News: Top Illinois Football QB Target Sets Near Commitment Date

NEWS: Illinois Football is continuing to build for the future at the quarterback position beyond 2025 as talented senior Luke Altmyer enters his final season in Champaign.

Under Altmyer’s leadership, Barry Lunney Jr.’s offense has certainly made noticeable strides — and with it, the rest of the program has followed suit. Ultimately, it takes strong quarterback play to win consistently at any level of the game, and the Illini are once again reaping the benefits of dynamic offensive leadership.

With that in mind, continuing to stack talent at such a critical position has become a top priority for Bret Bielema’s staff.

 Luckily for them, one of their priority targets at the position is inching closer to a highly anticipated decision.

Sep 7, 2024. Champaign, Illinois. USA. Illinois Fighting Illini. Quarterback Luke Altmyer. Celebrating a win over the Kansas Jayhawks. Memorial Stadium. Credit: Ron Johnson. Imagn Images.

A QB for Illinois Football Fans to Keep an Eye On

In the pursuit of their next great gunslinger, the Fighting Illini staff has put the pedal down on one of the top in-state players in the class of 2027 — a prospect now just weeks away from announcing the next step in his awaited career.

During a flurry of official visits, Chicago-area (Mundelein, IL) native Trae Taylor — one of the nation’s top QB prospects in the class — has trimmed down his impressive offer list and locked in a commitment date for Illini fans to keep an eye on.

JUST IN: Elite 2027 four-star QB Trae Taylor (@Qb6Trae) has moved his commitment date up. He’ll announce his commitment on May 1. Alabama, Georgia, Illinois, LSU, Michigan, Nebraska and Texas A&M all still chasing. pic.twitter.com/Lye3ATRCw7

— Greg Smith (@GregSmithRivals) April 8, 2025

According to Andrew Nemec of Sports Illustrated, Taylor has zeroed in on a top four of Nebraska, LSU, Texas A&M, and Illinois. Furthermore, he’ll announce his future destination on May 1, per Greg Smith of Rivals.

Trae told Nemec, “Illinois is my home state, and Coach B (Bielema) and Coach Art (Sitkowski)… well, that whole staff is full of great men. They’re doing things the right way there, and I think it’ll keep trending up from here.”

As a sophomore at Carmel Catholic, Taylor threw for 3,061 yards and 20 touchdowns, completing 69% of his passes over the 2024–25 season. He also rushed for 437 yards and 5 more scores on the ground. Undoubtedly, he’s a highly productive and talented athlete — and based on both the film and stat line (against top talent in the Chicago Catholic League), it’s no surprise the blue bloods are in full pursuit of Trae.

Can Illinois Football reel in a big one? It certainly appears we’ll know in just a few short weeks.

Elite 2027 QB Trae Taylor sets commitment date, breaks down 4 finalists – Illinois, LSU, Nebraska and Texas A&M https://t.co/hO0ZKyBgw3 pic.twitter.com/hL72qwSqJA

— Andrew Nemec (@AndrewNemec) April 9, 2025

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