Should Illinois Football Fans Be Concerned About Portal Moves?

Signs appear to be pointing toward a return to school for quarterback Luke Altmyer next season

Nov 2, 2024; Champaign, Illinois, USA; Illinois Fighting Illini head coach Bret Bielema before a game with the Minnesota Golden Gophers at Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Ron Johnson-Imagn Images / Ron Johnson-Imagn Images

Illinois (9-3) is 18 days away from taking on South Carolina (9-3) in the Citrus Bowl in Orlando, Florida, which will be Bret Bielema's second crack at earning a postseason win since he arrived in Champaign in Dec. 2020.

Since then, times have changed and the implementation of NIL and the transfer portal have taken over college football. For better or worse, both elements are part of the sport and will remain so for the foreseeable future.

Illinois is experiencing changes firsthand. Backup quarterbacks Donovan Leary and Cal Swanson opted to transfer within the last week, while starter Luke Altmyer seems to still be undecided regarding his future with the program.

Leary, who barely saw playing time this season in stints against Eastern Illinois and Michigan, took to X and Instagram to make his news official:

pic.twitter.com/1s8zPlQMO4

— Donovan Leary (@D_leary2) December 13, 2024

"I would like to thank coach [Bret] Bielema, coach [Barry] Lunney, as well as the rest of the staff at the University of Illinois for giving me the opportunity to continue my athletic and academic career here at Illinois," Leary said in a statement Thursday night. "I am thankful for all of the relationships I was able to make here that will last me a lifetime. With that being said, I will be entering the transfer portal with [two] years of eligibility remaining."

Leary and Swanson aren't the only former Illinois players searching for their next destination. Offensive lineman Hunter Whitenack and kick returner Kenari Wilcher are doing the same despite the program's on-field success.

These moves demonstrate that, regardless of which program a player is part of one year, there is no guarantee that the same core group returns the next year.

Simply put, this is a new era in college football. It's time to get used to it because it isn't going away, no matter how controversial or abnormal it may seem to some.

The offseason is underway in Champaign – bowl game aside – and it's the furthest from complete.

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