On Saturday, Brad Underwood became the third-oldest head coach to debut in the Final Four. At 62 years old, if he’s going to lead the Illini back after their disappointing 71-62 loss to UConn at Lucas Oil Stadium, it’ll have to be relatively soon. At least sooner than 21 years.
21 years is how long it’s been since the Illini made the Final Four in 2005 with Luther Head, Dee Brown, and Deron Williams. Since then, Illinois missed the tournament nine times and before this year, only made it beyond the first weekend in three of their 10 trips.
The standard in Champaign undeniably fell, but now that Underwood, in his ninth year at the helm, has finally reestablished with this run to the national semifinal, he doesn’t plan on letting it slip.
“We got Illinois back to the level where we’re in Final Fours again. As long as I’m a ball coach, we better not take 21 damn years to get back,” Underwood told the assembled media in Indianapolis on Saturday night. “I feel sad. I’m sad. If you want to know the truth, I’m sad."
Brad Underwood: "We got Illinois back to the level where we’re in Final Fours again. As long as I’m a ball coach, we better not take 21 years damn years to get back. ... I feel sad. I’m sad. If you want to know the truth, I’m sad."
— Chris Emma (@CEmma670) April 5, 2026
Brad Underwood has reset Illinois’s standard
Underwood admitted that two years ago, when UConn trounced the Illini in the Elite Eight, he thought he had a Final Four team. This year, he felt his team was good enough to win it all. Even though they came up short, he has the mindset you need to eventually break through.
“We just have to keep knocking on the door,” Underwood reiterated one of his familiar tropes after the loss.
While it may be cliche, it’s the right attitude. It’s a single-elimination tournament with a massively random element. His team, one of the biggest in the country, seemingly couldn’t make a layup on Saturday night with countless misses at the rim. That isn’t necessarily coachable for a team that made those shots all season, it’s just the tournament. All you can do is get back with a team good enough to contend late into the tournament.
This season felt magical for Illinois fans because it hasn’t happened in such a long time. Underwood isn’t content with one magical run, he wants the Final Four to be the expectation when his team takes the floor each fall, and that’s exactly what every fanbase should want to hear.