Illinois football adding quality depth at the linebacker position

The Illinois football class of 2025 took a big turn on Thursday night.

Just a couple of months ago, it looked like the Illini were going to struggle to finish in the top 60 when it came to the 2025 class rankings. We had talented recruits committed, but the quantity wasn’t there and options were running out.

That is when Bret Bielema started to put the press coverage on some big-time recruits. Dominoes started to fall, and players started to pledge to the Orange and Blue.

Needing a few more players to round out the class of 2025, Illinois received some big news on Thursday night.

Grant Beerman took to social media to announce that he was committing to the Illini. This commitment came right after Beerman decided to back away from his commitment to Purdue.

Beerman had been committed to the Boilermakers since July 2024. He then took an official visit to Illinois on November 1. Bielema and the coaching staff worked their magic, and now Illinois has a talented linebacker in tow.

Illinois football will have a special linebacker corps in the coming years

The Illini landing Beerman is a pretty big deal. Not only did Bielema secure his commitment after he had pledged to Purdue, but Beerman has a good chance of seeing playing time early on in his career.

Beerman is a 6-foot-4, 220-pound linebacker from Lakota West High School in Ohio. He is rated as a four-star recruit and ranked as the No. 437 player in the class of 2025. He is also the No. 47 linebacker in the country and the No. 15 player coming out of Ohio.

Over the next couple of years, Illinois is going to lose some talent at linebacker. Ryan Meed is gone after this season. Dylan Rosiek and Kenenna Odeluga depart after the 2025 season. That leaves James Kreutz as the most experienced linebacker.

I would argue that the linebacker corps is the weakest point in the defense. With the addition of players like Beerman, that position group will be getting a big upgrade. I can’t wait to see how Beerman fits into the defense in the near future.