After drawing praise from the coaching staff during Camp Rantoul, the Illinois football freshman class has continued to impress both coaches and peers as the team undergoes its final preseason preparations on campus.

“They’re coming all on strong,” junior Arrelious Benn said. “They come in working hard, and a lot of them will see the field soon.”

Benn, who set the Illinois freshman record for receiving yards with 676 yards in 2007, said he sees a lot of potential in freshman receiver Terry Hawthorne. Hawthorne came in as Illinois’ highest rated recruit by www.rivals.com at No. 58 in the nation. The East St. Louis, Ill., native was hampered for most of training camp as he recovered from a hand injury.

Benn said that Hawthorne, who also starred as a defensive back in high school, has been working in the defensive secondary as well as lining up at receiver.

“He’s moved over to the defensive side and picked up both (sides),” Benn said. “That’s big for a freshman, and that helps us out a lot.”

The defensive secondary took a hit at the end of training camp when cornerback Miami Thomas suffered a serious knee injury. Benn said that he isn’t sure yet if Hawthorne will be a two-way player right away.

“We got to wait and see, he has to learn one thing at a time first,” Benn said. “But that’s exciting. I haven’t seen a guy do that in the Big Ten since Charles Woodson, and he won the Heisman.”

Hawthorne will be looking to emulate the production of upperclassmen Benn, seniors Jeff Cumberland and Chris Duvalt, and sophomores A.J. Jenkins and Fred Sykes, who together totaled 2,006 receiving yards on 120 receptions in 2008.

“He gets a lot of advice from the upperclassmen,” Benn said. “He’s the kind of guy that’s always trying to learn and get better so he can compete.”

The second-highest rated player in the 2009 Illinois freshmen class is running back Justin Green, who stands at No. 82 on www.rivals.com’s rankings.

Despite competing in a crowded backfield that features all four returning backs from last season, Green’s quickness has already helped him stand out.

“He’s speedy, we’ve all noticed that,” Benn said. “He’ll be hard to catch.”

Sophomore defensive tackle Corey Liuget, who contributed early in his freshman season, said that of the freshman defensive linemen, defensive end Michael Buchanan has played himself onto the depth chart.

“They’re all great athletes, but Michael Buchanan is the guy that has stood out,” Liuget said. “He’ll definitely be playing even though it’s a little tight right now. He’ll be mostly be playing on third downs.”

The defensive line needs to replace defensive ends Will Davis and Derek Walker, who combined for 30 sacks in their careers before graduating last season.

Liuget said the only thing keeping Buchanan from being an every-down player is his size.

“He just needs to gain some more weight,” Liuget said. “If he gets a little thicker, he’ll be in there all day.”