#26
Mike Epstein
Illinois 2021 alumnus
Mike Epstein
Mike Epstein has been at Illinois through two head coaches in two seasons. One game to point at: 75 rush yds, 2 rec yds against Nebraska — Week 1, 2021.
Low coverage — composed from the verified record.
- head-coach lineage
- game log
How it ended
Three seasons at Illinois, 864 rushing yards — his college career is complete.
Career Arc
HS
Recruit
★★★
CFB
College
Illinois
NFL
NFL Draft
—
Coaching Lineage · 2017–2021
2 coachesCoaching transition mid-career: Lovie Smith → Bret Bielema. Worth noting in scheme + development context.
2025 snapshot
Season context · Team result + system
2017Illinois2-10HC: Lovie Smith · Balanced, slow tempo
2018Illinois4-8Run-heavy
2021Illinois5-7HC: Bret Bielema · Run-leaning
Splits & context
Supporting Cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Bret Bielema
Career stats
DNA match
Player DNA
Players who play like Mike Epstein
Development
Development Trajectory · rushing yards
2017–2021-69%
Sharp dropoff (-69%) — career inflection point.
Stats from CFBD · ESPN · fan discourse. Every figure computed from source tables — not invented. Methodology