Illini head coach Bret Bielema signs new 6-year contract
Illinois Fighting Illini head coach Bret Bielema looks on during the college football game between the Iowa Hawkeyes and the Illinois Fighting Illini on October 7, 2022, at Memorial Stadium in Champaign, Illinois. (Photo by Michael Allio/Icon Sportsw
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - University of Illinois head coach Bret Bielema signed a new six-year contract Thursday after leading the Illini to an 8-4 regular season.
Bielema, who was a George Munger National Coach of the Year semifinalist, is 13-11 since taking the helm two seasons ago.
The Illini will play in ReliaQuest Bowl on Jan. 2 against Mississippi State University in Tampa, Florida, the program's biggest bowl game appearance since the 2008 Rose Bowl.
"In his first two years as head coach of the Fighting Illini, Bret Bielema has led a resurgence of Illinois Football that had our team competing for a place in the Big Ten Championship Game and playing in a New Year's Day bowl game," Illini Athletic Director Josh Whitman said in a statement. "He has assembled an exceptional staff, developed the existing players on our roster, and recruited talented student-athletes to join our program. He has worked tirelessly, with an eye for detail and tremendous competitive urgency, to set a new standard of excellence for Fighting Illini Football."
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The contract is pending approval from the University of Illinois Board of Trustees at its meeting in January.
The Illini boast the Power 5's leading rusher, Chase Brown, and one of the stingiest defenses in the nation. The unit ranked second in scoring defense and third in total defense.
Kickoff is set for 11 a.m. for the ReliaQuest Bowl.