Illinois football has six games left to salvage its 2026 season, and the Fighting Illini will use their bye week to regroup after a chaotic start to the year.
Despite entering the break at 3-3, Illinois still has a chance to reach bowl eligibility. According to FanDuel, the big question is whether the Illini can still pull off at least two more wins and secure five on the season.
Illinois regular-season win total odds (according to FanDuel)
- Over 4.5 wins: +128
- Under 4.5 wins: -164
The odds favor Illinois finishing with four wins or fewer, which would mean just one win in the season’s final six games.
But if you take the over at +128, a $100 wager would return $228, but that would mean Illinois wins at least two of its remaining six games.
Can Illinois get to five wins?
The Illini enter the bye week with a 3-3 record after a thrilling 38-37 overtime victory over Michigan State on Saturday. The win snapped a two-game losing streak and gave Bret Bielema’s team some much-needed momentum heading into the second half of the season — and some questions about who should be starting at quarterback (*clears throat* Michael Clayton).
Illinois’ remaining schedule won’t make the path to bowl eligibility easy. The Illini return to action Oct. 24 against Oregon (who hasn’t looked that impressive) before traveling to Maryland (maybe the league’s worst team) on Oct. 31. They then host Nebraska on Nov. 6, travel to UCLA on Nov. 13 and welcome Iowa on Nov. 21 before closing the regular season against Northwestern in new Ryan Field.
Oregon presents a difficult challenge, but the Maryland (and maybe Northwestern) could provide opportunities to secure another victory. Nebraska, Iowa and UCLA won’t be easy, but maybe the Illini find their ways in the second half, especially on defense.
So, over or under?
Illinois needs just two wins in its final six games to surpass the 4.5-win total. It feels doable, but it’s just been such a topsy-turvy first half of the season that I don’t really know what to believe about this team.
The under is the betting favorite for a reason, but at +128, it might be worth it took take the over and think Illinois can find a way to win more games.
