Penn State coach Bill O’Brien

The Illini football season has been rather up and down so far, and now that we are launching into conference play, it’s time to put the past behind us. The Illini have suffered a couple of ugly losses, but now we can start anew as we welcome the first B1G Ten team to Memorial Stadium this year.

Obviously, Penn State had a much more difficult off season than Illinois. All we had to deal with was a new coach. As expected, Penn State had some trouble at the start of the football season. They’ve lost about 13 players so far (one of which – Ryan Nowicki – is actually now an Illini, but hasn’t played yet this season), but in the last few games they’ve come back together and won two in a row.

Penn State started off with a home loss against Ohio, and then on the road at Virginia. Since then, they’ve beaten Navy and Temple at home. Now Bill O’Brien has to pack the guys up and head back out on the road to Champaign. At the same time, Illinois needs to brush off the pain of giving up 52 points to Louisiana Tech last week.

Both teams have had a shaky start, but both teams have the potential to turn the season around. However, unlike Penn State, Illinois is actually allowed to play in the post-season.

On the plus side, the Illini defense will get a much-needed boost with the return of Supo Sanni and Steve Hull. This means for the first time all season the Illini will be playing with both starting safeties on the field. That’s not going to fix everything, but it will be a boost emotionally if nothing else.

Right now, Illinois is slightly favored to win, but they were also picked to beat Louisiana Tech. This weekend is a slightly different story, because Coach Tim Beckman is going to know a little bit more about what to expect. It’s also a nice way to ease into conference play.

Last year, Illinois barely lost at Beaver Stadium 10-7 when Derek Dimke uncharacteristically missed a last-second field goal attempt. Penn State got the win, which turned out to be the last win ever for head coach Joe Paterno.

Every time the football season begins, I start off with high hopes and anxious expectations. It’s a nice clean slate where anything can happen. Then, as the games begin reality sets in, and my bubble slowly starts to burst. Clearly this team isn’t as special as I would always like to see, a Bowl game is by no means out of the question.

Last week I gave the guys a pass and mentioned did say that the game against Louisiana Tech wasn’t a must-win situation. This week I’m changing my tune, because we need to start getting those wins that are actual possibilities. The season is only going to get harder as we get deeper into conference play, which means we can’t let a beatable (and beaten down) Penn State team slip past us at home. And, maybe being under a little pressure will go well for the Illini under Coach Beckman.

This week’s game marks the 20th meeting between the Fighting Illini and the Nittany Lions. PSU holds a 15-4 overall series advantage and a 7-3 edge in Champaign.

This is also the last game of the season that I will have to miss, as I will be lost in the Poconos with what sounds like zero cell phone reception. So either I’ll be dancing around with my phone add odd angles to see if I can get a bar, or I’ll be driving out to one right after the wedding ends.

The game will be air at 11AM Central on ESPN.

Deep sigh. Walk around the room a few times and do everything possible to avoid truly analyzing what went wrong last night.

On the bright side, Illinois held the Louisiana Tech (LT) Bulldogs to just 52 points, when the Bulldogs managed to score 53 on their other two opponents of the season. It turns out everyone was right to be worried, as the Illini lost 52-24.

Shrug, deep breath, and then accept it: this is the season that we’re going to have. I suppose this is better than the buildup that comes from winning 6 in a row, only to face 6 more losses to finish off the season. But still, 52 points? Ouch. The defense seems to have taken just a few too many hits with players heading off to the NFL, and it seems they’re not quite what they used to be. Last week, they shut out Charleston Southern, but that was obviously a completely different ballgame.

Starting QB Nathan Scheelhaase is healthy again after missing two games, and started for Illinois last night. We fired first with a Scheelhaase pass to Ryan Lankford, but then the Bulldogs had three touchdowns in a row. Illinois got back into it before halftime, and the score was a reasonable 21-17, LT going into the half. Nothing to worry about, right?

In the second, sadly Illinois couldn’t score until backup QB Riley O’Toole rushed for a TD in the fourth, but that was after LT continued to score again and again… and again. That last TD just made the final score of 52-24 slightly less embarrassing.

