2026 Illinois Fighting Illini football team

2026 Illinois Fighting Illini football
2026 Illinois Fighting Illini football
Conference	Big Ten Conference
Record	0–0 (0–0 Big Ten)
Head coach	Bret Bielema (6th season);
Offensive coordinator	Barry Lunney Jr. (5th season)
Defensive coordinator	Bobby Hauck (1st season)
Home stadium	Gies Memorial Stadium

2026 Big Ten Conference football standings

Team	W		L	W		L
Illinois	0	–	0	0	–	0
Indiana	0	–	0	0	–	0
Iowa	0	–	0	0	–	0
Maryland	0	–	0	0	–	0
Michigan	0	–	0	0	–	0
Michigan State	0	–	0	0	–	0
Minnesota	0	–	0	0	–	0
Nebraska	0	–	0	0	–	0
Northwestern	0	–	0	0	–	0
Ohio State	0	–	0	0	–	0
Oregon	0	–	0	0	–	0
Penn State	0	–	0	0	–	0
Purdue	0	–	0	0	–	0
Rutgers	0	–	0	0	–	0
UCLA	0	–	0	0	–	0
USC	0	–	0	0	–	0
Washington	0	–	0	0	–	0
Wisconsin	0	–	0	0	–	0
Championship: December 5, 2026
As of March 22, 2026 Rankings from AP poll

The 2026 Illinois Fighting Illini football team will represent the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign as a member of the Big Ten Conference during the 2026 NCAA Division I FBS football season. They will be led by sixth-year head coach Bret Bielema, the Fighting Illini play their home games at Gies Memorial Stadium at Champaign, Illinois.

Offseason

Departures

NFL draft

Name	Pos.	Team	Round	Pick

Outgoing transfers

Name	No.	Pos.	Height	Weight	Year	Hometown	New school
Justin Bowick	0	WR	6'4"	210	Jr	Powder Springs, GA	Oklahoma State
Kaleb Patterson	1	DB	6'1"	195	Jr	Jackson, MS	Kansas State
Mario Sanders II	1	WR	5'10"	195	Jr	Minneapolis, MN	Southern Miss
Ashton Hollins	2	WR	6'5"	195	Jr	Lucedale, MS	Georgia Southern
Saboor Karriem	2	DB	6'3"	210	Jr	West Orange, NJ	Temple
Alexander Capka-Jones	7	WR	6'4"	195	Sr	Oak Park, CA
Malik Elzy	8	WR	6'2"	215	So	Chicago, IL	LSU
Jeremiah Warren	8	DL	6'3"	310	So	Belleville, MI	Pitt
Ethan Hampton	10	QB	6'3"	230	Jr	Elburn, IL	Southern Miss
Donovan Turner	11	DB	6'2"	190	Jr	Long Beach, CA	Sacramento State
Trey Petty	12	QB	6'0"	205	Rs-Fr	Starkville, MS	Western Michigan
Amar Reynolds	12	DB	6'0"	190	Rs-Fr	Fort Pierce, FL	FAU
Cole Rusk	14	TE	6'5"	250	Sr	Rock Island, IL	Arizona
Tyson Rooks	19	DB	6'4"	205	Jr	St. Simons Island, GA	FAU
David Olano	24	K	5'11"	180	Jr	Naperville, IL	Texas A&M
Vernon Woodward III	24	CB	6'1"	200	Rs-Fr	DeLand, FL	Jacksonville State
Jojo Hayden	30	LB	6'2"	245	So	East St. Louis, IL	Purdue
Tomiwa Durojaiye	36	DL	6'5"	300	Jr	Philadelphia, PE	South Carolina
Angelo McCullom	44	DL	6'2"	300	So	Pickerington, OH	Texas A&M
Malachi Hood	45	LB	6'2"	235	Jr	Plainfield, IL	West Virginia
Easton Baker	47	LB	6'0"	220	Rs-Fr	Stansbury, UT
Kellen Francis	65	OL	6'5"	320	So	Princeville, IL
Tyler McMillan	70	OL	6'5"	335	Jr	Detroit, MI	Eastern Michigan
Jake Furtney	82	TE	6'4"	250	Rs-Fr	St. Charles, IL	Ohio
Eli Coenen	98	DL	6'7"	290	So	Baldwin, WI	Michigan State
Curt Neal	99	DL	6'0"	310	Jr	Cornelius, NC	Purdue

