1:33 p.m.
Well everyone. Most of you have already abandoned the blog before now. But if you are still following us, I am going to officially close so we can prepare for the press conference. Once again, the signings went very well and because of the class' rush to get letters in, we have no news to report. Don't forget to follow the press conference, remaining chats and radio show. Hope everyone enjoyed their day. GO ILLINI!
1:10 p.m.
Nothing brings staff out of their offices like fried chicken and sub sandwiches. Coach Locksley said the Food Police was checking into the spread on the War Room table and that he only sees some people when there's free food! Remember to check out the video interviews going on now, the chat with Juice Williams at 2 p.m. and the press conference at 3:30.
12:53 p.m.
Just wanted to remind everyone about video interviews with Vince Okruch and Curt Mallory coming up in a few minutes ... Again, it's free to view them, but you'll need to sign-up with CSTV ... Meanwhile, all the coaches and staffers are housing fried chicken and fries from Harold's Chicken Shack and sandwiches from Jimmy John's. As I mentioned earlier, if there's one thing these guys know besides football, it's food!
12:38 p.m.
The last letter we were waiting for came through about 20 minutes ago ... Darius Purcell of Chicago is now on board! Not quite as much suspense as last year, but that's certainly a good thing. Lunch has arrived and everyone is taking a few minutes to relax in between phone calls from '08 recruits.
11:52 a.m.
Just a reminder that Zook will be on the chat in a couple of minutes ... Warren Hood has come over to the office to congratulate the staff on the day ... He says the Memorial Stadium project is coming along great, the West Hall demolition has started and tower cranes are going in next week ... Things are on-budget and on-schedule ... That's music to our ears!
11:35 a.m.
I want to explain quickly about the videos and we apologize for any confusion it may have caused ... Our internet provider has a video player that requires that you create a login ... It is free, will not cost a thing to sign up.
11:22 a.m.
We just got finished watching the highlight video for the web and it is fantastic ... I think fans are really going to get excited after seeing it ... I have to publicly thank Andy Young, Derryl Myles and Greg Bruner for their work on it ... Andy put in a special spot shadow on every play which really helps highlighting each guy and for easier viewing ... All video should be ready to go by 3 p.m.
Also I have just been made aware that there are some problems with the live video going on right now ... Please stay with us, we will get it fixed ASAP.
11:14 a.m.
Sorry for the delay in updates ... We had the ESPN satellite truck arrive to get ready for today's interviews at 2:50 on ESPN2 and now Zook will be on ESPN News at 3 p.m. on the Hot List ... Also I am seeing something very impressive ... Denise Zook, Coach's wife, came up to the Stadium and sat right down and started addressing envelopes for the junior mailing going out ... This is truly a family affair!
10:59 a.m.
Just a reminder that the video interviews will begin shortly with Mike Locksley and Dan Disch ...
10:50 a.m.
I want to apologize again for confusing everyone ... Yes, Hodge was the surprise and the unnamed was Cornell ... For as crazy and stressful things were in the final days of recruiting, the general consensus is that today has gone very smoothly and you can see relief in the air for these coaches ... We obviously aren't done and can never truly relax because there are always things we can be doing to improve ... But it has been a good day so far!
10:25 a.m.
This year seems to have flown by much quicker than last year ... We were just reminiscing about the last recruit from a year ago and shared stories of the anxiety of waiting on Vontae to sign ... If you have been doing the math, you know that we are almost done, looks like one more to go ...
10:19 a.m.
Jack Cornell just finished up his signing ceremony ... It is official!
10:07 a.m.
Welcome to DC's own Nate Bussey ... His Dunbar boys, Vontae and Regis, miss him and want him to get here soon ... More fax machine action as I write ... Doogie is in the house! ... Anthony Morris is signed, sealed and delivered.
9:55 a.m.
A lot of people are curious about recruiting timelines ... Junior recruiting has already begun ... Last weekend, we hosted our first junior day of the year and offers and evaluation are being done as we speak ... Recruiting is a year-round job and our coaches are already jockeying for scholarships.
9:45 a.m.
Just want to say that we are about 10 minutes away from the Reggie Mitchell chat ... We have received some great questions so far, but you have time to keep submitting them ... Log on and read his answers.
