Top 7-foot-3 Center Sets Official Visit Date for Illinois

There's a constant among the top high school prospects in the nation: a scholarship offer from Brad Underwood and the Illinois Fighting Illini.

Coming off the program's best season in over two decades, Underwood has not shied away from the spotlight. Instead, he's used it to target some of the best recruits in the country and sell them on his vision for the future in Champaign.

Underwood has now locked in an official visit with an elite player in the Class of 2028. According to 247 Sports' Travis Branham, five-star center Dylan Betts will head to Champaign from Sep. 18-20 to meet with the Fighting Illini. Betts has also scheduled visits with Michigan, North Carolina and Alabama.

The 7-foot-3 big man from Bradenton, Fla., is the No. 11 ranked player and the No. 5 center in the Class of 2028. Betts is currently the third-best player in Florida while playing for national powerhouse IMG Academy.

Prior to transferring to IMG Academy for his sophomore season, Betts played for Cherry Creek High School in Englewood, Colo.

Betts' older sister, Lauren, was a two-time All-American at UCLA and led the Bruins to the National Championship this past spring. She was named the tournament's Most Outstanding Player and was picked No. 4 overall by the Washington Mystics in the 2026 WNBA Draft. Another sister, Sienna, is a rising sophomore at UCLA.

Illinois extended an offer to Betts on June 15, part of a loaded week in which he also received offers from UCLA, Indiana, Florida State, USC, Kansas, Michigan, Alabama and more. The Fighting Illini are also competing with the Purdue Boilermakers for the right to sign Betts.

Betts attended the United States' U17 Training Camp in Colorado Springs during mid-June.

According to On3, the Fighting Illini have a 47.5% chance of landing Betts. The University of Washington trails Illinois with the second-highest odds at 6.9%.

Underwood has yet to officially sign an athlete in the Class of 2028, but he's shooting for the stars. Illinois has already extended an offer to the No. 1 overall player, Georgia small forward AJ Williams, as well as several other top prospects. Local recruits Brady Pettigrew (Bolingbrook) and Cole Kelly (Naperville) lead a group that also features forward Benjamin Berrouet (Dallas, Texas), center Stra Zelic (Mount Pleasant, Utah) and point guard Amarion Smith-Holley (Branson, Mo.).

Illinois currently has the No. 4 ranked recruiting class for 2027.