Illinois Football: State of Texas QB Samari Collier receives Illini offer

The Illinois football team was busy over the last week trying to extend scholarship offers to players who could come in and help the team in the near future.

The position that has been a bugaboo since Kurt Kittner donned the Orange and Blue is quarterback. He was a great quarterback for this program and even led us to the Sugar Bowl. But, since Kittner, it has been hard to find a stable quarterback who could lead this team. Even with Juice Williams on the field, it was a struggle at times.

Illinois is starting to develop some nice quarterback depth right now. I am excited about the new Isaiah Williams coming into the program. I am also intrigued by the offer Illinois extended to Samari Collier just a few days ago.

Collier is a 6-foot-3, 200-pound dual-threat quarterback from DeSoto High School in DeSoto, Texas. He is ranked as the No. 878 player in the class of 2021 and the No. 110 player in the state of Texas. Illinois is his only scholarship offer as of right now. So, the Illini are getting in early on this kid, but does he have the talent to help this team in the future?

First off, I love the fact Collier is from Texas. Illinois continues to have a strong presence down there and that is exciting for the future. I also like the way this kid plays football. He isn’t a run-first dual-threat quarterback. This kid seems to keep his eyes downfield and doesn’t just drop the ball down to run. He has a pass-first mentality.

Collier suited up for Skyline High School last season and they made it to the Class 6A DI State Championships. They were ousted in the first round, though. He still has two more years of high school left and will be suiting up for DeSoto this fall.

Hopefully, he can win a championship before he leaves the high school ranks. The more winning experience we have on the quarterback depth chart the better.