Illinitalk

• Pass defense. I've said this before, and although there were still plenty of immediate hits on receivers, Christensen had too many completions, often for 3rd down conversions. Like Donovan of Wisconsin, we are allowing QBs way too much time to find an open man.
• Punting. It's nerve-wracking. Let's make this a primary focus of the class of 2008, ok Ron?
• The defense that allowed Indiana to move easily down the field but often kept the Hoosiers out of the end zone showed up again today. Iowa moved easily, and their lack of faith in the kicking game helped the Illini significantly. Field goals instead of going for it on 4th down would have made the game look quite different.
• Killer instinct. That's what seemed to be lacking when the offense failed to score a touchdown with 1st-and-goal inside the 5. And, when the defense allowed a 22-yard pass completion on 3rd-and-18. But this takes time to develop, and these Illini are still learning how to win.
• Turnovers. We've improved quite a bit, but although we only turned the ball over twice, both were costly. Juice fumbled in the middle of what looked like a long, promising drive, and McGee's interception was a heartbreaker (and a game-ender).

However, this team is miles ahead of where I expected them to be at the beginning of the season. I hate that of all teams, we lost to Iowa, but although this loss was disappointing, there are still positives:

• Benn is amazing. He didn't get the ball as much as I would have liked to see, but he changes games. The first man does not bring him down, and he doesn't give up. Note the attitude this kid takes on the field. It's not much of a stretch to see how he could be sold on being the catalyst to turn an entire program around.
• Despite the mistakes and penalties, the Illini were very much in the game with under 2 minutes left and the ball. And I believed they had a chance to win. That would not have been the case, even last year when our losses were competitive.
• Field goal kicking. Does anyone remember Reda's last trip to Iowa City? I do. He's from Rock Island, Ill., just an hour from Iowa City, and in front of a large group of family and friends, he had a miserable game. Today, he confidently hit a 46-yarder. And I expect 3 points when he's on the field, which wasn't the case a couple years ago.

At the beginning of the season, I figured Illinois would be about 3-4, at this point and would have to relearn how to win as they headed back to Champaign for Michigan and Ball State before having a legitimate shot at winning a road game in Minneapolis. Instead, we are 5-2, and although 6-1 would be wonderful, we should be bowl eligible by the end of the month. I was afraid that we would need to beat Northwestern to get to 6 wins. I hoped we would get one surprise win at home. We got two -- against ranked opponents (although I still maintain that this year's rankings are meaningless). Of course I want more, but we've come a long way, and these boys deserve a lot of credit for what they've accomplished.

Next week will be a tough game, as Michigan seems to have recovered from it's rough start and is undefeated in the Big Ten. But it should be exciting. We have a good, improving team. Michigan has proven to be vulnerable. It's a night game in Champaign. As long as the refs that did the 2000 game are far, far away, Illinois has a good chance at winning that one.

Labels: Illini football

# posted by Alma Mater : 4:25 PM