Illinois’ roster is ready for the expectations

Illinois v Wisconsin6.5.

That’s the over/under for the Fighting Illini football team this season.

Vegas is only a lukewarm believer in what Josh Whitman and Bret Bielema have built for this season.

COLLEGE FOOTBALL: OCT 01 Illinois at WisconsinI mention Josh Whitman in the roster-building process because Illinois went to the wall to retain significant players through NIL. If the man in charge isn’t pulling the right levers, that NIL rocket never leaves the space station.

To the majority of people outside of the Illini bubble, 6.5 seems like a reasonable estimate. It looks like a program that has won 13 games in two seasons under Bret Bielema. It averages out his first two seasons and presumes a…