2021 Football Roster
Jersey Number 35
Jake Hansen
- Position:
- LB
- Class:
- Senior
- Height:
- 6-1
- Weight:
- 235
- Hometown:
- Tarpon Springs, Fla.
- High School:
- East Lake
Career Notes
- Three-time team captain
- 12 career forced fumbles are second-most in program history, behind only Illinois legend Simeon Rice (13)
- 12 career forced fumbles are tied for the sixth-most in Big Ten history
- Finished his Illini career with 276 tackles, 28.5 TFLs, seven forced fumbles, seven fumble recoveries, six PBUs, and three interceptions
- Led the nation in takeaways over the span of two season with 14 from 2019-20
- Led the team in tackles in 2018 and 2020
- Eight career double-digit tackle performances
- Led the team in tackles eight times in his career
- One of two Big Ten players since 2000 with two games of 10-plus tackles and two forced fumbles in the same season (2019), joining Chris Borland from Wisconsin who accomplished the feat in 2011 and was coached by Bret Bielema
- 2021-22 Illinois Athletics Spirit Award winner
Career Highlights
2021 Senior
- Team captain
- Illinois Athletics Spirit Award winner, which is given annually to the male and female student-athletes who best exemplify the spirit, courage, effort, and dedication of the Fighting Illini
- Academic All-Big Ten
- Announced Oct. 20 that he underwent knee surgery and missed the remainder of the season
- 32 tackles, 2.5 TFLs, 1.0 sack, one fumble recovery, and two forced fumbles in six games played
- Tied for the team lead with two forced fumbles
- Recorded a team-high 12 combined tackles including 1.0 sacks against Maryland 9/17/21
- Two forced fumbles including six combined tackles and 0.5 TFLs against Virginia 9/11/21
- Phil Steele Preseason All-American fourth team
- Phil Steele Preseason All-Big Ten first team
- Athlon Preseason All-Big Ten second team
- PFF Preseason All-Big Ten third team
2020 Senior
- All-Big Ten second team (media)
- All-Big Ten third team (coaches)
- Team captain
- #3 tackling grade in the nation according to PFF (90.8)
- Hansen Big Ten rankings in 2020: #5 in TFLs, #8 in forced fumbles, #10 in fumble recoveries, #10 in tackles, #12 in interceptions
- Four straight games with a forced fumble, fumble recovery or interception
- 68 tackles, 10.0 TFLs, 2.5 sacks, two forced fumbles, two fumble recoveries, two interceptions on the season
- Matched career high and lead the team with 15 tackles at Rutgers 11/14/20, along with a sack, one interception, and one pass breakup.
- Top-graded linebacker in Power-5 the week of Nov. 13/14 by PFF (81.3)
- 14 tackles, two TFLs, forced fumble and fumble recovery against Purdue 10/31/20
- Phil Steele Preseason All-Big Ten second team
- Athlon Preseason All-Big Ten third team
- Bednarik Award watch list
- Butkus Award watch list
- Nagurski Award watch list
2019 Junior
- Played and started nine games at linebacker
- Butkus Award Semifinalist
- Team captain
- Missed the final four games with an injury
- All Big-Ten honorable mention (coaches)
- All-Big Ten honorable mention (media)
- 72 tackles, 7.5 TFLs, 3.5 sacks, one interception, seven forced fumbles, three fumble recoveries on the season
- Led the nation in forced fumbles (7) and forced fumbles per game (0.78)
- Ranked sixth in the nation in fumbles recovered (3)
- No. 17 graded linebacker in the nation by PFF and No. 5 in the Big Ten (79.6)
- Walter Camp National Defensive Player of the Week and Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week after two forced fumbles vs. No. 6 Wisconsin 10/19/19 to help Illinois win 24-23 and complete one of the biggest upsets in Big Ten History
- PFF Big Ten Team of the Week after Akron game 8/31/19
- Seven tackles, a forced fumble and an interception in season opener vs. Akron, 8/31/19
- First career interception in season opener against Akron 8/31/19
2018 Sophomore
- Started all 12 games at linebacker
- 95 tackles, 8.5 TFLs, 1.0 sack, one PBU, one forced fumble, one fumble recovery, one QB hurry on season
- Tied for the Illinois lead in tackles (95) and led Illinois in solo tackles (48)
- Second on the team in TFLs (8.5)
- First career forced fumble against Minnesota 11/3/18
- First career sack at Maryland 10/27/18
- First career PBU at Rutgers 10/6/18
- Illinois single-game record-tying 6.0 TFLs in the season opener against Kent State 9/1/18
- The 6.0 TFLs against Kent State 9/1/18 tied for the seventh-most in Big Ten history
- Game-high and career-high 15 tackles (10 solo) against Kent State 9/1/18
- PFF National Team of the Week and Big Ten Co-Defensive Player of the Week after 15 tackle, 6.0 TFL performance vs. Kent State.
- Won team’s Bruce Capel Award for courage
2017 Sophomore
- Did not play in 2017 after suffering season-ending injury during training camp
2016 Freshman
- Played in all 12 games, primarily on special teams, with one start at linebacker
- Eight tackles and one QB hurry on the season
- First career start vs. Minnesota
- Two tackles against Minnesota and Northwestern
- QB hurry at Northwestern
High School
- Three-star recruit by Scout
- Ranked among the top 100 O LBs nationally by Scout (No. 99)
- Ranked among the top 100 inside linebackers nationally by ESPN.com (No. 60) and 247Sports (No. 98)
- Totaled 103 tackles (75 solo) and 2.0 sacks as a senior
- Class 7A Associated Press All-State second team in 2015
- Also played basketball and ran track and field in high school
- Honor roll student (4.3 GPA)
Personal
- Born June 19, 1998
- Son of Shad and Lori Hansen
- Has two younger siblings, Lane (brother) and Jessie (sister)
- Father, Shad Hansen, played football at BYU from 1989-92 and is the school’s all-time leading tackler (408)
- Graduated with a degree in kinesiology
- Graduated with a master's degree in recreation, sport, and tourism in December 2021
Illinois Football | Bret Bielema Press Conference 3/5/26
Thursday, March 05
Illinois Football | Bobby Hauck Introductory Press Conference 2/12/26
Thursday, February 12
Illinois Football | Bret Bielema Press Conference 2/4/26
Thursday, February 05
Illinois Football | Xavier Scott Return Announcement Press Conference Press Conference 1/21/26
Wednesday, January 21
