Alabama hasn’t signed a high school recruit from the state of Illinois since 1997. That changed when Jahleel Billingsley sent in his letter of intent in December as a part of the Crimson Tide’s No. 1 class.

The 4-star tight end from Chicago -- Phillips Academy, to be exact -- cannot wait to enroll and move to Tuscaloosa later this month. And Alabama feels the same way about the 6-foot-4, 216-pound freshman.

“Coach (Jeff) Banks, he keeps me updated on what I should be doing as far as workouts,” Billingsley told BamaOnLine in an exclusive interview. “They give me stuff that I need to do just to be ready and prepared for when I get there.”

Billingsley said he will leave home on May 24 and will officially move in on May 27. The nation’s No. 11 tight end prospect, according to the industry-generated 247Sports Composite, is looking forward to getting an even better feel for a campus he grew to love during the recruiting process. That was one of the things about Alabama that stood out to the No. 3-ranked player in the state of Illinois.

“Just the vibe that I got on campus from the players,” Billingsley said. “Not just really the football things but just the all-around campus feel, I like how it is. It’s not closed off, but the campus will keep me away from a lot of stuff that I don’t need to be in.

“Just the way everything is set up, there’s no way that I can fail.”

Alabama tight end signee Jahleel Billingsley

Along with his desire to further explore his soon-to-be new home, Billingsley is thrilled to begin a new chapter of his life in order to continue to make his late grandmother proud. Ossie Mae Billingsley, a native of Selma, Ala., passed away in 2016 -- two years prior to her grandson committing to the Crimson Tide. But his grandmother is still a primary source of motivation for Jahleel.

“She’s motivation for me every day,” Billingsley said. “She’s the reason that I do everything that I do as far as football and just keeping myself on track. Any time I feel like I’m doing the wrong thing, I always think about her. She motivates me every day in everything that I do, whether it’s working out, at practice, whatever it is. In school, academics, she motivates me to do better.”

Billingsley helped lead Phillips Academy to the Class 5A state championship as a junior and the Class 6A state quarterfinals a year later. A multi-sport athlete who also participated in basketball for the Wildcats, the tight end chose Alabama over Auburn, Florida, LSU, Michigan and Ohio State.

He is one of 12 remaining signees that will join the Crimson Tide football program this summer, and he will have an opportunity to make an immediate impact as a true freshman at the tight end position -- one head coach Nick Saban said is “an area where we need some help” during the spring.

Alabama is tasked with replacing both Irv Smith Jr. and Hale Hentges this offseason, and Billingsley was the only tight end it signed in the 2019 cycle. Numbers at the position were low in the spring -- so low that linebacker Cameron Latu experimented at tight end and walk-on Giles Amos received meaningful reps in the three scrimmages. Plus, Kedrick James will miss the first four games.

The chance to contribute right away makes the summer enrollee eager to get on campus.

“For anybody, it should be exciting to know that if you go to Alabama you know that you’re going to make an immediate impact,” Billingsley said. “Of course, that’s a great feeling.”

Alabama tight end signee Jahleel Billingsley

Last season, Smith produced a record-breaking year at the tight end position, recording 710 receiving yards and seven touchdowns on 44 receptions. Smith’s accomplishments certainly excite Billingsley.

“It does a lot,” he said. “I’ve been told that I can come in and make an immediate impact and then watching what they were doing with Irv as far as how much they’re getting him the ball and spreading the ball around, that’s very exciting to me. Knowing that I’ll come and have the ball in my hands, as well.”

And he’s not alone. Redshirt junior Miller Forristall saw what his now-former teammates were able to do a year ago with Tua Tagovailoa behind center. That production pleases both new and returning players.

“Oh yeah, no one could have been happier for those guys than me,” Forristall said. “Kind of growing up here and being with Irv and Hale, maturing here, and seeing the success they had, that’s fantastic. … It works the same way with us and recruits. Recruits, say, ‘Man, I see this guy catching the ball. I want to go there.’ Or we see it and say, ‘Hey, that could be me. I get to catch a couple of balls.’ So, it’s super exciting.”

Even as a player with an opportunity to see the field immediately, Billingsley’s initial goals over the course of the upcoming summer and preseason camp are simple: “Just to be a good teammate to all my guys. That’s about it, really. Just to get better and work on my craft in being a tight end.”

But his goals for his freshman season are similar to the players already in Tuscaloosa.

“A national championship,” he said.

Contact Charlie Potter by 247Sports' personal messaging or on Twitter (@Charlie_Potter).

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