The Illinois Fighting Illini program’s five-win increase from 2023 through last season was one of college football’s best turnaround stories, as they won 10 games and clinched their first bowl win since 2001.
In recent weeks, however, coach Bret Bielema has continued to have his team get undersold by the national media. Whether it’s Bielema ripping Chargers coach Jim Harbaugh for old salt in the proverbial wound from his Michigan years, getting excluded or ranked lower in way-too-early polls, or still stirring the pot regarding his in-game incident with South Carolina coach Shane Beamer that eventually led to the 21-17 win, the examples continue to add up.
The latest one, however, might be the funniest one yet. Monday, On3 released its way-too-early College Football Playoff pairings, wisely including the Illini alongside fellow Big Ten mainstays Oregon, Penn State, and defending national champion Ohio State.
Unfortunately, the well-known recruiting service had an all-time blunder when its social media team released its way-too-early top-25 coaches in college football next season. Bielema came in at No. 18, four spots below Kansas coach Lance Leipold, whom Illinois and Bielema defeated in an early-season matchup last September. This arrangement wasn’t the only puzzling issue with the post, however.
Bielema’s name was misspelled in the tweet and remained unfixed as of Wednesday night. Instead, the incorrect spelling reads “Beilema.”
Not only is the error one of the most glaring college football mistakes in recent memory, but it’s almost as if the sport has yet to accept, in some respects, that Illinois isn’t the program it once was.
It’s now winning consistently while competing against the best teams in the sport in front of national audiences, building a winning culture off the field, and snagging priority recruits from programs once viewed as untouchable.
Eventually, the college football community will understand that Illinois is better than most think.
“Illinois football right now is hopefully on the verge of doing something really special,” Bielema told KSDK Jan. 28.
It’s only a matter of when not if.
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