Football

Illinois defensive back Xavier Scott discussed Wednesday his role as a defensive leader for the upcoming 2026 season

By Matt Stevens - IlliniGuys Football Writer/Analyst

January 21, 2026

(Cover photo courtesy Illinois Athletics)

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — If you’re ever wondering who might have first leaked out that Xavier Scott was returning to Illinois for the 2026 season, look no further than the woman who Scott pays rent to every month for his apartment.

Illinois defensive coordinator Aaron Henry was planning to put a pair of new signees into Xavier Scott’s off-campus apartment that he shared this past season with starting safety Miles Scott and Henry was told by the landlord of that priority that may not be the best idea. Before ever talking to Scott himself, Henry was informed by the landlord that she was informed by Xavier Scott that he’d still need the apartment for the next several months.

“I actually got some insight that my landlady let Coach Henry know what I was doing,” Scott said while smiling. “She didn’t mean to tell (Henry) but I was just telling her to hold off giving the apartment away. That kind of shook Coach Henry a little bit and he kind of found out what was going on.”

Darrell Prater, a former four-year contributor from Jacksonville State, has elected to move up to a power conference program to compete for a starting role on Illinois’ defensive front in 2026.

By Matt Stevens - IlliniGuys Football Writer/Analyst

January 20, 2026

(Cover photo courtesy player's X page)

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — The football coaching staff at the University of Illinois has again elected to dip into the talent pool of the Group of Six conferences for defensive line depth assistance.

Darrell Prater, a four-year defensive tackle at Jacksonville State, has signed an agreement to play his final year of collegiate eligibility at Illinois. Prater, a 6-foot-3 and 300-pound defensive lineman, is part of a massive reconstruction by Illini assistant coach Terrance Jamison and his boss, fifth-year head coach Bret Bielema, of the Illinois defensive front for the upcoming 2026 season.

Prater spent the 2025 season as a rotational defensive tackle piece in a 3-4 defensive scheme led by first-year head coach Charles Kelly, who served as a defensive coordinator at Florida State, Alabama, Colorado and Auburn before getting his first head coaching assignment at 57 years old.

Mike Cagley, Co-Host Sports Spectacular January 20, 2025 The […]

By Steve Sturm - IlliniGuys Football Analyst

January 19, 2026

(Cover photo courtesy Briana Pace/The Indiana Daily Student)

Welcome to part 1 of 3 of the Cignetti Recipe. College Football's wunderkind has been so popular in the media that I've seen dozens of theories about what has allowed his instant success at a moribund program, so I decided to take a deep dive myself. In the first part, I'm going to look at Cignetti himself and his Indiana coaching staff.

First, Prepare yourselves for a wave of coincidences. This story starts not with Curt Cignetti, but with his father Frank Cignetti, Sr. Frank earned a spot in the College Football Hall of Fame after putting together 20 years of excellence at Division II Indiana University of Pennsylvania, just outside of Pittsburgh. Frank Cignetti took over the IUP program after failing as the head coach of West Virginia. He had been Bobby Bowden's top assistant at West Virginia and took over the program after Bowden left for Florida State.

Former Memphis and Bowling Green defensive end Isaiah Thomison hopes being paired with Illinois defensive line coach Terrance Jamison sparks career-best collegiate season.

By Matt Stevens - IlliniGuys Football Writer/Analyst

January 17, 2026

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — Illinois continues to find developmental defensive line pieces out of the transfer portal.

Isaiah Thomison, a 6-foot-3, 280-pound defensive end has high hopes that Illinois being his third program in the last three seasons will produce his career-best numbers for the 2026 season. Thomison has signed a deal to play next season on the Illinois roster after playing 10 games for Bowling Green last year. 247Sports.com was the first to report this signing on Saturday afternoon.

By Zeno Jo - IlliniGuys Staff Writer

January 17, 2026

(Cover photo courtesy Joe Clark/IlliniGuys)

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – The Illinois Fighting Illini football team hosted a group of recruits from the 2027 class as part of its Junior Day. IlliniGuys spoke to a few of them, including quarterback commit Kamden Lopati, who has been committed to the program since July of last year.

