{"id":174373,"date":"2023-01-01T17:07:00","date_gmt":"2023-01-01T17:07:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/draft-decisions-coming-soon-josh-mccray-really-looks-good\/"},"modified":"2023-01-01T17:07:00","modified_gmt":"2023-01-01T17:07:00","slug":"draft-decisions-coming-soon-josh-mccray-really-looks-good","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/draft-decisions-coming-soon-josh-mccray-really-looks-good\/","title":{"rendered":"Draft decisions coming soon?; Josh McCray ‘really looks good’"},"content":{"rendered":"
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TAMPA, Fla. \u2014 <\/b>Expect news after the ReliaQuest Bowl.<\/span><\/p>\n

The Illinois football team is awaiting NFL Draft decisions from a few key players, but announcements on their future could come soon.<\/span><\/p>\n

Bret Bielema<\/b> didn’t name specific names on Saturday inside the team hotel ahead of Monday’s bowl game against Mississippi State. But the Illini head coach said that Illinois has gotten early indications from several players that they will return next season rather than testing the NFL Draft waters. The deadline to enter the draft is Jan. 16.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThere have been several guys who have told us they’re coming back and we’re going to kind of announce those one by one after the game,\u201d Bielema said. \u201cI didn’t want to have it be the focus before the game. Some of that stuff will start to happen afterwards.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Illinois is awaiting decisions from several players, including defensive linemen Keith Randolph<\/b> and Johnny Newton<\/b> as well as offensive lineman Julian Pearl<\/b> and linebacker Tarique Barnes<\/b>. It’s unclear if any of those players have given Bielema an indication of their future plans.<\/span><\/p>\n

But the ability for players to profit off of their name, image and likeness has changed the calculus for players determining whether or not to jump to the NFL. Bielema points to the financial difference between a third- or fourth-round pick and being a first- or second-round pick.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThe NIL word has really changed even just since the season started,\u201d Bielema said. \u201cI could have conversations in bye week one and two that I couldn’t have at the end of the year. You really just have to watch your Ps and Qs. Thankfully we have a couple collectives that are working for us. They’ve met with our players. They’ve had discussions. I kind of hear about it after the fact, a second wind. I give [athletics director] josh [Whitman] a lot of credit and the people involved to try to get that ball moving in the right direction.<\/span><\/p>\n

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