If Oklahoma State offensive coordinator Todd Monken ends up as Illinois' next coach, his family alone could be a big boost to ticket sales.
The Wheaton native comes from a long line of coaches in the state.
Twelve Monkens have gone into coaching. They include Monken's father and four uncles, who all became high school head coaches, and seven sons of those five brothers. That group includes Todd Monken, who played quarterback at Knox College, and his cousin, Georgia Southern head coach Jeff Monken.
``Six of them were coaching Illinois high school football at one time,'' recruiting analyst Tom Lemming told me. ``I kept running into Monkens in the '80s.''
Todd Monken, who has strong recruiting ties in the Chicago area, has shown his flair for offense at Oklahoma State this fall.
``They were OK last year,'' Lemming said. ``This year they're an elite team. He's brought them to the next level. If Illinois is going to to go for an assistant, there's not many better than him.''
Under Monken, the Cowboys' offense is averaging 49.8 points a game, second in the nation. A Jacksonville Jaguars assistant in 2007-10, Monken was LSU's passing game coordinator in 2005-06, a position he also held at Oklahoma State in 2002-04.
Herb Gould started with the Sun-Times in 1977 and has covered several teams, including the Blackhawks. He is a long-time beat reporter covering the Fighting Illini and the Big Ten for the Sun-Times.
I know everyone says you have to get a sitting head coach, but maybe this makes more sense. We're not going to get the ultra-hot names like Sumlin due to being outbid. Most of the next tier of coaches has some warts. Maybe a guy like Monken is the way to go.
He would be a great coach for the Illini Nation.