After the loss to Purdue on the football field, Illinois fans may be counting down the days until basketball season, and luckily, Brad Underwood's squad will be in action soon. In the meantime, while the team prepares for the season, Underwood has been busy with official visits, the latest one from five-star 2028 prospect Brady Pettigrew.
Pettigrew was in Champaign over the weekend, seeing everything the Illini had to offer from the basketball court to the football field. Well, it seems like Underwood and Co. delivered on their end, but Bret Bielema and his squad utterly failed to uphold their end of it all with a 24-17 loss to Purdue.
Illini what we thinking?? pic.twitter.com/LPgUjLWiuu
— Brady Pettigrew (@BradyPettigreww) October 3, 2026
Yes, Pettigrew isn't looking to play football for Illinois, but when he is on the field at the game, there is hope that the team can still put on an impressive performance. Instead, Illinois became Leslie Odom's first Big Ten win as the head coach at Purdue, and he was hired back in 2024.
Luckily, Brady Pettigrew isn't planning on playing football at Illinois
While the football program didn't put on the performance we would have liked to see on homecoming weekend with a big recruit like Pettigrew on campus, luckily, he wants to play basketball and not football.
When it comes to the basketball program, Underwood and Co. have the resume to help land the five-star recruit. Illinois does have the leg up on other schools, with Pettigrew being a native of the state, so he could choose to stay close to home and choose to play for the Illini.
Underwood isn't the only one after Pettigrew commitment, though, even this early in his recruitment. Illinois is competing with other schools for Pettigrew, including a few blue-bloods like UNC, Kentucky, Duke (even though they have yet to offer), Indiana, and Michigan. Ohio State and Arkansas are also in the mix, making Pettigrew a hot commodity for the 2028 class.
There were a few rumors that the five-star Illinois native could choose to reclassify to 2027, but nothing has been done on that front as of yet. Illinois was the fourth official visit for Pettigrew, coming after fellow Big Ten foes Michigan and Indiana, as well as the latest SEC basketball darling, Florida. He still has yet to visit UNC, Kentucky, BYU, Ohio State, and Arkansas.
So, while the football team didn't put on a great show for Pettigrew, basketball is the real showstopper for the No. 1 combo guard. Luckily, basketball season is officially a month away, and hopefully that team can put on a better performance for Pettigrew in case he decides to make another visit to Champaign.
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