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Illinois head coach Bret Bielema was able to confirm some late additions to the 2022 roster via the transfer portal and a couple of players who will be unable to start fall camp healthy.

By Matt Stevens - IlliniGuys Football Writer/Analyst

July 25, 2022

URBANA, Ill. -- Less than a week before the start of preseason camp for the 2022 season, Illinois head coach Bret Bielema confirmed some minor news to local media Monday before the beginning of his charity golf tournament at Atkins Golf Club.

Bielema, who is entering his second year leading the Illini program following a 5-7 inaugural season, confirmed that Kody Case, a graduate senior transfer wide receiver from FCS South Dakota, has been officially added to the roster. Case, a sixth-year senior, surpassed 1,000 career yards receiving at South Dakota last season and caught 12 passes for 168 yards and a touchdown last season. The 5-foot-10, 175-pound slot receiver was a two-time all-state honoree and 2016 ELITE 24 all-state defensive back for South Central Calhoun High School in Lake City, Iowa and still holds school records for points (354), all-purpose yards (5,060), receiving yards (2,205) and receiving touchdowns (32) while also compiling 147 tackles and a school-record 13 interceptions.

By Zain Bando - IlliniGuys Student Correspondent

July 25, 2022

(Cover photo courtesy Peoria Journal-Star)

For the 50th time, the Big Ten Conference will host its annual media event ahead of the college football season. The event is scheduled to take place from Indianapolis, Indiana, July 26-27 at Lucas Oil Stadium.

Although every big name will be there, the headliners will likely be the star of the event. Bret Bielema, Mel Tucker, Pat Fitzgerald, Ryan Day, and Jim Harbaugh are a few of the notable coaches. On the players side, the complete list is below. For the full schedule and appearances, go to this page provided by the conference.

Here are five questions to consider as Big Ten Media Day approaches:

By Kedric Prince - IlliniGuys.com Director of Recruiting 

July 24, 2022

(Cover photo courtesy Joe Clark/IlliniGuys)

Today’s high school basketball and football players no longer say to coaches or recruiting gurus: “I’m going to a school that will help me get to the NBA.” Now they say “I want a coaching staff that can develop my talent and maximize it.”

Prior to Illinois head basketball coach Brad Underwood, Illinois having players who play in the NBA was like saying they would reach the Final Four for six consecutive years.

Illinois landed highly touted guard Ayo Dosunmu from Morgan Park, who developed into a first team All-American, did things at Illinois and college in general that other players could not do for years. Dosunmu was drafted by the Chicago Bulls late in the 2021 second round, 38th pick to be exact, shocking those who watched him play and all those who coached him.

Underwood said he believes the 2022-23 roster has a few guys that could potentially play in the NBA.

By Kedric Prince - IlliniGuys.com Director of Recruiting 

July 23, 2022

Cam Ward is a freshman who plays AAU basketball for Team Durant, a teammate of prime Illinois target Amani Hansberry. 

Sitting court-side Thursday for their game against Mokan Elite was Illini head coach Brad Underwood and assistant coaches Chester Frazier and Geoff Alexander. 

The staff was tracking Hansberry of course, but also saw all they needed to offer the 6-foot-6, 180-pound forward from Upper Marlboro, Maryland, a scholarship as soon as the game was over. 

By Kedric Prince - IlliniGuys.com Director of Recruiting 

July 22, 2022

(Cover photo courtesy Rich Barron's Twitter page)

Last year at this time, St. Ignatius power forward Richard Barron made an unofficial visit to the University of Illinois.  Barron is a teammate of Phoenix Gill, a current freshman who received a scholarship offer from the Fighting Illini.

Barron is a 6-foot-5, 205-pound shooting guard who Illinois watched a few times this summer. He is an interesting prospect who likes Illinois a lot, but he is what you might call a “tweener.”  He is big, strong and that works for high school, but would have to see that translate to college.

By Kedric Prince - IlliniGuys.com Director of Recruiting 

July 21, 2022

(Cover photo courtesy Chicago Tribune)

There is no downtime in July; it is AAU/UAA basketball season, a couple weeks off and a couple of live periods for coaches to evaluate.

In the city of Bedford Park, Illinois, near Chicago, is a new basketball facility named the Wintrust Sports Complex. This week the UAA Finals, with plenty of talented players and DI coaches, are there.

Illinois recently offered Rolling Meadows outstanding shooting guard Cameron Christie, a 6-foot-3, 160-pound shooting guard; most recruiting services list him at a three-star prospect. 

In my most recent IlliniGuys state recruiting rankings, I listed Christie as the third best player in the state (2023), behind Davius Loury and Dai Dai Ames, both from Kenwood. 

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By Kedric Prince - IlliniGuys.com Director of Recruiting

July 20th, 2022

(Cover photo courtesy Sports Illustrated)

(EDITOR'S NOTE: We asked our Football Writer/Analyst Matt Stevens and Director of Recruiting Kedric Prince to offer a point/counterpoint on Illini football recruiting in the 2023 class.  Kedric's view posts today after Matt's went up yesterday.)