Retirements

Coaching departures

Name	Previous Position	New Position

Acquisitions

Incoming transfers

Name	Pos.	Height	Weight	Year	Hometown	Prev. school
Robert Edmonson	LB	6'2"	225	Jr	Houston, TX	Colorado State
Deuce Fillmore	CB	5'11"	185	Sr	Biloxi, MS	Georgia State
Zach Haber	LS	5'10"	226	Jr	Durango, CO	Arkansas
William Holmes	EDGE	6'4"	245	Jr	Detroit, MI	Utah State
Katin Houser	QB	6'3"	225	Sr	Anaheim, CA	East Carolina
Carter Janki	DL	6'5"	290	Sr	Redding, CT	Penn
Christian Martin	OT	6'6"	300	Jr	St. Rose, LA	Colorado State
Ethan Moczulski	K	5'11	200	Sr	Spokane, WA	Washington
Alex Perry	WR	6'5"	210	Sr	Port Charlotte, FL	FIU
Jayshon Platt	WR	6'1"	180	Sr	Sarasota, FL	FAU
Darrell Prater	DL	6'3"	300	Sr	Fort Payne, AL	Jacksonville State
Jake Renfro	IOL	6'4"	315	Jr	Mokena, IL	Wisconsin
Ty Robinson	WR	6'4"	190	Sr	Aurora, CO	Ball State
Maurice Smith Jr.	QB	6'4"	245	Sr	Fort Pierce, FL	Chowan
Connor Sullivan	DL	6'4"	270	Rs-Fr	Glenview, IL	Washington State
Isaiah Thomison	DL	6'3"	280	Jr	Fayetteville, TN	Bowling Green
Lavon Williams	S	5'10"	180	Sr	San Antonio, TX	East Texas A&M

Recruiting class

College recruiting information (2026)
Name	Hometown	School	Height	Weight	Commit date
Overall recruit ranking:
Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, On3, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources:

New walk-ons

Coaches acquisitions

Name	Previous Position	New Position

^[1]^[2]

Schedule

Date	Time	Opponent	Site	TV
September 5	TBD	UAB*	Gies Memorial Stadium Champaign, IL	TBD
September 12	TBD	Duke*	Gies Memorial Stadium Champaign, IL	TBD
September 19	TBD	Southern Illinois (FCS)*	Gies Memorial Stadium Champaign, IL	TBD
September 26	TBD	at Ohio State	Ohio Stadium Columbus, OH (Illibuck)	TBD
October 3	TBD	Purdue	Gies Memorial Stadium Champaign, IL (rivalry)	TBD
October 10	TBD	at Michigan State	Spartan Stadium East Lansing, MI	TBD
October 24	TBD	Oregon	Gies Memorial Stadium Champaign, IL	TBD
October 31	TBD	at Maryland	SECU Stadium College Park, MD	TBD
November 7	TBD	Nebraska	Gies Memorial Stadium Champaign, IL	TBD
November 14	TBD	at UCLA	Rose Bowl Pasadena, CA	TBD
November 21	TBD	Iowa	Gies Memorial Stadium Champaign, IL (rivalry)	TBD
November 28	TBD	at Northwestern	Ryan Field Evanston, IL (rivalry)	TBD
*Non-conference game All times are in Central time Source: ^[3]

Rankings

Ranking movements
	Week
Poll	Pre	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	Final
AP
Coaches
CFP	Not released																Not released

Game summaries

vs UAB

UAB Blazers (0–0) at Illinois Fighting Illini (0–0) – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	Total
Blazers			0
Fighting Illini			0

at Gies Memorial Stadium • Champaign, Illinois

Date: September 5

Statistics	UAB	ILL
First downs
Plays–yards
Rushes–yards
Passing yards
Passing: comp–att–int
Time of possession

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
UAB	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving
Illinois	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving

vs Duke

Duke Blue Devils (0–0) at Illinois Fighting Illini (0–0) – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	Total
Blue Devils			0
Fighting Illini			0

at Gies Memorial Stadium • Champaign, Illinois

Date: September 12

Statistics	DUKE	ILL
First downs
Plays–yards
Rushes–yards
Passing yards
Passing: comp–att–int
Time of possession

