Bret Bielema hired as Illinois head football coach

Bret Bielema is back in college football.

The former Arkansas and Wisconsin head coach has been hired at Illinois, the school announced on Saturday. Bielema, an Illinois native, has spent the past three seasons in the NFL, most recently as outside linebackers coach for the New York Giants.

“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,” Bielema said. “We want to build a program that makes Illini Nation proud and regain the passion that I’ve seen when Illinois wins. We want the young men playing football in the state of Illinois from Freeport to Cairo and from Quincy to Danville dreaming of wearing the Orange and Blue and playing at Memorial Stadium. I look forward to re-connecting with the high school coaches around the state making it clear we intend to keep our players home.

“We will build an outstanding staff for both player development and recruiting. The University of Illinois has incredible facilities and is known as one of the world’s outstanding academic institutions. We will hold the young men on our team responsible both on and off the field while coaching them to be champions in life. Jen and I, along with our girls, are excited to get to Champaign-Urbana and get started on the journey. Go Illini!”

The 50-year-old Bielema spent seven seasons at Wisconsin, going 68-24 with three straight Big Ten championships from 2010-12. He then jumped to Arkansas, posting a 29-34 record before being fired following a 4-8 finish in 2017.

Bielema replaces Lovie Smith, who was fired last weekend after going 17-39 in five seasons. The Illini haven’t finished with a winning record since 2011, when they went 7-6 and won the Fight Hunger Bowl.

“Bret Bielema is a proven winner. With three Big Ten championships to his credit, few coaches can match his familiarity with, and success within, the Big Ten Conference,” Illinois athletics director Josh Whitman said. “In our conversations, it became clear to me that he is a life-long learner who is continually looking to grow and improve, and he has enjoyed unrivaled mentorship from some of the game’s most distinguished coaches, including Hayden Fry, Kirk Ferentz, Bill Snyder, Barry Alvarez, and Bill Belichick — all of them current or future Hall of Famers.

“Importantly to me, Bret, a native of our great state, grew up an Illini fan and is committed to seeing the football program at our state’s flagship grow and prosper. Bret’s blue collar work ethic and genuine, authentic manner will allow him to form strong connections to his players and staff and positive relationships in our community and our state. These qualities, combined with his commitment to education and his track record of success, give me great confidence in his leadership of our football program.”

Bielema grew up in Prophetstown, Ill., and played college football at Iowa before joining Fry’s Hawkeyes staff as a graduate assistant and then transitioning to linebackers coach. He was defensive coordinator at Kansas State (2002-03) and Wisconsin (2004-05) before taking over as Badgers head coach when Barry Alvarez stepped down to become athletics director.

After leaving Arkansas, Bielema spent two years with the New England Patriots, first as a consultant and then as defensive line coach. He joined the Giants’ staff prior to the 2020 season.

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