New Illinois football coach Bret Bielema wants to establish a winning culture in hie new surroundings. Part of that process entails getting players with winning traditions in their background.

That’s where Georgia transfer Prather Hudson comes in. Hudson started his four-year career in Athens as a preferred walk-on, playing primarily on special teams.

“I had other offers to play at smaller colleges, but I wanted to see if I could play on the biggest stage and not regret a decision not to go to Georgia and instead go somewhere else,” Hudson said.

Hudson eventually got a scholarship and played in a league that is one of the strongest in all of college football. Some connections led Hudson to Illinois.

He played one year at Georgia with current Illini tight end Luke Ford, who at one time was committed to play for Bielema at Arkansas. After Bielema’s ouster in Fayetteville, Ford signed with Georgia then eventually transferred to Illinois. Hudson credits conversations his parents had with Ford’s parents as a catalyst in his decision.

“My parents had several conversations with Luke’s parents, and they told them about the culture at Illinois including the family atmosphere, the tailgating and the overall experience of fans clad in Orange and Blue cheering on the Illini. That really hit home with me,” Hudson said.

His decision didn’t come easy, but while in the portal he liked what he was hearing about the newly hired Bielema. Then a chat with a former teammate turned Illini staffer got the ball rolling and eventually the deal was sealed, with recruiting director Pat Embleton playing the role as the middleman.

“Carson Hall, whom I played with (at Georgia), is now a staff member at Illinois,” Hudson said. “After he passed my information onto Pat and then to coach Bielema, I pretty much knew that was where I wanted to go.”

One look at Hudson’s background and you would not envision that Illinois would even be a candidate for him to be at, something he admits to as well.

“If you would have told me that I’d be at Georgia first, then Illinois, I would have said that you were crazy,” Hudson said. “I grew up an Auburn fan, my mom is from Tuscaloosa, Alabama, and my dad went to Auburn, so Illinois was not on the radar for me, much less Georgia at first.

Hudson realizes that his size may not be that of some of the four and five-star athletes that play major college football, but that didn’t stop him from wanting to walk on at Georgia, who perennially are players in the national championship picture, and it certainly doesn’t stop him now that he’s at Illinois.

“I’ve always had this inner drive in being a very competitive person and if you aren’t willing to step out of your comfort zone, you’ll never see your true potential and you’ll just end up cheating yourself,” Hudson said.

Where Hudson sees himself fitting in on this Illinois team has several layers, as he explains how he expects to be used.

“I certainly don’t want to give up the special teams aspect of my game, because I think that is a ticket to get to the next level,” he said. “I’ll come in to Illinois as a safety, but I’m open to being a running back. Really anything that I can do to help the team win.

Bielema had a similar personal story as Hudson, and the new Illini coach believes Hudson will fit well in the culture he’s trying to establish in Champaign.

“Prather and I have a similar story as we both started as walk-ons and were awarded scholarships fairly quickly,” Bielema said. “He started 53 straight games for Georgia on special teams and played on the biggest stage that there is, the College Football Playoff.

“When we look for guys in the transfer portal, I want them to have something other than just talent. Their character, work ethic and demeanor are very important as well, and he displays that too.”