Nick Allegretti came into Illinois with some well-deserved hype.
The Lincoln-Way East product capped his prep football career with a trip to the U.S. Army All-American Bowl, becoming the last Illini to play in the prestigious game.
A solid career followed suit at Illinois, where Allegretti ended up starting for three seasons and became the unquestioned leader of the 2018 Illini.
On Saturday, Allegretti achieved another milestone, getting drafted in the seventh round by the Kansas City Chiefs with the 216th overall selection.
Allegretti is the first Illini drafted since Dawuane Smoot went to the Jacksonville Jaguars in the first round of the 2017 draft and is the first former Illinois offensive lineman drafted since Ted Karras went in the sixth round to the New England Patriots during the 2016 draft.