Brett Bielema is already racking up the wins. This time, they’re coming from within the program.

Illinois football got good news on Sunday with four-year starter Vederian Lowe announcing that he will return for another year with program. The Illini’s starting left tackle gives Bielema a big boost as he looks to rebuild the program. He’s made 40 career starts.

The former Wisconsin (and Arkansas) head coach took over the Illini earlier this month. His trademark has always been a big, nasty offensive line.

To date, Bielema has done an outstanding job of retaining the offensive line, giving him a core to build around and also time to restock the Illini with talent.

Starting offensive linemen Doug Kramer and Alex Palczewski, both of whom had options to pursue the NFL or transfer elsewhere, announced several days ago that they will be returning for one final season with the program. Kramer has made 37 career starts while Palczewski set a program record with 40 consecutive starts.

The return of Lowe means that Illinois now has three starters on the offensive line who each have four years of starting experience.