Football

Bielema hints that players who were dealing with nagging injuries in preseason camp may be on a play snap count in Friday night’s season opener vs. Western Illinois.

By Matt Stevens - IlliniGuys Football Writer/Analyst

August 26, 2025

CHAMPAIGN — After he confirmed his star left tackle had returned to the practice field with full medical clearance, Illinois head coach Bret Bielema hinted that J.C. Davis may not be the only player on the roster being intently watched by this coaching staff.

As Bielema stated last week, the Illini head coach said Davis was given full medical clearance to return to practice on Saturday and was on the field for a Monday morning practice just four days before the No. 12 Illini host Western Illinois Friday night (6:30 p.m. CST, Peacock) at Memorial Stadium after being held out of most of the preseason training camp due to plantar fasciitis in his left foot.

"Today was his most reps by far," Bielema said. "He took all the team (reps) today and didn't have any issues.”

Illinois head coach Bret Bielema would rather not hear about historical disappointments following successful seasons and subsequent preseason hype.

By Matt Stevens - IlliniGuys Football Writer/Analyst

August 25, 2025

CHAMPAIGN — Yes, Bret Bielema knows the history of the football program he’s in charge of.

He understands Illinois will begin its 2025 season with a number by its name for the first time since 2008 after being ranked No. 12 in both the Associated Press and Coaches preseason polls. Bielema has been informed the last time Illinois began a season ranked in the preseason and finished a year ranked was 1990. Oh yes, he’s very well aware of all of this.

“I always go back to everything here seems to always go back to either 1990 or 2008 for whatever reason. I mean, every single stat known to mankind seems to go back to 1990 or 2008.”

Mike Cagley, Co-Host Sports Spectacular August 25, 2025 We […]

Pat Farrell came to Illinois in the 2022 recruiting class as a 235-pound outside linebacker but is now in the mix to start as a 280-pound defensive lineman in Bret Bielema’s developmental system.

By Matt Stevens - IlliniGuys Football Writer/Analyst

August 24, 2025

CHAMPAIGN — If there’s a representation of Illinois as a player developmental program, it may very well be Pat Farrell.

As a 235-pound stand-up rush linebacker, Farrell was recruited out of St. Rita High School in Chicago due to his high explosiveness and motor that led him to be named a 2022 All-Chicago Catholic League first-team selection. Farrell’s highlight tape constantly showed up laying players out with excruciating hits and running sideline-to-sideline to make chaotic plays in open space.

After two years in the Illini defensive system as an outside linebacker, Farrell transitioned his body to make the move into the positional room of his primary Chicagoland recruiter - Illinois defensive line coach Terrance Jamison.

The Illinois coaching staff continues to carefully deal with the plantar fasciitis of its projected All-Big Ten left tackle as the Illini transition out of preseason camp and into game preparation.

By Matt Stevens - IlliniGuys Football Writer/Analyst

August 23, 2025

CHAMPAIGN — Amongst the laundry list of injuries of Illinois offensive linemen throughout this preseason camp, JC Davis is the only one still on the inactive list of Illini head coach Bret Bielema.

In his final preseason media session Thursday afternoon, Bielema expressed Davis’ extended absence from action might be an intentionally ‘overly cautious’ move from the Illinois coaching staff to possibly prevent future damage to the preseason All-Big Ten left tackle.

August 21, 2025

(Cover photo courtesy Illinois Athletcs)

CHAMPAIGN — In his first four seasons as the head football coach at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Bret Bielema has declined to produce any form of a player depth chart. With more immediate avenues of player movement, Illinois coaches have taken a conservative route to making public where players stand in terms of playing time and roles on the 74-player travel roster. The good news is here at IlliniGuys.com, we don’t work for Bielema or anybody else in the university’s athletics department so Matt Stevens decided he would produce a very unofficial depth chart for fans to use (for whatever it is worth) for the upcoming Aug. 29 season opener against Western Illinois (6:30 p.m., Peacock). Bielema and the folks are very much still encouraged to break tradition and produce a season-opening depth chart to make this one and any other fans might have seen during this preseason camp basically irrelevant.

