Illinois lands 2025 athlete Jershaun Newton

CHAMPAIGN — Johnny Newton developed into a two-time All-American, Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year an second-round NFL draft pick during his Illinois career. Now the Illini will try and do the same with his younger brother.

Jershaun Newton committed to Illinois on Thursday, picking the Illini from nearly a dozen Power Four offers that included the likes of Florida State, Miami, Louisville, Mississippi State, South Carolina and Indiana.

Newton is ranked as a four-star athlete by Rivals and as a three-star athlete by 247Sports in the Class of 2025. The Clearwater Central Catholic (Fla.) product has flashed as a dual-threat quarterback the past two seasons for the Marauders and helped them go 13-1 last fall and finish as the FHSAA Class 1M state runner-up. The 6-foot, 205-pounder has 6,678 yards of total offense and 65 touchdowns the past two seasons combined.

Illinois already has a quarterback commit in the Class of 2025 in Cardinal Ritter (Mo.) standout Carson Boyd. Newton, though, has potential to play multiple positions. While he's mostly just played quarterback the past two seasons, he did get more snaps on defense as a freshman at Clearwater Central Catholic before limited action as a sophomore and junior. In three seasons he's totaled 58 tackles, 11 tackles for loss and nine sacks.

Newton's commitment gives Illinois 13 recruits in its 2025 class. That group ranks 16th in the Big Ten and 53rd nationally, per 247Sports. Newton is the fourth 2025 commit from Florida alongside St. Thomas Aquinas running back Cedric Wyche II, Vero Beach athlete Robert Jones III and Cardinal Newman defensive back Xanai Scott, who is the younger brother of current Illini Xavier Scott.