Illinois football news: Four-star Jacob Eberhart announces commitment to the Illini

NEWS: Illinois football has landed the verbal commitment of four-star athlete/safety Jacob Eberhart. Eberhart is a 6-foot-3, 200-pound athlete from St. Louis, Missouri, who chose Illinois over many power-five offers, including Missouri, Oklahoma, Nebraska, and more. This is a huge win for Illinois football as they were able to land a key talent from the St. Louis area. Eberhart’s late father, Jason, played at Illinois from 1997 to 2000 and was most notably teammates with Illinois AD Josh Whitman. Eberhart joins an impressive class of 2026 for the Illini. He is the second-highest rated prospect per the 247sports rankings, just a hair below four-star athlete Nasir Rankin. In terms of four-stars, he is the fifth composite four-star prospect in the class alongside Rankin, Nick Hankins, OL Kai Pritchard, and LB Cam Thomas.

COMMIT: Huge news as four-star linebacker Jacob Eberhart chooses the Illini over offers from Oklahoma, Missouri, and Nebraska pic.twitter.com/Q1YEvqPToU

— Armchair Illinois (@ArmchairIllini) July 12, 2025

Relationships with Illinois won Eberhart over

Per Allen Trieu of 247Sports, Eberhart plans to play safety at Illinois. Eberhart cited his relationships and connections with every single coach he had at Illinois. This is a huge statement for Bret Bielema and his coaching staff, who have slowly gotten back into the St. Louis area. After Lovie Smith and his staff landed an impressive haul of St. Louis players, including Isaiah Williams, Shammond Cooper, and Reggie Love III, Illinois has struggled to land some of these top prospects from the area. Missouri and other SEC programs have been dominant in recent years. However, Bret Bielema made some key hires, including bringing back coach Thad Ward and East St. Louis native, Terry Hawthorne.

Illinois Football is continuing to ride a wave of strong recruiting momentum. If they can continue their strong play on the field, look for this buzz to continue to grow.

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