Offensive lineman Gabe Megginson transferring from Illinois

The highest-rated recruit from the Tim Beckman era, offensive lineman Gabe Megginson, is transferring from Illinois Football.

The redshirt sophomore announced his decision on Twitter earlier this evening.

The former consensus four-star recruit had an up-and-down debut season in his redshirt freshman year. He was expected to take a big step forward and become a leader on the offensive side of the ball out of the weak-side guard spot.

That didn’t come to fruition in 2017. After only starting in two games, Megginson was benched in favor of playing true freshmen on the offensive line, which is rare to see in the Big Ten. Illinois played an offensive line that featured four freshmen, and three true freshmen, for the rest of the season.

It was a disappointing season for Megginson to say the least, and it’s not surprising to see him leave. He has two years of eligibility remaining.