LT QB Colby Cameron was 15-22 and passed for 284 yards, with 4 TDS. Scheelhaase on the other hand was 8-11 and threw for 85 yards. He had 1 TD and 1 interception. Since Scheelhaase had trouble getting the job done, we also tried out O’Toole and Miles Osei. O’Toole threw for 120 yards and had the 1 rushing TD, while Osei really didn’t do much to talk about.

I feel like for the longest time we could always count on the defense, but it looks like now we need to give that a second glance. The offense worked last week with 44 yards, and even managed 24 last night. But giving up 52 is truly something to worry about, even if two other teams have had the same problem against LT this season.

To be honest, I wasn’t able to watch the game. I was at a wedding that had no TVs, and as soon as the score got out of hand the bar and the dance floor looked a lot more attractive. We taped the game, but clearly I have no desire to watch it now. So instead I can just look at the numbers and the stats, and scratch my head. Everyone has been saying LT plays a really fast offense we’re not used to. Okay, great, we’ve got another excuse. We’ve got a lot of those.

Next week, we’ll be playing Penn State. Despite a new coach in Bill O’Brien, we should be able to get a handle on what’s coming and not get blindsided. So the question is, how will we respond to this, in addition to the icky loss this week?

Though, it’s time to face facts that we’re not where we’d like to be right now. There is a chance we could turn things around and win a bunch of games in a row, but we also have to go to Ohio State and Wisconsin. Even if Wisconsin isn’t at it’s peak, it’s hard to play in Madison. That scenario doesn’t seem to likely.

A bowl game is still possible, but it’s going to most likely be another one that no one has ever heard of. We knew that the season wasn’t going to be easy, and new coach Tim Beckman needs to do some adjusting. We’ve also got to give him the time to bring in the players that he has recruited. We can’t expect to come in and suddenly be a completely different team from last year. But, one can dream.

Next week, Illinois will be hosting Penn State at Memorial Stadium. This will be the last game that I will miss due to a wedding, and I’m hoping the results are different this time. This week’s game wasn’t a must-win, but next week really is. Penn State is not the team it’s been for the past 60 years or whatever, and it is a team that Illinois can beat. That means it’s something we have to do.

Backup QB Riley O’Toole had a record-breaking performance last weekend.

When someone mentions Louisiana Tech, the term football powerhouse doesn’t exactly come to mind. However, this year’s team is no slouch, and the Illini need to stay strong and focused to tame the Bulldogs on Saturday.

Right now, the Illini have a record of 2-1, and it’s still unclear who they are exactly. There have been injuries galore, including an ankle injury that took out starting QB Nathan Scheelhaase for two games now. Sources have said he is “near 100%” in terms of his recovery and that he is expected to play. The Illini missed him in that loss in Arizona against the Sun Devils two weeks ago, but Riley O’Toole stepped in nicely last week at home against Charleston Southern. If Scheelhaase is back in, this weekend’s team could look completely different yet again.

Louisiana Tech is currently undefeated. Their first game against Texas A&M was postponed due to Hurricane Isaac, and they had wins at Houston (56-49) and home against Rice (56-37). It seems like they are partial to the number 56, and that’s a wee bit scary. However, the Illinois defense was firing on all cylinders in last week’s shut out, so that could be  something Louisiana Tech hasn’t witnessed yet this season.

According to my trusted Yahoo Pick’em Pool, the Illini are only favored by about 3 points, and this is at home against a team in the Western Atlantic Conference. LT likes to score a lot of points, but their opponents also scored 49 and 37 against them, so that would indicate their defense might need a little bit of work.

In fact, Louisiana Tech ranks in the top-10 nationally in scoring offense (3rd, 56.0 ppg), total offense (5th, 603.5 ypg) and rushing offense (9th, 289.0 ypg). On the other hand, the Bulldogs rank 120th in the nation (out of 120) in total defense (585.0 ypg) and pass defense (392.5 ypg), 119th in punt returns (-3.0 ypr) and 118th in scoring defense (43.0 ppg).

If Scheelhaase isn’t in the game, or if perhaps things aren’t going his way, O’Toole is going to have a lot more confidence going going in after last week. Heck the whole team is going to feel pretty good going into Saturday’s game. RB Josh Ferguson, who was out with “headaches” last week, is also expected to be back in the game. As long as we can get our offense going, I think that we’re going to be just fine on Saturday.

