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Updated: March 24, 2022 @ 8:07 am
ALAH junior Kaden Feagin announced his commitment to Illinois on Wednesday. The four-star running back/linebacker is the first commit for the Illini in the Class of 2023.
College/Prep Sports Reporter
ALAH junior Kaden Feagin announced his commitment to Illinois on Wednesday. The four-star running back/linebacker is the first commit for the Illini in the Class of 2023.
ARTHUR — Kaden Feagin is accustomed to finding himself at the forefront of football conversations.
Especially in opposing scouting reports, when high school teams have to account for the Arthur-Lovington-Atwood-Hammond junior standout and his various talents.
Feagin only enhanced his credentials Wednesday by attaching a pair of firsts to his football resume.
First ALAH student-athlete to commit to a Division I football program.
And first Class of 2023 recruit to commit to Bret Bielema’s Illinois program.
Feagin confirmed each decision while seated alongside family members and flanked by even more family, plus a large group of Knights students, coaches and friends, inside ALAH’s gymnasium shortly after noon on Wednesday.
“I think that I should move on and commit to the University of,” Feagin said before he, his mom, his grandma and his aunt all rose from their chairs and unbuttoned or unzipped their jackets to reveal Illinois shirts underneath. Feagin in particular sported a bright-orange shirt with “ILLINOIS” emblazoned across the chest in blue lettering.
In short order, the Illini fight song was playing across the gymnasium’s speaker system as excited spectators continued to discuss what had just transpired.
“It definitely means a lot,” Feagin said. “Since I was a little kid, I always kind of dreamed of playing for Illinois.”
The 6-foot-2, 235-pound athlete said Illinois, Notre Dame and Iowa emerged as finalists from a crop of 13 Power 5 offers. The others came from Duke, Indiana, Miami, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Purdue, Rutgers, Tennessee and Wisconsin.
Colleges have recruited Feagin as both a running back and linebacker. He said he hopes to line up at running back with the Illini, but added that he’d “definitely” accept any role in order to see the field right away.
“Being close to home and the family atmosphere (played into it), and Coach B’s definitely a really big part,” Feagin said. “It meant a lot, especially since he offered me before I even played a game my sophomore year. So he already saw the potential within me.”
The two-time News-Gazette All-Area first-team selection — listed as a four-star prospect by both Rivals and 247sports — compiled 1,249 rushing yards and 16 touchdowns on 143 carries last season for ALAH, which qualified for the IHSA Class 2A playoffs. Feagin also turned in a team-leading 84 tackles plus two interceptions and five pass deflections defensively prior to the Knights’ first-round playoff loss to Pana.
Feagin even stepped in and took over ALAH’s starting quarterback role for multiple games during the fall campaign.
And he achieved this with a bum left ankle, on which he had surgery earlier this month to deal with a damaged ligament.
Feagin donned a protective boot on that foot and used crutches to make his way to a table that featured a Knights helmet and two of Feagin’s No. 5 ALAH jerseys before he made his much-anticipated announcement.
“I’m just going to the gym, trying to build my upper body and just riding the bike,” Feagin said of his ongoing recovery process, which will force him to miss the current IHSA track and field season. “Just trying to get back.”
Feagin said he does put stock in becoming the inaugural member of Bielema’s 2023 recruiting class.
“Hopefully it says, ‘Let’s get this show on the road, let’s start this’ (to other recruits),” Feagin said. “We could make a great team. We’ve got a lot of talent in the state.”
Feagin is the third athlete from The News-Gazette’s coverage area to commit to Illinois since Bielema became its head coach in December 2020, joining Iroquois West offensive lineman Clayton Leonard and Gibson City-Melvin-Sibley running back Aidan Laughery. Both Leonard and Laughery signed with the Illini this past December, with Laughery enrolling early and participating in spring practices that started on Tuesday.
Feagin also credited a strong relationship with Illinois running backs coach Cory Patterson for aiding this college decision.
“He’s just a really genuine dude,” Feagin said. “He’s always calling me, seeing how I’m doing — especially after surgery. It seemed like they actually cared.”
Feagin praised a third Illini coach when talking about influences during the recruitment process. But not someone on Bielema’s staff.
Men’s basketball coach Brad Underwood chatted with Feagin during Feagin’s latest visit to Champaign. It happened on March 6, when Underwood’s team defeated Iowa 74-72 to win a share of the Big Ten championship at State Farm Center.
“The basketball program, seeing them go from kind of how the football program is right now to what they’re doing now, that shows a lot,” Feagin said. “Underwood and Coach B have a really good relationship, and they kind of preach the same thing.”
Bielema and Underwood both regularly make use of the word “family” when discussing their respective teams.
It’s a vibe Feagin could relate to Wednesday with the number of people scattered throughout the gym in the middle of ALAH’s spring break.
“The whole community, it feels like they’re behind me,” the Atwood native said. “It definitely means a lot, them coming out to support.”
An added benefit of Feagin picking this particular day to make his college choice is that it coincided with his 18th birthday.
How does this birthday rank to the previous iterations?
“It’s definitely the best,” Feagin said with a smile.
ORIGINAL STORY BEGINS HERE
ARTHUR — Illinois football received its first Class of 2023 commitment on Wednesday. And it happened at a high school located less than 40 miles from Memorial Stadium.
Arthur-Lovington-Atwood-Hammond junior Kaden Feagin has verbally committed to Bret Bielema’s Illini — on Feagin’s birthday, no less.
The two-time News-Gazette All-Area football first-team selection chose Illinois over offers from Duke, Indiana, Iowa, Miami, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Notre Dame, Purdue, Rutgers, Tennessee and Wisconsin.
The 6-foot-2, 235-pound Feagin has been targeted by college programs as both a running back and linebacker. He’s listed as a four-star prospect by both Rivals and 247sports.
Feagin compiled 1,249 rushing yards and 16 touchdowns on 143 carries last season for ALAH, which qualified for the IHSA Class 2A playoffs. Feagin also turned in a team-leading 84 tackles plus two interceptions and five pass deflections defensively prior to the Knights’ first-round playoff loss to Pana.
Feagin even stepped in and took over ALAH’s starting quarterback role for multiple games during the campaign.
Feagin is the third athlete from The News-Gazette’s coverage area to commit to Illinois since Bielema became its head coach in December 2020, joining Iroquois West offensive lineman Clayton Leonard and Gibson City-Melvin-Sibley running back Aidan Laughery. Both Leonard and Laughery signed with Illinois last December, and Laughery enrolled early and is participating in spring practices.
Colin Likas is the preps coordinator at The News-Gazette. He can be reached at clikas@news-gazette.com, or on Twitter at @clikasNG.
Arthur-Lovington-Atwood-Hammond football standout is set to make his college commitment Wednesday afternoon, with Illinois, Iowa and Notre Dame likely among his top three choices
College/Prep Sports Reporter
Colin Likas covers Illinois football and high school sports at The News-Gazette. His email is clikas@news-gazette.com, and you can follow him on Twitter (@clikasNG).
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