Two years of prep has Kreutz ready at center

Aug. 19—CHAMPAIGN — Isaiah Adams watched Josh Kreutz spend the entire 2022 season preparing each practice like he'd be the one with his hand on the ball as Illinois' starting center.

Voracious film study after each game followed. Again with the intent Kreutz would be the one snapping to quarterback Tommy DeVito.

Kreutz appeared in all 13 games last season. Mostly on special teams. Zero starts, with Alex Pihlstrom holding down that spot for the duration of 2022.

But Kreutz's preparation never wavered. It was the same way he treated his true freshman season in 2021 when Doug Kramer Jr. had a lock on the starting center spot.

"He was watching those guys and picking their brains," Adams said, "but he was training just like them."

Efforts that should pay off this fall. Kreutz slid into the vacant center role in the middle of the Illinois offensive line with ease. A smooth transition from predecessors that both earned second-team All-Big Ten honors in their final season with the Illini.

"He's a student of the game," Illinois offensive line coach Bart Miller said. "He studies NFL guys. He comes in talking about watching (Philadelphia Eagles center Jason Kelce) or watching somebody else. It's pretty impressive to see not only his knowledge, but how he approaches his preparation.

"He prepares like a guy that's getting ready to go. That has not changed. He's come on and really not missed a beat and, in fact, allowed us to do some more things because of that knowledge and that IQ. His preparation is very, very impressive."

Two seasons worth of preparation, of course, isn't all Kreutz has going for him. The 6-foot-2, 290-pound center plays with an edge. Aggressively. Maybe a little bit nasty.

It's essentially a prerequisite for the position.

"You've got to be a little savage to play at center," Illinois offensive lineman Zy Crisler said.

That's a fair assessment, according to Illinois offensive coordinator Barry Lunney Jr. Especially for the number of reps Kreutz takes against the Illini defense and a rotation of Terah Edwards (6-2, 315) and Denzel Daxon (6-2, 320) at nose guard. Plus all the reps the last two seasons against Calvin Avery (6-2, 325).

"You've got to have an element of that," Lunney said about the savage side of playing center. "Bart puts a lot on those guys, and most offenses do. The pre-snap communication. He directs all the traffic up there. That's a lot.

"Then to have a guy, in our defense, playing right over the top of you that's 300-some pounds and is trying to run his hands right through your midline as you snap the ball. I can't imagine doing that."

Kreutz can. And does. With consistency, which is the trait Lunney noticed when he first arrived at Illinois ahead of the 2022 season and has continued to see the last two weeks in training camp.

"He's got an incredible understanding of offensive football and seeing the box the way it's supposed to be seen," Lunney said. "He's a great leader, and we're really excited about where he's at right now."

Where Kreutz is with the Illinois season opener against Toledo just two weeks away is locked in at starting center. The Illini might have pursued other options in the portal to provide some competition — East Carolina transfer Avery Jones was set on Illinois before a last-minute flip to Auburn — but Kreutz earned his way to the top of the depth chart.

"It's hard to not play, right?" Kreutz said about his two seasons mostly watching from the sideline. "You want to play every Saturday. I just used it as time to get better in the weight room and get better in my film study.

"I just want to get out there. You want to play football. You want to be out there with your teammates. Being able to earn an opportunity to play is what I really wanted."

Kreutz is still developing as a center. It's a position he never played until he arrived in Champaign. But it was a move he was expecting. Every team that recruited him from his high school days at Loyola Academy did so with the intent to put him at center.

So Kreutz is still working through his development at the position. Pass protection has been a recent focus. So has honing in on the minute details in the scheme that will put him in the best position to succeed Sept. 2 against the Rockets.

Kreutz is confident that his preparation will have him ready. Preparation aided, in part, by a lifetime master's class in playing center from his six-time Pro Bowl center dad, Olin.

"I never played center before I got here, but I always learned some things from him," Kreutz said. "It's been very helpful. Just how to approach the game and how to practice hard every day."

Miller has seen the benefits of the upbringing up close. Olin Kreutz was a consensus All-American at Washington and a two-time All-Pro center playing most of his 14-year NFL career with the Chicago Bears.

Where Miller sees that background shining through with his new starting center is in the expectations Kreutz sets for himself.

"The way he prepares, I think, reflects how he was brought up in the game and some of his role models in the game," Miller said. "The way he plays and practices. The excitement he has when he comes off the field and comes right over to me to talk about the plays we just ran.

"The communication we have is very advanced and very mature. If you didn't know who he was or where he came from or any of that, you wouldn't be surprised to find that out because of the way he prepares, the way he handles his business and the way he practices."

That's what has stuck with Adams. Illinois' starting left guard appreciates Kreutz's physicality and aggressiveness, but it's his intelligence that means as much, if not more.

"You need your center to be one of the smartest guys on the offense, and Josh is just that," Adams said. "Of course, he brings a chip on his shoulder, but for me, I think he's smart and is able to read the defenses and make clear calls. In high pressure situations, it's just another day in the office for him. I've noticed that. His brain is what I'm attracted to."