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Duke	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving
Illinois	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving

vs Southern Illinois

Southern Illinois Salukis (0–0) at Illinois Fighting Illini (0–0) – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	Total
Salukis			0
Fighting Illini			0

at Gies Memorial Stadium • Champaign, Illinois

Date: September 19

Statistics	SIU	ILL
First downs
Plays–yards
Rushes–yards
Passing yards
Passing: comp–att–int
Time of possession

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Southern Illinois	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving
Illinois	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving

at Ohio State

Illinois Fighting Illini (0–0) at Ohio State Buckeyes (0–0) – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	Total
Fighting Illini			0
Buckeyes			0

at Ohio Stadium • Columbus, Ohio

Date: September 26

Statistics	ILL	OSU
First downs
Plays–yards
Rushes–yards
Passing yards
Passing: comp–att–int
Time of possession

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Illinois	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving
Ohio State	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving

vs Purdue

Purdue Boilermakers (0–0) at Illinois Fighting Illini (0–0) – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	Total
Boilermakers			0
Fighting Illini			0

at Gies Memorial Stadium • Champaign, Illinois

Date: October 3

Statistics	PUR	ILL
First downs
Plays–yards
Rushes–yards
Passing yards
Passing: comp–att–int
Time of possession

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Purdue	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving
Illinois	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving

at Michigan State

Illinois Fighting Illini (0–0) at Michigan State Spartans (0–0) – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	Total
Fighting Illini			0
Spartans			0

at Spartan Stadium • East Lansing, Michigan

Date: October 10

Statistics	ILL	MSU
First downs
Plays–yards
Rushes–yards
Passing yards
Passing: comp–att–int
Time of possession

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Illinois	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving
Michigan State	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving

vs Oregon

Oregon Ducks (0–0) at Illinois Fighting Illini (0–0) – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	Total
Ducks			0
Fighting Illini			0

at Gies Memorial Stadium • Champaign, Illinois

Date: October 24

Statistics	ORE	ILL
First downs
Plays–yards
Rushes–yards
Passing yards
Passing: comp–att–int
Time of possession

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Oregon	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving
Illinois	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving

at Maryland

Illinois Fighting Illini (0–0) at Maryland Terrapins (0–0) – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	Total
Fighting Illini			0
Terrapins			0

at SECU Stadium • College Park, Maryland

Date: October 31

Statistics	ILL	MD
First downs
Plays–yards
Rushes–yards
Passing yards
Passing: comp–att–int
Time of possession

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Illinois	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving
Maryland	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving

vs Nebraska

Nebraska Cornhuskers (0–0) at Illinois Fighting Illini (0–0) – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	Total
Cornhuskers			0
Fighting Illini			0

at Gies Memorial Stadium • Champaign, Illinois

Date: November 7

Statistics	NEB	ILL
First downs
Plays–yards
Rushes–yards
Passing yards
Passing: comp–att–int
Time of possession

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Nebraska	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving
Illinois	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving

at UCLA

Illinois Fighting Illini (0–0) at UCLA Bruins (0–0) – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	Total
Fighting Illini			0
Bruins			0

at Rose Bowl • Pasadena, California

Date: November 14

Statistics	ILL	UCLA
First downs
Plays–yards
Rushes–yards
Passing yards
Passing: comp–att–int
Time of possession

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Illinois	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving
UCLA	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving

vs Iowa

Iowa Hawkeyes (0–0) at Illinois Fighting Illini (0–0) – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	Total
Hawkeyes			0
Fighting Illini			0

at Gies Memorial Stadium • Champaign, Illinois

Date: November 21

Statistics	IOWA	ILL
First downs
Plays–yards
Rushes–yards
Passing yards
Passing: comp–att–int
Time of possession

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Iowa	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving
Illinois	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving

at Northwestern

Illinois Fighting Illini (0–0) at Northwestern Wildcats (0–0) – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	Total
Fighting Illini			0
Wildcats			0

at Ryan Field • Evanston, Illinois

Date: November 28

Statistics	ILL	NU
First downs
Plays–yards
Rushes–yards
Passing yards
Passing: comp–att–int
Time of possession

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Illinois	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving
Northwestern	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving

