Illinois Football 2025 Scouting Report: Tight End Davin Stoffel

Stoffel, a South Dakota State transfer with excellent tools, has sneaky long-term potential for the Illini

Mosinee High School's Davin Stoffel (3) fights for extra yardage after making a reception against Rice Lake High School during a WIAA Division 3 Level 2 playoff game on Friday, October 28, 2022, at Mosinee High School in Mosinee, Wis. Rice Lake won the game, 42-33.Tork Mason/USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin Wdh Mosinee Vs Rice Lake Football 102822 1845 Ttm | Tork Mason / USA TODAY NETWORK

Illinois on SI is delivering scouting reports for each of the key players on the Illini football team's 2025 roster. Below, we present our breakdown of Illini sophomore tight end Davin Stoffel. We will add more as other on-field contributors emerge during the season. Find our scouting reports of other Illinois players by searching in your favorite browser or clicking in our projected depth chart.

Davin Stoffel | Tight end | Sophomore | No. 88

Hometown: Mosinee, Wisconsin

High school: Mosinee

Transfer schools: South Dakota State

Height: 6-foot-6

Weight: 260 pounds

Scouting report

It's impossible to overlook what the Illinois coaching staff saw in Stoffel when it decided to bring him to Champaign through the transfer portal in the offseason: A towering presence who bursts off the line and has very good straight-line speed for a tight end, Stoffel has an elite combination of size and vertical potential at his position. He was exceptionally productive as a wide receiver in high school, and also collected 123 tackles as a linebacker as a senior – evidence that he isn't necessarily shy about mixing it up. That profile makes him an ideal fit on special teams as well.

But Stoffel has yet to combine all his tools with the technique needed to get off the line against contact and navigate coverages and individual secondary defenders. He gives up, rather than uses, his natural leverage, which puts him at a significant disadvantage as a blocker, especially in the run game and lined up in tight formations.

Experience

Stoffel had a quietly productive redshirt freshman season at South Dakota State in 2024, starting 14 games, moving around in the offense, delivering on special teams and making the MVFC All-Newcomer Team. His numbers may not impress, but he clearly was ready to step into a featured role had he stayed with the Jackrabbits.

Stoffel was an unranked prospect coming out of high school, but he piled up more than 1,000 yards and 17 touchdowns in his senior year at Mosinee, winning the Al Toon Award as the top receiver in the state of Wisconsin. He also earned All-State honors for his work at linebacker.

Year	Team	Games	Receptions	Receiving Yards	Receiving TDs
2024	South Dakota State	14	14	177	1
2023	South Dakota State	2	0	0	0

Media highlights

What they're saying

"Coach B put in front of me a really good idea of what he saw in me as a player and how he saw me getting better. And obviously he's got a history of developing tight ends, and I really felt that was the best for me," Stoffel said of Illini coach Bret Bielema's pitch to come play in Champaign.

2025 outlook

Stoffel had other Power 5 opportunities after proving himself in Brookings last year, and his decision to transfer to Illinois is just the latest proof of the developmental reputation of Bielema and his staff. Stoffel is indeed a project, but if he can add more muscle and put all the pieces together over time, he could become a dynamic Weapon X in the Illini offense.

Stoffel will almost certainly be deployed on special teams and perhaps get some snaps in the red zone and on plays in which offensive coordinator Barry Lunney Jr. wants to leverage his deep-route ability. But with Tanner Arkin and Cole Rusk ahead of him on the depth chart, Stoffel will likely have to sneak in his opportunities where he can get them and make 2025 a building year toward what could be a bright future.

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