Bret Arnold Bielema (/ ˈ b iː l ə m ɑː /; born January 13, 1970) is an American football coach. He is the head football coach at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, a position he has held since the 2021 season.

Oct 30, 2024 · Minus two 5-7 seasons, Bielema has been more than respectable. Illinois clings to a 5-0 record at Memorial Stadium this season. It has three wins against then-ranked AP Top 25 teams (Kansas,...

Dec 28, 2024 · Bret Bielema, who replaced former coach Lovie Smith before the 2021 season began, has transformed his Illinois football program into a consistent winner. Illinois has met or exceeded the...

Mar 13, 2025 · Illinois began to turn heads this past fall with a 10-3 season capped by a Citrus Bowl win against South Carolina. A five-game improvement from 2023 for Bret Bielema's team is an excellent start,...

Oct 25, 2024 · Now in his 11th year as a head coach in the Big Ten, it has become clear that Bielema is the quintessential coach for the oldest conference in major college...

Bret Bielema was named as the 26th Fighting Illini Head Football Coach in the history of the program in December 2020. A native of Prophetstown, Illinois, Bielema has 30 years of collegiate and NFL coaching experience and compiled a 15-year record of 115-77 (.599) as head coach at Wisconsin, Arkansas, and Illinois.

Oct 21, 2023 · Bret Bielema hasn't coached a game for the Badgers since infamously leaving the program amid an 8-5 record — and before the team's Rose Bowl Game — to take over at Arkansas in...

Mar 6, 2025 · Illinois coach Bret Bielema has in recent days made several new additions to the Illini's coaching staff, some of whom are familiar faces or have previous ties to Bielema.

From 2006-12 Bielema was the head coach at Wisconsin, where he led the Badgers to three straight Big Ten championships (2010-12), six consecutive bowl games, and a 68-24 record (.739). Bielema then spent five seasons as head coach at Arkansas from 2013-17.

Mar 3, 2025 · That win was Illinois' 10th for the season, marking the program's first 10-win feat since 2001 (10-2) under the leadership of Ron Turner. Bielema's confidence shouldn't be mistaken as...