CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — At a press conference on Wednesday night, Illinois head coach Bret Bielema addressed his defensive coordinator opening, dropping hints to some major changes coming to the defensive side of the ball in 2026 along the way.
In terms of trying to predict who will be running the Illini’s defense next season, people have been going back and forth on whether it’d be a promotion from inside the Smith Center or if we’d be seeing a new face on the sidelines. Aaron Henry left the Illini last
week for an opportunity on Marcus Freeman’s staff at Notre Dame.
While he didn’t directly answer that question, Bielema made one thing abundantly clear: he’s looking for someone to call the plays and own that side of the ball.
“You can’t be the head coach and call it, in my opinion,” Bielema said. “I want to turn this over to somebody, so that I can literally do exactly what I’ve been doing offensively, and at times defensively… just let that person run it.”
One way he sees that being able to happen is if he switches to a new defensive scheme, something that he’ll be learning right alongside the new defensive coordinator.
When teasing that new scheme, Bielema offered little detail, building up some anticipation.
“I can’t announce until after the Super Bowl, but the intention of what I have in mind and where I’m going will play out next week,” Bielema said.
Later on in the press conference, the head coach built things up further, stating that it would be something brand new to the program.
“It will be different, probably than anything you’ve seen at Illinois,” Bielema said. “It’s a scheme and a package that I’ve been intrigued with, especially in the NFL.”
Since Bielema took over the program in 2021, lots of things have changed, with the defensive scheme seeming to be next in line.
In light of the program going through a big-time transformation over the past five seasons, the question was posed as to whether it’s gotten easier to hire at Illinois.
“To no exaggeration, I think I’ve had 50 different people reach out about the defensive coordinator job,” Bielema said.
Considering Illinois is coming off of arguably its best two-year stretch in program history, it shouldn’t come off as too much of a surprise that there are plenty of candidates trying to toss their hat in the ring for the DC job.
Nonetheless, as Bielema alluded to, the media and fans alike will be left waiting to see which candidate will emerge on top — at least for the next few days.
When it’s all said and done, the person in charge will certainly have Bielema’s vote of confidence, and it likely won’t be their first time running things on defense.
“[For a] defensive coordinator, I think a play-caller is good,” Bielema said. “Obviously, I wouldn’t turn this over to something I didn’t know and someone that didn’t know it well.”
