About this episode

The hosts discuss coaching changes in the Illinois athletic department and analyze reasons for optimism and concern regarding the 2026 Illinois football team.

Illini Inquirer's Jeremy Werner and Joey Wagner react to Illinois firing softball coach Tyra Perry and EIU athletic director Tom Michael re-joining the Illini athletic department as Josh Whitman's No. 2. The guys then break down their top reasons for optimism and top reasons for concern for the 2026 Illinois football team. SUPPORT OUR SPONSOR Columbia Street Roastery: Head to ⁠⁠CSRcoffee.com⁠ and use code IlliniAllTheWay to get 10 percent off your first order and get free shipping on orders of over $45. Tushy: If you’re not Team TUSHY, you’re not Team Clean. For a limited time, our listeners get 10% off their first bidet order when you use code ILLINI at checkout. That’s 10% off your first bidet order at HelloTUSHY.com with promo code ILLINI. Follow the Illini Inquirer Podcast on: Apple: https://apple.co/3oMt0NP Spotify: https://spoti.fi/2Xan2L8 Other: https://bit.ly/36gn7Ct Go VIP for just 50% OFF: https://tinyurl.com/2fkhmjdz To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

People in this episode

Hosts: Jeremy Werner, Joey Wagner

Topics covered

• Illinois football
• coaching changes
• 2026 season outlook
• optimism and concern
• athletic department news

Keywords

• Illinois football
• Tyra Perry
• Tom Michael
• Josh Whitman
• 2026 season
• optimism
• concern

Sponsors

Columbia Street Roastery, Tushy

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Illinois

Products: CSRcoffee.com, HelloTUSHY.com

More episodes of Illini Inquirer Podcast: An Illinois Fighting Illini athletics podcast

• Ep. 1169 - Adam Finkelstein on Keaton Wagler's NBA Draft stock, Illini basketball's highly-rated additions · May 7, 2026 · 37 min
• Ep. 1168 - Joe Henricksen on in-state recruiting importance for Illini hoops · May 6, 2026 · 39 min

Explore listener stats, chart rankings, contacts and more on the Illini Inquirer Podcast: An Illinois Fighting Illini athletics podcast podcast page.