The Numbers Game

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CHAMPAIGN – To lure talented prospects to Illinois, volleyball coach Kevin Hambly pitches any number of attractive qualities.

There's the positive vibe in the Illini locker room, or that No. 11 national ranking to finish last season. And don't forget the perks of playing in the Big Ten or on its network.

But there's one topic he shies from.

"(Uniform) numbers, we try not to bring it up," he says. "I'm scared of it."

For good reason. College athletes covet the number on their jerseys like Mike Davis covets a rebound, like a walk-on covets a scholarship, or, well, like Hambly covets a top recruit.

Push the wrong number and you might push the wrong button.

"One girl was really afraid of crooked numbers. But she was OK with straight numbers and round numbers," he says. "Ones and 8s, she was OK with. Twos and 3s, no way."

From Huff Hall to Memorial Stadium to the Assembly Hall – and especially to Illinois Field, a relative Voodoo hall of superstitions – UI athletes consider their numbers an extension of themselves. Their jersey or uniform number is more than fancy stitching.

"It's your identity," says basketball forward Dominique Keller, No. 23.

"If you don't have your number, you don't feel the same," says football wide receiver Arrelious Benn, No. 9. "You're going to play like you have that number on your back."

In an unscientific survey of Illinois athletes, their numerical allegiances were found to be unique (the three freshman guards on the men's basketball team requested Nos. 1, 2 and 3), team-oriented ("Sergio wanted 40, so I gave it to him," says former basketball forward Jerry Hester) or predictable ("No. 21 was already taken," says Davis, No. 24).

Sometimes there's a bizarre Numerophobia ("The crooked numbers thing was interesting," Hambly says) or an absence of Triskaidekaphobia ("I've always loved 13," says women's basketball center Jenna Smith, No. 13).

But no matter the reason, there's always a reason.

"I only had a choice between single-digit numbers and 15," says baseball pitcher Phil Haig, No. 15, "And I threw one game my senior year (of high school) with a single-digit number and it was my worst game ever."

When is a number more than a number?

When it's stitched on an Illinois jersey, from the sounds of it.

* * *

In a snap-quick motion, as though he could fold a jersey while sleeping, Trent Chestnut cradles a navy No. 7 Illinois uniform and slides it in a locker. The football program's equipment manager knows uniform numbers like Memorial Stadium knows "Juuuuice."

"It starts in the recruiting process, when the coaches are out on the road," Chestnut says of the number-selection process.

As a prized recruit out of Chicago Vocational, for example, Juice alerted Ron Zook he prefers No. 7.

"He told me nothing's guaranteed. I had to make sure none of the older guys wanted it," says Williams, who idolized No. 7s John Elway and Michael Vick. "Fortunately for me, nobody had No. 7 when I got here. It was easy."

Easy is rare, but it happens.

Benn sought No. 9 – "My brother had 6, and 9 is an upside-down 6. So I took 6," he says – and No. 9 was available at Illinois. Freshman running back Justin Green wanted No. 26 – his high school number – and No. 26 also was available. But most of the time matching football players with numbers isn't easy.

"It can be a nightmare," Chestnut says.

Football has the most complex numbering process on campus, and the program released its 100-player roster last week. But the pain-staking process kicked into gear in the spring, when the staff gathered for its annual numbers meeting. Yes, it holds a meeting for that.

"It's right after spring ball," Chestnut says. "I give the coaches a blank sheet that has all of the current players and their numbers. Then I give them a roster with the numbers that don't have a name, the open numbers. We work off that. Recruits might have been promised a certain number. We try to accommodate that."

In distributing football numbers, conflicts can surface in several ways. One, if a current player already has dibs. (Players can share a number if they're not on the field at the same time.) That became an issue last season after junior defensive back Vontae Davis and freshman wide receiver Cordale Scott wore No. 1 to start the season.

"Cordale was getting some play and we had to switch him to No. 11," Chestnut says.

Scott switched back to No. 1 for the 2009 season. Transfer wide receiver Jarred Fayson, who wore No. 11 at Florida, assumed No. 11.

On the 2009 roster there are 14 numbers that weren't taken. There are 15 shared numbers (2, 3, 4, 6, 8, 11, 14, 15, 18, 27, 29, 33, 35, 36, 37). Some of those could change. Sophomore defensive back Tavon Wilson stuck with No. 3, his number last season, while freshman wide receiver Terry Hawthorne wore No. 3 in high school.

"It's a week-to-week thing," Chestnut says. "Terry Hawthorne may be No. 3 to start the season, but if we need him on the field for special teams, and Tavon Wilson is on special teams, Hawthorne may have to switch numbers."

Chestnut says the most particular players – in terms of selecting their number – are image-conscious wide receivers and defensive backs. No surprise there. And the most common conflicts occur with the single-digit jerseys. Of the nine single-digit numbers, five will be shared to start the 2009 season.

"Everybody wants to be a single digit," he says. "They were all stars in high school, and they all wore single digits. It didn't matter if they were linebackers, defensive ends, quarterbacks, running backs, wide receivers, DBs."

If they all double up, 18 players can wear a single-digit number. But even a low-maintenance figure like Benn prefers individuality when it comes to his beloved No. 9.

"A lot of guys say, 'True ballas don't share the same number,' " Benn says.

Limitations are few in football. (Ineligible linemen must wear Nos. 50-79.) But some teams set their own limits. UI volleyball has a rule that only Nos. 1-16 are available.

"Because that's how it is in international (volleyball)," says Hambly.

Those limitations work just fine at times.

"(Senior libero) Ashley Edinger really wanted No. 5. She said, 'Look, I'll come to Illinois but I want No. 5,' " Hambly says. "And it's worked out great. She's been a great player for us. I'm not sure she wouldn't have come if she didn't get No. 5, but it made it easier."

