'Under-the-radar' Big Ten game for Illinois, Bret Bielema could define season, per insider

With roughly seven weeks until the college football season gets underway, a much-talked-about Illinois football offseason will finally halt before the real work officially begins. 

Dubbed by some as "next year's Indiana," Illinois doesn't play a brutal schedule but does have a few notable games it must win to remain in the College Football Playoff and Big Ten title game discussion. According to Fox Sports' Joel Klatt, one of those is a Sep. 27 matchup with the USC Trojans. The game marks the first time both teams will meet as league members, but it also has major stakes for both sides, including Bielema's club.

"This is a sneaky, under-the-radar one," Klatt wrote.

Klatt said he is impressed with the Fighting Illini's sudden turnaround from 2023 through this past season. He is beginning to understand why they are a sleeper pick to do some major damage this fall.

"Illinois doesn’t have the talent to blow everyone out, but Bielema is building something very sustainable," Klatt said.

The notion of sustainability has been paramount since Bielema took over in 2021. Now it'll have to pay off come fall when it matters most, especially following the best season in his tenure thus far.

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Illinois opens with Western Illinois, whereas the USC Trojans welcome Missouri State to the West Coast.

Klatt says if the Illini were to win this game and build off a potential 4-0 start, anything is possible.

"Both teams could be 4-0 entering this game," Klatt wrote. "If Illinois wins this game, it’d likely be 5-0, with its game against Ohio State as its only difficult game remaining. That Ohio State game doesn’t look as daunting if Illinois handles business against USC."

Klatt could be right. After all, the Illini did protect their home-field advantage by wnning all but one game this past season to make Memorial Stadium a tough place to play.

Again, speaking in hypotheticals is challenging come July. But with many unknowns comes mass intrigue, which is what the Illini-USC matchup could potentially deliver upon.

Either way, the Illini continues to gain national relevance, something not seen in Champaign in over two decades.

If Klatt's predictions hold true, the Week 5 matchup is one to earmark.