Illinois Football: Top 50 recruit keeps the Illini in his top 10

With Bret Bielema taking over the Illinois football program, there is a renewed optimism on the recruiting front.

Bielema has done a great job starting the class of 2022 and while putting together a solid first class, he is also trying to build the 2023 class for the Illini at the same time. A step in the right direction with recruiting would be adding a player like Carnell Tate to the mix.

Tate is a 6-foot-2, 185-pound wide receiver from IMG Academy but resides in Chicago, Illinois. He is rated as a four-star recruit and ranked as the No. 42 player in the class of 2023. He is also the No. 6 wide receiver in the nation and the best player coming out of the state of Illinois.

On Tuesday, Tate narrowed the scope of his recruitment. Instead of having every team in the country in the mix, he decided to cut his list down to just 10 teams. The 10 programs vying for his commitment include Ole Miss, Texas, Michigan, LSU, Tennessee, Notre Dame, Penn State, Florida State, Ohio State and Illinois.

Don’t roll your eyes at Illinois football being in contention for a player like Tate.

Some people might see Illinois in the mix and think there is no chance they come away with a top recruit like Tate. Look at all of those other teams involved. There is no way the Illini win this one. Well, don’t count us out just yet.

Tate isn’t just a regular IMG Academy player. This kid is from Chicago and was with Marist High School before transferring down to IMG this past winter. He wanted to play football, and the state of Illinois changed its football schedule due to COVID. So, Tate made the decision to head down to Florida to lace up the cleats for one of the most prestigious football factories in the country.

Bielema’s mentality for recruiting has been to win the state of Illinois. So, a top player from Chicago would be one of the top priorities for the new Illini coaching staff.

If there are any signs of winning this fall, and if Illinois can make a bowl game, it wouldn’t shock me to see the Orange and Blue as one of the top programs competing for Tate come 2023. Just remember, Illinois was able to pull in players like Marquez Beason and Isaiah Williams despite the coaching staff not being great at recruiting.

I love to see the Illini in the top 10 for an in-state recruit. On top of that, Tate is one of the best players in the country. Adding someone like him to the wide receiver corps would make us a Big Ten contender immediately.