David Olano kicked a 29-yard field goal as time expired, and Illinois beat Tennessee 30-28 Tuesday night in the Music City Bowl.
Illinois (9-4) posted the first back-to-back nine-win seasons in program history along with winning the first game between these programs. Coach Bret Bielema had alerted his Fighting Illini to where they stood before this bowl.
“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.”