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Illinois has 16 returning starters from the 2024 season. That fact and the eight hours a week coaches have had with players in winter and summer leading to expedited installation right now. 

Matt Stevens, IlliniGuys Staff Writer

August 7, 2025

CHAMPAIGN — The previous history of offseason rules in college football made for much more trial-and-error elements in preseason camps for power conference programs. In 2025, it’s all about installing what you’ve already tested months ago. 

By Kedric Prince - IlliniGuys Director of Recruiting

August 7, 2025

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – Illinois head coach Bret Bielema gave fans the familiar signal that good news was on the way, and on Thursday morning, that hint became reality.

The Illini received a commitment from Jack Gray, a punter from Adelaide, South Australia. Gray will join Illinois on a full scholarship, continuing the program’s tradition of featuring an Australian punter, a streak that dates back to the 2017 season.

Illinois middle linebacker Dylan Rosiek missed the final four games of the season last season after suffering a fractured foot but returns in 2025 to an experienced positional room.

By Matt Stevens - IlliniGuys Football Writer/Analyst

August 6, 2025

(Cover photo courtesy Illinois Athletics)

CHAMPAIGN — During the 25-17 home loss to Minnesota last November, Dylan Rosiek heard what he thought was a strange pop or a ripping noise.

Initially, before looking down at his left foot, the Illinois starting middle linebacker was convinced his football cleat had split open and broken. The reason for this assumption was Rosiek had never suffered an injury in his football career that required any kind of major surgery so he wasn’t sure what something that significant would feel like.

When he realized his cleat was structurally intact, there was only one conclusion left. The foot inside the cleat was very much not. The fracture in his left foot was taken care of with surgery the week after Illinois’ final loss of the 2024 season which led to months of rehabilitation before he was medically cleared for contact shortly before the start of spring practices. And then Rosiek suffered a broken bone in his hand, ending his journey back to the playing turf.

By Kedric Prince - IlliniGuys Director of Recruiting

August 5, 2025

(Cover photo courtesy Prep Hoops)

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – Illinois men’s basketball added another key piece to its 2026 recruiting class with the commitment of Landon Davis, a 6-foot-8, 210-pound forward out of Waukee, Iowa.

Davis joins 6-foot-4 guard Ethan Brown of Rolla, Missouri, as the second pledge in Brad Underwood’s 2026 class. Brown was the first to commit, but the addition of Davis shows the Illini are wasting no time building for the future.

By IlliniGuys Staff

(Cover photo courtesy Illinois Athletics)

Illinois has been blessed with some immensely talented basketball players over the years.  All-Americans, Big Ten Players of the Year, and those who have reached the penultimate level in college hoops.

IlliniGuys co-owners Mike Cagley, Larry Smith, and Brad Sturdy and IlliniGuys Director of Recruiting Kedric Prince all grew up in the 1970s and 80s, so we posed the question - who is the greatest Illini shooting guard in your lifetime?

That was the debate in this edition of the I On The Illini podcast:

https://illiniguys.com/i-on-the-illini-fighting-illini-top-5-sgs-superman-movie-review-489/

Illinois has several special teams spots to fill before the Aug. 29 season opener against Western Illinois (6:30 p.m. CST, Peacock) and many of those may go to projected starters. 

By Matt Stevens - IlliniGuys Football Writer/Analyst

August 5, 2025

CHAMPAIGN — Good evening and welcome to the fourth preseason camp practice for the Illinois program for the 2025 season in the fifth campaign of Illini head coach Bret Bielema that is one of eight practices that will begin under the lights in Memorial Stadium.

This media viewing session was a bit shorter than the first three practices but it also again did not involve any full-team activities. This was the second preseason practice in full pads for the Illini in August and is one of the final preparation practices before Illinois will conduct a fully-closed scrimmage session on Saturday inside Memorial Stadium. 

One of the more interesting elements of Monday night’s practice took place during special teams work when rookie quarterback Jershaun Newton was seen practicing punt return skills for the time during preseason camp.

