Offers Continue to Fly for 2026 Prospects on Recruiting Trail

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Yet another massive week on the recruiting trail across the state of Illinois.&nbsp; Here we examine the 2026 players that made noise on the trail!</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='801702' first='Jacob' last='Alexander'] (Lincoln Way East)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Alexander is one of the top edge rushers in the class of 2026.&nbsp; He had an array of P4 offers, but after his junior day trip to Champaign Alexander ended his recruitment committing to Illinois.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='800191' first='Jonas' last='Williams'] (Lincoln Way East)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Williams is the top 2026 prospect in the state.&nbsp; He is currently committed to Oregon and has been for the last seven months, but Oregon has started recruiting two of the top 10 players in the nation at the QB spot.&nbsp; This might open up the door for other programs to get in the door with the Ducks commit.&nbsp; Annual title contender Georgia made a big swing this week by offering the LWE signal caller.&nbsp; We will see if more follow.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='801887' first='Nasir' last='Rankin'] (Morgan Park)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Rankin is a freak show athlete that can be an impactful wide out or safety at the next level.&nbsp; Most schools are recruiting the athlete as a pass catcher.&nbsp; This week he scored a new offer from North Carolina.&nbsp; Was also at Illinois last Sunday for their junior day.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Claude Mpouma (Mt. Carmel)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Big week for the state's top offensive tackle.&nbsp; The big and athletic lineman added offers from Vanderbilt, Michigan, and Oklahoma.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='212319' first='JC' last='Anderson'] (Mt. Zion)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Lot of different schools coming into visit Anderson who have already offered including Notre Dame, Penn State, North Carolina, and he was at the Illinois junior day on Sunday.&nbsp; He did land a new offer this week as well from Colorado.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='801700' first='Mack' last='Sutter'] (Dunlap)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Sutter is another star tight end that is reeling in offers from coast to coast.  This week alone he scored scholarships from Colorado, North Carolina, Florida State, Washington, Notre Dame, and UCLA.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1399937' first='Gavin' last='Mueller'] (South Elgin)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The third star tight end in this class is Mueller.&nbsp; He scored a new offer from Purdue.&nbsp; Also attended Wisconsin's recent junior day.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1399932' first='Tony' last='Balanganayi'] (Palatine)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The big and athletic offensive tackle from Palatine scored an offer from Michigan this week.&nbsp; Also attended Illinois junior day.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='325063' first='Rico' last='Schrieber'] (Marist)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Schrieber is one of the better offensive lineman in the class and he scored his latest offer from San Diego State this past week.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1585119' first='Nick' last='Hankins'] (Belleville West)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The metro east corner back continues to reel in offers from P4 programs at a fast pace with the latest two coming from Ole Miss and Auburn.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='208769' first='King' last='Liggins'] (Brother Rice)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Explosive defensive tackle that is effective against the run and pass scored a new offer from Vanderbilt.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='801701' first='Jonathan' last='Rulo'] (Belleville East)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Rulo was one of the more productive defensive lineman from southern Illinois this past season.&nbsp; He landed an offer from Lindenwood.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='401621' first='Leon' last='Howard'] (East St. Louis)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The terminator at linebacker got an offer from Toledo this week!</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='401599' first='Cornell' last='McIntosh'] (East St. Louis)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>McIntosh is a big time defensive lineman from the metro east and like his teammate Toledo extended an offer.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1067031' first='Jake' last='Palucki'] (Andrew)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>San Diego State offered another highly ranked Illinois offensive lineman this week in Palucki.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1669545' first='Messiah' last='Tilson'] (Rockford Guilford)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Tilson is one of the fastest rising prospects in the 2026 class.&nbsp; Cincinnati is the latest school to offer him.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='682480' first='Diesel' last='McFadden'] (Taft)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>McFadden is an explosive linebacker who landed a scholarship from Illinois State.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1669537' first='Maxwell' last='Warner'] (Whitney Young)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Warner made a strong case this past season to be the top running back in the class.&nbsp; Illinois and Boston College agree as they extended offers.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='401609' first='Jamari' last='Brown'] (Mt. Carmel)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Caravan 2026 athlete landed an offer on Thursday from Toledo.&nbsp; He is coming off a visit to Indiana.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='401614' first='Keaton' last='Reinke'] (St. Charles North)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>This pass catcher scored offers from Stanford and Northern Illinois.&nbsp; Also visited Northwestern for junior day where he holds an offer.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1120487' first='Ryan' last='Myers'] (Batavia)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Myers was the third offensive lineman from the state to get an San Diego State offer this past week.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1669566' first='Daniel' last='Howard'] (Lane Tech)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Howard is an edge rusher that really impressed on film as a junior.&nbsp; Illinois State and Toledo have scored offers.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='401612' first='Jovan' last='Green'] (Brother Rice)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Green is a wide receiver that is emerging from Brother Rice.&nbsp; He got an offer from Bowling Green.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='401609' first='Jamari' last='Brown'] (Mt. Carmel)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Toledo extended an offer to this athlete from Mt. Carmel.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1669574' first='Zach' last='Becker'] (Stevenson)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Becker is a tight end from Stevenson who landed a scholarship from Ball State.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1550211' first='Jordan' last='Lampkins'] (Bolingbrook)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Bolingbrook defensive back scored an offer from Toledo.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1607525' first='Brian' last='Demoss'] (Simeon)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Another defensive offer went out from Toledo to this Simeon defensive lineman.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->