Has The Balance Of Power Finally Shifted in Illinois?

Congratulations!  You have been accepted to _______(University of Illinois/Northwestern University).  Based on your athletic performance and unique talent, I would like to offer you a four year scholarship to play for the ________(Illini/Wildcats).  Suiting up in the _______(blue and orange/purple and white) is privilege and an honor many prospects like yourself will never experience.  Your skill-level is exactly what the ________ (Illini/Wildcats) need to continue an already a successful history of Big Ten football.

To fully understand what ______ (Illini/Wildcat) football is all about, I invite you to visit our ________(Illinois/Northwestern) campus.

Take your time with this decision and once again, congratulations on the beginning of what will surely be a historic career.

Sincerely,

Coach ________(Zook/Fitzgerald)

“Go _______(Illini/Cats)!” 

Imagine you’re a big-time recruit entering your senior year of high school.  Coming off of a record-setting junior season, your final year of high school football is bound to be one with a lot of stat-padding and confidence building.  In your mind, you’re one of the top players at your position in the country, and this year you hope to prove the college scouts that you are a Division I prospect. 

Despite your playing ability, only two schools have offered you a full ride scholarship to play college football.  One is coming off of a Rose Bowl appearance but has struggled so far in 2008.  The other is considered an up-and-coming team with the youngest head coach in the nation, but has never been a school where football is the first priority.  One wears purple, one wears orange.  You can choose only one.

If you choose Northwestern…

...you’re likely to get a degree in a subject other than “moving the chains.”  As a Wildcat, you will be learning from one of the best motivators in the country in head coach Pat Fitzgerald.  What better way to fully grasp what Northwestern football is all about than from a guy who actually lived and breathed it himself?

"Every time we win, it's the happiest day of my life,” Fitzgerald replied when asked what gets him fired up.  “When I hear our guys sing the fight song in our locker room, it's music to my ears.”

Sure, when outsiders think of the Big Ten, the conversation usually leads to big name schools like Ohio State and Penn State.  Northwestern always seems to be a just a bleep on the radar.  However, Fitzgerald has installed a new, winning culture and mentality in Evanston. In 2008, the Wildcats are having their best season since “Coach Fitz” himself was running sideline to sideline on his way to the Rose Bowl.

How cool would it be to help play a significant role in re-shaping the landscape of the Big Ten and restoring prominence back on the Northwestern campus?

If you choose Illinois…

…you are improving your chances of playing at the next level.  Head coach Ron Zook is known for his recruiting classes, and by including you among them, your belief that you are one of the best players in the nation is justified. 

Zook was brought in to help reshape the respectability of Illinois football and is once again regarded as one of the top coaches in the conference.  With his success both in the college and pro game, Zook holds a significant advantage over Fitzgerald in teaching kids how to succeed at the next level.

The Illini have several NFL-ready players on their roster.  After former Illini running back Rashard Mendenhall was taken in the first round of the 2008 NFL Draft, the path from Champaign to Canton is exactly visible. 

Future pro and current stars like Juice Williams, Vontae Davis, and Arrelious Benn are all expected to follow in Mendenhall’s footsteps.  If playing on Sundays is your goal, going to Illinois remains you best option.

Sure, the Illini have struggled this season, but if Williams and Davis return next year Illinois is almost guaranteed to be one of the top teams in the conference next season.  Wouldn’t you like to be the next great Illini to play professionally?

Take it from someone who knows

Fitzgerald’s take: "I see our program getting better each week…I see how the young guys are pushing our middle-aged guys, who are pushing our upperclassmen for playing time…When you have that competition you have that opportunity for the program to grow and get better…

"I'm pleased with our academic success, we've gotten great reports back academically, and I'm proud of how our guys are giving back to the community…I like where our program is headed right now and it's because of our coaches and the young men in our locker room."

Zook's take: "People are going to say the program slipped back [after this season]. It didn't slip back. I promise you this program's still running full steam ahead...We're still going to continue to recruit the way we recruit and we're still going to have the success that we have."

Illinois linebacker Brit Miller’s take: “We kid that [Fitzgerald] is probably the only coach in the Big Ten that could beat up coach Zook.''

Expert’s view: “I still think Illinois, but Northwestern has a chance,” ESPN’s Mel Kiper Jr. said in a recent email. “Illinois, this year, has had their share of struggles. Where they are now, to where they were last year, it's night and day. Even though Northwestern has [the better] record, I still think Illinois is a slight favorite.”