On Saturday morning inside the gym at Mahomet-Seymour High School, Illini guard/forward Ty Rodgers was laughing and smiling, coaching a group of young children. Rodgers was volunteering at a basketball camp hosted by DH Workouts, and he was extremely engaged throughout. He participated in drills, got visibly animated during games and provided tips to the young players.

Among the group, there were multiple kids wearing No. 20 Illinois jerseys with Rodgers’ name on the back. He is one of Illinois’ most well-liked players in recent memory, and that love is reciprocated.

“It means the most to me,” Rodgers said. “I feel like that’s why I’ve got to pour so much back into them because they help me so much on the daily, just the support that they give me and the love that they show me.”

Rodgers made it clear that the community was a major part of his decision to return to Illinois, despite many believing that he would transfer after making the unusual decision to sit out as a junior. He has been in Champaign since his freshman year and is the longest tenured Illini on the roster.

“I love it here, man,” Rodgers said. “It’s my home. There’s no place I’d rather be. You know, I’m comfortable here. I love the community. I feel like the community loves me. I feel like I’ve got an opportunity to achieve all my dreams here.”

Now, the Illini have Rodgers, rising senior guard Kylan Boswell, rising junior wing Jake Davis and rising junior Tomislav Ivišić all returning after last season. This is markedly different from last season, where the only returning scholarship player was then-sophomore guard Dra Gibbs-Lawhorn, who is now transferring. The experience of next season’s Illini, especially with the addition of another transfer in rising junior center Zvonimir Ivišić, excites Rodgers about the possibilities and potential for next season.

“It’s big time,” Rodgers said. “Having those guys come back who have a year under their belt here in coach Underwood’s system, it just allows us to build our culture. The new guys who come in, we’ll be able to pour that into them and lay that on them. I’m excited.”

Walk-on rising senior guard AJ Redd, who is returning for his final season of college basketball, echoed the sentiment.

“In today’s state of college basketball, the hardest part is trying to retain your team and get back a good core of guys,” Redd said. “But next year, we’ll have our core back with a few new pieces added, and I think it’ll be a great season. We’ll be able to establish our culture a little bit better, because guys have been around for a little bit. You’ll see the continuity when the season comes around next year.”

This past season’s Illini squad had lofty goals. However, the team fell short, falling in the second round of the NCAA tournament. For Rodgers, who started all 38 games the year before and helped lead the 2023-24 Illini roster to the Elite Eight, those goals remain the same. He wants to return to the heights he reached as a sophomore and go further.

“Just win, just win,” Rodgers said. “Just do whatever I can to help my team win. Chase another Big Ten championship. Obviously, the goal is always to win a national championship, so that’s the goal.”

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