9:29 a.m.
Let's all welcome Brian Gamble to the Illini family ... Gamble will join his high school buddy Antonio James on the defense this year ... The two of them will now be ganging up on fellow Illini and McKinley grad Joe Morgan, in what is one of the hottest high school rivalries in the nation.
9:06 a.m.
If you are looking for opportunities to hear Coach Zook talk about this year's recruiting class here is a schedule for today ... Of course, here on coachronzook.com you can chat with him at Noon and his press conference will be live at 3:30 p.m. ... He is also set to go on CSTV at 2:15 p.m. ... He will be on Rivals radio on Sirius satellite radio at 2:30 p.m. and then he will appear on ESPN2 with Mike Hall and Coach Mike Gottfried at 2:50 p.m.
9:01 a.m.
Daniel Dufrene wraps up the Florida recruiting for this year ... Even though he signed in December, he needed to sign once again today since he didn't enroll this spring.
8:43 a.m.
While we have a little lull in fax machine action, I want to paint a picture of what the atmosphere is like here in the office ... Chris James just stopped by to check in with the coaches ... All the coaches, who have been pacing from their offices to the fax machine are now back in the staff room ... Even through the stress of waiting, these guys never lose their sense of humor ... I have never seen a group of guys laugh and tease each other more than them ... This won't come as a shock, but usually Mike Locksley is in the middle of it ... I didn't mean to scare or create suspicion with that "unnamed" signee ... It is one that everyone knows, we just wanted to honor his wishes.
8:38 a.m.
Seems the fax machine is ringing from the 904 area code ... If you don't know your US area codes off the top of your head, it is Jacksonville, Florida ... Troy and Big D ... They sent in their letters and are currently holding a ceremony at the high school.
8:29 a.m.
The second Wilson has just chimed in ... Craig Wilson was just rewelcomed to the Illini family ...
8:22 a.m.
Mark Jackson has sent in his letter ... He is just another in the pipeline from Ohio and will be joining his high school buddy Jeff Cumberland soon.
8:12 a.m.
Letter #11 just arrived ... Welcome to Miami ... Marcus "Miami" Thomas in the building.
8:01 a.m.
Well one of the first ones to commit to the Illini this year, Mike Garrity, has just signed and sent his letter in. Coach is set to do one of his first media interviews of the day. He will be on WSOY in Decatur in a couple of minutes.
7:57 a.m.
East coast DeMatha product just in. Ian Thomas in the building. Nice story him in the Champaign News-Gazette yesterday. If you didn't catch it, its a good one.
7:50 a.m.
Martez just called the office and wanted information on the signing day activities on the web. He wanted me to tell the Illini Nation reading this today "Hey. The class of '07 is on its way!"
7:41 a.m.
Coach Zook was just wondering when we would get our first running back letter. Promptly, we received the LOI from Deries Hodge from Pennsylvania. Ask and you shall receive!
7:36 a.m.
Got Daryle Ballew's letter in just a minute ago. He makes letter #5 today and #7 overall if you count the fact that Regis Benn and Erique Robertson are already on campus.
7:29 a.m.
Panera bagel and pastries just arrived, which has just slowed the talking for a quick minute. As everyone know around here, we eat fast. Bobbi Duval, associate recruiting coordinator, is working on junior mailings.
7:23 a.m.
We are rocking and rolling now. Just got letter number four. It came from a 6-3 lineman out of Bloomington. Yep, Josh Brent is in the house.
7:19 a.m.
Got two other letters, Steve Matas and another which wants to remain unnamed until after he has a chance to do the official announcement.
7:13 a.m.
Well Big 2 is in the building. A big sigh of relief can be breathed with Martez signed and sealed. He has selected the No. 2 for his jersey number as an Illini. So he wanted the Illini Nation to know that everyone can count on Big 2!
7:01 a.m.
The time has come for the second annual signing day blog straight from the staff conference room inside the football complex. As I sit here, coaches are bustling in and out of their offices, checking the fax machine and passing time before the things get rolling here in the next couple of hours. The coaching staff arrived this morning between 5 and 6 a.m. The NCAA rules allow recruits to sign their national letters of intent beginning at 7 a.m. local time. Stay tuned as we begin seeing those letters come across the fax.
