Illinois Year in Review | All-interview team – The News-Gazette

Some athletes are naturals when it comes to the media responsibilities they undertake when they arrive at Illinois. Others have to work their way up to it. Beat writer Scott Richey spotlights 10 Illini who handled it best in 2025-26:

1. Kylan Boswell | Men’s basketball

The best thing about Boswell? He never held back. The veteran Illinois guard routinely said what was on his mind — even if that meant being self critical. Like when he admitted he deserved Big Ten All-Defensive Team honors more in his first season with the Illini than when he actually got that recognition this spring. Boswell’s refreshing level of openness and willing to dive into the emotions beyond the game made him stand out.

2. Luke Altmyer | Football

The 2025 Loren Tate Award winner was a shoe-in, of course, for the N-G’s unofficial all-interview team. His communication skills — clearly important for a Big Ten starting quarterback — developed and matured during the course of his three years in Champaign. It was a natural progression that mirrored Altmyer’s growing confidence on the field as he settled in as a multi-year starter for the Illini on his path to the NFL.

3. David Mirkovic | Men’s basketball

Either Illinois’ media training never fully sank in, or Mirkovic just chose to mostly ignore it and be his authentic self. Mirkovic became a postseason sensation once locker rooms opened during tournament play, and what everyone who covered the Illini on daily basis learned during the course of the year became a national phenomenon. Like the story of Mirkovic buying a cowboy hat to wear in celebration of Illinois’ victories in Houston.

4. JaiCieonna Gero-Holt | Women’s track and field

It only takes a single conversation with Gero-Holt to understand her big personality only matches the passion she has for what she tackles every day as a multi-event athlete. The redshirt freshman All-American out of South Hill, Wash., didn’t hesitate to open up about why Illinois was the perfect place to pursue her pentathlon and heptathlon goals and why she was able to have a high level of success this spring in her first competitive season.

5. Destiny Jackson | Women’s basketball

Jackson was an early fan favorite. Five-star guards that stay home tend to be. But it wasn’t just her skill level that connected with the Illinois fan base. Her personality did, too, and that came through during her media availabilities throughout the course of her freshman season. Jackson was willing to talk about anything related to her game or her team and brought a lighthearted approach to taking on some measure of becoming a face of the program.

6. Averie Hernandez | Volleyball

Hernandez had every reason to be closed off during her final season at Illinois. The Bloomington native and Normal West graduate was a constant at outside hitter in 2024 after transferring from Northwestern, but she wound up in a smaller role as her senior season progressed. Her reaction? Nothing but support for her teammates and a willingness to discuss how she was adapting to something she didn’t necessarily expect.

7. Matthew Bailey | Football

That Bailey basically served an apprenticeship under now three-year NFL pro Sydney Brown during his freshman season at Illinois was apparent several years ago. Bailey has mirrored both Brown’s focused approach to the day-to-day grind of Big Ten football and his willingness to discuss the game. They even sound eerily similar. Bailey has put his own spin on what he learned from Brown, and has become a leader in the Illini locker room in the process.

8. Kenna Phelan | Volleyball

It’s cliché, but true. Setters are like quarterbacks. Communication skills are paramount for both. Phelan brought that trait with her from Florida State when she took over the Illinois offense last fall. It’s not just volleyball the Fayetteville, Ark., native can (and did) readily discuss. The studio art major also opened up about her passion away from the volleyball court and how she finds time to do both at a high level during the season.

9. Sydney Stephens | Soccer

Stephens was a constant on the field during her five seasons at Illinois (after one at Georgia). That experience showed in how she handled herself in the Illini midfield as a connective thread between the defense and attack and in how she discussed the team’s turnaround in Katie Hultin’s first year as the Illini coach. She had the context for what Illinois accomplished in the program’s best season in more than a decade.

10. Ryan Voois | Men’s golf

That Voois became Illinois’ second straight Byron Nelson Award winner shouldn’t have been a surprise given how he balanced a standout collegiate golf career, strong academics and a commitment to community service. His even-keel temperament helped him strike that balance and also served him well on the golf course. That was apparent in both his results and how he discussed what can be a frustrating game at times.