For years, the debate has raged on among Illini fans and media members alike.
It’s a chicken vs. egg debate, really.
Does acquiring NFL talent require improved recruiting, or does improved recruiting bring forth NFL talent?
These questions were posed frequently during the Zook/Cubit/Smith eras in Champaign. Those eras saw Illini NFL Draft selections become fewer and farther between than during the Ron Zook era.
Say what you will about Zook, but he and his staff brought plenty of legit, no-doubt NFL talent to the Illini. It was fun watching players like Vontae Davis, Rashard Mendenhall, Corey Liuget and Whitney Mercilus crush it on Sundays for years.