Illinois football hiring Bret Bielema is home run for Fighting Illini

After firing Lovie Smith, Illinois football has hired Bret Bielema as the Illini’s new coach.

It was always an odd fit, so firing Lovie Smith with a 17-39 record over nearly five seasons (10-33 in the Big Ten) was a no-brainer for Illinois football. Saturday morning, according to Bruce Feldman of FOX Sports, Bret Bielema is set to become the next head coach of the Fighting Illini.

Bielema has worked as a defensive assistant for the New York Giants this season, with two years on the New England Patriots coaching staff before that. He has been a candidate for college jobs at Kansas in 2018,  Colorado and Michigan State last year and Southern Miss this year, so a return to that level has been inevitable.

Bielema spent five seasons as head coach at Arkansas (2013-2017), with a 29-34 record and an above .500 record in SEC play just once. But he was far more successful at Wisconsin. Over seven seasons as Badgers’ head coach (2006-2012), he had a 68-24 mark with three straight Big Ten titles culminating in a Rose Bowl berth each time to end his tenure.

Is Bret Bielema the ideal fit for Illinois?

Coming in as the Illini’s new coach is a homecoming for Bielema, a native of Prophetstown, Illinois. in a statement announcing his hiring, he cited his excitement to build the Illini program.

“Illinois and the Big Ten is home for me, and I can’t be any more excited about the opportunity in front of me with the Fighting Illini. We want to build a program that makes Illini Nation proud and regain the passion that I’ve seen when Illinois wins. … I look forward to re-connecting with the high school coaches around the state making it clear we intend to keep our players home.”

According to Feldman, Bielema’s deal with Illinois is for six years and will begin with an annual salary of $4.2 million.

As they’ve apparently been battling with him over his buyout payout, and stopping payments two years ago as they questioned his good-faith attempts to find another job, the University of Arkansas is certainly happy Bielema has found another head coaching job and will be paid well. It’s quite possible now, based on offset, that Arkansas has little or no further buyout money to pay. The context that Feldman added of Bielema’s deal at Illinois “beginning” with a $4.2 million annual salary is important to note there.

Bielema is a better fit in the Big Ten than anywhere else, and Illinois AD Josh Whitman has taken a second shot at a big-name hire for the football program. Time will tell if it works out better than Smith.

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