Illinois head coach Bruce Weber gushed Wednesday over an elite recruiting class that ranks among the best in the nation for the 2009-10 season.

On the first day of the fall signing period, Weber announced three guards – D.J. Richardson, Brandon Paul, Joseph Bertrand – and forward Tyler Griffey inked national letters of intent to play for the University next season. The four players all rank in the top-100 nationally, and the class as a whole ranks No. 8 by Rivals.com and No. 13 by Scout.com recruiting services.

“Obviously, it’s a big day for us,” Weber said. “We’re very excited as a coaching staff and as a program. It’s not only because we were able to land the top players in the country but also a group of three from the state of Illinois, kids that wanted to be here. And I think that’s so important.”

Richardson hails from Peoria, Ill., although he currently attends Findlay College Prep in Nevada. Paul attends Warren High School in Gurnee, Ill., and Bertrand attends Sterling High School in Sterling, Ill. Griffey, the only out-of-state talent, goes to Lafayette High School in Wildwood, Mo.

“The whole group is kind of meshed together now,” Weber said. “They’ve gotten to know each other. They’re doing some of our work by continuing to recruit the next groups coming up. We’re extremely happy. They’re not only a talented group but the kids come from good families, good family backgrounds.”

Richardson and Paul are consensus top-50 recruits while Griffey and Bertrand are consensus within the top 100. Richardson was ranked as high as No. 32 by Hoop Scoop, and Paul as high as No. 31 by Prep Stars. Bertrand reached as high as No. 38 by Hoop Scoop but bottomed out at No. 116 by Rivals.com. Griffey is ranked anywhere from No. 69 to No. 127.

“These kids were excited about coming and they continued to keep that excitement,” Weber said.

Here’s what Weber had to say about the players during Wednesday’s press conference:

D.J. Richardson – 6-foot-3, 175-pound guard

Weber: “Very explosive, quick to the basket, he’s improved his shooting. The thing I’ve told him from the beginning is I like to coach tough kids. He brings that toughness that stereotypical Peoria guy, the Wayne McClain, the Manuel, the guys who like to guard, that love to play. That type of attitude. We couldn’t be more excited. He has a great personality.”

Brandon Paul – 6-foot-3, 175-pound guard

Weber: “I guess when you talk about D.J., you talk about explosive and quick. Brandon is just a very athletic young man. If you’ve seen him, he can jump, he’s got length. He has that kind of, I guess, that NBA athleticism. He has really come a long way in the last year and a half.”

Joseph Bertrand – 6-foot-5, 160-pound guard

Weber: “Joseph has a lot of natural ability. He was an elite tennis player in middle school, a gymnast when he was young. He just has a lot of natural ability. He has great length he’s got a basketball body, he’s continued to grow … To be honest, we didn’t know if we would go with three guards in the group but those guys really convinced me – DJ, Brandon and Joseph – that they could play together after watching Dee, Deron and Luther play together. They’ve seen it done before.”

Tyler Griffey – 6-foot-9, 220-pound forward

Weber: “Tyler probably didn’t get as much notoriety, exposure, as some of these other guys, some of it because he was with Adidas Nation, an elite group of players that Adidas had chosen to not only play through the United States, but Tyler’s had a chance to play throughout the world. He’s been to Africa, France twice, all over the country with this group … When I describe him I say he’s kind of an international forward, one of those new style forwards, face-up forwards that can shoot the ball and pass the ball. His body is developed just watching him from eighth grade year on, he’s gotten bigger, stronger … There’s some reports that he could have been a top-25 player in the country. It depends when you watch him.”