Some have said that this game could let us know whether or not Illinois will be looking at a Bowl game this year. If we win Saturday, then we only need to win three more games, and we’ve got Indiana, Minnesota and Purdue on the upcoming schedule, not to mention a depleted Penn State. However, I still believe that a loss wouldn’t put us out of the running by any means, especially since the team is somewhat unpredictable. This is not a must-win game at all, but it would make the rest of the season just a little bit easier.

Some fun facts:

• Illinois and Louisiana Tech are meeting for the first time on Saturday.
• Illinois has controlled time of possession in all three games this season. The Illini are ranked 14th nationally and third in the Big Ten in time of possession after week three (33:36).
• Illinois did not let CSU convert a third down in 13 attempts on Saturday.
• On the season, the Illini defense is holding opponents to a 24.3 percent conversion rate (9-for-37) on third downs, which is tops in the Big Ten and 10th-best in the nation.
• Illinois is one of only 15 teams in the nation that has not allowed a fourth-down conversion (0-1).
• In all, 22 Illini have played for the first time this season.  Last week against Charleston Southern, freshman LB Mason Monheim and junior C Jake Feldmeyer both made their first starts.

We’re looking at our first night game at Memorial Stadium this season, with the game airing at 7pm on the BTN. This weekend is the second wedding of the year that will prohibit me from watching an Illini football game, so I will be sending my best wishes to the team mentally and surreptitiously checking the score on my phone.

Late last week, Kendrick Nunn announced that UCLA was out of the recruiting picture. It was down to just Marquette, Illinois and OSU for the Chicago native out of Simeon High School. Today, Nunn put the rumors and speculation to rest and let John Groce know over Twitter that he’s going with Illinois.

Nunn is currently a Senior at Simeon, alongside a fellow you might’ve heard of named Jabari Parker. The shooting guard is anywhere from 6’1 – 6’3 depending on where you look, and weighs about 175. He is a 4-star recruit ranked 42 in the nation by Rivals and 54 by Scout.

I hope that they actually had a conversation on the phone or in person first, but either way this was the tweet that sparked a 1,000 more:

This tweet came either right after or during the Illini slaughter over Charleston Southern, and Nunn was rumored to be somewhere in the stands. Guess he liked what he saw. After the game, Illini fans were more interested in what Nunn had to say than what was happening in football.

There’s been a huge focus on both Parker and Nunn from the Illini camp for what seems like forever, and that focus has paid off – even if original recruiters Bruce Weber and Jerrance Howard have left. Nunn is ranked No. 2 in the 2013 class in Illinois, right behind Parker (some have him 3rd behind Malcolm Hill, another Illini commit).

When Groce started that gig at Illinois, everyone wondered if he’d be able to recruit out of Chicago, and it looks like he’s cracked the code. Having Nunn commit could open the flood gates for others to join the Illini brigade (and let’s hope the next commit is a PG!)

Welcome to Illini Nation Mr. Nunn! We couldn’t be more tickled to have you. First a 44-0 win for the football team, and then a commit from the No. 2 guy in the entire state. This is a great day to be an Illini fan.

I said that fans wouldn’t be happy unless Illinois beat Charleston Southern today by at least 40 points, and they went ahead and made my wish come true. It was a beautiful day in Champaign today, and I have the sunburn all over my arms and neck to prove that I was present to witness Illinois trouncing all over Charleston Southern with a 44-0 win.

Nathan Scheelhaase was still out with an injury, so backup QB Riley O’Toole made up for a cruddy showing last week at Arizona State by finishing with 5 TDs, 331 passing yards and completing 26 out of 31 passes. He also nabbed a spot in the Illini history books by setting the Illini single-game completion record with .839%. He had just one interception at the beginning of the 2nd quarter, but other than that he looked sharp and focused.

Let’s give the defense lots of credit as well, because they kept the Buccaneers from scoring nary one point in the entire game. The last time the Illini had a shutout was in 2007 against Western Illinois, where they won 21-0.

