Lovie Smith was the second-most successful head coach of the Super Bowl era for the Chicago Bears. While he didn’t quite finish the mission of winning a championship, his accomplishments still deserve plenty of merit. Especially given the alternatives since he was fired back in 2013. During his tenure he got the most out of several great players. Among them being former Pro Bowl center Olin Kreutz.
For his part, Kreutz has steadfastly stated Smith is the best coach he ever played for and it was a crime when the Bears sent him packing like they did. One can imagine he’d love to suit up for the coach one more time. However, he’ll get to experience the next best thing.
His son Josh Kreutz, a three-star recruit out of Loyola Academy announced he would commit to Illinois. Ranked the No. 29 prospect in the state, he declined offers from places like Northern Illinois, Memphis, Central Michigan, Western Kentucky, Ball State, and Wyoming. Based on his comments about receiving the offer from the Illini back in February, his dad played a huge part in the decision.
“It was awesome. It means everything, man. It’s really cool. It’s always been my dream to play college football at the highest level I can play at. (My dad) says (Smith is) an awesome coach, awesome guy. He’s a great football coach. I started following them this year, and it was awesome. Their season went really well. They turned it around. It was pretty cool. They beat Wisconsin. That was awesome.”
Lovie Smith recruiting Kreutz was inevitable
It’s hardly a shock that Smith targeted the young Kreutz as a prospect. Not only is he the son of a great football player, he was right in the coach’s backyard. The school campus is just two and a half hours from where Kreutz played his high school ball. Expectations are he will be their long-term answer at center once senior Doug Kramer finishes up his final season. Presuming of course he can given the uncertainty around COVID-19.
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Scouting reports say Kreutz is a powerful kid with advanced technique. Not surprising since he was in his father’s presence all the time. Belief is with better conditioning and additional strength, he will end up finding his way to the NFL. It will be fun to see how far he goes under Smith’s direction. If he embraces the work as his dad did, it could be a long way.
