Bob was doing so well.  Randall Hunt at #27. A beefed-up Russell Ellington at #26. And then… Ashante Williams at #25?  What? Zook talks to Loren Tate, they discuss Flowers, Edwards, Sanni, and Bellamy as the guys who are fighting for the other starting safety spot opposite Donsay Hardeman, and then Bobby lists freshman-converted-corner-trying-safety-for-the-first-time Ashante Williams as the 25th most important Illini?  If you count kicker, punter, and long snapper, each college football team has 25 “starters”.  Wouldn’t a backup freshman safety fit in somewhere around 59th?

This bothers me a little too much.  Which is why that little list over there shows 84.6% of my posts have been football related.  June is a time for figuring out depth charts.  And I expect more out of our local beat writer.  Which is why I’m here to prove Bob wrong. To wit:

#30 Jeff Cumberland – He’s a senior who needs to do senior-y things. He needs to watch some game film of Northwestern’s Eric Peterman last year and do everything he did: Burst out in his senior year to catch 60 balls, 12+ per catch, with 6 TDs.  I keep waiting for 2007 Northwestern Game Jeff Cumberland to show up again.  Hopefully we see him in St. Louis in 81 days.

#29 Sirod Williams – Move this huge dude up 15 spots if Josh Brent is suspended the first few games.  Maybe his season-ending injury at Camp Rantoul last year was a blessing in disguise, because he could be the single key to beating Missouri if  Brent is out.  Sirod is the strongest guy on the team, holding several Illini weightlifting records. Here’s hoping that strength clogs up the middle against Derrick Washington and Mizzou.

#28 Tad Keely - There I was, thinking I was all hip when I put this list together. I was going to put Keely here at #28 and then berate Bob for not including the all-important long-snapper in his list of top-50.  And then Bob put him at #33.

#27 Russell Ellington – When I do a postseason list, the players that will move around the most, both up and down, will be the linebackers.  I’m pretty certain that Martez Wilson and Ian Thomas are set as two of the starters, but after that, anyone’s guess.  By placing Ellington here, I’m guessing that he’s the clubhouse leader to start at WLB.

#26 Randall Hunt – I’m pleased with Hunt winning a starting job because he’s on the trajectory I want nearly every offensive lineman to be on.  Arrive on campus, redshirt, do nothing but lift weights and eat for three years, and then win a starting spot as a redshirt junior.  Here’s hoping he pulls better than Eric Block.

#25 Miami Thomas – I hope he’s 100% after shoulder and knee surgeries.  Because I love Miami Thomas.  He’s the single reason we beat Ohio State in 2007, breaking up a pass in the endzone (Antonio Steele’s interception) and picking off another pass (leading to our 8-minute drive).  He also made a fantastic play at the goalline in the Rose Bowl but was called for pass-interference.  He’s aggressive, and I DIG THAT about cornerbacks.

#24 Daniel Dufrene – As I’ve said before, after this spring, I’m a LeShoure guy.  He looked fantastic at his new weight.  But I’d still love it if DD won the starting job and rushed for 1,100 yards.  Seniors >>>>>>> sophomores in nearly every scenario.  But, to do this, Dufrene HAS to show he can hang on to the ball.  His fumble to open the second half against Minnesota was an absolute killer, both to our season and his psyche. That said, I love his burst, and would love to see him have a huge senior year.

#23 AJ Jenkins – In two years, after Benn is all-world in 2009 and Fayson is all-world in 2010, I think AJ Jenkins is our leading receiver.  Terry Hawthorne and (hopefully) Kyle Prater will likely grab all of the headlines that year, but I think Jenkins will catch the most balls.  In fact, I’m expecting him to finish 3rd on the team in receptions this year (and return one kickoff to the house just for fun).

#22 Eric Block – I was not. a. fan. of him at guard last year.  Maybe it was unfair that he had to follow Martin O’Donnell, but Block just flat-out sucked at pulling.  And with a spread option offense, you HAVE to be able to block out in space.  So, I’m cautiously optimistic about Block at center.  Less pulling, more “just eliminate the nose guard”.

#21 Antonio James – Who? Exactly.  James has been under the radar for the last few years (he’s #90, by the way).  But he just might be our starting weakside defensive end.  Which means he’s really important this fall. 21st-most important, to be exact.

The next few updates in this series should be really good.  I worked very, very hard on my top-20.  Here’s hoping Bob screwed his up so I can look smart. Again.