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Illinois officially announced the hiring of Jenna Hall as […]

By Steve Sturm - IlliniGuys Football Analyst

June 2, 2026

Illinois continued to fine tune its roster prior to the beginning of summer workouts with arguably its biggest portal entry yet.  Division II All American Ean Rhea from Emory and Henry chose the Illini over interest from several P4 schools including LSU.  Rhea is a polished pass rusher with enough athleticism and size to be effective as an edge rusher in the Big Ten.  He was listed at 6'2 235 on his college roster but lists himself at 6'3' and 250 pounds now.  I tend to believe the lower number in this case.  Regardless, Rhea's 12 sacks, 18 tackles for loss and 3 forced fumbles last year speak for themselves. This guy proved all he could at the lower level and Illinois was just one of several high majors to agree on that.

What does he bring to the Orange and Blue?

I can't help compare Rhea to Daniel Brown.

Illinois five-star signee Quentin Coleman’s 11 points and 15 rebounds were a catalyst to a 88-58 blowout win for Team USA in the Under-18 FIBA AmeriCup group play game Monday night.

By Matt Stevens - IlliniGuys Staff Writer

June 1, 2026

(Cover photo courtesy USA Basketball)

Months before even experiencing his first practice session at Illinois, Quentin Coleman has apparently figured out how he can stay off Brad Underwood’s bench as a college player.

In his debut game as part of Team USA’s squad in the FIBA Under-18 AmeriCup, the five-star guard from St. Louis established early and often Monday night how he can make an impact without forcing offense for himself.

In a 88-58 blowout win over Argentina in the opening group play game in León, Mexico, Coleman came off the United States’ bench to record 11 points and a game-high 15 rebounds with seven of those rebounds being on the offensive end to contribute heavily as a plus-30 in just over 21 minutes of action.

Coleman, who signed with Illinois in mid-April after announcing his verbal pledge while the Illini were in the midst of its Final Four run of the 2026 NCAA Tournament, established himself on the glass Monday night against an overmatched Argentina squad. The 6-foot-4 guard had 14 rebounds through the first three quarters of action and got his first two baskets off offensive putbacks in the first two minutes after Team USA head coach Anthony Grant had him check into the contest.

Coleman had nine points and four rebounds in an opening quarter where a more athletic Team USA broke out to a 23-11 lead and never looked back in a game where they led by double-digits for nearly the final 25 minutes of the contest.

290-pound Deon Williams, a defensive tackle from City College of San Francisco with three years of eligibility, announced on social media he has signed with Illinois.

By Matt Stevens - IlliniGuys Football Writer/Analyst

June 1, 2026

CHAMPAIGN — What Bret Bielema told local media “was real” is now really real in terms of paperwork.

Deon Williams, a defensive tackle from City College of San Francisco with three years of eligibility, announced on social media, with a graphic made for him by the University of Illinois athletics department, that he has signed to play with the Illini starting with the upcoming 2026 season.

“We added another guy through the juco world who will be joining us, who I’m really excited about,” Bielema said in a Zoom conference with local media on April 21.

By Kedric Prince - IlliniGuys Sr. Recruiting Analyst

June 1, 2026

(Cover photo courtesy USA Basketball)

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – Success on the court often changes the way a program recruits. For Illinois men's basketball coach Brad Underwood, recent success has allowed him and his staff to pursue some of the nation's most coveted prospects. While Underwood typically trusts his coaching staff to handle much of the recruiting process, one recent offer required a more personal touch.

Just two days ago, Underwood personally called one of the top high school basketball players in the country, DeMarcus Henry, a 6-foot-7 forward from Santa Ana, California, who attends AZ Compass Prep.

The five-star wing is ranked No. 3 nationally in ESPN's Class of 2027 rankings, trailing only Marcus Spears Jr. of Texas and Beckham Black, also of Texas.

According to a source, Underwood's direct involvement in Henry's recruitment sends a strong message.

By IlliniGuys Staff June 1, 2026 The amazing spring […]

By IlliniGuys Staff

May 31, 2026

(Cover photo courtesy Illinois Athletics)

A couple of months ago - on the eve of Illinois' NCAA Regional semifinal matchup with Houston in its hometown, IlliniGuys co-founder and resident numbers nerd Larry Smith wrote a column about the Illini's entrance into the rarefied air of college basketball's elite programs.

https://illiniguys.com/illini-establish-spot-in-college-basketballs-new-elite/

That was then. But this is now.

Illinois' world has completely changed since then.