Initially, the Illini beat out the likes of Oregon, Washington, Arizona State, and Purdue to secure a commitment from Lopati. In recent weeks, Lopati’s name has become a hot one for many schools, with Colorado, Stanford, UCF, and Stanford offering him. Most notably, Tennessee offered Lopati in the shadow of Illinois’ Music City Bowl showdown against the Volunteers.

By Kedric Prince - IlliniGuys Sr. Recruiting Analyst

January 16, 2026

(Cover photo courtesy Kedric Prince/IlliniGuys)

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — Friday marks the final official day of the NCAA transfer portal window, and while needs remain that many would like to see addressed, Illinois football’s focus this weekend extends beyond portal movement.

The Illini are set to host a number of high school prospects as part of their Junior Day efforts, a crucial step as the program looks to strengthen its recruiting pipeline and build long-term relationships.

We were able to confirm a few players planning to be on campus this weekend. As more information becomes available, updates will be posted on the football message board.

Former Illinois backup kicker Ethan Moczulski has signed an agreement to battle for the starting field goal and kickoff duties at the Illini in the 2026 season.

By Matt Stevens - IlliniGuys Football Writer/Analyst

January 14, 2026

(Cover photo courtesy Illinois Athletics)

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — After losing its kicker to the earlier this month to the transfer portal, the Illinois coaching staff have elected bring back a very familiar face as a replacement.

Ethan Moczulski has signed an agreement to return to the Illini for his final season of collegiate eligibility. Moczulski, who was the backup kicker and kickoff specialist for Illinois in 2024 after transferring in from Texas A&M, will be expected to compete for the starting kicker duties on field goals and kickoffs for the upcoming 2026 season.

By IlliniGuys Staff

The 2026 two-week college football transfer portal has opened - let the frenzy begin!

You can be sure that conversations have been going on behind the scenes for several weeks as several players made their intentions known long before today.

Three days after a thrilling and historic win over Tennessee in the Music City Bowl, Illinois and head coach Bret Bielema and staff now look to capitalize on their unprecedented momentum and improve a roster that loses some key players and a good bit of its depth in this offseason.

Here is a list of players leaving and coming into the program via transfer. This will be updated on a regular basis through January 16th:

By Kedric Prince - IlliniGuys Sr. Recruiting Analyst

January 13, 2026

(Cover photo courtesy Kedric Prince/IlliniGuys)

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — With only a few days left in this year’s transfer portal window, Illinois football has experienced its share of roster movement like programs across the country. Still, head coach Bret Bielema continues to place major emphasis on high school recruiting, especially within the state of Illinois.

One of the top names now connected to the Illini is Brayden Parks, a 6-foot-2, 305-pound defensive tackle from Brother Rice High School. According to one national recruiting site, Parks is a four-star prospect and is already on Illinois’ radar as a priority in the 2027 recruiting class.

Illinois has made a strong case in recent years for player development under Bielema, particularly along the defensive front. Defensive tackle Johnny Newton reached the NFL in 2024, landing with the Washington Commanders. The Illini also continue to produce high-level pass rushers, including senior Gabe Jacas, a standout from Port St. Lucie, Florida.

By Steve Sturm - IlliniGuys Football Analyst

January 12, 2026

Illinois' second addition in the transfer portal came at a great time for nervous Illinois fans, because as several Illinois defensive linemen were hitting the portal, Illinois added Penn U. defensive lineman Carter Janki. Janki was in Champaign for a visit as soon as the portal opened and he committed soon after, showing that the staff had identified him as a key piece to their plans for 2026. Janki is a 6'5, 290 pounder who will likely be a defensive end for the Illini next fall in his last year of eligibility.

What does he bring to the Orange and Blue?

Janki is a tough kid who displays some power and he was a steady performer

Fmr. Loyola Academy three-star prospect Connor Sullivan is returning home after accepting an offer out of the transfer portal with

By Matt Stevens - IlliniGuys Football Writer/Analyst

January 11, 2026

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — Illinois head coach Bret Bielema repeatedly has said publicly that he and his player personnel staff keep files on several Illinois native players who decided to start their collegiate careers out of the state.

