Illinois Football: Illini receive commitment from 2023 offensive lineman

The Illinois football team added to the family over the Memorial Day weekend.

Coming into the weekend, the Illini had three players pledged for the class of 2023. The most recent commitment came in the form of TJ McMillen, an interior offensive lineman who is the No. 718 player in the country. Illinois wasn’t done adding to the offensive line in the month of May, though.

On Monday afternoon, offensive lineman Zachary Aamland took to Twitter to announce that he has decided to commit to the Illini. This decision by Aamland comes just four days after 247Sports put in a Crystal Ball Prediction for the New Jersey native.

This is a big addition for the Illini as well. Aamland is a 6-foot-6, 285-pound offensive lineman from The Hun School, and he resides in Princeton, New Jersey. He is rated as a three-star recruit and ranked as the No. 93 offensive tackle in the nation and the No. 21 player coming out of New Jersey.

Bret Bielema is building the Illinois football team starting with the trenches.

Illinois now has four players committed for 2023, and that is good enough to have the No. 44 ranked recruiting class. Two out of the four pledges are offensive linemen as well. The stockpiling of offensive linemen is becoming a trend with Bret Bielema.

Both McMillen and Aamland will eventually join the seven offensive linemen Illinois pulled in from the class of 2022. A couple of those offensive linemen – Zy Crisler and Isaiah Adams – were both junior college transfers. Judging by the spring game, Crisler and Adams will be mainstays on the offensive line in 2022.

The Illinois offensive line is going to be a mean bunch under Bielema, and Aamland will be a big part of that. The way he moves on the field and the power he has is impressive. I think he is someone who could develop into an All-Big Ten type of player. I also believe, with the training from the Illinois strength and conditioning team, Aamland could give the Illini meaningful snaps early on in his career.

I love this commitment for the Orange and Blue. Bielema is putting his money where his mouth is when it comes to his recruiting ability. To say the program is heading in the right direction is an understatement.