Roster

2026 Illinois Fighting Illini football team roster

Players

Coaches

Offense

Pos.	#	Name	Class
WR	`0`	Justin Bowick	Jr
WR	`1`	Mario Sanders II	Jr
WR	`2`	Ashton Hollins	Jr
RB	`3`	Kaden Feagin	Jr
QB	`4`	Carson Boyd	Fr
RB	`5`	Ca'lil Valentine	So
WR	`7`	Alexander Capka-Jones	Sr
WR	`8`	Malik Elzy	Jr
QB	`9`	Luke Altmyer	Sr
QB	`10`	Ethan Hampton	Sr
WR	`11`	Brayden Trimble	Fr
QB	`12`	Trey Petty	Fr
WR	`13`	Hudson Clement	Jr
TE	`14`	Cole Rusk	Sr
QB	`15`	Jershaun Newton	Fr
TE	`16`	Logan Farrell	Fr
WR	`17`	Collin Dixon	So
WR	`18`	Michael Bartolotta	Sr
RB	`20`	John Forster	Fr
RB	`21`	Aidan Laughery	Jr
RB	`22`	Cedric Wyche II	Fr
TE	`23`	Jordan Anderson	Jr
RB	`25`	Aaron Ball	Fr
RB	`27`	Corey Rashad	So
RB	`31`	Murphy Clement	Fr
TE	`39`	Trey Peters	Fr
OL	`54`	Griffin Rousseau	Fr
OL	`55`	T. J. McMillen	So
OL	`56`	J. J. Hirdes	Fr
OL	`57`	Zach Barrett	Fr
OL	`58`	Melvin Priestly	Sr
OL	`63`	Dezmond Schuster	Sr
OL	`64`	Josh Kruetz	Sr
OL	`65`	Kellen Francis	So
OL	`66`	Brandon Hansen	So
OL	`68`	Michael McDonough	Fr
OL	`70`	Tyler McMillan	Jr
OL	`71`	Nathan Knapik	Fr
OL	`72`	Ayden Knapik	Sr
OL	`73`	Josh Gesky	Sr
OL	`74`	J. C. Davis	Sr
OL	`75`	Brandon Henderson	Jr
OL	`76`	Dylan Frechette	Fr
OL	`78`	Eddie Tuerk	Fr
OL	`79`	Zafir Stewart	Fr
WR	`80`	Hank Beatty	Sr
TE	`82`	Jake Furtney	Fr
WR	`83`	Tysean Griffin	Fr
TE	`84`	Grant Smith	Fr
TE	`85`	Tanner Arkin	Sr
TE	`86`	Christian Abney	Jr
WR	`87`	Tyler McClure	Sr
TE	`88`	Davin Stoffel	So
TE	`89`	Tanner Hollinger	Fr

Defense

Pos.	#	Name	Class
DB	`0`	Mac Resetich	Jr
DB	`1`	Kaleb Patterson	Jr
DB	`2`	Saboor Karriem	Jr
OLB	`3`	Alec Bryant	Sr
OLB	`4`	Daniel Brown	Jr
DB	`5`	Torrie Cox Jr.	Sr
DB	`6`	Jaheim Clarke	Jr
DB	`7`	Matthew Bailey	Jr
DL	`8`	Jeremiah Warren	So
OLB	`9`	Leon Lowery Jr.	Sr
DB	`10`	Miles Scott	Sr
DB	`11`	Donovan Turner	Jr
DB	`12`	Amar Reynolds	Fr
DB	`13`	Xanai Scott	Fr
DB	`14`	Xavier Scott	Sr
DB	`15`	Andre Lovett Jr.	Fr
DB	`16`	Tanner Heckel	So
OLB	`17`	Gabe Jacas	Sr
OLB	`18`	Mason Muragin	So
DB	`19`	Tyson Rooks	Jr
DB	`20`	Tyler Strain	Sr
DB	`21`	Ben Clawson	Jr
DB	`22`	R. J. Jones III	Fr
DB	`24`	Vernon Woodward III	Fr
DB	`25`	Des Straughton	Fr
OLB	`26`	Ismael Kante	Jr
LB	`28`	Dylan Rosiek	Sr
LB	`29`	T. J. Griffin	Jr
LB	`30`	JoJo Hayden	So
DB	`32`	Tywan Cox	Fr
LB	`33`	Grant Beerman	Fr
OLB	`34`	Erik Gayle	Fr
DB	`35`	Grayson Griffin	Sr
DL	`36`	Tomiwa Durojaiye	Jr
LB	`38`	Jack Paris	Fr
LB	`39`	Kenenna Odeluga	Sr
LB	`41`	James Kruetz	Jr
LB	`42`	Luke Zardzin	Sr
OLB	`43`	Joe Barna	So
DL	`44`	Angelo McCullom	So
LB	`45`	Malachi Hood	Jr
LB	`47`	Easton Baker	Fr
OLB	`48`	Carter Smith	Fr
OLB	`51`	Clayton Leonard	Jr
DL	`52`	Pat Farrell	So
DL	`54`	Demetrius John	Fr
DL	`56`	Guillermo Gallardo	Jr
DL	`90`	James Thompson Jr.	Sr
DL	`91`	Cameron Brooks	Fr
DL	`92`	Gentle Hunt	Sr
DL	`94`	Carter Hewitt	Sr
DL	`95`	Isaiah White	Fr
DL	`96`	Eli Coenen	So
DL	`99`	Curt Neal	Jr

