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B1G Coaches Rankings: Where does Penn State Football’s James Franklin land?

By Lawrence Santa Maria

Michigan Wolverines head coach Jim Harbaugh (left) and Penn State Nittany Lions head coach James Franklin (Mandatory Credit: Rich Barnes-USA TODAY Sports)
Michigan Wolverines head coach Jim Harbaugh (left) and Penn State Nittany Lions head coach James Franklin (Mandatory Credit: Rich Barnes-USA TODAY Sports) /
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Defensive line coach Bret Bielema of the New England Patriots(Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images) /

13. Bret Bielema – Illinois Fighting Illini 

Lovie Smith is out as head coach in champagne as the Illini have moved on to a conference retread in Bret Bielema.

Bielema was once the head coach at Wisconsin and also served as an assistant at Iowa in his early years, so he knows the conference well but will have a tough task in turning the program around at Illinois.

He last coached college football in his five year stint at Arkansas where he went 29-34, 11-29 in the SEC. Arkansas is not exactly to the level of the blue bloods that reside in that conference, but it was an underwhelming few seasons, as Texas and Liberty bowl victories were the highlights.

This seemed like a job that would have been a good fit for a young, up and coming coach, so the hire of Beilema will certainly be something to keep an eye on.

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