Billingsley is a top five rated player in the state of Illinois and a top 15 tight end nationally.
Illinois was in contention for Billingsley, and were recruiting him earlier in the process than most other schools. He released a top seven list back in March that listed Illinois among others, but most notably not Alabama.
It’s not terribly surprising given that Alabama not only the best college football team in America, but they are also one of the few teams that heavily utilize tight ends in their offense.
Illinois on the other hand is switching to a run-heavy option offense under new offensive coordinator Rod Smith.