In the past half-century, the Illinois Fighting Illini have beaten the Michigan Wolverines at home just twice, in 1983 and 2009, entering today. Make it three, as the #21 Illini upset the #24 Wolverines 21-7 on Memorial Stadium’s 100th anniversary/Official Rededication game. It was the 77th sellout in the history of the historic stadium, and what a coincidence given how today honored Red Grange, whose #77 is one of just two retired by the Illini (more on why he was #77 later)
Illini coach Bret Bielema, prior to taking the job in 2021, spent three years in the NFL, two with the New England Patriots, where he worked directly under Bill Belichick, the head coaching G.O.A.T. The Illini BB, who won a Super Bowl (LIII in 2019) as the Patriots Defensive Line Coach, obviously learned a lot from the NFL BB.
“Bill is great,” said Patriots legend Julian Edelman, said in an exclusive with RG.org. “Bill addressed the team for 50 minutes every day in front and broke down football.
“You think he’s not going to be able to address the audience on how to break down football for the listener?
“It’s very different than how a lot of people do it, how a lot of head coaches do it.
“A lot of head coaches come in, you have a team meeting in the morning, it’s ‘Hoorah!,’ 10 minutes, you go offense and defense. Bill, for 15 minutes every morning, would break down the keys of the game, all three phases that he believed.
“Then you would go into your offense, defense and special teams meeting after that. He knows football.”
And Bielema knows winning football too, as the Illini run game put in a 1-8-7 on the Wolverines defense. I
They gained 187 yards rushing on 38 carries, good for a 4.9 yards per carry average. They did it with a balanced attack, as three different ball carriers has 48+ rushing yards.
And in keeping with the 1924 theme (at least from a box score perspective) the Illini star tight end, Tanner Arkin, had 36 rushing yards.
It all came on one play (arguably the most interesting play of the day) as he took a fake punt, from an up back position, and took tge ball inside the red zone to set up the game’s decisive TD.
As the final seconds ticked away, Illini fans joyously stormed the field, as their team pulled off a three point upset.
“We kind of reeled in the media, but the biggest ting is you have to capitalize on this moment,” Bielema said of all the added exposure that came with this game, which was the CBS showcase game in the headliner broadcast window.
“This builds for the future, a fan base that will help create home field advantage. We want to sell out this building as much as possible- That’s the goal. Those fans have earned it, they lived through the 24 years where there was no ranked versus ranked games here.”
Beating Michigan, the reigning national champions, was extra special for Bielema on multiple levels.
“You learn how to beat Michigan 365 days a year,” the Illini head coach continued.
“I think it was the lowest number of points Michigan has put up in 10 years.”
The win over the Wolverines clinched a bowl berth for the Illini, who now improve to 6-1, 3-1 in the Big Ten conference. And they did while wearing special Red Grange/1920s uniforms, with helmets made to look like they were leather.
It was a really cool sight to behold, as the Illini won at home, while ranked, over a ranked opponent, for the first time since 1991.
Bielema knows all the stats and numbers, facts and figures when it comes to Red Grange and the Illini-Michigan series.
“77 reasons to celebrate” he added.
Fun fact: Grange wore #77 simply because, he initially quit the program, and when someone convinced him to return, it was the only number remaining.
“To clinch a bowl game, against Michigan, while millions of people were watching- that’s a pretty live day right there,” Bielema concluded.
Paul M. Banks is the Founding Editor of The Sports Bank. He’s also the author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America,” and “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry.”
He currently contributes to USA Today’s NFL Wires Network and RG.org. His past bylines include the New York Daily News, Sports Illustrated and the Chicago Tribune. His work has been featured in numerous outlets, including the Wall Street Journal, Forbes, the Washington Post and ESPN. You can follow him on Linked In and Twitter.