Is Tanner Heckel starting?
Tanner Heckel is listed 2nd string at RCB for Illinois Fighting Illini.
Tanner Heckel is listed RCB #2 for Illinois at 77 OVR.
See full Illinois Fighting Illini depth chart ›Depth at RCB · Illinois Fighting Illini
- 1677Juice ClarkeStarter
- 21677Tanner HeckelYou
- 3358Nick Hankins Jr.
- 42054Almirian Thomas
What's Next
The Story
Making His Case
A 3-star recruit out of Lyndon, ranked #1,576 nationally coming out of high school. In 2025: 36 tackles, 1 INT, 2 PBU. That's 5% of the team's production at his spot — good for a 77 overall (Solid tier).
- Jersey
- #16
- Class
- JR
- Height
- 5'11"
- Weight
- 195 lbs
Career Stats
| Season | Tkl | INT | PD |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 36 | 1 | 2 |
| 2024 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
Regular-season totals from public sources. Derived splits (completion %, yards per carry, catch rate) aren't available in our current dataset.
Recruiting Profile
- Stars
- ★★★☆☆3-star
- Composite
- 0.8506
- National Rank
- #1576
- High School
- Lyndon
- Hometown
- Lyndon, KS
Why this rating?
On a 79-rated defense; 78th-percentile production (×0.92 for competition level) put them +5 vs unit starters → 77. Capped to the teammate ahead of them on the depth chart.
2026 projection — based on SP+ (a respected team-efficiency metric; 2026 not published yet, using 2025), 2025 production, recruiting, and the 2026 transfer portal; capped to depth-chart order.
2026 Game Log
Sep 12LDUKETKL 1
- TKL
- 1
- SOLO
- 1
- SACK
- 0
- INT
- 0
- PD
- 0
Final L 31-27
| OPP | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 12 | LDUKE | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Tanner Heckel's 2026 game-by-game stat log.
The People's Ratings
Team Role
Overall ratings blend team strength (SP+), on-field production, and recruiting. Higher = more impactful.