Daily Digest | Updated Illini bowl projections; Three Illini commits earn IHSFCA all-state honors

There’s a lot of news each day. Illini Inquirer will try to make it easier to digest each weekday morning with the Daily Digest. 

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Three-star East St. Louis offensive lineman Brandon Henderson flipped his commitment from Iowa State to Illinois on Tuesday. He joins Flyers teammate Antwon Hayden, a three-star linebacker, in the Class of 2023.

• “Thank you to the Iowa State staff and coaches for the opportunity, but I will be flipping my commitment to the University of Illinois,” Henderson posted on social media on Tuesday.
• Henderson, who started for the Flyers Class 6A runner-up team last fall and the Class 6A state semifinalist this season, is the No. 82 offensive tackle prospect in the Class of 2023 and the No. 16 prospect in the state of Illinois, according to 247Sports. The 6-foot-5, 330-pound offensive tackle chose the Illini over power-five offers from Iowa State and Nebraska.

Why it matters: Henderson increases the Illini’s presence at East St. Louis, a powerhouse that routinely produces multiple power-five prospects each year and is now a top transfer destination for many talented St. Louis-area prospects. The Illini had added just two East. St. Louis prospects during the last decade — Stanley Green and James Knight — so getting two top-30 prospects from the Flyers roster in one recruiting class is significant.