The in-state four-star took his official visit to check out the Illini last weekend. The Illini are squarely in the mix and he had a great visit.
"It was great," Rankin said. "The part that stood out to me was their development among the players and how they’ll prepare me for the NFL."
Rankin, who holds 20+ scholarship offers got a unique pitch from coach Bret Bielema during the visit.
"He said I make a perfect fit for the offense and I can play defense as well," Rankin said.
That pitch does resonate with the Chicago native because it's a goal of his to play both way in college. Illinois has always been one of the teams to beat in his recruitment and the Illini made a great push this weekend. Rankin does have a slew of official visits coming up though. He'll visit Kansas State on May 30, Duke on June 6 and Nebraska June 13. He also plans to visit USC and Michigan is under consideration for an official visit.
He'd like to commit in early June but does not have a firm date just yet.
