The Only Offer: How Landon Davis Became Underwood's "Very Big Surprise"

Illinois signed six freshmen this year, and one of them sat at the bottom of the recruiting rankings. Landon Davis, a 6-9 forward from Waukee, Iowa, was the lowest-rated player in the class. Illinois was the only high-major program that offered him. The rest of his list was Drake, UIC, and Northern Iowa.

Fast forward to this summer. Brad Underwood is calling Davis "a very big surprise." In September he went further and said the kid has been "off the chart."

For entry No. 4 in our Meet the Illini series, here's how the freshman nobody was talking about became the one Underwood can't stop talking about.

From the Iowa Suburbs to the 3SSB

Davis played at Waukee Northwest, in the Des Moines suburbs, for coach Brett Watson. He mostly played center there, which tells you something about his size and toughness. As a junior he averaged about 10 points, 6.5 rebounds, 3.6 blocks, and 2.9 assists. He made fourth-team All-State and helped Northwest reach the Class 4A state championship game, where they finished runner-up.

The efficiency numbers are the most interesting part. That junior year, SI's Iowa high school coverage had him shooting about 74% from the field. And he wasn't only a post player. He went 13-for-18 from three.

Then came the summer of 2025 on the Adidas 3SSB circuit with Iowa United. Davis played the four next to five-star center Arafan Diane, so he had to live on the perimeter. He did. He averaged 8.6 points, 3.5 rebounds, 2.9 assists, and a block a game while shooting 61.7% from the field and 40% from three. For a 6-9 kid who'd spent his high school career at center, that was a big deal.

The Five-Week Recruitment

Illinois assistant Zach Hamer noticed. The Illini offered Davis on July 2, 2025, the first offer he'd ever gotten from a high-major school. Iowa and Minnesota showed interest but never offered. About five weeks later, on August 6, Davis committed. He was the second commit in Illinois' 2026 class, right after Ethan Brown.

Davis has never pretended to be a five-star. He told 247Sports it was a dream opportunity, that Illinois wasn't just any high-major school, and that the staff took a chance on him. He knows people doubted him, and he said he'd be playing with a chip on his shoulder.

His reason for choosing Illinois was simple. He liked the resources, especially the strength program under Adam Fletcher, and how much the staff cared about its players. His family agreed it was the right fit. He signed on November 12, 2025, the first member of the class to make it official.

What Illinois Saw

When Davis signed, Underwood called him a physical player with tremendous athleticism and mobility who can play inside and out, and a strong passer who processes the game well. Davis said the staff told him they loved his versatility, his catch-and-shoot three, and how he makes teammates better. They also told him exactly what he needed to work on: getting stronger and more agile so he can switch on defense and rebound.

The scouting reports were fair. 247Sports liked his frame, his shooting, and his defensive tenacity, but said he isn't very explosive and springier Big Ten forwards could give him trouble. SI's Illinois site called him a potential building block rather than a star. They projected a future stretch four who could eventually do a lot of what Ben Humrichous did, and floated Matthew Mayer as his ceiling.

His senior season ended earlier than he wanted. Waukee Northwest made it back to the state tournament but lost to Johnston in the Class 4A quarterfinals. Davis had 8 points and 11 rebounds in that game.

"A Very Big Surprise"

This is where the story turns. Davis got to Champaign in June, and by the end of August, Underwood was publicly calling him the surprise of the summer. Underwood said Davis is 6-9 with a 7-foot-2 wingspan, a better athlete than people realized, and a far better three-point shooter than the staff expected.

In August, Illinois posted a "Newcomer First Look" highlight reel of Davis, and SI broke it down. His jumper looked smooth with a high release, and he wasn't shy about letting it fly. He also showed good footwork near the rim and cut well. SI's take was that he could space the floor as a shooter, work the dunker spot, and be an effective rim runner.

Then in September, Underwood said Davis has been "off the chart." He again pointed to the three-point shooting and called him athletic, long, and instinctive. He added one more thing that could matter a lot: Davis can guard multiple positions, which Underwood called "a real plus."

Where He Fits This Season

The frontcourt in front of him is loaded: Tomislav Ivisic, Zvonimir Ivisic, David Mirkovic, and Jason Jakstys. When SI ranked the eighth-man candidates in August, Davis wasn't in the top five. By the end of that month, though, the same outlet said he'd "turned heads" and was pushing Jakstys as a frontcourt depth option.

That matters right now because Mirkovic is still working back from foot surgery. If he misses time early, Illinois needs a big who can stretch the floor the way Mirkovic does, and Davis is the closest thing on the bench to that skill set. SI said that if he defends and shoots well, he could earn back-end rotation minutes early, and more if Mirkovic is out.

The Bottom Line

Illinois has built a reputation for finding players other high-majors miss. Keaton Wagler was lightly recruited before he became a lottery pick. Davis isn't going to be Wagler, and he doesn't need to be. But the pattern is familiar: a lightly recruited Midwest kid with size and a jumper, a strength program that knows what it's doing, and a coaching staff that saw something early.

Last summer, Illinois was the only big school that believed in Landon Davis. This summer, his head coach is calling him "off the chart." Not bad for the guy at the bottom of the rankings.

I-L-L. 🧡

Reporting compiled from 247Sports (Illini Inquirer), The News-Gazette, FightingIllini.com, Sports Illustrated (Illinois on SI and SI High School Iowa), and Yahoo Sports.