The first TD came just 10 minutes into the game, and then for some reason Coach Beckman decided to go for 2 points instead of the extra point attempt. The Illini failed to convert, but that was just one of the few times that happened in the game. For a moment there was some worry that maybe there was something amiss with kicker Taylor Zalewski, but after that he was 4-4 on extra points and made his one FG attempt from an impressive 47 yards.

A 44-0 win is impressive, sure, but let’s face the facts: Charleston Southern was awful. At least 3 times they were penalized for having too many guys on the field, and there were also numerous offsides and illegal formation calls. These are the types of penalties that maybe happen once in a game, not over and over. In all they had 10 penalties, which didn’t help the cause. Also, it seemed like there was one quarter where a Buccaneer was injured on each play. Bad conditioning, or just not used to playing with the big boys? It’s not clear.

Regardless, tonight, we shall celebrate the win! Also, it’s important to note that this happened without the likes of Scheelhaase, Supo Sanni, Josh Ferguson and Graham Pollack – just to name a few. Imagine what would have happened with these guys in the game. Depth is still a bit of an issue, which means these guys have to get healthy in time to play a team that matters.

Up next, the Illini will welcome Louisiana Tech to Memorial Stadium for a night game. Though maybe not Big Ten caliber, Louisiana Tech is going to look a lot different than Charleston Southern. Let’s hope they go in with the confidence from this win, and show fans they can do the same thing to a team with a little more talent.

Oh, and by the way, Illini fans weren’t the only ones pleased by the football team today. At halftime the basketball team took the field, and word is top-recruit Kendrick Nunn was in the stands. Just a few minutes after the football game ended, Nunn decided that Illinois was the place for him and made a verbal commit. More on that soon-

For the first time this season, the Illini get to face an FCS team, and one that is straight up just not good at football.

The Charleston Southern University (that’s Charleston, SC if you’re curious) Buccaneers are on a 14-game losing streak, and they’re ranked 118 out of 122 FCS schools. This means they’re at the bottom of the barrel in the division below the Illini.

I’m in a fantasy college pick ‘em football league where you guess which team will be triumphant each week, while considering the spread. When one team is insanely dominant over another, then the spread number is just “off.” For the first time I can remember, the Illini game was listed as “off.” Which, of course, I love.

Apparently, the defense isn’t sweating last week’s horrific presentation at Arizona State last weekend, so I guess I won’t either. They’ve now tasted a loss, and it was pretty bitter. In a way, maybe it’s better that this happened early on in the season, so that Coach Beckman can use it as a learning experience and stop a disaster before it occurs (ahem, last season’s losing streak).

So what should we be looking out for? I would say a huge win. I don’t think fans are going to be happy unless we win by at least 3 touchdowns. There is no reason this should be a close game, and if it is a close game then it’s essentially a loss. The competition is going to get much more serious, and we need to be ready.

QB Nathan Scheelhaase is supposed to be back in the game this week, and it is apparent that we need him in there. We’re back at home in the comforts of Memorial Stadium, and since there is no impending hurricane, the crowd is rumored to be much larger.

I’ll be in the stands for the first time this year, and I expect some magical moments. No pressure or anything.

Some facts:

• Illinois ranks third in the Big Ten and 18th nationally in fewest yards penalized per game (30.5).

• Illinois and Charleston Southern are meeting for the first time, and it is also the first time the Illini have played a team from the Big South Conference.

• Illinois is 11-0 all-time against FCS teams with an average margin of victory of 29 points per game. All but one of those wins have been by at least 21 points, including last year’s 56-3 win over South Dakota State.

The game will be at 11AM on Saturday at Memorial Stadium, and will air on the Big Ten Network.

ASU’s evil Sparky.

I stayed up late for that? After last week’s win gave us high hopes for the season, last night’s ugly loss put us back at square one. Which team is the one we will see next week, and the week after that? Was the 24-7 win against Western Michigan last week only due to WMU’s incompetence on the field, or do the Illini really have skills?

Time will only tell. The season clearly won’t start off like last year’s 6-0, but as long as it doesn’t end with 6 losses then I will be happy.

