Football
Illinois Football news: Illini sign top-five punter from the transfer portal
The Illini continue to add depth to their two-deep and continue to give special teams a strong amount of attention.

News: Illinois Football head coach was rather vocal on how the team needs some help in the special teams department. Though they seem to have their starters set with David Olano and transfer punter Keelan Crimmins, Bielema seemed to publicly advertise for more depth in the room. That plea has been answered. According to a report by Matt Zenitz of 247Sports, the Fighting Illini have added North Carolina transfer and former top-5 kicker (2024) Lucas Osada from the portal to help boost Robby Discher’s specialists unit.
Osada will enter Champaign with 3 years of eligibility remaining. As a true freshman, he handled kickoff duties for North Carolina. Out of 59 times that he kicked off, 39 of those resulted in a touchback.
North Carolina kicker transfer Lucas Osada has signed with Illinois, @chris_hummer and I have learned for @cbssports/@247sports.
Ranked as the fifth-best punter prospect in the 2024 recruiting class. Handled kickoffs for UNC as a freshman last year.https://t.co/10Sz3YxlzO pic.twitter.com/gUe8TJ1JFF
— Matt Zenitz (@mzenitz) April 27, 2025
How Osada Fits With Illinois Football
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