Top 3 Luke Altmyer Moments as an Illini

Luke Altmyer came into Champaign in 2023 as a quiet, laid-back young man from Starkville, Mississippi. Fast forward to the end of 2025, Altmyer has developed into a charismatic, fan favorite who will also go down as one of the best Illini quarterbacks ever. Though there is one game left, Altmyer’s career stats at Illinois are 56 touchdowns, 21 interceptions, and a 64.5% completion rate.

As Altmyer’s great career at Illinois comes to a close, we look back on some of the best moments he had on the field.

3) 4 Td’s on the road vs Nebraska

The Illini’s win over Nebraska in the 2024 season was certainly a marquee moment. Nebraska was highly touted at the time, and the Illini went into Lincoln and finally looked the part. After struggling in prime time games for so long, Illinois had poise and confidence about them that night, mostly thanks to Luke Altmyer.

Altmyer finished the night 21-27 on his throws with four touchdowns.

2) The Philly Special vs USC

Illinois welcomed Big Noon Kickoff to Champaign for their marquee matchup at Gies Memorial Stadium vs a ranked USC squad. The Illini, fueled by a sell-out crowd, played extremely well vs a potent Trojans offense. That day, Altmyer seemed to do it all for the Illini. Luke threw for two touchdowns, ran one in himself, and even caught a touchdown thanks to this play with Hank Beatty.

Luke Altmyer finished with 328 passing yards in a 34-32 victory over USC.

1) Luke Altmyer and Pat Bryant save the day vs Rutgers

All seemed lost heading into the final seconds vs Rutgers. The 7-3 Illini were on the road facing a 30-31 deficit with 14 seconds to go on 4th and 13. The Illini had no timeouts, so it was difficult to imagine them even getting set up for a field goal attempt. However, Luke Altmyer never panicked. He delivered this dot to Pat Bryant, and Bryant did the rest.

This win helped elevate the Illini to 8 wins on the season. Though they would have gone bowling anyway, this game helped elevate them to a game like the Citrus Bowl and helped solidify a historic 10-win season.

_____________________________________________________________________________________

Thank you for reading Armchair Illini! The Armchair team is proud to partner with Hamilton Walker’s Seafood and Spirits. Reserve your table HERE. Enter our home game giveaways on our social media pages to win a $50 gift card.

We are also proud to partner with the Campus Ink Illini NIL Store! Use the code: ARMCHAIRILLINI for 15% off your purchase. Please subscribe to the Armchair Illini Podcast on YouTube here.

Above all, for feedback, questions, concerns, or to apply for a writing position, please email our Publisher at alexkyi13@gmail.com. Additionally, please use our Seatgeek code for $20 off your purchase on Seatgeek.com: ARMCHAIRILLINOIS. It is because of your support that we have become one of the fastest-growing Illinois media outlets around.

Finally, subscribe to our newsletter here for more Illinois news! Go Illini!