![]() | The topic of this article may not meet Wikipedia's notability guideline for biographies .(June 2025) |
Illinois Fighting Illini–No. 85 | |
---|---|
Position | Tight end |
Class | ![]() |
Personal information | |
Born: | Kenosha, Wisconsin, U.S. | July 7, 2003
Height | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) |
Weight | 265 lb (120 kg) |
Career history | |
College |
|
High school | Fossil Ridge (Fort Collins, Colorado) |
Tanner Arkin (born July 7, 2003) is an American football tight end for the Illinois Fighting Illini of the Big Ten Conference. He previously played for the Colorado State Rams.
Arkin was born in Kenosha, Wisconsin, but his family moved to Fort Collins, Colorado when he was a child. [1] He began playing football at a young age and, as a freshman in high school, was named captain of his team. During his sophomore year, he began playing on varsity, primarily as an outside linebacker instead of his preferred position, tight end. [2] [3] Before his junior season, he sustained a broken collarbone which sidelined him for the season. [4] Finally, during his senior season, Arkin sustained a broken fibula during his second game, but continued to play for the remainder of the season. [1] He was considered a two-star prospect coming out of high school and, on May 12, 2020, Arkin committed to play college football for the Colorado State Rams. [5] [6]
In his first season at Colorado State, Arkin backed-up Trey McBride. [7] He appeared in three games and took a redshirt for the season. [8] The following season, he was named to the Preseason All-Mountain West list and appeared in every game for the Rams. [7] [9]
On December 14, 2022, Arkin transferred to Illinois. [6] [10] [11] In his first season at Illinois, he appeared in every game with three starts. [12] Prior to his redshirt junior season, he was named a team captain. [13] [14] [15]
Legend | |
---|---|
Bold | Career high |
Season | GP | Receiving | |||||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Rec | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | |||||||||||||||
Colorado State Rams | |||||||||||||||||||
2021 | 3 | 1 | 9 | 9.0 | 9 | 0 | |||||||||||||
2022 | 12 | 14 | 116 | 8.3 | 26 | 0 | |||||||||||||
Illinois Fighting Illini | |||||||||||||||||||
2023 | 12 | 1 | 1 | 1.0 | 1 | 1 | |||||||||||||
2024 | 13 | 16 | 111 | 6.9 | 16 | 3 | |||||||||||||
Career | 40 | 32 | 237 | 7.4 | 26 | 4 |
Arkin is the son of Grady and Veronica Arkin. [8] He has one brother, Owen, and a sister, Carmen. [12] Arkin graduated from the University of Illinois in May 2025 with a degree in Kinesiology. [12]