Defensive back, Illinois, 2022–26
Matthew Bailey
Lettered 2022, 2024–25 (school media guide)
- Number
- No. 7
- Height
- 6′2″
- Weight
- 225 lb
- Class (2026)
- Senior
- Hometown
- Moline, IL
Matthew Bailey plays defensive back for Illinois. Last time out, at Michigan State: 4 tackles. Bailey leads Illinois in tackles this season.
2026 so far
41 tackles, 1 INT
Last game: 4 tackles at Michigan State, W 38–37
Next game: vs. Oregon, Oct 24
Filled bars: wins; outlined: losses.
Career highs
14tackles, career highat Ohio State, 2026Defense
* The season in progress, so far.
Season lines from CollegeFootballData, regular season and bowls. A dash: the source has no number for that season (often an FCS season), and career totals count only the numbers on file.
On the roster
| Season | Team | No. | Pos | Class | Ht | Wt |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | Illinois | 7 | DB | Yr 1 | ||
| 2023 | Illinois | 7 | DB | Yr 2 | ||
| 2024 | Illinois | 7 | DB | Yr 3 | ||
| 2025 | Illinois | 7 | DB | Yr 4 | ||
| 2026 | Illinois | 7 | DB | Sr. (Yr 5) | 6′2″ | 225 |
As each season’s roster listed the player (CollegeFootballData). Classes before the latest listing are counted back from it; “Yr 1” is the year on file where that count can’t place a season he played (a redshirt, transfer or 2020 year); height and weight as last listed.
Game by game
2026 Illinois 6 games, 41 tackles, 1 INT
| Date | Opponent | Result | Tkl | Solo | TFL | Sacks | Int | PD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 3 | vs. UAB | W 42–23 | 8 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Sep 12 | vs. Duke | L 27–31 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Sep 19 | vs. Southern Illinois | W 48–10 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Sep 26 | at Ohio State | L 19–42 | 14 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Oct 3 | vs. Purdue | L 17–24 | 9 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Oct 10 | at Michigan State | W 38–37 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
2025 Illinois 12 games, 76 tackles
| Date | Opponent | Result | Tkl | Solo | TFL | Sacks | Int | PD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 29 | vs. Western Illinois | W 52–3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Sep 6 | atDuke | W 45–19 | 6 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Sep 13 | vs. Western Michigan | W 38–0 | 6 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Sep 20 | at Indiana | L 10–63 | 9 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Sep 27 | vs. USC | W 34–32 | 5 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Oct 4 | atPurdue | W 43–27 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Oct 11 | vs.Ohio State | L 16–34 | 8 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Oct 25 | at Washington | L 25–42 | 6 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Nov 1 | vs. Rutgers | W 35–13 | 5 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Nov 15 | vs. Maryland | W 24–6 | 10 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Nov 22 | at Wisconsin | L 10–27 | 10 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Nov 29 | vs. Northwestern | W 20–13 | 6 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
2024 Illinois 13 games, 94 tackles, 1 INT
| Date | Opponent | Result | Tkl | Solo | TFL | Sacks | Int | PD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 29 | vs. Eastern Illinois | W 45–0 | 6 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Sep 7 | vs. Kansas | W 23–17 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Sep 14 | vs. Central Michigan | W 30–9 | 7 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Sep 20 | at Nebraska | W 31–24 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Sep 28 | at Penn State | L 7–21 | 9 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Oct 12 | vs.Purdue | W 50–49 | 5 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Oct 19 | vs. Michigan | W 21–7 | 11 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Oct 26 | at Oregon | L 9–38 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Nov 2 | vs. Minnesota | L 17–25 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Nov 16 | vs.Michigan State | W 38–16 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Nov 23 | atRutgers | W 38–31 | 11 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Nov 30 | vs.Northwestern | W 38–28 | 8 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Dec 31 ✦ | vs. South Carolina | W 21–17 | 13 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
2023 Illinois 1 game, 5 tackles
| Date | Opponent | Result | Tkl | Solo | TFL | Sacks | Int | PD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 16 | vs.Penn State | L 13–30 | 5 | 3 | 0.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
2022 Illinois 7 games, 5 tackles, 3 INT
| Date | Opponent | Result | Tkl | Solo | TFL | Sacks | Int | PD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 27 | vs. Wyoming | W 38–6 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Sep 10 | vs. Virginia | W 24–3 | – | – | – | – | 1 | – |
| Oct 8 | vs. Iowa | W 9–6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Nov 5 | vs.Michigan State | L 15–23 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Nov 19 | atMichigan | L 17–19 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Nov 26 | atNorthwestern | W 41–3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Jan 2 ✦ | vs. Mississippi State | L 10–19 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
Box scores from CollegeFootballData, 2004 on. ✦ postseason; ★ a career high on file.
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