Illinois Football: Bret Bielema has a chance to build a special class of 2024

One of the goals for Bret Bielema, when he became the head coach of the Illinois football program, was to start winning the state of Illinois in recruiting.

The Illini class of 2022 was a great start to Bielema winning more of the market share of this talent-rich state. Illinois was able to snag 11 in-state recruits in that first recruiting class.

2023 is starting off on a similar path as well. So far, with 15 commitments on the board, the Illini have secured pledges from six state of Illinois recruits. That number is likely to increase with the hopes of landing players like Jyaire Hill.

There has been some great talent that has come out of the state of Illinois over the past two recruiting classes, but Bielema was so far behind the eight ball that securing what he has secured is an accomplishment. It is time for Illini fans to come out of that ‘blame the previous coaching staff’ mentality and to start expecting this coaching regime to land some of the best in-state talent.

Illinois football has a chance to have a really special class of 2024.

I understand in-state recruits in 2022 not wanting to come to Illinois because of the lack of stability and winning. We weren’t doing anything to help convince them to come to Champaign. On top of that, it is well-documented that the previous coaching staff wasn’t really recruiting the state of Illinois.

But that 2022 campaign showed that the Bielema era is for real. It showed that this team could win on the football field. Illinois was able to secure some good in-state talent for 2022, but the highest-ranked player in the state was Aidan Laughery at No. 12.

Let’s flip the page to the class of 2023. Illinois has started the season 3-1 and it looks like we are on the right track to make a bowl game. With clear stability within the program, recruits are more likely to pick the Orange and Blue.

There is still plenty of time until early signing day, but as mentioned before, Illinois has secured six in-state commitments thus far. The highest-ranked recruit the Illini have pulled in is Kaden Feagin, who is ranked No. 5 in the state.

Not only has the quantity of in-state recruits improved under Bielema, but the quality of recruit is improving as well. That is always a positive sign. All of this recruiting leads to the class of 2024.

The 2024 class is one of the best I have seen in years coming out of the state of Illinois. While 247Sports hasn’t come out with their full rankings just yet, there are 17 players from the state of Illinois ranked, and they are all inside the top 600 nationally.

Included in the 17 top 600 recruits are seven four-star players and one five-star. Who are some of the bigger names to keep an eye on, though?

Justin Scott is always someone to drool over. He is the five-star recruit in this mix. The defensive lineman has every team in the country after him. Bielema was his first scholarship offer back in 2021, and he has been on an unofficial visit since then. This will be a difficult recruitment to win.

Illinois was also in first on another big-time recruit. Grant Stec, a four-star tight end, was offered by the Illini back in 2021. He has also visited the program. Eddie Tuerk visited Champaign back in April and was offered a scholarship at the same time. He would be a great defensive line addition.

There are so many talented players coming out of the class of 2024. Bielema is stacking talented class after talented class. It is time to take recruiting from good to great. 2024 can do that for this program.