There is no universe where Underwood’s seat is anything approaching warm. He walked into a literal dumpster fire and gave Illinois its first conference title since 2005 just a few years later. His response to losing a key player (Miller) and literally all of his assistants in the offseason was to fill out a new staff with excellent replacements, bring in an instant impact transfer in Plummer and emerge out of a CRAZY season from an injury/illness/Kofi suspension perspective with a top 4 seed and a Big Ten title. Illini fans love him, period, and he appears to have good recruiting momentum once again.
It’s easy to say “Illinois still hasn’t made the Sweet Sixteen,” but upsets happen. No Tourney in 2020 (would have been a 4 seed or 5 seed, I’m guessing), an upset in 2021 (same exact loss happened to defending champ Baylor this year) and lost to a very good (underseeded) Houston team in the Second Round this year. Illini fans are just happy our program is once again regularly near the top of the league. Thinking back to all the first weekend losses guys like Self, Coach K, Izzo, etc. have had, it seems apparent that the best way to advance far in the NCAAT is to just keep getting back there with the highest seed you can! Lol.