Offense
Quarterback
Luke Altmyer

Alexander Capka-Jones is looking to break out as a known commodity after not getting much attention as a high school player, junior college talent or even a returning member of this Illini roster.

By Matt Stevens - IlliniGuys Football Writer/Analyst

August 20, 2025

(Cover photo courtesy Illinois Athletics)

CHAMPAIGN — In his first media session of preseason camp, Illinois wide receiver Justin Stepp spoke for eight minutes and 38 seconds on Aug. 5 and the noteworthy item from that interview was not about what was said but the name that wasn’t mentioned.

Stepp never mentioned the name Alexander Capka-Jones. To be fair to the Illini’s second-year position coach, nobody asked him about Capka-Jones, a receiver who had just two receptions for 21 yards in 2024.

Less than 24 hours after Stepp’s media session, the same player was first in line as an outside receiver for individual drills during the media viewing portion of the Illini’s preseason. It was the same outside receiver who had been first in line the day before and likely would be first in line the next days going forward - No. 7 Alexander Capka-Jones. It is for that level of consistency in his work, among many other things,

Luke Altmyer is excited about being named a team captain on a 2025 Illinois squad that will be attempting to produce back-to-back 10-win seasons for the first time in program history.

By Matt Stevens - IlliniGuys Football Writer/Analyst

August 20, 2025

(Cover photo courtesy Illinois Athletics)

CHAMPAIGN — It may be possible that Luke Altmyer can sense any potential uneasiness amongst Illinois fans about whether their favorite team can have back-to-back successful football seasons for the first time in a generation.

When asked Tuesday by local media, what kind of captain he wants to be on the 2025 Illini squad after the quarterback was named one of six team leaders by a vote of his teammates, it’s more than telling the second descriptive word Altmyer came up with.

“Captains are leaders, visionaries, people who are not afraid of new territory like this team,” Altmyer said. “We’re facing a lot of new expectation, a lot of new waters. I mean, approaching it with the right attitude of a Christlike mindset, being tough, resilient and a lot of love and care. I’m excited for it. Love the opportunity that’s in front of us as a team.”

Illinois second-year talent Eddie Tuerk, a former four-star signee, admitted he was nervous to bring up a positional change to head coach Bret Bielema but all sides are hopeful the move is a win.

By Matt Stevens - IlliniGuys Football Writer/Analyst

August 19, 2025

(Cover photo courtesy Illinois Athletics)

CHAMPAIGN — Similarly to how the Illinois football coaches approach recruiting the transfer portal, offensive line coach Bart Miller lost his recruiting pitch on Eddie Tuerk but kept the relationship building for a potential second try.

The only difference, of course, Tuerk was on the Illini roster the entire time. Miller’s recruiting efforts eventually paid off as the former four-star signee by Rivals.com made the move that most recruiting analysts thought he’d begin at in college after being a dominant two-way player at in-state Lyons Township High School.

“I thought Eddie would be a fantastic guard in this program. I told him that in recruiting and I guess lost out on that recruiting battle early on,” Miller said. “I would see him on the (scout) team

After publicly stumping for a nationally unpopular 16-team College Football Playoff format in Las Vegas, Tony Petitti’s Big Ten office has reportedly leaked a 28-team format with more auto bids.

By Matt Stevens - IlliniGuys Football Writer/Analyst

August 19, 2025

Approximately a month ago Big Ten Conference commissioner Tony Petitti attempted to justify his league’s position centering on automatic bids and not at-large selections for a proposed 16-team College Football Playoff and a devaluing of the selection committee’s responsibility. As Petitti stood at the podium during the first day of Big Ten Football Media Days in Las Vegas, it became clear this position was owned by the Big Ten and only the Big Ten and that the position was/is nationally unpopular.

The response from the Big Ten personnel including Petitti, who was in Champaign-Urbana last week attending an Illinois preseason football practice where Big Ten Network was doing its preview show of the Illini’s 2025 season, was to reportedly leak a 28-team College Football Playoff format with more automatic bids than the previous 16-team format.