Other times it can be an issue, if a prospect is married to a number that isn't available.

"But I think if the right kid said, 'Hey, I'm not coming if I'm not 79,' we'd probably make some 79 jerseys," Hambly says. "You'd hate to lose a kid because Penn State offered her No. 79, and we won't. But then it's a slippery slope. What else are they going to demand in the time they're here?"

There's one line you can't cross in football, and it isn't the line of scrimmage. Nos. 50 (Dick Butkus) and 77 (Red Grange) are retired and off-limits. Don't even think about it.

"When we have recruiting weekends, we always have bio sheets for each player. They always have their high school number on there," Chestnut says. "You see quite a few linemen with 77. Not here.

"You'll never wear it here."

* * *

Women's basketball center Jenna Smith listens to the same tune prior to every game.

"Last season it was a Lil Wayne song," she says.

She always calls her parents on her way to the Assembly Hall. When she does the Mikan drill during pregame warmups, "I always make 13 layups."

Those are her superstitions. None are as critical, however, as her jersey number.

"I couldn't have anything but No. 13," she says. "No way."

The connection comes from her mom's birthday, Nov. 13. She also started playing hoops at age 13.

"I'm the odd ball in my family, the weird one," she says. "You hear about Friday the 13th. Everybody says 13 is an unlucky number. I wanted to make it lucky."

UI athletes have a method to their number-choosing madness. Some have a personal connection, some are taken out of necessity, some are chosen through habit.

– The three freshman guards on the men's basketball team already are in sync. D.J. Richardson chose No. 1. (He wanted No. 32, but that's the number worn by teammate Demetri McCamey.) Joseph Bertrand will be No. 2, and Brandon Paul is No. 3. (Dominique Keller wears Paul's preferred No. 23.)

– Athletes with a sense of history draw on that aspect to claim their number. Baseball outfielder Willie Argo says, "When I was really young, my mom bought me the book 'Teammates' about Jackie Robinson (No. 42) and Pee Wee Reese, and I just liked the number from that." Argo wears No. 42 at Illinois.

– Former basketball guard Jeffrey Jordan would seem a natural fit for No. 23, and he wore No. 32 in high school. (You can do the math.) But at Illinois he honored his mother by choosing No. 13. "It's my mom's birthday," Jordan said then, referring to June 13.

– Other numbers are chosen because, well, that's what was left.

"Well, when I got here, I asked for 4, 14 or 22, but they were all taken at the time," says baseball left fielder Casey McMurray. "So I guess I got my 4s – or they just doubled 22 – and I ended up with 44."

"I chose 18 because when I got there, Mike Rohde had 9, which was my number in high school," says baseball pitcher Lee Zerrusen. "So I just doubled it to get 18."

"At school, 30 was my fifth choice because all the others were taken," says baseball pitcher Bryan Roberts. "Then for summer I got my number (34), but the jersey was so big I had to change and 27 was all they had left."

Basketball's Mike Davis wanted No. 21, but it was already taken by former teammate Brian Carlwell. So Davis switched to No. 24. Weeks later, Carlwell switched to No. 33, leaving No. 21 open.

"I just stayed with 24," Davis says. "I was cool with it."

– Athletes believe certain numbers carry a certain amount of pressure.

Bertrand has always worn No. 11 and thought about wearing No. 11 at Illinois. But following in Dee Brown's footsteps seemed an oversized task. So he took No. 2, since 1-plus-1 equals 2.

Likewise, basketball center Stan Simpson's favorite player is LeBron James, No. 23.

"I don't want to have to be like LeBron," says Simpson, and he opted for No. 21.

On the other hand, teammate Dominique Keller chose No. 23 because of its reputation.

"There's a lot of pressure wearing No. 23, because if you're a bum, they're going to let you know. Michael Jordan is far from a bum," Keller says. "It's like if you see a football player and he wears No. 7, you automatically think he's good because of Michael Vick. I don't know why. But it's a reality."

– Most players take a don't-fix-what's-not-broken approach. Freshman basketball forward Tyler Griffey stuck with No. 42, his high school number. Juice has worn No. 7 since the seventh grade. Basketball center Mike Tisdale chose No. 54 because "I've always had it."

– Athletes use their number as their virtual identity, as well. Seven men's basketball players operate Twitter accounts, and all seven include their uniform number in their Twitter address (dkeller23, illiniballa24, buckwildbill33, TCG_42, BPaul03, illinihooper21, Tizzy54).

Another example: Athletes can create their virtual likeness on certain video games.

"Well, (NCAA) College Football came out and I'm on the game. So I just play with me," Benn says. "But before, when I used to create myself, I would make myself No. 9 on the game."

– Sometimes a number can characterize an entire team. Such was the case with the 1997-98 men's basketball squad.

"We didn't have a star, so to speak," says Jerry Hester, a senior forward that season. "Not a lot of people thought we were going to be good."

A numbers switch in the preseason set the tone for a team-first approach. Hester was a fifth-year senior that had worn No. 40 since his freshman year of high school, including his first four seasons at Illinois. But incoming freshman Sergio McClain was partial to No. 40, his father's number as a player.

"Serg had worn No. 40 forever," says his father, UI assistant coach Wayne McClain.

Without hesitation, the fifth-year senior offered No. 40 to the incoming freshman.

The switch worked swimmingly. Hester took No. 23 ("Michael Jordan," he says. "I thought maybe that would help me score a few more baskets.") He and Kevin Turner were named co-MVP, and a selfless team that thrived on togetherness won the Big Ten.

"There couldn't be any 'I's'," Hester says. "It had to be 'We's'."

You can tell plenty about an athlete from his number. It's up to the athlete to make it worth remembering.

"The player makes the number," Chestnut says. "That's what it comes down to."

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