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Pair of Four-Star Tight End Prospects Make Official Visits to Illinois

Mack Sutter and JC Anderson, both highly rated players in the class of 2026, visited Champaign over the weekend
Pranav Hegde|
Oct 26, 2024; Eugene, Oregon, USA; Illinois Fighting Illini head coach Bret Bielema watches players warm up before a game against the Oregon Ducks at Autzen Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Troy Wayrynen-Imagn Images
Oct 26, 2024; Eugene, Oregon, USA; Illinois Fighting Illini head coach Bret Bielema watches players warm up before a game against the Oregon Ducks at Autzen Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Troy Wayrynen-Imagn Images | Troy Wayrynen-Imagn Images

There's an old adage that a tight end is a quarterback’s best friend. Illinois coach Bret Bielema and the rest of his staff must be believes, because they hosted not one but two tight ends on official visits over the weekend.

Class of 2026 in-state recruits Mack Sutter (Dunlap) and JC Anderson (Mt. Zion) made the short trip down to Champaign to check out Bielema’s operation. Both prospects are rated four stars by On3 and hold several other high-major offers.

Sutter is listed at 6-foot-5½, 225 pounds, and is the sixth-best tight-end prospect in the country, per On3. He has narrowed his college list to Alabama, Penn State, Ohio State, Ole Miss and, of course, Illinois. To make a commitment to his home university more enticing, Bielema and company recently offered Sutter’s younger brother Bo, who is in the class of 2028.

Anderson, a Decatur native, is listed at 6-foot-6, 230 pounds, and is the seventh-best tight end prospect in the country, per On3. An all-state tight end and first team all-conference defensive end as a junior, he has narrowed his college list to 10 schools, with Oregon, Michigan, Penn State and others joining Illinois in pursuit.

Offensive coordinator Barry Lunney Jr. likes to run a lot of 12 personnel (two-tight end sets), which could make Sutter and Anderson, perfect fits. Their combined size and strength would be a huge addition to the run game, with both also possessing the ability to make plays downfield as receivers.

Bielema has raised up Illinois football from an afterthought in the Big Ten to being a program on the doorstep of the College Football Playoff. He has rebuilt the program by recruiting in state extremely well, with home-grown prospects like Malik Elzy, Matthew Bailey and Aidan Laughery primed to make big impacts next season.

Landing both Sutter and Anderson would be not only a signal of how far the Illini have come in terms of making recruiting inroads and consistently competing in the Big Ten but also continue bolstering a roster that could begin to make noise nationally.

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Pranav Hegde
PRANAV HEGDE

Primarily covers Illinois football, basketball and golf, with an emphasis on news, analysis and features. Hegde, an electrical engineering student at Illinois with an affinity for sports writing, has been writing for On SI since April 2025. He can be followed and reached on Instagram @pranavhegde__.

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