Illinois head coach Bret Bielema confirms teams staffing decision

In a move that many saw coming, Illinois head coach Bret Bielema has confirmed the firing of offensive coordinator Tony Petersen.

Petersen joined Bielema’s coaching staff this season and the offense struggled under his command. Illinois’ offense ranked No. 112 out of 130 FBS teams in yards per game with just 329.8 under Petersen this year. The team scored just 31 offensive touchdowns with 5.01 yards per play over the 12 games. To add a little perspective to that, Ohio State quarterback CJ Stroud, prior to his sixth touchdown performance in the Rose bowl, threw 38 touchdown passes. And running back Treveyon Henderson ended the season averaging 6.8 yards per rush.

Here is the Illinois headman’s statement on the move, courtesy of Jeremy Werner.

“After my evaluation of our 2021 season, I have decided to make a transition from offensive coordinator Tony Petersen. I would like to thank Tony for his work and commitment to our football program over the past year,” said Bielema.

Their best performance of the season came against Northwestern, the team with the second-worst record in the Big Ten. Coupled with that is the Fighting Illini missed bowl eligibility with a 5-7 record and a 4-5 Big Ten record.

2023 On300 linebacker Kaden Feagin has visit to Illinois this month

Arthur (Ill.) Arthur Senior four-star linebacker Kaden Feagin will visit Illinois, Iowa and Notre Dame over the course of January, according to Blue and Gold’s Mike Singer.

Feagin will visit the Fighting Illini on  January 14, the Hawkeyes on January 23 and the Fighting Irish on January 29.

He is the No. 165 overall recruit in the 2023 cycle, according to the On3 Consensus, a complete and equally weighted industry-generated average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies.

Only Rock Island (Ill.) Alleman four-star offensive tackle Charles Jagusah ranks ahead of him from the state of Illinois in the On3 Consensus.

On3 rates Kaden Feagin as a top-100 recruit in the country, slotting in at No. 81 in the 2023 On300 ranking. He is the sixth-best linebacker in the class behind Tampa (Fla.) Jesuit’s Troy Bowles, Denton (Texas) Ryan’s Anthony Hill, Many (La.) High’s Tackett Curtis, Tallahassee (Fla.) Lincoln’s Raylen Wilson and Baton Rouge (La.) University Lab’s Jaiden Ausberry.