When national media comes after Illinois' Bret Bielema, be prepared to hear about it publicly, as ESPN's Adam Rittenberg ...

Shane Beamer and Bret Bielema shake hands after Illinois beats South Carolina in the Cheez-It Citrus Bowl. Quint Kessenich ...

Illinois coach Bret Bielema arguably had too much fun during Monday's pep rally ahead of its New Year's Eve Citrus Bowl game ...

Maybe the only positive thing about Illinois coach Bret Bielema's arrogance different from his five years at Arkansas at least he's winning now. He still acts exactly like he's won a national ...

That was it — Illinois had a 10-win football team for the first time since 2001, a bowl win for the first time since 2011 and ...

But try telling South Carolina head coach Shane Beamer and Illinois boss Bret Bielema that ... assistant coach from 2004 to '06, Bielema was head coach at Arkansas from 2013-17, and was 1-4 ...

First-year coaches last season were a mixed bag. Bret Bielema (Arkansas) and Mark Stoops (Kentucky) went a combined 0-16 in the SEC. Butch Jones had some success at Tennessee, but still finished 5-7.

The SEC has a shot at winning the first 12-team College Football Playoff and its 14th national title in 19 years.