#21
Bret Bielema — Illinois, December 2020
Illinois 2021–The post-Wisconsin Bielema return that took four years to compound — the 2024 Citrus Bowl winner and the Illini's strongest season since 2007.
Year-2: 8-5 · Year-4: 10-3 · '24 Citrus Bowl
Bielema's NFL coordinator detour ended in December 2020 with the Illinois job — the first Big Ten head-coaching hire since his Wisconsin departure in 2012. The first three years (5-7, 8-5, 5-7) were uneven; year four (10-3 with a Citrus Bowl win) was the breakthrough that this list ranks above the win-total average. The 2025 season is the consolidation test.
Cohort divergence
Stat-folks rank
#15
Casual-fans rank
#15
Read
consensus
Year-over-year
Prior edition rank: — \u00b7 Movement: ↑ NEW