NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Illinois coach Bret Bielema had a bit of a history lesson the night before the Music City Bowl on just what his Fighting Illini could accomplish with one more win.
David Olano kicked a 29-yard field goal as time expired, and Illinois beat Tennessee 30-28 Tuesday night to finish 9-4. The Fighting Illini also posted the first back-to-back nine-win seasons in program history along with winning the first game between these programs.
''We don't have to read about other years anymore," Bielema said. ''I think people usually either read about history or write history, and this group's writing history and I think we'll continue to do that.''
Olano's winning kick was his third field goal of the game. Luke Altmyer threw for 196 yards and a touchdown and ran for another score. Leon Lowery Jr. recovered a fumble in the end zone for a touchdown, and Illinois had four sacks.
Tennessee (8-5) finishes the season having lost two straight held to a season-low 278 yards total offense. The Vols also missed out on a fourth straight season with at least nine wins.
''Obviously everybody's disappointed, but this has got to be something that you take with you through the offseason and probably use this as motivation and give us a chance to get better and get stronger," Tennessee coach Josh Heupel said. "And we'll be back ready to roll in '26, I promise you that.''
The Fighting Illini helped the Big Ten stay undefeated this bowl season, improving to 6-0. The Southeastern Conference dropped to 2-5 with this loss.
Tennessee trailed by as many as 10 points twice and took a 28-27 lead when Joakim Dodson returned a kickoff 94 yards for a touchdown with 4:58 left. It was the freshman's first kickoff return of his career.
