Illinois Football: Illini bulk up offensive line with Magnus Moller commitment

The Illinois football team added to the family on Monday afternoon.

It has only been a few weeks since the last commitment – TJ Griffin – pledged to the Illini. Griffin is a safety and will help the defense over the next couple of years. But Illinois also needed to bulk up the offensive line.

The Illini are losing some key members of the offensive line after this season. I believe most of the starting five will depart the program. So, we are going to need some depth on the offensive line. On Monday, Illinois received a commitment that should help with depth issues.

Magnus Moller took to Twitter to announce that he is committing to the Illini. This is a commitment that many had expected after the massive offensive lineman took a visit to Champaign a couple of weeks ago, and then he took an official visit to Illinois this past weekend.

Moller is a 6-foot-8, 300-pound offensive tackle from Denmark. He isn’t rated or ranked by 247Sports, but Illinois managed to beat out a few big-time programs like Cincinnati and Louisville for his commitment.

Illinois football had to secure more offensive line bodies for 2022.

Bret Bielema and his coaching staff did a good job with what they had on the offensive line in 2021. I would say Illinois was one of the best run-blocking offensive lines in the country.

But the offensive line is about to be decimated entering the offseason. Blake Jeresaty, Alex Palczewski, Doug Kramer, Jack Badovinac, and Vederian Lowe are all leaving the team. As previously mentioned in a press conference earlier this year, that leaves very little experience left for the start of the 2022 campaign.

Bielema has done a solid job filling out the 2022 class with offensive linemen. Joey Okla, Hunter Whitenack, Matt Fries, Clayton Leonard, and now Moller are all joining the program as offensive linemen. This is a solid base for the future.

The 2022 starting offensive line for the Illini might look something like Moses Okpala, Brody Wisecarver, Josh Kreutz, Alex Philstrom, and Jordyn Slaughter. That is just a guess, and I am sure it will change as time goes on.

Building out the offensive line is a priority for the Illini coaching staff. Adding a player like Moller will help with this cause. I can’t wait to see what this kid can do.