While coaching at Wisconsin from 2006-12, Bret Bielema was known for a powerful run game.

The Badgers were a top-15 rushing offense in Bielema’s last 4 years in Madison. In 3 of those 4 years, he had a rusher finish 2nd in the Big Ten in rushing yards.

Will he run a similar system now that he’s at Illinois? It’s hard to say.

“The part that people automatically jump to is hey, this is what he did in the past,” Bielema said shortly after he was hired. “As coaches, we all evolve. I was a head coach for 12 years and witnessed some good things at the programs I was at, but you gotta be aware in college football, it always evolves through the rules and the way society evolves in general.”

The Fighting Illini’s running back corps ranked 3rd in the Big Ten last season with 196.1 yards per game, and 2 of their top rushers — Chase Brown and Mike Epstein — are returning this year. Bielema also added one more weapon to the room in Chase Hayden, whom he coached at Arkansas in 2017.

So what exactly does Bielema have to work with in his first season at Champaign?

Chase Brown, redshirt sophomore

Last year’s leading rusher, Brown ran for 67.5 yards per contest over Illinois’ 8-game season, which ranked 9th in the conference. After playing in just 4 games the year before, the London, Ontario, native surged to an All-Big Ten third-team nomination in 2020 and a PFF Preseason All-Big Ten honorable mention in 2021.

Brown can build off last year’s breakout season, and it sounds like he’ll have plenty of chances to do so.

“I’m excited to be a part of this new offense,” Brown said, according to IlliniInquirer.com. “There’s no secret that we’re going to run the ball a lot. I’m going to take pride in making sure I’m at my peak physically and mentally when fall comes around.”

Mike Epstein, senior

Epstein averaged 52.4 yards per game in 7 contests last year, which ranked 3rd on the team. The 5th-year senior has dealt with multiple injuries throughout his time in Champaign, and Bielema wasn’t sure he’d have the chance to coach the 2020 All-Big Ten honorable mention.

“January, February, March, I was told because of his situation injury-wise that he wouldn’t be back with us,” Bielema said, according to IlliniInquirer.com. “He went and had a surgery, did what he had to. … I told him coming in he was going to be at the same level of every incoming freshman or transfer player. There’s a number of running backs in spring ball who did a lot of really good things. He’ll start behind them. He’s got to go through a certain protocol to get on the field with the medical people first.”

Epstein ranks 36th in program history in total rushing yards, and although he might have to work his way up the depth chart again, he still can be a valuable weapon.

Chase Hayden, junior

Last year’s 2nd-leading rusher, redshirt freshman Isaiah Williams, is making the full-time move to wide receiver. But Bielema filled the void by landing East Carolina transfer Chase Hayden, who played for Bielema at Arkansas in 2017.

Bielema had high praise for Hayden this week.

“I literally thought his freshman year was one of the more impressive freshman years of a back,” Bielma said, according to IlliniInquirer.com. “I’ve had a lot of really good backs. … I just kind of go down that list and I realize I’ve been around some really special running backs. I thought about halfway through Chase’s freshman year, he could have been one of the more significant ones I had.”

In their lone season together, Hayden rushed for 46.6 yards per game for a Razorbacks team that finished 3-9 before Bielema was fired at season’s end. Now, they’re reunited — and Hayden’s familiarity with Bielema’s running game is an advantage as he transitions to the Big Ten.

He said he thinks the scheme for the running game will be a “group effort,” which isn’t necessarily a bad thing considering Illinois has had one 1,000-yard rusher in the last 10 years. Hayden’s perspective is one of the only hints we’ve gotten about the offensive scheme, though.

What will the running game look like?

Bielema has kept practices pretty well under wraps. No public access. The media can only watch 15 minutes. The players don’t talk much about the scheme in interviews.

And the coach sounds like he enjoys the grand illusion.

“The great thing is we are an unknown to the world of college football, especially our opponent,” Bielema said Aug. 2.

Considering Illinois starts the season with a conference matchup against Nebraska in Week Zero, it’s understandable why Bielema doesn’t want much getting out of practice early on. So many questions.

We’ll start getting answers on Saturday.