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Updated: August 21, 2025 @ 5:11 am
Illinois wide receiver Hudson Clement, middle, had 51 receptions for 741 yards and five touchdowns last season at West Virginia.
College/Prep Sports Reporter
Illinois wide receiver Hudson Clement, middle, had 51 receptions for 741 yards and five touchdowns last season at West Virginia.
Illinois added 18 transfers from the FBS and FCS levels this offseason. Beat writer Scott Richey spotlights five that could have an immediate effect on the Illini this fall:
The last full season Bowick played was 2023 at Eastern Illinois where he caught 35 passes for 499 yards and five touchdowns in 11 games. He put up similar numbers last fall at Ball State — 20 catches for 383 yards and three touchdowns — despite playing just four games. The 6-foot-4, 210-pound receiver gives Luke Altmyer a big target, with speed, in the passing game.
The open competition at wide receiver heading into the season features mostly receivers long on potential and short on production — particularly at the power conference level. Clement is the exception. The 6-1, 215-pound West Virginia transfer started 20 of the 23 games he played for the Mountaineers and caught 73 passes for 1,221 yards and nine touchdowns.
Illinois coach Bret Bielema has already expressed his desire to get Crimmins another season of eligibility in 2026 after the 6-3, 230-pound punter was declared a sophomore by the NCAA in 2023 when he arrived from Australia. Crimmins was an All-Big Ten honorable-mention pick last year at Purdue, averaging 44.9 yards per punt with 17 of his 64 punts downed inside the 20.
Defensive line coach Terrance Jamison has turned Illinois’ nose tackle position into an NFL pipeline. Neal is the likely starter after transferring from Wisconsin, where the 6-foot, 310-pounder started all 12 games in 2024, and will eventually try to become the next Illini sent off to the league. Roderick Perry II, Calvin Avery, Denzel Daxon and TeRah Edwards set the standard.
Save for a torn pectoral muscle last season at Wisconsin, Thompson might be spending his August in an NFL training camp and not in Champaign. But the 6-6, 310-pound lineman did receive a sixth year of eligibility and will be a focal point of the Illinois defensive line this fall. The way he’s worked in camp makes his previous career highs in tackles for loss (61/2) and sacks (three) look beatable during his lone season with the Illini.
Scott Richey covers college basketball for The News-Gazette. His email is srichey@news-gazette.com, and you can follow him on Twitter (@srrichey).
College/Prep Sports Reporter
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