Megginson Joins Illinois State Football Program

NORMAL, Ill. – A top-rated in-state talent out of high school has made his way to the Illinois State football program, as Gabe Megginson (Jacksonville, Illinois) has transferred from Illinois to ISU and signed his financial aid agreement to officially join the Redbirds. The 6-foot-5, 300-pound offensive lineman is immediately eligible to play for the Redbirds and will have two years of eligibility remaining. 

"We knew about Gabe a long time ago and he came to our lineman camp several times when he was in high school," Spack said. "It was early on that we knew he was a special player and would most likely be a national recruit, and that was what he developed into. When he decided to make a change and transfer, it was easy for us to bring him in because we knew a lot about him and the type of person Gabe is. He's exactly what you want in a FBS transfer and we are excited to have him here in the spring."

The Jacksonville, Illinois, native played in all 12 games for the Illini in 2017, with four starts on the offensive line as a guard and tackle. As a redshirt freshman in 2016, he saw action in 10 games with seven starts on the offensive line after sitting out the 2015 season as a redshirt.

"I like Gabe's flexibility as a player," Spack stated. "Obviously, you can never have enough tackles; however if you can find a guy that is big and physical enough to move guys off the ball inside at the guard position as well, it's a bonus. Gabe played both positions at Illinois and we believe he can play both positions here as well, but we will see where he fits in best."

A consensus four-star recruit (247Sports, ESPN.com, Rivals and Scout) out of Jacksonville High School, Megginson was ranked among the top-300 players nationally by Scout (No. 122) and ESPN.com (No. 219) and was rated as the No. 12 offensive lineman nationally by Scout, No. 18 by Rivals and No. 20 by ESPN.com. He was also the No. 2 overall prospect in Illinois by ESPN.com and Scout and was the No. 1 offensive lineman in Illinois by all four outlets. A first-team all-state, all-area and all-conference selection as a senior in 2014, Megginson was a three-year letterwinner in football and four-year standout in track and field.

GoRedbirds.com:  Your online source for Illinois State Athletics, tickets, Weisbecker Scholarship Fund gifts, multimedia, Redbird merchandise, photos and more.