Illinois’ offensive line took another hit this week, and the ripple effect is already reaching deep into the depth chart.
Senior lineman TJ McMillen is done for the season with a foot fracture, head coach Bret Bielema said. McMillen had just made his second career start against Duke and graded as Illinois’ best offensive lineman in that game, posting a 72.1 overall mark from Pro Football Focus.
“He was getting his first opportunity this year off to [Brandon] Henderson's injury and thought he really maximized the moment, played extremely well,” Bielema said. “Super excited about him and his future.
Unfortunately, that's going to be done for him this year. So obviously he's going to lay into the offensive line at a position that's already been a little bit banged up.
“Just extremely disappointed for the kid. He's worked really hard to get where he is, but obviously he's got a couple years of football left in front of him, so we'll see where that goes.”
The loss matters because Illinois’ top three guard options are all now injured and likely unavailable for Saturday’s game against Southern Illinois. Starters Maika Matelau, who is dealing with a knee injury, and Brandon Henderson, who has a lower-body injury, both sat out the Duke game. That forced McMillen and junior Brandon Hansen into their second career starts.
Bielema said Matelau could be back in the next few weeks, while Henderson is expected to return this season, just later than Matelau. McMillen also had been serving as the backup center behind Jake Renfro, who has battled injury issues throughout his career.
So Saturday could mean Illinois is down to its fourth and fifth guards against the FCS opponent. Hansen is likely to start again.
Sixth-year Dezmond Schuster stepped in late for McMillen at right guard and appears positioned for more work. Bielema also pointed to backup left guard Eddie Tuerk as an option, which could shift Hansen to right guard, where he started a game last season.
Freshmen Champ Smith and Kai Pritchard, both former four-star prospects, are also in the mix.
At center, Bielema said junior Zafir Stewart is the backup behind Renfro, while Michael McDonough and Hansen are also possibilities there.
“The good news is I thought coming out of spring ball headed into the summer and then after the first three weeks of June when we had a chance to be around some of the guys we'd never seen before, we probably thought this was probably as deep as an o-line that we'd had,” Bielema said. “Obviously not the number of starts and all that goes into it, but we definitely had more depth than we ever have, and thankfully, we had because … we'll be down to our fourth and fifth [guards], and then sixth and seventh will be back up.
Every one of those guys has an opportunity that we talk about all the time. You never know when that moment's going to come, but that moment's going to come; I can guarantee that.
And now it's here.”
In Other News...
Illinois Already Has Two Problems It Must Fix Fast
Illinois went into its non-conference meeting with Duke hoping to keep building momentum and reach the kind of 3-0 start it wanted before the Ohio State game loomed on the schedule, but instead it came away with a loss that exposed a couple of early concerns. The Illini had trouble with tackling and never found enough consistency on offense, particularly after halftime, when the scoring dipped and the game slipped away.
Bret Bielema now has a short window to sort through what went wrong before Illinois turns to Southern Illinois. The issues are not subtle, and the staff will be looking for answers quickly, because the next stretch will ask whether this was a one-game stumble or the start of problems that need immediate fixing. [Read more 🡒]
Illinois Is Chasing A Wing Prospect Who Could Change Its Future
Illinois has positioned itself early with AJ Williams, a top-five recruit in the class of 2027 whose rise has already made him one of the more intriguing long-term targets on the board. The Georgia wing, who plays for Eagles Landing Christian Academy, included Illinois in his top 10 after the Illini first offered him in July, following his showing with Team CP3. For a program always looking to keep its pipeline of national-caliber talent flowing, getting in this early matters.
Williams is the kind of prospect who can force a staff to picture how he would fit before the rest of the roster even settles into place. Illinois has been weighing its wing rotation and broader roster balance, and a player with his blend of upside and versatility would only add to that conversation. The competition is already real, though, and the next steps in his recruitment should tell a lot about how serious Illinois can be about turning an early offer into a future win. [Read more 🡒]
Illinois Is Making An Early Push For A Frontcourt Priority
Illinois has already built a strong early footprint in its 2027 recruiting class with a pair of committed shooting guards, but the staff is clearly working to balance that out with size. The latest sign comes from Darius Wabbington, the five-star center from the 2027 class, whose recruitment is starting to pick up across the country as his official visits take shape.
Wabbington, a 6-foot-11 frontcourt priority ranked No. 12 nationally, has moved his trip to Champaign up from Oct. 23 to Sept. 18. That places Illinois in an important early window as he also lines up visits to Indiana, Arizona, North Carolina and Texas, giving the Illini a chance to make their case before the rest of the schedule unfolds. [Read more 🡒]