Hank Beatty has been named the 27th Academic All-American in the history of Illinois football. Beatty, a senior wide receiver and marketing major at the Gies College of Business, holds a 3.87 GPA and led the team with 1,123 all-purpose yards during the 2025 season.
Illinois Director of Athletics Josh Whitman, who is also a two-time Academic All-American, notified Beatty of his selection on Monday afternoon. Whitman told Beatty, “It is a great reflection of not only what you have done on the field, but also what you have done in the classroom. To be a part of that group that marries those two things together is a really special tradition.”
Beatty responded to Whitman by saying, “Just blessed to be able to do it at Illinois. I never really thought I’d get something like that. Definitely grateful for my time and the opportunities you guys gave me there at Illinois.”
A native of Rochester, Illinois, Beatty was notable as the only player in the nation during 2025 to score touchdowns by passing, rushing, receiving, and punt return. His season totals included 864 receiving yards, 213 punt return yards, 46 rushing yards, and 31 passing yards.
Beatty is Illinois’ first Academic All-American since 2007. Since its inception in 1952, the Academic All-America program has recognized 27 different Illinois players with a total of 38 awards.
He will be honored with his photo on Illinois’ Wright Family Academic All-America Wall at Smith Football Center. With this recognition, Beatty joins John Wright Sr. and John Wright Jr. as one of three wide receivers from Illinois to earn Academic All-America honors.
The full list of previous honorees includes notable names such as Bob Lenzini (1952), Jim Grabowski (1964-65), John Wright Sr. (1966-67), Dan Gregus (1980-82), Josh Whitman (1999-2000), J Leman (2007), Ryan McDonald (2007), among others.