By Kedric Prince - IlliniGuys Director of Recruiting

August 5, 2025

(Cover photo courtesy Illinois Athletics)

Today’s “Double Dribble 2-1 Focus” begins with Illini women’s basketball center Hayven Smith and Mihailo Petrovic

Player Biography: Hayven Smith, a 6-foot-6 center out of Lincoln-Way East High School, was one of the first in-state players to commit to head coach Shauna Green and her staff following their arrival in Champaign. A standout in her prep career, Smith earned a long list of accolades in 2024 including Herald-News Player of the Year, SouthWest Suburban Conference Blue co-Athlete of the Year, IBCA All-State, Illinois AP All-State, and Southtown All-Area honors. She also reached the 1,000-point plateau. Her father, Greg Smith, was a football player at Vanderbilt in the mid-1980s.

What we know:

By Kedric Prince - IlliniGuys Director of Recruiting

(Cover photo courtesy Eurospects.com)

Double Dribble 2-1 Focus: Mihailo Petrovic and Hayven Smith - Illinois Men’s and Women’s Basketball Player Breakdown

Player Biography: Mihailo Petrovic, a 6-foot-1, 185-pound point guard from Serbia, committed to Illinois in April. The 22-year-old brings international experience, having played for the Serbian national team and Mega Superbet, one of Serbia’s top professional development clubs.

Petrovic averaged 14 points per game and 7.3 assists, establishing himself as a floor general with vision and control.

What we know:

The Illinois fifth-year head coach believes the minor plantar fasciitis on JC Davis’ left foot might “be a blessing in disguise” because it’ll allow depth chart preseason to develop at offensive tackle. 

By Matt Stevens - IlliniGuys Football Writer/Analyst

August 4, 2025

CHAMPAIGN — Good evening and welcome to the third preseason camp practice for the Illinois program for the 2025 season in the fifth campaign of Illini head coach Bret Bielema that is one of eight practices that will begin under the lights in Memorial Stadium.

This media viewing session was a little bit longer than the first two practices but it again did not involve any full-team activities. This was the first preseason practice in full pads for the Illini in August, so it was likely a more important evaluation day for the bigger players near the line-of-scrimmage. So it should come as no surprise that this practice is obviously one of the favorite days for Illini offensive line coach Bart Miller and defensive line coach Terrance Jamison. 

Let’s do a quick injury report after the first two days of preseason practice.

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By IlliniGuys Staff

(Cover photo courtesy Joe Clark/IlliniGuys)

IlliniGuys Insider/Analyst Brad Sturdy was at Ubben this week and shared what he saw of the Illini men's basketball team with IlliniGuys members:

By Steve Sturm - IlliniGuys Football Analyst

August 3, 2025

There's still nearly six months until the final Class of 2026 signing day on February 4, 2026, but Illinois jumped into the Class of 2027 already with what might be the highest rated recruit of the Bielema era when its all said and done.  Kamden Lopati of Salt Lake City West High School, who finished his sophomore year of high school with eye popping stats of 3,050 yards, 25 touchdowns, 4 interceptions and 647 rushing yards to boot against the toughest competition the state of Utah has to offer.  Not only that, but Lopati already has a college-ready physique at 6'2" and 215 pounds and plenty of arm strength to handle the windy days in Champaign.

What does he bring to the Orange and Blue?

Jamison has seven new players in his defensive line room who were not on the Illini 2024 roster to get fully implemented into a three-man front before the Aug. 29 season opener vs. Western Illinois. 

By Matt Stevens - IlliniGuys Football Writer/Analyst

August 2, 2025

CHAMPAIGN — Good evening and welcome to the second preseason camp practice for the Illinois program for the 2025 season in the fifth campaign of Illini head coach Bret Bielema that is one of eight practices that will begin under the lights in Memorial Stadium.

Exactly like Friday night, tonight was simply a 30-minute viewing period after the team stretching pre-practice period but, as per usual, did not involve any full-team activities but highlighted the individual positional work early in this camp. In accordance with NCAA and Big Ten Conference rules, Friday’s practice and tonight’s practice was just in helmets, shorts and spider pads (basic cushioned pads that are used on non-contact days) so there’s obviously nothing to be gleamed from the line-of-scrimmage play.