Not a day after one of the top basketball programs in the country inked the mediocre class of 2007, one of the worst football programs continued its recruiting shockwave by receiving two blue-chip commitments.

Illinois football has been showing promise all year and rumblings of a huge recruiting impact have been resounding around the Internet; late Thursday afternoon, the ball didn’t just get rolling, it was shot out of a cannon.

First was Thornton Township athlete Anthony Morris, who turned away schools like Michigan and Iowa to pledge allegiance to the Zooker.

Morris will play wide receiver or safety in college, and according to most recruiting services, he will excel. But Morris wasn’t the glitz and glitter, he was the cherry on top.

The ice cream, whipped cream and everything else that is the centerpiece holding up that cherry is Washington D.C.’s Arrelious (Regis) Benn.

Benn is the No. 1 ranked wide receiver in the country according to Scout.com, and has been a star for Dunbar High School the past few seasons. Benn is what us experts love to call a freak; a 6-foot-2 receiver weighing in at 225 pounds and running a 4.45 – think Anquan Boldin with rocket boosters.

So how in the world did Illinois’ football program (1-11, 3-8, 2-9) lure such a stud?

Benn loves the opportunity to play early. Zook has a habit of playing true freshmen in their first season.

Benn thinks Illinois is on the verge of competing for championships, and has a tight relationship with offensive coordinator Mike Locksley. The fact remains that there are a multitude of teams that would allow Benn to play early that have far more potential than Illinois. So, it proves one thing: the Illini football coaches can flat out recruit.

Visit an Illinois football message board and listen to the banter, for this is where the paradox lies.

The football talk involves multiple five-star players, the No. 1 recruit in the entire country, and the No. 1 defensive end in the country (why Illini fans think they can get these guys is beyond me).

The basketball program, which has enjoyed more wins than any other program besides Duke in the past five years leaves discussion on its boards as to whether or not its worth it to go after five-star recruits. The irony is as thick as the gravy at Merry Anne’s.

Recruiting is an art, and in Illinois’ two biggest money-making programs we have learned that Bruce Weber is still learning how to assemble a masterpiece, while Zook is a couple more blue-chips away from a national contender. It’s a most amazing phenomenon. A recruit like current Illini cornerback Vontae Davis can take his official visit, see Illinois down by 50+ at halftime to Penn State and then find himself enrolling for classes wearing orange and blue.

I have never gone to meet a 16-year-old kid and tried to convince him to move halfway across the country to play football or basketball, but I imagine it’s not easy. And at this stage of the game, I think Weber and Co. should improve their tactics by heading over to Memorial Stadium for an afternoon and studying from the sensei.

Those that have questioned Weber as head basketball coach should speak with a couple NBA executives or try to remember as far back as 2005.

The mediocre class that has signed on the dotted line might see two players in the NBA thanks to Weber’s tutelage, but if Illini fans are going to get the elusive banner they spend hours a day posting in forums about, the basketball program better get its act together.

The class of 2007, that once looked like it would be Illinois’ best in recent memory, is no longer as hyped. Weber penciled in Final Four rosters with Eric Gordon and Derrick Rose in the backcourt only to see them both disappear. Whether or not Kelvin Sampson’s actions were questionable, after the Gordon flip-flop, Illinois had the opportunity to rebound with Derrick Rose and failed to capitalize.

The Illini football program now has the momentum the basketball program squandered with a solid number of blue-chippers on board and a tantalizing amount listing Illinois on their short lists. We’ll see if Zook can continue to defy logic.

A few months ago, Regis Benn’s list of suitors was comical. Seeing Illinois among the ranks of Notre Dame, Florida State, USC, Michigan and Miami was shocking. At 5:45 p.m. central time yesterday, though inaudible on the Internet, the Zooker got the last laugh as Benn slipped on an Illini hat.

Ian Gold is a senior in Communications. He can be reached at [email protected].