Illinois football announced Bill Cubit as the new offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach following an eight-year stint as head coach at Western Michigan. Cubit led WMU to a 51-47 overall record and three bowls during his tenure with the Broncos.
With the hiring, Billy Gonzales will be re-assigned as wide receivers coach after serving as co-offensive coordinator in 2012. The other co-offensive coordinator was fired; thank goodness. You remember how atrocious the Illini were on offense in 2012, ranking 12th (dead last) in the Big Ten in most major categories and close to the bottom nationally.
Cubit brings 32 years of coaching experience, including 17 years as a head coach on the collegiate and high school level. He spent seven years as an offensive coordinator at four NCAA Division I schools working the sidelines in five of the nation’s premier conferences (Mid-American, Big East, Big 12, PAC-12 and Southeastern).
Prior to returning to Western Michigan as head coach in 2004, Cubit served as offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at Stanford in 2003, directing a Cardinal offense that ranked 28th in NCAA passing (247.3 yards per game). Prior to his time at Stanford, Cubit served as offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at Rutgers (2001-02) and at Missouri in 2000.
In other news…
10 members of the 2013 recruiting class started spring semester courses on Monday. Five mid-year high school graduates – defensive backs Dillan Cazley (Charleston, Ill.) and Darius Mosely (O’Fallon, Ill.) and offensive linemen Jesse Chadwell (Clarkston, Mich.), Christian Dilauro (Uniontown, Ohio) and Austin Schmidt (Galena, Ohio) – join five junior college transfers who were announced on Dec. 19.
Cazley, Chadwell, Dilauro, Moseley and Schmidt join junior college transfers wide receiver Martize Barr, defensive tackle Abe Cajuste, star Eric Finney, offensive lineman Dallas Hinkhouse and safety Zane Petty as early enrollees in the class of 2013. Beckman and his staff will complete the 2013 recruiting class on Feb. 6, the first day of the regular football signing period.
Beckman showed in 2012 that he certainly can’t coach. Maybe he can recruit? That remains to be seen.
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