Illinitalk

• As hard as it is to admit it, Mizzou has a great team. This really could be their year. After watching Chase Daniel, Jeremy Maclin (hope he's ok for the rest of the season, although I didn't miss him at the end of the game) and company, they have the talent to hang out in the top 5 much of the season, and make a legitimate run at the Big 12 title and even the National Championship.
• That said, their defense did give up 42 points to the Illini. Yes, that last TD didn't mean much, but that's still a lot of points.
• Juice has an arm, as we've known since he got to campus. But his accuracy and his wide receivers have both improved considerably. With 5 TD passes, Juice proved he can make spectacular plays happen -- but with that ability comes the chance for painful interceptions, which we observed Saturday, as well.
• The Illini wide receivers will be fun to watch this year. They are quick, and they know how to get past defenders. It's hard to miss wide open guys, and the Illini have enough weapons, starting with Regis Benn, that they will be hard to defend. After all, the Tiger defense will probably look better later this year than they did this weekend.
• The option just doesn't look the same without Rashard Mendenhall in the backfield. Daniel Dufrene has potential, but it will take him a few games to settle in as the primary back. And to be honest, Juice's pitches seemed tentative no matter who they were going to.
• On defense, the Illini are missing the leadership they had last year. As the season goes on, I expect improvement, and not all the O-lines in the Big Ten will be as strong as Mizzou's, but the missed tackles were hard to watch.
• Pass defense had some great knockdowns and a key interception to prevent an early score.

Overall, the game wasn't as close as hoped, but the Illini did make a legitimate comeback in the late 3rd and early 4th quarters, and the Tigers had reason to get nervous. Unfortunately, the tired D couldn't hold Daniels. But after tackling a really good team, the Illini should be able to gain confidence with Eastern Illinois and Lousiana-Lafayette the next two weeks.

Go Illini!

Labels: Illini football

# posted by Alma Mater : 8:46 PM