The 90 Illini #8: Darius Millines August 24, 2012
Darius Millines
Wide Receiver
5′-11″, 185 lbs.
Junior (on scholarship, 3 years to play 2)
American Heritage HS / Boynton Beach, Florida
ALE Ranking last year: #24
ALE Ranking in 2010: #61
What I Know About Him:
When I first sat down to put together this list, not gonna lie, my very first thought was “should I put Millines #1?” Not even kidding. I put myself in this mindset: If player X has a great season, we probably have a great season. So when I solve for X, which players are at the top? Millines was the first name I thought of.
AJ is gone, so Nathan needs targets. Specifically, Nathan needs a #1 target. A clear #1 receiver would go so incredibly far in making this a solid offense. So… maybe… our most talented receiver needs to settle in to that role. Millines had the offer list in high school that screams “go-to receiver”: Miami (FL), Florida, Tennessee, West Virginia, etc. The way I remember it, it came down to Illinois and West Virginia, but then a coach from West Virginia left for Marshall and it was a three horse race that Zook won.
Last summer in Rantoul, Paul Petrino claimed that Millines had become our #1 receiver and that AJ Jenkins had work to do if he wanted to regain his spot. Then, two things happened: 1) AJ blew up, and 2) Darius got injured.
What I Expect From Him:
Well, first, he has to stay healthy. He had a breakout performance in our first game last year (5 catches for 119 yards and a touchdown against Arkansas State), but then a foot injury caused him to miss seven games (and he was never 100% healthy when he came back). Add to this his injuries during his freshman year (including spending all of Spring Ball 2011 in a walking boot), and staying healthy is the major concern with Millines.
IF he’s healthy (huge if), I think he can put up AJ’s junior year numbers. 56 catches for 746 yards and 7 TD’s. If I’m the coach (can I be the coach?), I’m getting him 56 touches and seeing if he can give me 750 yards and 7 touchdowns. If he’s not healthy, well, then we probably don’t have any other players on the roster that can fill that #1 receiver role. But he’s going to stay healthy. And he’s going to make me regret picking him 8th instead of 1st.
At what point will you realize that offer sheets in high school dont mean anything by the time a player is a junior in collge? I mean, once there is evidence of whether they can play or cant….why still go back to what they were ranked in high school especially in football?
I dont get this and you fall back on it constantly.
That one’s easy.
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Offer lists are by far the best predictor of future success. Yes, blue chippers bust and walkons start. But when averaging out players over 20 years, for the most part, the players with SEC offers are successful and the players with MAC offers are not.
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So when looking for a breakout receiver among three junior receivers, I will unequivocally and without hesitation almost always choose the one with the best high school offer list.