Illini Get Five Letters Of Intent From Basketball Recruits

If we could put all this Reggie Spearman stuff to the side for a while, there actually is a recruiting story that involves Illinois and players making actual commitments that are going to stick to talk about.

Today was the first day of the early signing period in basketball recruiting and all five members of John Groce's first class sent in their letters of intent today. Malcolm Hill, Kendrick Nunn, Austin Colbert, Maverick Morgan and Jaylon Tate will all be coming to Illinois.

"This is an exciting day for our program as we welcome Austin, Malcolm, Maverick, Kendrick and Jaylon to the Fighting Illini family," Groce said. "One of the top goals we had in this first year here was to sign a five-player class that fits our needs at every position, and I couldn't be more pleased with our results. These are five outstanding young men who have tremendous character, come from great families, and of course excel on the basketball floor.

"A great deal of credit goes to our assistant coaches, who have worked tirelessly on the recruiting trail," Groce continued. "We were able to identify and successfully recruit these five players who share our vision and will help us be successful. Coach Walker, Coach Ford, and Coach Parham have all hit the ground running and played equally large roles in putting this class together."

The official release from the school, which includes short bios of each player, can be read here.

As for the fact that this class -- which Rivals considers the 10th best in the nation -- is signed and sealed, I couldn't be happier. Just another reason why I'm so glad that football season is almost over and we can focus on the team that actually provides a glimmer of hope.