The CFP Era · 2014–present

Illinois

Twelve seasons in three acts · Big Ten

65–80Record
44.8%Win %
0National titles
2022Peak season
47Avg. percentile
22NFL draftees

The three-act trajectory

Within-season power percentile against the FBS cohort, season by season.

FOUNDINGTRANSITIONEXPANSION0255075100141516171819202122232425Peak of the era2022 · 8–5Steepest fall2023
Source CFB Zeitgeist · power ratings
Founding2014–2020

The four-team Playoff era. The bracket is small, the margin for error none.

28–54 · avg percentile 33
Transition2021–2023

The last seasons before expansion — NIL arrives, the portal opens, the four-team format ends.

18–19 · avg percentile 63
Expansion2024–present

The twelve-team Playoff. A wider field changes what a season has to prove.

19–7 · avg percentile 71

Defining games

Coaches of the era

Tim Beckman2014–2014
Bill Cubit2015–2015
Lovie Smith2016–2017
Rod Smith2020–2020
Bret Bielema2021–2025

Roster of the era

22 players drafted into the NFL across the CFP era.

315
116
118
220
321
422
423
124
325

Entering Year 13

The 2026 season opens the next chapter of the expansion era under Bret Bielema. See the 2014–2025 program page →