Special teams

Pos.	#	Name	Class
K	`24`	David Olano	Jr
K/P	`27`	Lucas Osada	So
LS	`36`	Lane Hansen	Sr
P	`40`	Keelan Crimmins	Sr
LS	`44`	Patrick Mahoney III	So
P	`81`	Lars Rau	So

Head coach

Bret Bielema

Coordinators/assistant coaches

Thad Ward – Assistant head coach/running backs
Barry Lunney Jr. – Offensive coordinator/quarterbacks
Aaron Henry – Defensive coordinator/secondary
Vacant – Defensive line
Archie McDaniel – Linebackers
Bart Miller – Offensive line
Corey Parker – Defensive backs
Justin Stepp – Wide receivers
Trent Harris – Outside linebackers
Ben Miller – Senior head coach analyst
Myers Hendrickson – Senior analyst
Mike Neu – Senior offensive assistant
Joe Kim – Skill development coordinator
Chris Hurd – Senior special teams assistant
Alex Panos – Assistant outside linebackers
Artur Sitkowski – Assistant quarterbacks
Byron Bell – Assistant offensive line
Danny Cameron – Assistant tight ends
Matt Ellerbrock – Assistant linebackers
Dan Ellington – Assistant wide receivers
Houston Griffith – Assistant defensive backs
Antonio James – Assistant defensive line
Ryan Simerson – Assistant secondary
James White – Assistant running backs
Harper Cole – Offensive skill and special teams assistant
Blake Smithback – Offensive front assistant
Tank Wright – Director, Strength and Conditioning
G. C. Yerry – Associate Director, Strength and Conditioning
Matt Manninger – Assistant, Strength and Conditioning
Nick Elicone – Assistant, Strength and Conditioning
Tyler Mayo – Assistant, Strength and Conditioning

Legend

(C) Team captain
(S) Suspended
(I) Ineligible

Injured
Redshirt

Roster
Last update: 9/25/2025

Notes

References

^ "Illinois Football Transfer Portal". ON3.
^ "Illinois Fighting Illini 2026 College Football Transfer Portal". 247Sports.
^ "2026 Illinois Football Schedule". FBSchedules.com. Retrieved December 20, 2024.

[1] "Illinois Football Transfer Portal". ON3.

[2] "Illinois Fighting Illini 2026 College Football Transfer Portal". 247Sports.

[3] "2026 Illinois Football Schedule". FBSchedules.com. Retrieved December 20, 2024.

[1]

[2]

[3]

Illinois Fighting Illini football
Venues	Illinois Field (1890–1922) Gies Memorial Stadium (1923–present)
Bowls & rivalries	Bowl games Indiana Iowa Michigan Missouri Northwestern Ohio State: Illibuck Purdue
Culture & lore	Illinois Loyalty "Oskee Wow-Wow" Marching Illini Gene Honda Fighting Illini Sports Network Chief Illiniwek 1960s slush fund scandal 2021 Penn State game
People	Head coaches NFL draftees Statistical leaders
Seasons	1890 1891 1892 1893 1894 1895 1896 1897 1898 1899 1900 1901 1902 1903 1904 1905 1906 1907 1908 1909 1910 1911 1912 1913 1914 1915 1916 1917 1918 1919 1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 2026
National championship seasons in bold