Is a big-time transfer portal wide receiver up next for the Illinois football team?

Illinois football has had a good weekend, but can we keep the momentum going with another transfer portal addition?

It was a huge weekend for the future of the Illini program. Bret Bielema and the Illinois coaching staff hosted transfer portal cornerback Terrance Brooks. He played his first two seasons at Texas, and the star defensive back was looking for a new home.

Illinois needed help at cornerback greatly. After the last two seasons of departures, we have been nearly gutted in the secondary. That all changed when Brooks announced he was coming to Champaign.

Now that the defense has added a big star to the mix, could the offense be doing the same? It was reported on Friday that not only did Illinois have Brooks visiting this past weekend, but transfer portal wide receiver Zakhari Franklin was also in Champaign for a visit on Sunday.

Franklin is an electric wide receiver who would help the Illinois program instantly. He wasn’t recruited heavily as a two-star out of high school. He played four years with the UTSA Roadrunners before transferring over to Ole Miss this past season.

In four seasons with the Roadrunners, Franklin amassed 3,348 yards and 37 touchdowns. The lone season he was with the Rebels, he only had four receptions for 38 yards and a touchdown. Injuries hampered him a bit, and the talent above him limited his snaps.

Illinois football could use another playmaking wide receiver like Zakhari Franklin out of the transfer portal

I actually like what Illinois has at wide receiver entering the 2024 campaign. Pat Bryant is our No. 1 right now, but then there is some unproven talent behind him. I think Malik Elzy is going to have a big year and look for Ashton Hollins, Hank Beatty, and Collin Dixon to all fight for snaps.

If Franklin did come into the mix, he would start from day one. I have Bryant, Elzy, and Hollins as the starting three wide receivers right now. I believe Hollins would probably shift back into the second string. That would make for a dangerous wide receiver corps.

Bielema is doing a great job building out the offense. I didn’t think that was going to be possible. Illinois has had a bland offense for much of the past decade. We could see some exciting football this fall.