Lovie Smith was hired by Illinois to make Fighting Illini football relevant again.
Illinois boasts a proud football tradition with names like Red Grange, Ray Nitschke and Dick Butkus, but hasn’t made an impression on the national stage in almost a decade.
The program has played in just three bowl games since a run to the 2008 Rose Bowl and has gone 20-41 over the last five seasons.
Illinois hired Smith last season to change the Illini’s fortunes. The Texas native, who coached the Chicago Bears to an appearance Super Bowl XLI, went 3-9 last season as he tried to rebuild the program’s roster.