Illinois Football Week 10 Bowl Projection

Saturday’s 42–25 loss to Washington almost certainly put an end to any faint College Football Playoff hopes for Illinois. The Illini entered Seattle looking to make a statement — instead, they left with their second straight loss and a growing list of defensive concerns.

Still, at 5–3, there’s plenty left to play for. With Rutgers, Maryland, Wisconsin, and Northwestern remaining, Illinois can still fight its way into prominent bowl conversations. The question now is whether Bret Bielema can steer this veteran squad back on course, following some shots to their confidence.

On paper, this is an experienced, battle-tested team built to rebound — led by a true leader at the quarterback position in Luke Altmyer. However, paper doesn’t win football games, and until the Illini find answers on defense, confidence in this group will remain shaky. The past two weeks have exposed cracks that experience alone can’t fix, and time to tighten things up is running thin.

If Illinois can rediscover its early-season form and close strong against four very beatable opponents, a 9-win finish — and a marquee bowl berth — is still on the table. That said, if the recent trend continues, the Illini could be staring at a much more modest postseason path. Here’s where ESPN’s latest projections have Illinois landing following the Illini’s Week 9 loss.

Illinois Football Helmet. Illinois Football vs Washington. Photo Credit: Illini Football on Instagram (@Illinifootball).

Latest Bowl Projections For Illinois Football, Per ESPN

The most recent postseason projections from ESPN’s Kyle Bonagura and Mark Schlabach suggest confidence that the Illini can notch 3–4 more wins to finish 9–3, or at worst, 8–4. With plenty of football still to be played, a big home test against Greg Schiano and Rutgers could be the ideal stage to turn the season around and position themselves for a notable bowl.

Take care of business over the next month, and Illinois could be heading to one of these bowl games…

Music City Bowl: Illinois vs. Auburn (Dec 31st – 5:30 PM, ESPN)

ReliaQuest Bowl: Illinois vs. Missouri (Dec 31st – Noon, ESPN)

Cheez-It Citrus Bowl: Illinois vs. Vanderbilt (Dec 31st – 3 PM, ABC)

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