Well, Illinois football just received some pretty terrible recruiting news. 2018 four-star defensive back Houston Griffith (IL) narrowed his college list to seven schools on Wednesday afternoon, and the Fighting Illini were a notable absence.
Florida State, Penn State, Texas, Alabama, Nebraska, Ohio State and Notre Dame remain in the running for the former Mount Carmel star.
Griffith is currently rated as the No. 51 overall player and No. 8 cornerback in the class by 247Sports. He boasts scholarship offers from just about every high-major program in the country, and most would argue that puts him out of realistic reach for Illinois.