A 6-6 season is likely not how Illinois players or fans pictured the Illini's 2011 season ending after the team started off 6-0, but the Illini did indeed finish with six straight losses, resulting in the firing of head coach Ron Zook. And while it was a disastrous end to the season in many respects, those first six wins mean that Illinois will still be going to a bowl in 2011, even if its currently without a head coach.
Scout's 2011 bowl prediction for the Illini has them heading out San Francisco to participate in the Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl. There, Scout predicts, the Illini would take on the UCLA Bruins, who would be 6-7 on the season and also likely minus its coach as well. Two teams with a combined record of 12-13 and without head coaches doesn't exactly sound like the most appetizing match up, but such is one of the downsides of the current bowl system.
For more updates on bowl projections, stay tuned to SB Nation Chicago. For more news and notes from around college football, visit SB Nation's college football news hub.