UI looks for sophomores to revitalize program

Ricky Smalling during the second day of Illinois football training camp at the Campus Rec Fields Saturday, Aug. 4, 2018, on the University of Illinois campus in Urbana.College football demands are too complex for one class of students to carry the load alone.

But Lovie Smith's sophomores are going to make a run at it. They've grown from 25 scholarship freshmen a year ago to a muscle-flexing 33 (with the help of redshirts and transfers).

That's right: 33 of the 83 Illini receiving aid; 33 calling on talent and pride to reverse a downward football spiral.

Looking back, we saw 16 freshmen earn starting roles in 2017. Then 16 varsity members, many of them unseated by rookies ... departed, mostly…