Several years ago, at the annual Nike-sponsored college football coaches trip in Hawaii, Bret Bielema met a heartwarming surprise. He bumped into Penn State and Pittsburgh Steelers legend Franco Harris, who was in Hawaii visiting Sue Paterno, who occasionally still attends the event that she had with her late husband, former Penn State coach Joe Paterno. Bielema couldn’t help but smile at the moment.
“I was like, whoa, that’s the sign of a program,” the Illinois coach said this week. “Huge respect for that. That’s pretty cool.”
Bielema, Illinois’ fourth-year head coach, has plenty of Penn State stories liked that, cultivated from a 30-year coaching career that uses Beaver Stadium as a touchstone. From the “fighters” game in 2012 to his Illinois hiring in 2020 to nine overtimes in 2021, Bielema has a fascinating relationship with Penn State and Beaver Stadium. So this week, he added to it…