With Third Sellout on the Way, Can Illinois Hope for ESPN's 'College GameDay'?

Pretty impressive stuff for what college football fans had come to derisively call "a basketball school." But these are heady times in Champaign, and specifically at Memorial Stadium, with coach Bret Bielema at the helm.

It's one thing to sell out against the reigning national champion Buckeyes, but to do so against a MAC team in Western Michigan? Now, that's an achievement. And, according to Bielema himself, it might not be that long before Illinois' home matchup against USC on September 27 is sold out.

According to the Illinois athletics communications department, the Broncos game in Week 3 wlil represent the first sellout for the football program in 20 years. Even the student section and suite levels will be at full capacity. Amazing what one good season can do for a team. Now imagine if Illinois wins another 10 games – or more! – and a bowl game this season. Getting tickets in 2026 is going to be nearly impossible.

Excluding the 2020 COVID season, Illinois has increased its home ticket sales each of the past five years. Amazingly, no matter how the Illini perform on the field this season, 2025 should be the sixth. In fact, the program could set its single-game attendance record this year, especially if both Illinois and USC keep winning between now and their Sept. 27 showdown.

These things tend to have a knock-on affects. Imagine if the Illini are undefeated come Oct. 11 when the Buckeyes come to town. Yes, the game is already a sellout. And undoubtedly it will be jam-packed and spilling over with fans who don't have tickets but simply want to soak up the atmosphere. ESPN's "College GameDay" would have to host from Champaign that week, right? Since the program's inception in 1993, Illinois football has never hosted a "College GameDay" – but, hey, there's a first time for everything.

Example: Indiana played hosted to the show for the first time ever last year. Two years ago it was Duke. Why can't the Illini be next? If they can manage to go undefeated between now and Oct. 11, the party vibes around Champaign's football campus will surely be too bonkers for ESPN to ignore. We're getting a little ahead of ourselves, but that's what happens when you win 10 games for the first time in nearly 25 years.