There are a lot of recruits who the Illini are keeping an eye on right now. The states of Texas and Missouri have been good to the Orange and Blue the last few seasons. But, one state the coaching staff has kind of struggled in is Illinois. The in-state products, most of the time, have been heading elsewhere.
The top five in-state recruits from the class of 2017 headed out of state. The top 12 players from the class of 2018 decided to head to a program other than Illinois, although the Illini managed to get the top player, Luke Ford, back via transfer.