5 observations from the massive Illinois football win over Kansas

5. This was a defining game for Bret Bielema

Just a couple of days ago, I wrote an article that said Illinois is about to enter the biggest game of the Bret Bielema era. I wasn’t kidding when I wrote that article. It wasn’t hyperbole. Win or lose, this was the biggest game he’s coached at Illinois.

To dumb it down a bit, I saw this game as a contender or pretender contest. With a loss, Illinois football will continue being a pretender under the Bielema regime. Could we win a few games and get to a bowl game some seasons? Sure, but we would never be taken seriously.

With a win, though, everything would change. The Bielema era could turn a corner and this would be a serious program for the first time in a very, very long time.

The latter happened on Saturday. Illinois came out and managed to beat No. 19 Kansas. Instead of being 1-1 and only beating Eastern Illinois, the Illini are now 2-0 with a top 20 victory.

When Monday rolls around, Illinois is going to at least get some votes to be in the AP Top 25 as well. Not only does this win look good now, but who knows, the top 12 teams in the country get into the College Football Playoff. By beating Kansas, the possibilities are endless now.

But this win was more than just those hopes and dreams. This win was defining for Illinois as a program and Bielema as a coach. No one took the Illini seriously before this win. But now we are on the map. The same could be said for Bielema.

No one took Bielema seriously before this win over Kansas. He was a coach who flamed out at Arkansas, and he has multiple meme pictures online. But now he is knocking off top 20 programs and has Illinois as a potential top 25 team in the near future.

This was the biggest win of the Bielema era. Illinois looked good in a huge game. The future is so bright for the Orange and Blue. Also, let’s keep the helmets.