Nathan Scheelhaase ended up watching the game on the sidelines, and wore headphones that made me wonder who was actually calling the game. It would’ve been nice to have him in, but I don’t think it would’ve really made that much of a difference. The offense wasn’t on fire, but it was the defense that failed at their job, giving up 45 points. Going into halftime with a score of 28-7 doesn’t feel good, and it only got worse.

Reilly O’Toole did most of the QB work in Scheelhaase’s place, with Miles Osei also contributing. Well, contributing 2 interceptions that is. Osei seemed to look a little better, but O’Toole was able to at least score one TD in the 3rd when he passed the ball to Eddie Viliunas. O’Toole was 10-14 and passed for just 54 yards, while Osei was 4-10 and passed 47 yards.

So the offense was rough, and the defense was nonexistent. ASU also played two QBs, but only so the other guy could get some minutes as the slaughter continued. Taylor Kelly, whose first start ever for ASU was last week, threw for 249 yards and 1 TD. The backup? Michael Eubanks threw 5-5 for 69 yards and 2 TDs. That’s right, the backup QB made just 5 attempts and completed all of them, and threw for more yards than either of our QBs. That’s sort of the epitome of what went on last night.

Losing last night was a very real possibility. The Sun Devils were the favorites, but by 3 points, not 31. Losing stings, but losing by that much is a punch in the gut and a kick in the face. The key now is to see how Coach Tim Beckman can help the guys brush of this ugliness and move on to the next.

Next week Illinois will get to return home to what should be a simple game against Charleston Southern. In my opinion, Scheelhaase should sit out one more game just to make sure he’s fully recovered before we have to face another real opponent (which won’t be until Penn State on Sept. 29, if you can really consider them a real opponent anymore).

I’m disappointed, sure. And, I’m also pretty embarrassed. On the bright side, the game was on so late that no one probably watched it. Also, who knows ASU might actually be pretty good this year and go on to do big things in the Pac 12 and then the loss isn’t so ugly. However, last year we barely scraped by with a win against the Sun Devils, who also went on to implode in a similar fashion, which is why both teams had new coaches last night.

Let’s just sort of pretend last night didn’t happen, unless of course we decide to actually learn from the loss. That would be nice as well. The season is very young and this is still a brand new team with a fresh new outlook under the Beckman Era. Losses are going to happen, and I can’t wait to see how he and the team respond.

I am also excited to attend my first game of the season next week! Illinois will host Charleston Southern in Champaign at 11pm Central.

QB Nathan Scheelhaase may or may not play this weekend.

The attention should be on the fact that the Illini are heading way out of their comfort zone this weekend to the deserts of Arizona, but most of the discussion is circling on whether or not QB Nathan Scheelhaase is going to be healthy enough to play.

Scheelhaase left the game vs. Western Michigan on Saturday due to an ankle injury, and no one seems to know just how badly he is actually hurt. Reports are in that he had a good practice and a decision would be made tomorrow, but no one – except Coach Beckman – will actually know what’s going to happen until 9:30pm Saturday night. That’s right, we’re on Pac 12 time so don’t party too hard too early if you’d like to stay awake for the game.

It’d be nice to have the safety net of Scheelhaase in the game running the show, but then again the team didn’t exactly fall apart in his absence after he came out Saturday. Illinois didn’t actually score after Scheelhaase came out, but there weren’t any disasters!

Some sources seem to have a pretty positive outlook thanks to that practice today, but I’ve got my own fancy sources that say Scheelhaase was spotted around Champaign riding his bike sporting a big walking boot on his foot. As someone who has worn a walking boot not too long ago, I can tell you it’s sort of a big deal.

Okay, so with or without Scheelhaase, the Illini are heading to Tempe to face the Sun Devils this weekend. Let’s start with the good news, the Illini are undefeated this year! I like to say that just in case it doesn’t stick. The Illini are 3-point faves going into the game, but that might change without Scheelhaase starting. Illinois beat ASU last year in Champaign, by a narrow victory of 17-14.

ASU has a new QB since the gentle giant Brock Osweiler graduated. That means we’ve got a leg up on experience in the QB position. Vontaze Burfict is also gone, which is nice because it looked like he was going to murder one of our players last year. Another plus is that like the Illini, the Sun Devils are under new leadership as well. New head coach Todd Graham has just as much to prove as Tim Beckman.

