Urban to visit Illinois this weekend

Duke has been the team to beat for 2016 offensive guard Nik Urban since early in his recruitment, but Illinois is gaining momentum and he will see the Illini this weekend.

"I have a visit on Sunday," Urban said. "This will be my first trip over there. I love everything about the coaching staff. If the campus has a huge impact on me, then they'll definitely be up there."

Illinois offered Urban after seeing junior film, and has been steadily climbing his list ever since.

"Duke has always been my No. 1, but Illinois is really making an impact on me," Urban said. "Right now I really think my top two are Duke and Illinois."

The primary reason for Illinois' ascendance has been the relationship he is developing with their coaches.

"Their coaching staff has blown me away," Urban said. "I haven't had a coaching staff I feel has cared this much about me. Coach (Tom) Brattan and Coach (Mike) Ward, they message me every day. Then, Coach (Tim) Beckman has personally messaged me. They said they'll be at the school three times in the next few weeks."

Duke was the first Power Five Conference school to offer Urban this past summer. A visit to their campus for a game last fall solidified their standing on his list.

"I went down there for a camp in the summer, then I went down for the North Carolina game this fall," Urban said. "Everything there I think is mind-blowing, from the facilities to the coaches to the campus."

Urban holds a total of seven scholarship offers, with his most recent coming in earlier this week.

"Miami (Ohio) just offered last night," Urban said. "I know Coach Martin was over at Notre Dame in 2012 when they made it to the national championship, so he definitely has the coaching aspect to get that program back to where it was."

Among the schools that have yet to offer, Urban sees Northwestern as a team that could challenge Duke and Illinois if the Wildcats come through with an offer. The Willoughby (Ohio) South offensive linemen does not plan to make his decision soon, but he is not going to wait long either.

"There's definitely the thought of official visits," Urban said. "But I have always been telling people I want to be committed by the summer so I think I'm going to stick with that."