism will be forgotten. For his part, Miles intends to roll up his sleeves and get to work. He takes over a linebacker corps that has a lot to prove after the Illini defense struggled to get stops this past season.
“I'm a good football coach in my own right,” Miles said. “I plan on having the product we put out on the field do all my talking for me. You guys are going to see I'm not a yeller. I'm not going to get in front of the media and say things I shouldn't be saying. What I'm going to do is coach my butt off.”
Illinois feels like they have upgraded the linebacker position. Leading tackler Del’Shawn Phillips graduates, leaving some shoes to fill. The staff responded by locking up Under Armour All-American and Trinity Catholic product Shammond Cooper, who signed a NLI on Wednesday.
Cooper was listed as a three-star recruit by Rivals and ranked as the No. 13 outside linebacker in the nation by ESPN. His senior season included recording 120 tackles, 13 tackles for loss and 5 sacks while rejecting offers from Clemson, Oklahoma, Ohio State, Auburn etc.
His arrival instantly upgrades the corps’ athleticism and Lovie took notice to Cooper’s work ethic.
“First off, he’s a football guy. Good student, alright, but in your spare time what do you? It’s football,” Lovie said. “Watching football, lifting – he’s really into the weight room – and he’s played at a high level. There’s a certain type of confidence he’s bringing in too. Guys critique everything before they make a decision. If I’m a linebacker, I would want to come to the University of Illinois. It’s not the tradition we have of the linebacker play, but we think we know about linebacker play around here. Right, Miles? We think we know a little bit about that. And again, Shammond saw that too and as we elevate our game, we need some players like that.”
The other player (and linebacker) to sign the letter was two-star Memphis linebacker Tarique Barnes. Barnes’ immediate impact for the program will be his speed.
In high school, Barnes was on the track team where one of his events was the 100-meter dash. Barnes ran a 10.8, an above-average time for a sprinter and a promising sign for someone that’s going to be playing linebacker against spread offenses.
“At the linebacker, he can cover running backs. He’s faster than most of them,” Lovie said.
At six foot and 195 pounds, Barnes doesn’t have the height or weight to more than likely see defensive playing time this season. But once he can bulk up and get a year under his belt in the system, he can possibly make an impact in the years to come. Miles added that it’s all about Barnes’ potential.
The one linebacker addition many people outside the program aren’t talking about but should be is junior Milo Eifler. The Berkeley, California native transferred from Washington after his freshman season and sat out his sophomore year as a result, but he continued to practice with the team throughout.
Lovie sees Eifler as a four-star recruit who will be bringing in a “great” skillset. Miles said he sees Eifler perfectly fitting their WILL linebacker position.
“Don’t want to get ahead of myself, but I think he’s going to be a great player for us,” Miles said. “Athletically, he is what we’re looking for in our WILL linebacker. Historically, our WILL linebacker has been one of the most dynamic players in football whether it was Derrick Brooks or Lance Briggs. Those were our WILL linebackers and that’s the prototype we’re looking for. He’s that type of athlete.”
The only issue with this is the Illini are returning junior linebacker Jake Hansen, who played WILL linebacker last season.
When asked if there will be a position battle between those two for the spot, Miles said all linebacker positions are up for grabs.
“There’s going to be great competition in the room whether it’s WILL, whether it’s the MIKE, whether it’s the SAM,” Miles said. “I think there’s open spots. The guys are at the point where our level of competition is about to reach the spot you would expect of a Big Ten team. There should be competition. They should be worried because it’s Big Ten ball.”
A position that’s wide open is that SAM linebacker position. Miles mentioned the coaching staff is trying to work defensive back Delano Ware into a linebacker and added he can easily add the amount of weight this offseason he needs to play the role.
Others fighting for spots include part-tine starter Dele’ Harding, a senior, sophomore Khalan Tolson, and red-shirt freshman Khalan Tolson. Neither of the underclassmen saw significant playing time a year ago, so perhaps one of them breaks out.
For more reasons than one, the pressure on Miles will be intense. He takes over this demanding job with much to prove and a group of unproven performers. There is some new talent to work with, but the Illini linebackers must show significant improvement for the defense to take a step forward in 2019.
