4-star QB Trae Taylor's Illinois snub sparks outrage among fans: "Did he not just watch the NFL draft and what happened to Shedeur" 

Trae Taylor, a four-star quarterback in the Class of 2027, made headlines on Thursday for his actions during his announcement ceremony, earning the ire of Illinois fans.

Taylor snubbed Bret Bielema's program during the event at Carmel Catholic High School (Illinois). He sorted through the hats of different programs on the table, put on the Illinois hat, tossed it aside and revealed his Nebraska jersey.

247Sports shared the clip on X.

"The moment that 4-star QB Trae Taylor announced his commitment to Nebraska," the tweet read.

Fans expressed their displeasure with his actions. One compared Taylor to Coach Prime's son, Shedeur Sanders, who entered the 2025 NFL draft and was projected to be picked in the first round, but was selected in the fifth by the Cleveland Browns at No. 144.

"Did he not just watch the NFL draft and what happened to Shedeur for being arrogant and disrespectful to the teams who put a lot of effort into him," one commented.

Others expressed similar reactions.

Illinois fans are shambles," a fan said.

Illinois fans crying," another fan commented.

However, some showed concern about the Illinois fans' outrage.

"The fact that most of their fans wishing injuries on him shows that..it's crazy work," one fan wrote.

"People too soft these days. @TraeTaylor4 have fun. That's what it's all about. We use to do the same thing back in the day," one fan said.

"Everyone knew you were going to Nebraska anyways buddy. Stay classy," a fan tweeted.

While some pondered on the need to put on a show rather than just making a simple announcement.

"Knew he was headed to Lincoln but not sure why the home state disrespect was needed…just weird," a fan said.

"Not the way I want to be perceived:" Trae Taylor issues apology video after Illinois snub

Trae Taylor received major backlash after he tossed the Illinois hat. His action was perceived as disrespecting the program and its coaching staff, who offered Taylor and hoped to get him onboard with his commitment.

However, Taylor picked Nebraska over Illinois, and Fighting Illini quarterback Luke Altmyer commented, "(corn) ball, no pun intended" after his snub. The post has been deleted, but it captured the raw angst Illinois fans had against Taylor.

Taylor released an apology video on X on Friday, saying "the moment got to him a little bit," and he does not wish to be perceived in that light. He apologized for his behavior and is grateful for all the support he has received.

"I want to start this video off with saying thank you for all the support I have gotten today," Taylor said. "But, I did want to film this video to apologise to Illini Nation, throwing a hat away at it during my commitment is not the way that I wanted to be perceived, and you know, I know that was very disrespectful and really just want to get out here, say that's not who I am.

"That's not the way, you know, I want to be known as. The moment got to me a little bit and I just wanna say sorry...I'm very grateful for all the support that Illini Nation has brought to me and the coaching staff."

Taylor is the No. 4 prospect in Illinois, the No. 7 quarterback in the Class of 2027 and the No. 66 prospect nationally, according to 247Sports.