Will Vala grew up playing hockey, baseball and basketball.
The rising senior at Downers Grove North still hoops when he can.
“I play pickup all the time,” Vala said. “I still love it.”
But he’s given up playing his other sports competitively because his future is on the football field.
The 6-3, 225-pound tight end is the latest addition to Illinois coach Bret Bielema’s 2026 class. He’s the consensus No. 24 player in Illinois and the No. 51 tight end nationally. The Illini now have commitments from seven of the state’s top 25 players in the 247Sports composite rankings.
That’s a big deal for Vala.
“[With] coach Bielema leading that program, it’s been on the rise the last couple years,” he said. “Just seeing the family he’s built and especially recruiting in-state guys, I really felt it was the best fit.”
Vala’s parents didn’t want him playing football when he was younger because of the injury risk. He was set to start in his seventh-grade year, but that was when COVID shut down all youth sports.
He finally started his career in eighth grade as a backup tight end and middle linebacker. At Downers Grove North, he was called up to the varsity for the playoffs as a freshman and then was moved up to varsity again for the final regular-season games of his sophomore year.
“It was definitely intimidating first time up on varsity,” he said. “Varsity is a different speed. I learned that very quick.”
But Vala adapted quickly and college offers started coming in. Illinois State was first, followed by almost 20 from Group of Five schools. Illinois was his first Power Four offer, followed by Purdue, Indiana, Wisconsin, Kentucky and Louisville, among others.
National recruiting analyst Clint Cosgrove believes Vala and Illinois are a perfect match.
“He fits their scheme perfectly,” Cosgrove said. “… He’s a Bielema guy.”
Vala’s versatility will play well at the next level, according to Cosgrove.
“He can stretch the field, and you [will] see him come across the line and wham somebody,” Cosgrove said. “His ball skills are really good. The more I watched him, the more I liked him. He’s got a chance to be pretty good.”
So does Downers North, which has an elite pass-and-catch duo in Minnesota-bound quarterback Owen Lansu and Vala,
The Trojans advanced to the Class 7A final two years ago, losing to Mount Carmel, before losing to Batavia in the 7A quarterfinals last season.
“We play Morgan Park Week 1, so I’ll be playing against Nasir [Rankin, a fellow Illinois recruit],” Vala said. “That will be a fun one. We’ve got seven or eight offensive starters and the quarterback coming back. We’ve got to fill some spots defensively.”
Now, Vala can focus on his last high school season, having settled his future earlier than planned.
“I wanted to be committed mid-June to late June,” he said. “I really just felt like — Illinois, it couldn’t get better than that.”