Illinois DC Aaron Henry is working to get his unit ready for the team’s season opener. Fortunately, Henry says his unit is ready to go.

During Monday’s press conference, Henry proclaimed the Illini defense was prepared for game action “a week ago.” That is good news for Illinois entering Henry’s first season as defensive coordinator after spending 2 seasons as Bret Bielema’s defensive backs coach.

Among Henry’s other comments from Monday, the DC indicated defensive back Tyler Strain is the fastest player on the team while Xavier Scott has some “God-given” tools. Strain appeared in 12 games with 14 tackles and 2 interceptions a season ago while Scott posted 15 tackles as a true freshman.

As for Henry, Week 1 will be his first game in the role of DC for the Illini after playing under Bielema at Wisconsin. He later served as a GA on Bielema’s Arkansas staff before making stops at Rutgers, NC State and Vanderbilt before landing at Illinois.

Henry was highly regarded for his work alongside DC Ryan Walters, particularly in developing Illinois’ DB room. Now, Henry gets his shot to run the defense with Walters now the head coach at Purdue.