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Illinois Lands Son of Former NFL Vet, Offers Gifted Edge Rusher – What It Means

The Illini signed Caden Considine, son of former NFL safety Sean Considine, and offered edge rusher Ifeanyi Emedobi over the weekend
Jared Shlensky|
Illinois Fighting Illini head coach Bret Bielema walks across the field as the team arrives prior to the NCAA football game against the Ohio State Buckeyes at Gies Memorial Stadium in Champaign on Oct. 11, 2025.
Illinois Fighting Illini head coach Bret Bielema walks across the field as the team arrives prior to the NCAA football game against the Ohio State Buckeyes at Gies Memorial Stadium in Champaign on Oct. 11, 2025. | Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

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Illinois Fighting Illini

Former Philadelphia Eagles safety and Dixon, Illinois, native Sean Considine made an eight-year NFL career out of doing more with less, and Bret Bielema and the Illinois football program are betting that his son is cut from the same cloth.

On Sunday, the Illini offered Caden Considine, a standout two-way athlete from Byron, Illinois (and Sean's oldest son), and Caden accepted, committing the same day.

Illinois also offered junior defensive edge rusher Ifeanyi Emedobi, out of Northrop (Fort Wayne, Indiana), over the weekend. Emedobi is the third high school recruit from Indiana that Illinois has offered in the past week, making it quite clear that Bielema and his staff are focusing hard on top local talent.

Caden Considine, running back

Before receiving the offer from Illinois, Considine didn't have a single FBS offer, per 247Sports. In fact, his only other offers were from FCS powerhouse North Dakota State and Western Illinois.

Considine lacks off-the-charts measurables, but he wouldn't be the first such in-state recruit to thrive at Illinois. Whether other programs were wary of those numbers or his level of high school competition, Considine inarguably did all he could as a high school player to prove his college potential. In 2025, he led Byron to a perfect 14-0 record and the IHSA Class 3A state title after rushing for 2,119 yards and 40 touchdowns, and starring for the Tigers at safety (84 tackles and three interceptions), where he is expected to continue his career with the Illini.

Considine finished his high school career with 5.104 rushing yards, 82 total touchdowns and two state titles – numbers that dare skeptics to underestimate him. The 6-foot, 205-pound athlete could get a chance to earn special teams reps and possibly even work his way into the defensive backfield rotation early in his career.

Ifeanyi Emedobi, edge rusher

Emedobi is a versatile edge rusher who had success rushing the passer no matter how he lined up – two-point stance, three-point stance, four-point stance – or where he lined up. He is lightning quick off the ball, and opposing offensive lines had nightmares trying to guard him. A 6-foot-4, 215-pound junior, Emedobi finished with 50 tackles (19.5 for loss), 5.5 sacks and two forced fumbles.

Emedobi is probably best suited to play outside linebacker in a 3-4 scheme or defensive end in a 4-3 defense, but either way, he's a guy who is at his best when he can pin his ears back and rush the passer.

Other Power 4 college programs are starting to notice, too. Emedobi has additional offers from Michigan State, Minnesota and Kansas, and he will probably receive half a dozen more before the fall. The Illini have done well to get in on his recruitment on the early side.

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Jared Shlensky
JARED SHLENSKY

Jared Shlensky is a contributing writer for On SI and a freelance play-by-play broadcaster. Jared was previously a sports betting writer for Yardbarker, an On-Air YouTube Personality for the Sports Geek and a minor league play-by-play broadcaster.

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