Bielema’s stated purpose of these long-term files is to keep tabs on players who might one day decide to leave their first university for an opportunity to return their home state via the transfer portal. Welcome to the story of Connor Sullivan.

Sullivan, a 6-foot-4 and 270-pound defensive lineman with four years of eligibility, was a three-star prospect at the dominant Loyola Academy football program in Wilmette, Illinois where he registered 54 total tackles with 12 tackles for loss and five sacks in his junior season of 2023. Sullivan suffered a season-ending injury preventing him from participating in the 2024 season and before he was able to sign to play at Washington State.

By Kedric Prince - IlliniGuys Sr. Recruiting Analyst

January 10, 2026

(Cover photo courtesy Brian O'Mahoney/News-Sun)

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — Illinois head football coach Bret Bielema has steadily elevated the Illini’s perception both on the recruiting trail and on the field.

That progress has translated into the ability to attract high-profile prospects, particularly at the skill positions, as Illinois continues to modernize its offensive identity.

One position that remains a clear point of emphasis is tight end. Illinois has evaluated and pursued several in-state and nationally ranked tight ends, but the results have not yet matched the staff’s ambitions. Bielema and tight ends coach Robby Discher have stayed aggressive, continuing to search for a difference-maker who can anchor the position long term.

By Matt Stevens - IlliniGuys Football Writer/Analyst

January 9, 2026

(Cover photo courtesy Colorado State Athletics)

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — Illinois linebackers coach Archie McDaniel has gone to a proven place where he’s found talent in his position group.

Robert Edmonson Jr., who has spent the last three seasons at Prairie View A&M and Colorado State, has agreed to bring his veteran experience to the Illinois middle linebacker group for the 2026 season. However, before he’s started his college football journey in the Southwest Athletic Conference, Edmonson Jr. was all-state selection out of Shadow Creek High School in Pearland, Texas. The Pearland area is just 21 miles south of Houston where McDaniel spent the previous three seasons with the Cougars program before Bielema hired him away to the Illini staff before the 2024 season.

Under McDaniel's guidance, senior linebacker Donavan Mutin led Houston with 85 tackles during the 2022 season. The Spring, Texas, native capped his career with 252 tackles. Mutin's 245 tackles from 2019 to 2022 ranked seventh among all American Athletic Conference linebackers.

Linebackers Mannie Nunnery and Jamal Morris also turned in strong sophomore campaigns in 2022. Nunnery's 74.2 overall defensive grade by Pro Football Focus ranked second among American Athletic Conference underclassmen linebackers. He also paced the league's underclassmen with a 78.2 coverage grade. Morris was key for the Cougars down the stretch, totaling 10 tackles against SMU on Nov. 5 and eight tackles in Houston's Independence Bowl victory against Louisiana.

Illinois signs former Georgia State and Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College cornerback Damaryion ‘Deuce’ Fillmore for his final year of eligibility in 2026.

By Matt Stevens - IlliniGuys Football Writer/Analyst

January 9, 2026

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — Illinois has found a veteran cornerback in the transfer portal to provide depth in their defensive secondary in form of Damaryion Fillmore.

Fillmore, who goes by ‘Deuce’ and is listed 5-foot-10 and 185 pounds, started in all 12 games this past season for Georgia State where he recorded 39 tackles and three pass breakups. Fillmore arrived at Georgia State after playing two seasons at Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College, which has a relationship with Illini coaches after signing former Illini offensive lineman Zy Crisler - who started 36 games for Illinois from 2022-24.

Fillmore joins East Texas A&M cornerback Lavon Williams as defensive backs that Illinois has signed out of the transfer portal in this offseason window from Jan. 2 to Jan. 16. Fillmore is expected to compete for the starting cornerback spot opposite of Jaheim Clarke and/or the nickel spot with returning defensive back Tanner Heckel and junior college signee Jakwon Morris.

Fillmore had 37 tackles and three interceptions in 10 games played at Gulf Coast Community College, which is what got him several FBS offers from Sun Belt Conference, Conference USA and Mid-American Conference schools.

Fillmore’s film at Georgia State in the 2025 season had to