It must be powerful to get a participant from the state of Florida to come back be a part of the Illinois Preventing Illini, however that is precisely what Bret Bielema and his employees have been in a position to do.
On Monday, it was reported that Tony Williams, a linebacker from Jacksonville, Florida, has determined to go north to play soccer for the Illini. The one who broke the information was Williams himself, however this has been a call a very long time in coming for him.
In accordance with Jeremy Werner of 247Sports, Williams had wished to decide to Illinois months in the past. Bielema and the Illini had advised him that he’d should shut down his recruitment in that state of affairs, although, and the Florida product hadn’t even but seen campus.
That modified this previous weekend when Williams took an official go to to Illinois. He dedicated to Bielema and the Illini midway by the go to after which made the announcement on Monday.
This official go to got here after a visit linebackers coach Arcie McDaniel right down to Florida to attempt to make a reference to Williams.Â
“When Coach McDaniel got here to my home, he wished me to stand up there as quickly as potential. That was actually like my cue if I used to be actually going commit or not as a result of Illinois has at all times been a precedence from the leap. Us simply seeing the vibes and every little thing, it simply cleared my imaginative and prescient,” Williams advised 247Sports.
Once more, that is fairly a trick to get a Florida child to enroll in midwest winters, however Williams felt the vibes have been proper with the Illini. The suggestions he bought from gamers already on the group made all of the distinction for him.
“Simply spending time with the gamers and simply realizing and having that feeling and simply listening to all of the gamers communicate concerning the place. Like guys not even from the state, guys from the state of Florida and seeing how they like it and the way they’re in a position to name it a house,” Williams defined.
Williams is a consensus three-star recruit, ranked because the No. 33 linebacker within the 2026 class. It’s price noting that Rivals and ESPN do rank him as a four-star, although.
Bielema’s 2026 class now has seven commitments and he is constructing fairly a pipeline to the state of Florida. Williams is the sixth recruit to decide to Illinois from the Sunshine State.
SMU, Miami, Iowa State and Missouri have been additionally within the working.
