Bob Asmussen | Captain's chairs

CHAMPAIGN — How many players does it to take to lead a football team? At Illinois, the magic number appears to be six.

For the third time in his four years as the Illinois coach, Bret Bielema has six captains. (There were four the other year).

Not that Bielema picked them.

That job was left to the players, which gave the nods to tight end Tanner Arkin, wide receiver Pat Bryant, linebackers Seth Coleman and Dylan Rosiek, offensive lineman Josh Kreutz and defensive back Miles Scott.

They follow 2023 captains Isaiah Adams, Tarique Barnes, Johnny Newton, Keith Randolph Jr., Tip Reiman and Isaiah Williams.

Bielema talked about the 2024 captains and the process during a Thursday press conference at the Smith Center.

The players were informed of the results Wednesday night.

“Some teams take different approaches,” he said. “We’ve always been player-selected.”

Offensive players vote for offense and defense. Defense votes for defense, but also gets a crossover vote.

“We really have everything,” Bielema said. “First time in my career, we have four guys with remaining eligibility after this year (in Arkin, Kreutz, Rosiek and Scott), so four underclassmen captains. I think in college football, it’s kind of the way it is.”

Bielema gave the players a heads up about the captain vote a week before it happened.

“I said, ‘It’s not a popularity contest. It’s not the best player. It’s not the oldest player. It’s about who represents who we are and what we are,’” Bielema said.

On the offensive side, Kreutz “had by far the most votes,” Bielema said of his center.

“He’s a guy who ran away with it,” Bielema said. “He has great presence, great awareness. I’m really, really excited to have him in that role. His growth from a year ago to this year is very, very apparent.”

Bryant, who follows Williams and Casey Washington as the leader of the receivers, was another obvious choice.

Five of the six captains have spent their entire career at Illinois, leaving Arkin as the lone transfer in the group.

He started his career at Colorado State before transferring in 2023.

“He goes about his business,” Bielema said.

Rosiek, the Illini’s leading tackler last season, received the most votes on defense.

“A guy who plays every snap like it’s his last,” Bielema said.

Rosiek was named to the Butkus Award watch list on Wednesday.

Coleman is one of the few remaining players recruited by Lovie Smith’s staff and is starting his sixth season of college football.

“He transitioned to a really good player for us,” Bielema said.

Rise to the occasion

Entering his 16th year as a head coach, Bielema has experienced many different reactions to players being named captain.

“I’ve seen both worlds,” Bielema said. “Guys who weren’t expecting to be captain, were voted and it raised them to a different level. Or guys that were expecting to be captain and weren’t and it raised them to another level as well because they feel they’ve got more to prove.

“It’s always neat to see their reactions.”

Clearly, being named captain is a big deal. Not just at Illinois, but on every team at every level. Hard to imagine anyone ever turning down the honor.

Illinois has been picking captains since the program started. No surprise, Red Grange was a captain. So was Dick Butkus. They now have statues and are considered two of the greatest in the game.

Most of the names you think should be on the Illinois captain list are: quarterbacks Kurt Kittner, Juice Williams and Nathan Scheelhaase, linebackers Dana Howard, J Leman and Kevin Hardy, running backs Robert Holcombe, Rashard Mendenhall and Pierre Thomas and the team’s new radio analysts, Carey Davis and Kevin Mitchell.

Yes, it is a big, big deal.

Good first impression

Players don’t need to be Illinois lifers to be considered for captain.

Bielema pointed to a handful of transfers who received significant support.

After Arkin, Bryant and Kreutz, the top vote-getters on offense were transfer quarterback Luke Altmyer, non-transfer Aidan Laughery and junior college transfer Zy Crisler.

On defense, right behind Coleman, Rosiek and Scott was lineman TeRah Edwards, who started his career at Northwestern. He was followed by Florida State transfer Dennis Briggs.

“When I see Tanner Arkin, I don’t think of him as a transfer,” Bielema said. “TeRah, there’s nobody in my opinion, who’s had as big a jump from a year ago to where we are right now than TeRah Edwards.”

Having a roster full of transfers is the new normal.

“We’ll be sitting in a meeting and I’m like, ‘What year is he?’” Bielema said. “I say it all the time.”