Top 10 Illinois QBs for 2024 high school football season

9. Johnny O’Brien, Jr., Fremd

O’Brien doesn’t quite have the eye-opening numbers that some do on this list, but he possesses as much upside under center as nearly any quarterback in the state’s junior class. The left-handed passer has a big arm that he has showcased not only on the field at Fremd but also at various camps throughout the offseason. Fremd had a couple of workouts with Big Ten schools like Purdue and Illinois, and committed to Northwestern shortly after receiving an offer from the program in June. The talented 6-foot-2, 180-pound standout is still a couple of years away from playing for the Wildcats though and will first focus on having a strong junior season coming off of a sophomore campaign where he threw for 1,879 yards and scored 17 total touchdowns with a 67.2% completion rate.

Thanks for a great weekend in Dallas at @QBUniverseQBU @SDSports @JeffHecklinski @ChrisHixsonQB @TheQBEngineer. Here are some of my throws. @TomLoy247 @Fremd_Football @NxtLevelAtx @QB1BLISS @nexgenscouting @LemmingReport @AllenTrieu @SWiltfong247 @adamgorney @Andrew_Ivins… pic.twitter.com/bYyfWYrvwu

— Johnny O'Brien 2026 QB (@JohnnyOB20) February 19, 2024