The Illinois football team received some bad news just about two weeks ago in the form of a transfer.
Bret Bielema has done a good job navigating the transfer portal. But, as any coach does, Bielema went through some departures this offseason. The Illini lost a few key players, and one of them was just a couple of weeks ago.
On April 17, it was announced that Tyler Strain was entering the transfer portal. This was a bit of a surprise, as Strain has been a solid piece to the Illinois secondary over the last couple of seasons.
Well, some big news dropped on Tuesday night. Pete Nakos of On3.com reported that Strain has now withdrawn from the transfer portal and is now back with the Orange and Blue. Without even landing any new players, the Illini managed to snag a great addition from the transfer portal.
Illinois cornerback Tyler Strain has withdrawn from the transfer portal, @On3sports has learned.
— Pete Nakos (@PeteNakos_) April 29, 2025
Has 57 career tackles and 3 interceptions. https://t.co/VxSGJETKD9 pic.twitter.com/nDDQIjJYOK
Strain is back with Illinois after playing in 35 games with six starts in his career. He was supposed to have a big year in 2024, but injuries hampered his performance and held him to just seven games on the season. Illinois is now getting some depth back, and it is much-needed.
Illinois will have plenty of options in the secondary after Tyler Strain’s return to the roster
According to Pro Football Focus, Strain is coming off his worst year at Illinois. He had a grade of 47.1, but Strain was limited in his snaps. The year prior, he ranked No. 69 out of 859 cornerbacks with a grade of 70.8.
I will be interested in how the snaps are divided up in 2025, too. Illinois is essentially getting all of the cornerback production back from the 2024 campaign.
Xavier Scott, Kaleb Patterson, Torrie Cox Jr., and Jaheim Clarke all return. They each had at least 344 snaps last season. The only player who had more than 75 snaps who isn’t returning at cornerback is Terrance Brooks, and he only played 158 snaps.
Depth at cornerback is a strength for the Illini in 2025. That is probably why you don’t see a transfer portal addition at the position. Now that Strain is back in the fold, this Illinois defense can continue to improve under Aaron Henry’s leadership.