Jul. 3—***

I’ve been writing for weeks that I think Illinois is capable of a run at the College Football Playoff in 2025.

Oliver Hodgkinson and the nice folks at Pro Football Sports Network apparently agree with me.

Using their College Football Playoff Predictor, they simulated the entire Big Ten season, providing standings, final records and game=by-game results.

The detail is amazing a great way to spend some time on a slow July afternoon.

Of course, if you are reading this daily column, your interest starts with Bret Bielema’s team. The simulation is kind to Illinois, projecting a 10-2 overall record, 8-1 Big Ten record and third-place league finish.

It also puts Illinois in the CFP along with Big Ten title game qualifiers Oregon and Penn State. Minnesota is listed as a potential surprise team.

Mu projection would have Illinois fourth behind Ohio State, Penn State and Oregon, but this model has Ohio State finishing fourth in the Big Ten at 7-2.

My favorite part of the project is the game-by-game predictions. Here are the Illinois results:

Illinois 33, Indiana 14

Illinois 30, Southern California 17

Illinois 37, Purdue 23

Illinois 23, Ohio State 13

Illinois 32, Washington 19

Illinois 23, Rutgers 15

Maryland 40, Illinois 23

Illinois 30, Northwestern 13.

No predictions for the nonconference games were made, but it must have picked Duke against Illinois on Sept. 6.

Obviously, the two buzz-worthy picks are Illinois’ home win against Ohio State and the home loss to Maryland. Mike Locksley’s Terrapins are picked to finish 6-6.

My guess is Bielema would be thrilled with another 10-win season and happy to take his chances in a wide-open CFP. At 10-2, Illinois would likely host a first-round CFP game. Cool.