CHICAGO, Ill. (WAND) - Illinois football will experience plenty of change in the 2026 season. A large difference entering the fall campaign has been the new defensive scheme the Illini will exhibit under new Defensive Coordinator Bobby Hauck.
The 3-3-5 defense is an aggressive alignment which requires 3 defensive linemen, 3 linebackers, and 5 defensive backs. The formation is easily adaptable, which is the draw to head coach Bret Bielema to use the strategy.
"The biggest factor for me is I wanted to play a defense that players could come in and transfer into easily," Bielema said. "In Big Ten play, to prepare for an offense or defensive scheme in a work week is really really hard."
During Big Ten football Media Days, Bielema added that Illinois played a 3-3-5 strategy in 90% of their snaps in the 2025 season. However, the scheme as it will be played under Hauck's direction is "uniquely" different.Â
"When I got into the league, the defense we were running, there were about 2 to 3 teams that ran it," Bielema adds. "Last year at the end of the year there were about 12, you could say 13 teams, that ran a variation of our defense. More than anything else, we became a really routine prep and I wanted to have something a little more unique."
Despite the adjustments in learning various calls and roles, leaders on the defense say they like the challenge of a new system. Players like All-Big Ten defensive back, Matthew Bailey, say the responsibilities of each position don't change much.
"The biggest learning curve has been the transition in all the terms and the details of the scheme," Bailey says. "Defense is defense. Quarters is quarters, Cover 3 is Cover 3, Cover 2 is Cover 2. When it comes down to it, all of those communication terms or coverage terms are super important because they play a role in every game and every down."
In 2025, Illinois was in the middle-tier of the Big Ten in regard to overall defensive performance. The Illini ranked 12th in the conference in points allowed per game (23.6), surrendering an average of 218.4 yards passing (14th), and 126.5 yards rushing (9th) to opponents.
Under the new scheme, causing confusion and disguising intent is a priority that Bielema and Hauck hope will pay off over the course of the season.
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