Take Two: Will Illinois be able to keep Rivals100 ATH in the fold?

CLASS OF 2019 RANKINGS: Rivals250 | State | Position | Team

Take Two returns with a daily offering tackling a handful of issues in the college football landscape. Rivals.com National Recruiting Analyst Adam Gorney lays out the situation and then receives takes from Rivals.com National Recruiting Director Mike Farrell and a local expert from the Rivals.com network of team sites.

MORE TAKE TWO: Will there be a five-star QB in the 2019 class?

Marquez Beason is a four-star athlete who’s ranked No. 78 nationally. He had a final list of LSU, Texas A&M, Ohio State and Illinois before committing to the Illini recently.

Many observers would look at Beason’s surprising pledge to Illinois, which is 5-19 in the last two seasons under coach Lovie Smith, and say there’s no chance he ends up signing with the struggling Big Ten program. A comparison has been made to Devonta Jason, the top-end wide receiver who had long been committed to Kansas only to sign with Mississippi State last recruiting cycle.

But there could be more to this story. The Dallas (Texas) Bishop Dunne star has two former teammates who signed with Illinois last recruiting cycle. Beason has hit it off with wide receivers coach Andrew Hayes-Stoker and the idea of competing from Day 1 for a starting job could be appealing.

He is one of two early commitments for Illinois, the other being two-star tight end Griffin Moore from Bloomington, Ill., so it’s not like the Illini are blazing on the recruiting trail, although it’s still really early as only half of the conference’s teams have more than two commitments.

If Beason ends up signing with Illinois and his ranking stays in the same range, he would be the highest-rated prospect to end up in Champaign since former four-star receiver Terry Hawthorne in the 2009 recruiting class.

On top of that, Beason’s cousin, Zeriah, is a top 2020 receiver from Dallas Bishop Dunne who has a dozen offers. Following his brother to Illinois would definitely be a serious consideration.

Can Illinois do enough to keep Beason in this recruiting class, or will a school closer to home, or a powerhouse national program, swoop in late and take him away?

“The commitment of four-star athlete Marquez Beason to Illinois last week may have come as a shock to outside observers, but Illinois felt all along that they had a great shot to land the Rivals100 prospect.

“Wide receivers coach Andrew Hayes-Stoker, a Texas native, established an early relationship with Beason and has built strong ties at Bishop Dunne. The signing of four-star defensive tackle Calvin Avery and offensive lineman Kievan Myers – both teammates of Beason - in the 2018 class got the foot in the door. They both played a role in convincing Beason to follow them to Champaign. Beason tripped to Illinois with Avery and Myers for a camp last summer, and he walked away from that visit with a good feeling about the program and the coaching staff. He sees a chance to make an early impact.

“Any time a struggling program like Illinois gains a commitment from a highly-ranked prospect like Beason, there will be skepticism as to whether they can hang on and eventually sign him. Before Beason committed to the Illini, he named a top four of Illinois, LSU, Texas A&M, and Ohio State. Those schools probably won’t stop recruiting him, and they obviously have more success to sell. The key for Illinois? Make some strides on the field this fall and give prospective signees an indication that Smith has the arrow pointing up.

“For now, it looks like the commitment from Beason could open some doors for Illinois in the 2019 recruiting class. Beason is very active on social media, and he’s making a recruiting pitch to other talented prospects to join him. Illinois is hoping Beason was the first domino to fall. The buzz seems real. Now Smith and his staff need to close on some of the other top targets on their board to keep the momentum going.”

“It’s one of those commitments where you look at it and say there’s no way this one is going to stick. But he does have two teammates from Bishop Dunne who signed last year including Avery, who he’s very, very tight with.

“The coaching staff does an excellent job recruiting that area. Logic would tell you a lot of bigger schools will come in, especially if Illinois has a bad season, and take him away similar to what happened with Devonta Jason and Kansas. If he does stick, you’ll see his cousin go there. He’ll have plenty of opportunities as well, but blood is thicker than anything else.

“That’s why this commitment is so important to keep. If they can keep Beason and then they can get his cousin, they will really get some momentum going down in the Dallas area.”