CHAMPAIGN, Ill. (WCIA) – 2025 marks the final season of college football for Luke Altmyer.

The Illinois quarterback feels confident entering his redshirt senior year.

“I’m so confident and convicted that I’m such a better player from last year to this year,” he said.

Altmyer believes the jump in his play from 2024 to 2025 could be more significant than the improvement he showed from 2023 to 2024. That statement is saying something. Altmyer’s junior year showed massive improvement from his first season in Champaign

• Passing yards: 2,717 in 2024, 1,883 in 2023
• Total touchdowns: 26 in 2024, 16 in 2023
• Interceptions: Six in 2024, 10 in 2023

“I’m exhausting all my gifts – physically, mentally, spiritually, emotionally, to be my best,” Altmyer said.

The senior campaign for the Mississippi native comes with an added challenge. Altmyer will need to find new top options after Illinois graduated its top two wideouts from 2024 in Zakhari Franklin and Pat Bryant.

While Altmyer examines his options for targets, a mixture of newcomers and returners, he won’t simply sit idle and wait for the next Pat Bryant to appear.

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Fall camp has been a continued effort for the veteran QB to build chemistry with his pass catchers and grow an understanding of what works best for each guy. Another huge part of his job at this time, he says, is lifting up those guys as they seek bigger roles.

“Just encouraging them through the battles of stepping into a starting position like they want to have. Learning to deal with the mindset of that, the pressures, the expectations, the weight that it can bear, but helping them understanding that, you know, they belong, they wouldn’t be in that position if they didn’t belong, if they weren’t talented,” Altmyer said. “And so, a lot of encouragement, a lot of teaching.”

Altmyer has also taken an interest in helping the other quarterbacks in the room with him on a daily basis. Plus, he has been involved in recruiting on several occasions to help Illinois get the best players possible.

As he seeks to help recruit, or develop his current teammates at the quarterback position, it’s likely an effort he won’t reap reward from. Of course, that raises the point of Altmyer’s passion for the success of Illinois football beyond his time in Champaign-Urbana.

So, what does the University of Illinois mean to Luke Altmyer?

“A lot of people wrote me off coming off a 2022 from Ole Miss and even 2023 – coming off of that year too,” he said. “I just did the right things. And that’s thanks to the people around me here at Illinois between these walls and the community and just bringing out the best in me every single day… Challenging me and my mind and my spirit, getting out of my comfort zone. It’s been such a blessing. And the people here have been, you know, nothing but good to me.”

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The rising senior says it’s hard to fully understand or evaluate his appreciation for the Illinois football program, and all the people in/around it, while he’s focused on preparing to make plays on the field for one last season of college football.

“It’s something I’ll reflect on in the near future,” he said. “Just thankful, a lot of gratitude for this place, these people and their passion for the Illinois program. Very glad I can do it.”

One player hoping to become a consistent and reliable option for Altmyer is Rochester native Hank Beatty. Click here for more on how special teams helped Beatty stay involved with the team in 2024.