After spending most of spring practice on the sidelines recovering from shoulder surgery, a return to full contact drills at Camp Rantoul made Arrelious Benn’s once-nagging injury a distant memory.

Now, the only thing that lingers is the enormous hype for the Illini’s standout wide receiver.

With running back Rashard Mendenhall, who rewrote the Illinois record book last season, now a member of the NFL’s Pittsburgh Steelers, “Rejus” is expected to develop into the centerpiece of the all-purpose attack in 2008.

To that end, Benn said his role in a run-heavy spread offense does not end at the wide receiver position.

“I’m pretty sure I’m going to be in the backfield getting handoffs, any way to get the ball in my hands. Rashard is a loss for us, but we’re going to fill this hole,” Benn said.

As a highly prized recruit last season, Benn racked up a freshman-record 676 yards receiving and 158 yards rushing – despite playing half the season with constant restriction in his right arm movement.

Benn dislocated his shoulder during the Illini’s upset victory against Wisconsin on October 6, 2007.

For the remainder of the season, the 6-foot-2, 214-pounder’s offensive abilities were limited by a protective harness, which he wore to avoid further ligament damage. The harness prevented Benn from raising his right arm any higher than his neck, and his shoulder still popped out of its socket during games.

“I got angry sometimes, because I had to catch some balls with my chest that I know I could have caught with my hands,” Benn said.

Following arthroscopic surgery in January, Benn said he was back to “100 percent” for the upcoming season.

His movement is so unrestricted that he said it felt “awkward” the first time he suited up in shoulder pads without the harness.

“It felt so loose,” Benn said. “Now, I’m not going to be timid to do certain things. I’m just going to go out there and do it.”

At Camp Rantoul, head coach Ron Zook had no shortage of superlatives for Benn, calling him a “gym rat” who will “do everything in his power to be the best he can be.”

“I think anytime you’ve got a guy who comes up and tells you, ‘I’m going to return punts,’ or ‘I’m going to return kickoffs,’ I just kind of smile. I mean, that’s what you want. You want a guy who wants the ball in his hands,” Zook said.

Benn’s confidence in himself and his teammates is so high, he half-jokingly declared that the Illini offense, with Juice Williams improving as a passer, is firmly committed to the long ball this season.

“Last year, we may have been labeled as a running team, but Juice has gotten better with his passing; he’s more of a quarterback,” Benn said.

“We’re a passing team now, which we should have been before.”