You think your holiday season has been busy? Check out Tim Beckman's list. While we were trimming the tree and buying presents, the new Illinois coach was hiring a staff, visiting recruits, meeting with returning players and stopping by area high schools. And we assume there was some Christmas shopping in there, too.

Beckman is operating with two cellphones, keeping his Toledo number active through the end of the recruiting season. Same with his email, using his old account to make for easier access.

His office is starting to gain a personal touch, with photos of his three children on the shelves behind his desk. Beckman said he needs to put out a photo of his wife, Kim.

While the first couple of weeks on the job were frantic, the pace doesn't figure to slow. Beckman's first class will be signed in little more than a month. And spring ball is just around the corner.

On one of his busy days, Beckman took 30 minutes to meet with News-Gazette football beat writer Bob Asmussen and take pictures with Heather Coit. Here's what the coach had to say:

You are going to two bowl games and not coaching in either one. What's that going to be like? It's tough. You're involved with two different schools. Of course, at Toledo they understand I'm about the Fighting Illini now. It's tough because you've built something there at UT and you're excited about those young men having that opportunity to play in the Military Bowl. In turn, you're going to fly out and see how these players perform. I like coaching, and I don't like watching. I like to be active with them.

Where are you going to be for the two games? I hope on the sidelines. I don't want anything to be taken away from the players at Toledo.

Have you had a chance to breathe since taking the Illinois job? No. It's just go, go, go, go. I'm in here at about 5 (a.m.), and I go until about 11 or 12. It's what you have to do. I knew this. We're in this profession for this type of stuff. We just try to make it day by day. I love it. It's exciting.

Is there a difference between coaching in the MAC and the Big Ten? I really don't think there is, other than the stadiums are bigger. It's competition. The Mid-American Conference is extremely good. Week in and week out, you have to play your "A" game. Same in the Big Ten. It's football. This game is still about the players and about producing the best that your players can produce. It's reaching your full potential. Each player has got to be driven to do that.

You obviously did some research before accepting the job. Illinois hasn't been able to win consistently. Why? I think it still comes to belief of your football team and belief of your fan base that this can be done. It's learning to finish. It's learning to take your game to another level when you're winning. I think those are all important things that need to be stressed and pushed.

Did you hear about ESPN's Ed Cunningham saying you were the best hire this year? I hadn't heard that. I don't know Ed. I guess we'll see. Great for somebody to say, but we haven't played a game yet.

How closely have you been monitoring Illinois bowl practice? I've been trying to be involved. I want the kids to see my face.

Other than recruiting, what's the most important thing you have to do between the bowl and the start of spring practice? It's getting these young men to believe and to understand the expectation levels of being a Fighting Illini football player.

You had the "Rocket Mission Statement" and "Rocket Code of Conduct" at Toledo. Will you have an Illini version? Exactly the same. It's the things we believe in as a coaching staff. They will be in the locker room and the meeting rooms.

I understand you got together with Jeff George. How did that go? It was great. You're reaching out to the reason of Illini football. They are the tradition. It's not about me, it's about we. That's part of what I believe in. The tradition at Illinois is what this program is all about. He was awesome. A great guy. I've talked with Mike White. I've talked with Coach (Lou) Tepper. I've talked with Jack Trudeau. I've talked with John Holecek, Mike Bellamy. I've tried to get in touch with as many as I can.

And you've talked to former Illinois coach Mike White. There's so much for me to learn. You learn from the players who have played here and the coaches who have coached here.

Any special plans for the former players and coaches? Every Friday night we'll have a former Fighting Illini speak to the team. They will be the guest coach for that football game. We'll do that every week, home and away.

When will the family be here? I hope as fast as possible. Hopefully, January. I'd like for (son) Alex to get involved with the schools here and meet friends and get involved in baseball. I think that's very important.

When you got to Toledo, it looks like you needed to change the culture. Is that less the case here? I think the kids at UT were starving for an opportunity to prove they could be successful on and off the field. I think that's everywhere. Coach (Ron) Zook did a good job. They won six football games. They're going to back-to-back bowls.

What don't the players know about you that they are going to find out soon enough? I'm an attention-to-detail guy, but I'm very fair. I think they'll understand that I'm not just a father figure, I'm a brother figure.

Will you raise your voice at times? Ha. Oh, yeah, they'll hear me.

What is your ultimate goal for the Illinois football program? Win championships, on and off the field.

How long does that take? We hope to do it as quickly as possible. We were able to compete for championships twice (at Toledo), really falling one game short. Ultimately, you want to compete at a championship level. Not just on the football field. That means reaching your full potential on and off the field.

You made a point of singling out the school to the north the day you were hired. Will you be burning any purple clothing? My first job was at Western Carolina. The Catamounts, they wore purple. I don't have much of that left. I think I've gotten a little bit bigger since then. Age does that to you. I think rivalries are so big in college football, and I've been in the best. I've been in the Auburn-Alabama game. I've been in Bedlam (Oklahoma State-Oklahoma). I've been in the Ohio State-Michigan game. That's the greatest thing about college football. Pat Fitzgerald is great. He's first class. He's going to do the same thing to us.

I've looked ahead to your first-year schedule. Western Michigan, bowl team. Arizona State, bowl team. Louisiana Tech, bowl team. Penn State, Wisconsin, Michigan. Bowl teams. Not exactly giving the new guy a break. I've been used to it. At Toledo, we played Ohio State, Boise and Syracuse. It's all been part of my life. We played extremely well in those games. That's college football.

How involved will you be in scheduling? Very involved. I look forward to working with Mike Thomas on that.

Any chance Toledo will be on the schedule in future years? I haven't thought that far ahead. A great program. Mike O'Brien does a great job, and I'm sure Matt Campbell will do a great job there.

If you had a day off, what would you do for fun? Be with my kids.

Favorite football movie? I love them all.

Favorite non-football movie? I haven't been a big movie guy, to be honest with you.

What college football team did you root for as a kid? Wherever Dad was at. I was loyal to whatever he was doing. I was a Vikings fan when I was a little kid. I loved Bud Grant and Fran Tarkenton.

I talked to your college coach at Findlay, and he said you were a good player. Could you have played for Tim Beckman? Sure. The things that I do are fair.

You suffered a neck injury that ended your career. What happened? I went to make a tackle during my junior year. It wasn't broken. It was separated. They took me off and taped my head.

How hard was it to sit out? It was terrible. We were one of the top teams in the country. We had to make a decision as a family.

If you really need to talk to somebody about a career choice or something going on with your team, who do you call after your dad? I've been blessed with being around so many people. Now, I would have to say Coach (Jim) Tressel.

How involved will your wife, Kim, be with the team? She's the assistant head coach. Really, she's the head coach, and I'm the assistant.

You've already visited a bunch of area high schools. Will you be out in the community a lot in the next several months? Not me, the whole staff. This program is not about Tim Beckman, it's about everybody on this staff. I think it's important to this community. I hope the people of Toledo think the coaching staff and Toledo football helped Toledo.

What will be the football team's relationship with the rest of the sports on campus? We'll be at the games. The whole team. We only do things as a family. We'll be in our jerseys and we'll be supporting. Last year, we went to a men's basketball game, a women's basketball game, a baseball game and a softball game. Last game, I saw a bunch of our players. That's awesome on their part.

Do you want to make any cosmetic changes to the uniform, helmets, building? We changed some things at Toledo. That's down the road, but I think that is important. There could be some cosmetic changes.