PTO means something completely different to Illinois head coach Bret Bielema

The Illinois football program has built up into a contender over the last four or five years.

What happened to set everything in motion? The Illini hired Bret Bielema. I will be the first to say, I didn’t think this was a great hire at first. It kind of felt like this was just hiring a retread head coach, and it is all we could do.

I was dead wrong.

Bielema has been an incredible hire. He has brought all of the good parts of his coaching and personality with him and left all of the baggage in the past. Coming off a 10-win campaign, Bielema isn’t just resting on his laurels.

Illinois’ coaching staff continues to push the limits of the program to land big-time recruits. We have done a great job building out the class of 2026, and the class of 2027 has some big-time recruits who are prime targets for the coaching staff.

One of the huge recruits for 2027 is Cameron Wagner. He is a 6-foot-6, 300-pound offensive tackle from St. Joseph-Ogden High School in Illinois. Bielema has made Wagner one of Illinois’ top recruiting targets, and even when he is on vacation, the ball coach is still recruiting.

“Yes, Bret Bielema, he did call me while he was on vacation. Showed me his Cabo house, his morning coffee spot he showed me. That was a very nice view,” Wagner said in an interview with Carson Gourdie of WICS ABC 20.

Winning the Cameron Wagner sweepstakes will be tough for the Illinois football program

Bielema recruiting even while taking some paid time off is something that warms this Illinois fan’s heart. He is in this for the long haul, and it is appreciated that he continues the grind even while vacationing.

I like how Bielema is trying to build that relationship, too. Illinois has to find some type of angle, as we can’t offer the money that some of the top programs offer. Having a strong relationship and knowing that your kid is going to go to a program where the head coach cares is a great tool to have.

Wagner is not going to be an easy player to pull in either. He is a four-star recruit who is the No. 197 player in the class of 2027. He is also the No. 20 offensive tackle in the country and the No. 7 player coming out of Illinois.

Numerous big-time programs are after Wagner, including the likes of Ohio State, Penn State, Nebraska, and the biggest threat, Notre Dame. The Fighting Irish, I believe, are the leader in the clubhouse and are the team to beat in this recruitment. As long as Bielema keeps chipping away, maybe we can pull off the upset and snag this massive recruit.