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Illinois Football: Top 5 class of 2022 offensive targets for the Illini

By Rees Woodcock

Nov 24, 2018; Evanston, IL, USA; A detailed view of a Illinois Fighting Illini helmet before a game against the Northwestern Wildcats at Ryan Field. Mandatory Credit: Mike DiNovo-USA TODAY Sports
Nov 24, 2018; Evanston, IL, USA; A detailed view of a Illinois Fighting Illini helmet before a game against the Northwestern Wildcats at Ryan Field. Mandatory Credit: Mike DiNovo-USA TODAY Sports /
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Dec 30, 2019; Santa Clara, California, USA; General view of the Illinois Fighting Illini helmet during the second quarter against California Golden Bears at Levi’s Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Stan Szeto-USA TODAY Sports /

Illinois football went through a coaching change, and this will end up helping the program tremendously on the recruiting trail.

The talent is already starting to drip into Champaign, but the floodgates could bust wide open in the class of 2022. There is a ton of talent in this class, and Illinois has a chance to put together one of the best groups of players we have seen in years.

Offensively, the Illini need a lot of help. There are quite a few players I am keeping an eye on for the offensive side of the ball. I have a few top targets that I want the most, though.

Here are the top five class of 2022 offensive targets for the Illini.

1. Kevin Coleman – Wide Receiver – St. Louis, Missouri

A new head coach doesn’t mean the recruiting ability in the St. Louis area is going to decrease. Illinois brought in Bret Bielema, and he made the smart move to keep on St. Louis native, Cory Patterson, as the running backs coach.

Illinois has some great talent on the team right now from St. Louis and the state of Missouri. But there are some big fish to catch coming up in the class of 2022. One of the big fish is Kevin Coleman.

Coleman is a 5-foot-11, 170-pound wide receiver from St. Mary’s High School and resides in St. Louis, Missouri. He is rated as a five-star recruit and ranked as the No. 18 player in the class of 2022. He is also the No. 3 wide receiver in the nation and the best player to come out of Missouri.

Illinois was on Coleman early in his high school career, and he even took an unofficial visit to the program. That connection seemed to have gone away with the previous regime, but Illinois’ new coaching staff is starting to make an even stronger connection.

On Thursday, Coleman even tweeted out a graphic that the Illini sent him. He wrote, “What if” with a thinking emoji and then tagged Illinois quarterback Isaiah Williams in the tweet.

Everyone obviously wants Coleman on their team. He has offers from every program in the country. But with the strong ties to the St. Louis area and a coaching staff that has great experience, maybe just maybe the Illini can sneak in and be a player for the star wideout.

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