Thompson knew Illinois would be the right fit for his new football home after a conversation with coach Bret Bielema ...

The college football world readily acknowledges how the Illinois Fighting Illini surprised the nation. Now, can Bret Bielema live up to the hype in 2025? Or will they fade away into Big Ten obscurity?

It's early, but Illinois' class ranks No. 6 nationally and includes two blue-chippers among the eight commitments.

Illinois head coach Bret Bielema, center, celebrates with defensive backs Tyler Strain (20) and Matthew Bailey (7) after ...

Joel Klatt has a prediction for who may be the next SMU and crash the College Football Playoff party during the 2025 season.

The Fighting Illini coach didn't call out the recruit by name, but Bielema watched Dunlap's Mack Sutter play basketball ...

When Bielema took over at Arkansas, he accepted the job knowing there was a mess to clean up in the wake of Bobby Petrino’s ...

As Nebraska slowly builds its next class, a Citrus Bowl imbroglio helped Bret Bielema and Illinois break out on the 2026 ...

The Fighting Illini's Bret Bielema is the latest college football head coach to visit Dunlap's Mack Sutter this month.

Bob Asmussen is a college football reporter and columnist for The News-Gazette. He can be reached at 217-393-8248 or asmussen ...

Illinois football coach Bret Bielema on Sunday met with local media for the first time since the Citrus Bowl to update the Illini's offseason, which has included 11 transfer additions and a big ...

LINCOLN — Despite not impacting the College Football Playoff one bit, Illinois coach Bret Bielema stole the bowl season and set his team up for 2025 with one stroll across the field. His Illini ...