On the down side, ASU won their season opener by a whopping 63-6. Granted Northern Arizona is no Western Michigan, but who is to say we could’ve put up 63 points against a team in the Big Sky Conference like those NAU Lumberjacks. You have to admit the numbers are a tad intimidating, but the guys will be full of lasagne and ready to prove that last week wasn’t a fluke.It is also notable that NAU is an FCS team that hasn’t beat an FBS team since 1987.

We’re going to have to look out for Sun Devil RB Marion Grice, who rushed for 107 yards and 3 TDs last week, but then again it’s sort of comparing apples and oranges. Sophomore QB Taylor Kelly won the starting job for ASU, and threw for 247 yards last week. He had just one passing TD, and was sacked once.  Again, let’s see if these guys are able to shine quite as brightly when staring at the grills of Jonathan Brown and the rest of our defense.

Some fun facts:

• Illinois was one of 28 teams in the nation that did not allow a sack during week one.
• The seven points the Illini defense held WMU to were the fewest against the Illini by an FBS opponent in nine seasons, since UCLA scored six on Sept. 13, 2003 (UCLA defeated Illinois 6-3).
• Illinois controlled time of possession against the WMU Broncos, owning a margin of more than 11 minutes (35:02 – 24:58). The Illini are ranked 13th nationally in time of possession after week one.
• Illinois trails the all-time series with Arizona State 2-1 after winning last year’s matchup in Champaign,17-14. Arizona State won the games in 1987 (21-7 in Champaign) and 1988 (21-16 in Tempe).

The game will be on ESPN at 9:36 PM Saturday, September 8.

Ryan Lankford celebrates with Michael Heitz (74)

Alright, Tim Beckman, I see what you’ve got going in Illinois and I must say I like it. No one was really sure what to expect from the Illini this season, and a nice 24-7 win against Western Michigan is a perfectly acceptable way to kick us off.

To be honest, a win was by no means guaranteed for Illinois yesterday in the season opener. It was expected and desired, but certainly not a given. All of the credit for the win can’t go to the Illini entirely, because Western Michigan looked pretty crappy at various times throughout the game.

Just a little over 5 minutes into the game, Illinois scored their first touchdown with a Nathan Scheelhaase  64-yard pass to WR Ryan Lankford.

Still in the first quarter, freshman kicker Nick Immekus – taking over duties for Derek Dimke who finally graduated – missed his first attempt at a field goal. He redeemed himself after getting a second chance with seven minutes left in the first. At the end of the day Immekus was 3-3 on extra points and made 1 for 2 on field goals, so perhaps that first miss was just a case of the nerves.

In the second, Scheelhaase rushed 2 yards for another TD, putting the Illini up a comfortable 17-0 going into halftime.

WMU finally got on the board in the third when QB Alex Carder threw a TD pass to Jaime Wilson. Illini scored their last points with 10 minutes left in the game, when Ashante Williams intercepted a Carder throw and ran 60 yards for a TD.

Overall, you’ve gotta be pretty happy with the results of the game. The Illini looked polished and played together. The win wasn’t flashy, but they seemed to know what they’re doing. As I said, WMU had some mishaps, and though Carder was advertised as a possible NFL prospect, he had just 1 TD and 3 interceptions. In fact, he was pulled after continually being ineffective.

The Illini defense is still strong, and though the offense may need a little work, they still looked pretty good. Scheelhaase had a lot more people to work with, which wasn’t necessarily expected. Lankford, Darius Millines, Donnovon Young and Josh Ferguson were all involved, and Scheelhaase didn’t try to do everything himself.

The only problem? Scheelhaase was pulled from the game sometime in the 3rd quarter due to injury. Word is he has an ankle injury, but the powers that be are being strangely mum about his condition. Let’s just hope a little tape will fix him right up, because he is still the center of the team.

Beckman gave the offense a C and the defense a B+, but in my opinion he’s being a little hard on the guys. The win was convincing, and it provided fans with a bit of hope for what the future will bring. Cautious hope, but hope nonetheless.