The Illinois head coach sat in awe at practice as the Chicago star’s "insane" arm talent rivaled the legendary playmakers Bielema mentored throughout his storied career.
Bret Bielema has been the head coach of the Illinois Fighting Illini for five seasons and is entering his sixth with the program.
His head-coaching stops in college include Wisconsin (2006-2012), Arkansas (2013-17), and now Illinois (2021-present). During that time, Bielema has coached quarterbacks such as Russell Wilson, Brandon Allen, Austin Allen, Tommy DeVito, and Luke Altmyer.
The most notable quarterback Bielema has coached is, without a doubt, Wilson, who played for Wisconsin for one season in 2011 after transferring from N.C. State. Wilson has had a successful NFL career, with 10 Pro Bowl selections and one Super Bowl win.
Bielema attended the Chicago Bears' practice last week. One of his former players, Josh Kreutz, the son of legendary Bears center Olin Kreutz, tried out for the Bears as an undrafted free agent.
The Illinois head coach couldn't believe what he saw from Bears quarterback Caleb Williams at practice. Bielema witnessed Williams' insane 60-yard throw to Rome Odunze on the run at OTAs.
Out of all the quarterbacks Bielema has been around, he was in awe of Williams' talent. On a recent appearance with 104.3 The Score, he talked about how special a player Williams is.
"You've got a quarterback, I'm telling you, I've been around a lot of quarterbacks. Russell Wilson, all these guys," Bielema said. "The arm talent of Caleb [Williams] is insane. He rolled out to his right and threw a ball down the field, and I just sat there and shook my head."
Bears fans know just how powerful their quarterback's arm is. We saw numerous times throughout the 2025 season the insane throws that Williams would make look routine.
Two that come to mind were both from the postseason.
There was the throw to Odunze against the Green Bay Packers, on 4th-and-8 late in the fourth quarter, that kept the game alive.
Without those late-game heroics, the Bears wouldn't have beaten the Packers 31-27 in the Wild Card.
Then, there was the heave he had versus the Los Angeles Rams in the next round.
Down 17-10 with under a minute to go, the Rams forced the Bears into a 4th-and-4 on the Los Angeles 14-yard line. Williams faced heavy pressure yet somehow got the pass off to Cole Kmet in the end zone to force overtime.
We could go on and on about the ridiculous throws that Williams has made just two years into his NFL career, but we don't have enough time in the world to do that.
Bielema is just now learning how impressive a quarterback Williams is, just like the rest of the NFL.
There are high expectations for this Bears team in 2026, and it's no wonder why, with the kind of player they have under center at quarterback.
For Bears fans, this is nothing new.