By Steve Sturm - IlliniGuys Football Analyst

May 30, 2026

(Cover photo courtesy Joe Clark/IlliniGuys)

St. Laurence High School hasn't produced a lot of prominent football players since the days of Tim Grunhard and Stan Smagala, but when they do, those guys have gone to Illinois. Former walk-on Aaron Ball was a St. Laurence Viking, and Sean Rice recently committed to Illinois. So, that's 2 Division 1 players from St. Laurence, and two that went to Illinois. Rice is a 6'2 210 pounder who had offers from the middle of the Big Ten and early interest from Indiana.

What does he bring to the Orange and Blue?
Rice put together a junior season for the Vikings that doesn't seem possible:

By Kedric Prince - IlliniGuys Sr. Recruiting Analyst

May 29, 2026

(Cover photo courtesy City of Palms)

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. –Spring has become one of the busiest times on the basketball recruiting calendar, and Illinois continues to keep a close eye on some of the nation's top high school prospects.

The latest player to receive an Illinois scholarship offer is 2027 point guard Cayden Daughtry. The Illini extended an offer just days after Daughtry delivered a dominant performance on the Nike EYBL circuit.

For Illinois, offering Daughtry was an easy decision.

The 6-foot point guard from Calvary Christian Academy in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, was recently named the Nike EYBL Session III MVP

IlliniGuys.com details which five players currently on the Illinois football roster could immediately benefit the most from an age-based eligibility model being passed.

By Matt Stevens - IlliniGuys Football Writer/Analyst

May 29, 2026

(Cover photo courtesy Illinois Athletics)

CHAMPAIGN — Bret Bielema is closer to getting his wish with an age-based player eligibility policy.

As he enters his sixth season leading the Illinois football operation, Bielema has been publicly campaigning for what he calls a “five for five” policy for athlete eligibility for several years and the 56-year head coach might see that become NCAA legislation as soon as this coming month at the NCAA's Division I Cabinet meeting.

“I don’t think it’ll be called 5-for-5 even though that’s the easy way of describing it because it’ll actually be about when you graduate (high school) and when you have a window of time in,” Bielema said in a Zoom media session with local reporters on April 21. “I think it’ll be something that manifests itself before the start of the upcoming season.”

The model would give flexibility to currently enrolled athletes with eligibility after the 2025-26 academic year to apply the age-based model or continue previous eligibility rules, whichever is more beneficial to that individual.

“I think the NCAA, as many times as people think they’re falling on deaf ears, is an organization that is listening to common sense but it’s just a different world now,” Bielema said.

By Kedric Prince - IlliniGuys Sr. Recruiting Analyst May […]

By IlliniGuys Staff May 27, 2026 (Cover photo courtesy […]

19-year-old Lana Brenjo, from a professional club team in Serbia, has signed a Big Ten Athletics Aid Agreement to play for Illinois in 2026-27 season.

By Matt Stevens - IlliniGuys Staff Writer

May 27, 2026

(Cover photo courtesy Direkt Portal)

CHAMPAIGN — Shauna Green has watched her colleagues benefit from recruiting the Balkan State region of the world on the opposite side of the Ubben Basketball Complex and has decided to get in the game herself.

Illinois officially announced 19-year-old center Lana Brenjo has signed a Big Ten Athletics Aid Agreement to be a member of the Illini roster for the upcoming 2026-27 season. Fans should be familiar with the idea that just because Brenjo has signed roster paperwork does not mean she is currently in the United States or her student visa status has been officially processed but it is encouraging that Brenjo is represented by Miško Ražnatović, the agent for current Illinois men’s basketball players David Mirkovic, Tomislav Ivisic and Zvonimir Ivisic, who has experience getting players in that region of the world cleared with the university and the federal government.

Ražnatović was the first to confirm the verbal pledge of Brenjo to the Illini on May 16 via a social media post on X.

By IlliniGuys Staff May 27, 2026 (Cover photo courtesy […]

By IlliniGuys Staff

May 26, 2026

(Cover photo courtesy player's Instagram page)

Next month, a scene will take place at the NBA Draft that's become very familiar:

A star, lanky Fighting Illini guard hearing his name called and taking center stage for pictures with NBA commissioner Adam Silver to begin his professional career.

6-foot-6 inch All-American guard Keaton Wagler will become the fifth such Illini to be drafted this decade. The projected lottery pick joining draftees Kasparas Jakucionis (6'6" guard to Miami in 2025), Will Riley (6'8" guard to Washington in 2025), Terrence Shannon Jr. (6-foot-7 wing to Minnesota in 2024) and Ayo Dosunmu (6'5" guard to Chicago). 

It's become a calling card for Brad Underwood's program and his staff is watching another teenage prospect that appears to fit the mold.