Illinois QB Altmyer Tunes Out Hype, Leans Into Passion

Luke Altmyer #9 of the Illinois Fighting Illini (Photo by Ed Mulholland/Getty Images)

Every mid-to-late summer, the college football media landscape is strongly populated with preseason award watch lists. One could call these lists a form of participation trophy, and thus, not take them too seriously. However, if you're named multiple award watch lists, and more importantly, the selective ones that contain fewer names, then it's time to pay attention.

One of the top returning quarterbacks in all of college football, Illinois QB Luke Altmyer is on everybody's radar right now. Altmyer was named to the preseason watch list for the Walter Camp Player of the Year and Maxwell Award this week. Both awards are quite similar to the famed Heisman Trophy, in that they honor the best overall player, regardless of position.

When the award watch lists specific to quarterbacks come out, the Illini signal caller will certainly be there. USA Today ranked him the second-best QB in the Big Ten conference, while the Sporting News placed him third in the league. On3 rated him the 14th best QB in the nation, and he consistently shows up in the top 10-15 anytime and anywhere a quarterback power rankings is produced.

The third-year starter made a huge individual leap last season, as he threw for 2,717 yards and 22 touchdowns against only six interceptions on 7.8 yards per attempt. His passer rating of 144.0 made him one of the nation's most prolific and efficient passers. It was also a major improvement over 2023, in which he had a 13-10 TD-to-INT ratio, 7.0 yards per attempt, and a passer rating of 131.9.

What was the key to making such big strides?

"I approached my game in so many different ways," the 22-year-old said during Illini Night at Wrigley Field, in an exclusive interview with RG.

"You know, being a better physical player within the quarterback position. (I) wanted to put my team in better situations, winning the turnover battles and (making) explosive plays, and things like that.

"So I think this experience and me getting more reps and more confidence in those reps (made the difference). I mean I had the talent. I just needed to get it all together upstairs, mentally, so I worked on that aspect of my life, and it showed in '24."

Mental Fortitude

Altmyer is definitely mentally tough, as the Ole Miss transfer truly has what some call "the clutch gene," or as others may say, "ice water in the veins." He currently leads the nation in career game-winning drives inside the final minute or overtime with five.

Altmyer plays the game with a ton of chutzpah (or as others might say, cajones) as he's not afraid to get hit hard. His gutsy style of play has truly won over the hearts and minds of Illinois Fighting Illini fans everywhere. He's also widely adored in the greater Champaign-Urbana/University of Illinois community.

The Starkville, Mississippi native had an opportunity to return to the south for his final year of college football. Despite a lot of interest from programs in the SEC, he decided to stay put in central Illinois.

Altmyer explained why, beginning with some Big Ten praise. 

"The conference that I'm in, I think is the best conference in football," he began. "I'm surrounded by a lot of good people, a lot of good players, and got a lot of momentum to go do everything that's possible, imaginable, out there in college football.

"So there's a lot of good things going on at the University of Illinois right now, and I enjoy it here. I don't need all the outside attention to be happy at all, because I'm surrounded by the right things."

Speaking of good things going on, a couple hours after this interview was conducted, Altmyer got to sing "Take Me Out to the Ballgame", along with his head coach Bret Bielema, at Wrigley Field.

Getting to sing the seventh inning stretch at a Chicago Cubs game is basically, well, pick your cliche, "living the dream," and/or "bucket list experience."

Relationship With Jaxson Dart

During his days at the University of Mississippi, Altmyer developed a close relationship with his then teammate, fellow quarterback Jaxson Dart. The New York Giants used their first-round draft pick this past April, the 25th overall selection, on Dart, believing him to be their franchise quarterback of the future.

"That year we had at Ole Miss, where we were co-workers, we were good friends," Altmyer said of Dart. "We had a lot in common, we laughed a lot together. We competed, and that naturally just brought us super close.

"And I root for him. He roots for me. He's a good player, so there is a lot of love and respect there for him."

The first Giants’ depth chart came out on Tuesday, and of course, all depth charts are to be taken with a grain of salt, but Dart was listed as the QB3.

Naturally, Altmyer is focused on his own upcoming season and his current team, but we couldn't help but ask him about his take on the Giants QB situation/Dart's chances of ultimately winning the starting job, with Russell Wilson currently QB1 on the depth chart. 

"That's interesting because I don't know that space really well. I don't know the NFL game. I hope to learn it one day, but I know he works hard. I know he's got good character. I know he's talented. I know he's putting in the work, so if it comes to him, it's for the right reasons.

"The focus and intensity that he shows up with is going to show up. He's gonna be on the field eventually, that's for sure," Altmyer responded.

NFL Dreams

Altmyer himself has ambitions on getting to the league, and in a chat with a small group of reporters at the Brickhouse Tavern in Wrigleyville, he discussed what he's working on to improve his NFL Draft stock: 

"All areas, physically, I want to get better at my strength, my speed, my agility, my body control. There's so many things that scouts and teams look at within a player that can go and help their team, and that's what I'm doing every single day.

He also mentioned his favorite NFL QBs and which signal callers he models his game after. He mentioned the likes of Patrick Mahomes, Joe Burrow, Josh Allen, and Lamar Jackson, but there is one specific dual-threat QB that is more of an influence on Altmyer than any other.

And that quarterback coincidentally has a close connection to Bielema.

"But growing up, I think Russell Wilson, which is a crazy coincidence, because that's Bielema's guy, so it's cool," Altmyer continued.

"Because I mimic his game a little bit, being able to run a little bit, throw it well, and a winner, and a guy who carries himself with some great character. So I look up to him a lot."

During the one season that Wilson was at Wisconsin (2011), a program led by Bielema at the time, he set the single-season FBS record for passing efficiency (191.8).

It would certainly be something to see a Bielema-coached QB break that record again, but even if Altmyer doesn't reach that prodigious milestone, he has already accomplished a lot. He led Illinois to a 10-3 record in 2024, which tied the program's single-season wins record. Illinois had its best season in a generation last season, and expectations are even higher for 2025. 

Big Year Ahead For Illinois

Illinois is ranked #12 in the USA Today/Coaches preseason poll, which is tied with 1990 for the second-highest in program history. In the entire history of the preseason poll, which dates back to 1978, only one Illini team was ranked higher, in 1985 (#10).

This is the first time Illinois has been ranked in the preseason Coaches Poll since 2008 (#19). Illinois returns 16 starters from last season — tied for the most in the nation — and 18 starters from last year's Citrus Bowl winning team.

Altmyer discussed how his program is receiving more media attention than ever before, and what steps the team takes to not be adversely affected by all the additional preseason hype.

"All the media stuff is new in this (program), in this world, and it wasn't that way back in the 90s and early 2000s, so it's a new world, and a lot of stuff being thrown at you," he elaborated.

"And it's easy to get off the straight and narrow path, but we hear it, we see it. That's just part of it, but we understand what's important- that's the day that's at hand now, and working hard and understanding what got us here.

"And that is the work, the grind and using the gifts that we've been given to be our best."

For the record, Altymer made it clear that he doesn't really get into the award list stuff, either.

"There's a lot of people who ask me, you know you're not on this list, your team's not ranked here and I'm like, it just doesn't matter," he said.

"I don't play for those reasons. I know if I do what I do, all that stuff comes. I play because I love it. I love my teammates. I love the pain of the game. I love to score touchdowns. I love to smile and celebrate after wins.

"And I love the agony of defeat because it makes me want to beat 'em, to go get it even more. It teaches me a lot about life, because proving people wrong is so fleeting, and it's so shallow.

"It really is.

"I play because I love it. I'm gifted in it, and I want to do it for as long as I can."