After almost 13 years, the Fighting Illini have managed to reach 4-0, thanks to a 31-24 overtime win that left football fans on the edge of their seats. Head coach Bret Bielema, however, remained unfazed, despite having the plan to wrap it all up before the fourth quarter.
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The team was able to tie the game once in the third quarter. But a 1-yard pass from Dylan Raiola to Janiran Bonner put Nebraska back in the lead in the final quarter.
Subsequently, Bielema’s team quickly drove 75 yards over 9 plays and scored a touchdown, tying the game. For the last ten minutes, both teams failed to tally a score, sending the game into overtime.
Bielema initially thought that his offense would be able to wear down the Nebraska defense by the fourth quarter — gaining an advantage over the opponents, and possibly winning the game. But the Cornhuskers managed to hold their own, and the Illini had to fight hard to tie the score.
This effort rightly impressed the head coach, so much so that he didn’t mind going to overtime. He was quoted as saying:
“We did think if we could turn this into a four-quarter game that would play to our advantage. I didn’t script it to go to overtime, but I wasn’t mad when it did.”
Former NFL assistant coach Bielema has been leading the successful Illinois program since 2021. Currently, the team is leading the Big 10 rankings riding on their win streak after beating a top-ranked Cornhuskers team.
At the end of the post-game presser, the coach credited the fan-filled Memorial Stadium for lifting the Fighting Illini squad. And they did so by creating an atmosphere that every team dreads in a road game.
‘They’re very intelligent fans’ – Bielema showers praise on the home crowd
Throughout the hotly anticipated bout, Memorial Stadium buzzed with screams, cheers, and chants. Bielema even revealed during the interview that his ears were ringing. But it certainly gave the Fighting Illini an edge.
Most in the audience knew when to cheer for their players, when to be loud, and when to calm down. Bielema first encountered this crowd on the road while working as a graduate assistant at Iowa. Since then, nothing has changed.
“My freaking ears were blaring. We blasted those guys pretty hard… This is a very intelligent crowd. They know when to be loud; third downs, red area, backed up..”
With 400 consecutive sold-out games in the team’s home stadium, it’s clear that the Illini have one of the strongest fan bases among all top college teams. And now, after Coach Bielema’s testimony, they have the smartest crowd of them all.
