Don’t look now, but the Illinois football team keeps adding big-time pieces for their class of 2026.
Coming into Tuesday, the Illini boasted the No. 23 class in the country. This recruiting class was already on pace to be one of the best in program history, but Bret Bielema isn’t satisfied with that. He wants to take this thing to heights we haven’t seen before.
While there were a couple of transfer portal departures that hit Illinois’ roster on Tuesday, there was also a big commitment, too.
Maika Matelau took to social media to announce that he has committed to the Orange and Blue. This is a massive commitment for the Illini, as he provides much-needed help to the offensive line.
Matelau is a 6-foot-4, 288-pound guard from Mt. San Antonio College in California. He is ranked as the No. 16 junior college player in the class of 2026 and the No. 1 JUCO interior offensive lineman in the country.
There were so many programs after Matelau. He could have gone to someone like Wisconsin, Oklahoma State, or Nebraska, but Illinois won this big recruitment.
Illinois is putting together a nice offensive line for the 2026 season
Let’s call it like it is, Illinois’ offensive line was below average in 2025. You couldn’t trust them to pass block, and their run blocking wasn’t much to write home about.
Illinois is losing a lot of those bodies. Both offensive tackles, our starting center, and a guard are all gone. That leaves Brandon Henderson as the only returning starter at right guard.
Needing to upgrade the offensive line, Bielema went to work. He landed offensive tackle TJ Taylor a couple of days ago. Taylor is the No. 9 overall JUCO player and the No. 2 JUCO offensive tackle.
Now, the Illini are bringing in the top JUCO offensive guard. Matelau will join Taylor on the first string Illinois offensive line. That leaves only a tackle and center to replace heading into next season.
I am pretty excited about the offensive line additions. They were so disappointing this season, and having a couple of massive upgrades already in the fold is huge news. Bielema could put together a legendary class.