Illinois football already had one player sign right after the 2025 NFL Draft concluded, and now another player is heading to the big leagues.
The Illini have been notorious for having players sign in the NFL as undrafted free agents. Even if a draft doesn’t bear a ton of fruit, Illinois is always sending talent to the next level.
TeRah Edwards was the first domino to fall after the draft wrapped up. He signed on with the Los Angeles Chargers and will try to make their squad this fall. The Illinois football social media account then announced the signing of Seth Coleman by the Seattle Seahawks.
Headed to the @Seahawks pic.twitter.com/zTcncXChMN
— Illinois Football (@IlliniFootball) April 27, 2025
Coming out of Holy Trinity Episcopal Academy in Florida, Coleman was a three-star recruit who was ranked as the No. 879 player in the class of 2019 and the No. 57 weakside defensive end. Illinois won a tough recruiting battle for the talented lineman.
Coleman spent five seasons with the Illini and continued to improve every year. He had a career-high 53 tackles in 2024 and added to his impressive sack total that finished at 15.5 sacks for his career.
Seattle has done a good job building out the defensive line over the past few years. Their front three in a nickel package is pretty impressive, as they now have Leonard Williams to go along with Byron Murphy II and Jarran Reed. The Seahawks also drafted Rylie Mills in the 2025 NFL Draft.
Coleman also joins former teammate at Illinois, Devon Witherspoon, in trying to get the Seahawks to the top of the NFC. Witherspoon is a former top-five pick for Seattle just a couple of years ago.
Seth Coleman proved he was a committed fighter for the Illinois football program
It wasn’t an easy road for Coleman at Illinois. To get from point A to point B, Coleman had to go through a lot.
After a solid freshman season, Coleman lost the defensive line coach, Austin Clark, who helped bring him to Champaign. This started a series of issues for the talented lineman. Shortly after, the COVID pandemic hit. That December, Illinois then fired Lovie Smith and brought in Bret Bielema.
That is a lot for one player to go through in a year’s span. He could have easily hit the transfer portal, but Coleman decided to come back and keep fighting. This resulted in multiple bowl game appearances, a bowl game win, and the first 10-win season Illinois has had in nearly a quarter-century.
At worst, Seattle is getting someone who is willing to slog through the mud and fight for his job. Coleman is a good team guy and someone who can help build that locker room into a champion.