Illinois conducted its second preseason scrimmage of this month on Friday inside Memorial Stadium and Illini fifth-year head coach Bret Bielema, along with his coordinators, shared some details. 

By Matt Stevens - IlliniGuys Football Writer/Analyst

August 18, 2025

CHAMPAIGN — Illinois fifth-year head coach Bret Bielema called his team’s Friday night scrimmage session inside Memorial Stadium “very productive” and IlliniGuys.com thought we’d just quickly highlight some of the details he presented to local media on Monday afternoon. 

NOTE: It is important the reader understands the scrimmage was closed to all media and public on Friday night and so these summary details are all things Bielema said, but not personally verified by IlliniGuys.com, in his Monday afternoon media session. 

As we typically do with the preseason practice reports, let’s start with an injury report. The summary here is the Illini, especially up front, continue to be more and more healthy compared to the rash of nagging injuries that they experienced early in preseason camp. 

Bielema indicated the only player completely inactive for the scrimmage was preseason All-Big Ten left tackle JC Davis but Bielema did confirm Davis, who has been dealing with plantar fasciitis in his left foot, has been “out of the [walking] boot half of the day now”. When asked a follow-up question about Davis, Bielema said

The University of Illinois football team will have six captains for the upcoming 2025 season including two new leaders in quarterback Luke Altmyer and outside linebacker Gabe Jacas.

By Matt Stevens - IlliniGuys Football Writer/Analyst

August 16, 2025

CHAMPAIGN — The University of Illinois will have four returning and two new captains for the upcoming 2025 season.

Bret Bielema, the Illini’s fifth-year head coach, announced Friday the following six captains for the 2025 football season: tight end Tanner Arkin, center Josh Kreutz, linebacker Dylan Rosiek, defensive back Miles Scott will be leaders on this team for a second consecutive season and will be joined by quarterback Luke Altmyer and outside linebacker Gabe Jacas. Since taking the job before the 2021 season, Bielema has always done the captains selections with a vote of the players on the rosters during preseason camp practices.

By Kedric Prince - IlliniGuys Director of Recruiting

August 15, 2025

(Cover photo courtesy player's X page)

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – The class of 2026 has been good to Illinois football, bringing talent, depth, and potential. In the most recent On3 recruiting rankings, the Illini are listed at No. 25 nationally with 24 commitments.

This week, Illinois received more positive news when wide receiver Jabari Watkins, a 6-foot-2, 180-pound recruit from the class of 2027 from Thomasville, named his top nine schools. The list includes Illinois, Florida State, Georgia, Cal, Texas A&M, Georgia Tech, Missouri, Pittsburgh, and Nebraska.

With the Big Ten Network’s preseason camp stop being Wednesday, Illinois head coach Bret Bielema opened up the full two-hour practice session to the media. 

By Matt Stevens - IlliniGuys Football Writer/Analyst

August 13, 2025

(Cover photo courtesy Illinois Athletics)

CHAMPAIGN — Good afternoon and welcome to my favorite day of preseason camp practice for the Illinois program.

Today was the day the Big Ten Network analysts are invited into the Illini’s practice session for their camp preview edition (which is scheduled to air later tonight) and therefore, it is on this day when Illinois fifth-year head coach Bret Bielema allows local media to view the entire two-hour practice session. 

Illinois Training Camp Special Air Times - Big Ten Network

• Wednesday, Aug. 13 at 7 p.m. CT

• Wednesday, Aug. 13 at 8:30 p.m. CT

• Wednesday, Aug. 13 at 11 p.m. CT

• Thursday, Aug 14 at 3 a.m. CT

The Illini’s preseason nagging injuries are likely to be healed by long before the season opener on Aug. 29 against Western Illinois. 

Matt Stevens, IlliniGuys Staff Writer

August 12, 2025

CHAMPAIGN — When asked about the good news following the scrimmage inside Memorial Stadium, Bret Bielema responded in the way every head coach wants when they set up a preseason competition - no turnovers.