Illinois star safety Matthew Bailey will return to school for the 2026 season, the program announced Monday. Bailey had considered jumping to the NFL.

Bailey earned All-Big Ten honorable mention and started in all 12 regular-season games before missing the Music City Bowl following shoulder surgery.He led Illinois with 76 tackles, had 4.0 TFLs, two forced fumbles, one fumble recovery and two pass breakups. 

Bailey had a single-season career high with 59 solo tackles and was 23rd in the Big Ten in tackles per game (6.33). 

Bailey missed most of the 2023 season with a shoulder injury, but has started 25 games in the last two seasons with 170 tackles during that span, 5.5 TFLs and one interception.

Why it matters: Getting Bailey back is a massive boost for the Illinois secondary. He’s a three-year starter and one of the best defensive backs on the team. He’ll anchor the boundary safety spot and is one of the most vocal and best leaders in the secondary. He’ll likely emerge as a team captain for the 2026 season and can help a new free safety and potentially STAR defender adjust to playing more significant snaps. Bailey will be one of the faces of the program and can help elevate his draft stock.

What it means: With so many moving parts on the roster, retaining Bailey — another success story in terms of NFL and transfer portal retention – is a big deal for head coach Bret Bielema, beyond what Bailey brings to the field. Illinois has done well in holding off an NFL future and Bailey is the latest in a line that includes Johnny Newton, Keith Randolph, Gabe Jacas and Xavier Scott (who still has a decision to make). Keeping Bailey in the fold raises the floor of the secondary, and the Illini just added East Texas A&M transfer safety Lavon Williams as well. This also explains why Illini rising senior Saboor Karriem entered the transfer portal this week.

Bielema said of Bailey: “Matt’s a very talented player. We actually sat down before the year ever started and I kind of said, ‘Hey, at some point, I believe that if you continue to do what you’ve done in the past, this year we’ll probably have a decision to make at the end.’ The NFL allows us to put five players on an advanced list that allows them to get evaluated at a different level, so Matt was obviously one of those five guys. So as soon as the season was over, we have to fill out a form, turn it in and it takes about two to three weeks for that to get back.  …So it’s really just kind of wait and see.

“He’s been obviously awesome on the field. He is an awesome, awesome kid off the field. He has done well in everything he’s done, whether it be academics, in the community, leadership. I thought this year especially, he was a guy that took a huge step in leading not only his room but our defense and especially during the moments of adversity. So I’m super excited about his future.”