To say the Illini football program has traditionally struggled to win consistently would be an understatement. Over the years, there've been some great teams and unbelievable players, but again not a program where opponents feared yearly.

The Illinois athletic director made a splash hire when he first arrived on campus when he announced Lovie Smith as the new man in charge. Like Smith or not, he had a very good NFL resume and most Illini fans remembered him as the coach who led the Bears to the Super Bowl and who was eventually fired after a 10-win NFL season.

The Smith hire was such big news that it was the lead story on ESPN's SportsCenter. College football analysts everywhere believed he gave the forever-struggling Illini a glimmer of hope.

In a high school signee class Bret Bielema stressed would be smaller in numbers, several of the 15 verbal commits in the Illini’s 2023 recruiting class haven’t received another Power Five offer. 

By Matt Stevens - IlliniGuys Football Writer/Analyst

July 19, 2022

(EDITOR'S NOTE: We asked our Football Writer/Analyst Matt Stevens and Director of Recruiting Kedric Prince to offer a point/counterpoint on Illini football recruiting in the 2023 class.  Matt's view posts today, followed by Kedric's tomorrow.)

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. -- It should be noted Bret Bielema is actually on a pace right now to overdeliver on the one promise he made about the 2023 recruiting class not being of high quantity. 

With already 15 verbal pledges by Independence Day to this upcoming signing class, the second full class of Bielema’s tenure with the Illini, Illinois may actually be close to wrapping up the high school portion of this class. 

All intel from Bielema’s program to IlliniGuys.com is suggesting that short high priority four-star in-state prospect Kankakee cornerback Jyaire Hill, the Illini coaching staff has already pivoted its focus to begin its homework on the transfer portal, 2024 and 2025 classes. 

By Matt Stevens - IlliniGuys Football Writer/Analyst July 18, […]

By Kedric Prince - IlliniGuys.com Director of Recruiting 

July 18th, 2022

(Cover photo courtesy Davius Loury's Twitter page)

The state of Illinois is always rich in basketball talent, the class of 2023 and 2024 will be no different. The Fighting Illini men’s basketball staff is traveling the country to find the next big time target, but Illinois remains a hotbed.

Here’s my list of the top ten targets in 2023-24.

By Steve Sturm - IlliniGuys Football Analyst

July 17, 2022

(Cover photo courtesy Kenari Wilcher's Twitter page)

Kenari Wilcher of Moore Haven, Florida committed to the Illini on July 4 and became the 6th Florida recruit in the Class of 2023 for the Illini.  Illini nation should be especially excited about this particular addition though, because Wilcher is an NFL-level athlete that Illinois was very wise to grab while they could.

What does he bring to the Orange and Blue?

Despite putting a higher priority and emphasis on building relationships with elite, in-state recruiting talent, Bret Bielema’s effort with local prospects still not producing high-level results.

By Matt Stevens - IlliniGuys Football Writer/Analyst

July 16, 2022

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. -- The foundational piece of the Bret Bielema hire nearly 20 months ago was his promise to not only his new bosses at Illinois but also in-state high school programs that the Illini would win recruiting battles on their elite-level talent.

Illinois athletics director Josh Whitman executed an efficient, seven-day search from the day Lovie Smith was terminated (Dec. 13, 2020) to the day Bret Bielema was hired (Dec. 20, 2020) and on his checklist of goals for the new hire was the desire and skills to attract the best high school talent inside the state of Illinois to stay in their home state for college football. More importantly, it was a much-needed quality to keep rival Big Ten Conference programs such as Michigan, Wisconsin, Iowa, Purdue and Minnesota from consistently poaching the state’s highest ranked players. 

“I can’t control anything Illinois has done or been a part of in the past, (but) I can control is what we do in the future. There isn’t going to be a program in the country that’s going to recruit you harder to come to your home state,” Bielema said in his introductory media conference in 2020. “I really believe this. For Illinois to be successful like they've never been in the past, they have to recruit the state of Illinois better than they have in the past.”

By Steve Sturm - IlliniGuys Football Analyst

July 15, 2023

Illinois made an unusual addition to its recruiting class when Vero Beach tight end Nathan Guinn committed to the Orange and Blue.  What makes this addition unusual is that Guinn has never played tight end before.  He was primarily a defensive end for Vero Beach and played only wide receiver on offense.  However, this Spring the 6'5, 220 pound Guinn started working out at tight end for prospective college teams and the offers started rolling in.  Illinois was Guinn's first power five conference offer and he jumped on it.

What does he bring to the Orange and Blue?

By Kedric Prince – IlliniGuys.com Director of Recruiting

July 14, 2022

(Cover photo courtesy Prep Hoops)

Jackson Kotecki is a 6-foot-9, 210 pound forward from St. Ignatius High School who has battled hard this summer and may have turned a few heads.

Class: 2023

Why Illinois:  Looking for players to maybe backup others would be what Kotecki is; he is not going to make you spill your popcorn, but he would be a nice piece to add to the rotation that will give you some size. He is not weak, he is not a "project," but has good footwork and is a willing passer. He battled big men all weekend at the Riverside Brookfield Shootout last month and Illinois coaches took notice.