CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — It may come as a surprise to most of the country that this Illinois football team is good. Like, pretty damn good.

But Bret Bielema isn’t shocked, and neither are his players.

They’ve built this thing, brick by brick. The ups and downs of the first few years of Bielema’s tenure here include two seasons that ended without postseason appearances but taught valuable lessons. And then, of course, there was last year’s historic 10-3 mark, which included a bowl win over an SEC opponent in fiery fashion. It was the first Illini season that ended with double-digit wins in nearly a quarter-century — a true breakthrough moment that set the stage for what’s to come.

“Illinois winning is new to everybody else,” Bielema told NBC Sports. “The newness of that is coming from the out

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