Illinois Football: What Will Fighting Illini Record Be in 2023?

Heading into its third season under coach Bret Bielema, the Illinois football program is aiming for its first Big Ten title in more than two decades. The team’s fans and Illinois sports betting backers will be hoping for continued progress from the Fighting Illini.

But what will the final record be for Illinois football in the 2023 season?

We at IllinoisBet.com speculated on that topic and here are the odds we came up with for each possible scenario:

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Illinois Projected Football Win Total Odds

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Last season, Illinois went 8-4 in the regular season before losing the ReliaQuest Bowl in Tampa, 19-10, against Mississippi State. The Fighting Illini were in contention for a division title, and their first trip to the Big Ten Championship Game, but a three-game losing streak in November derailed those hopes.

Still, 2022 marked the first winning season in Champaign since 2011 and ignited hopes that the program could capture its first conference title since 2001.

Leading receiver Isiah Williams (pictured above) returns after catching 82 passes for 715 yards and five touchdowns last season. And the defense is bringing back several starters from a unit that led the nation in fewest points allowed (12.8 per game) in 2022.

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Illinois Football 2023 Prospects

Customers using the BetMGM bonus code Illinois can get +5000 odds on the Fighting Illini to win the Big Ten Championship Game this season.

We project a 6-6 season, right at .500 and just barely bowl eligible, as the most likely outcome for Illinois in the 2023 season.

However, in a 12-game season and in a conference race as unpredictable as the Big Ten, there is wide variance in what’s possible for Illinois.

Right behind a 6-6 mark (for which we assigned odds of +300, or a 25% likelihood), IllinoisBet.com rates a 7-5 season as the second most likely outcome. That has +325 odds, or a 23.5% chance of happening.

At the lower end of the scale is a 5-7 mark, which would represent a major step backward for Illinois football after last season. We assigned +400 odds (20% chance) to that outcome. On the bright side, another 8-4 mark in the regular season (at +410 odds, or 19.6%) is almost as likely in our analysis as a 5-7 record.

Our most optimistic projection is for a 9-3 season, which might be enough to get Illinois to the B1G title game in Indianapolis in December. That has +700 odds (12.5). Any other outcome is rated at +900, or a 10% likelihood.

Stick with IllinoisBet.com for reviews of Illinois sports betting apps plus more football coverage as the season gets near.