For the Fans

My Thoughts on Last Night's Illinois-Illinois St. Game

Posted by: Tom Young

Sunday, September 13, 2009 2:15 PM

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Box Score from last night's game

“I know this is illinois st but the way the game is being called after williams got hurt is what i have wanted to see for a loooooooooong time.... run, run, run, run, then pass.”

-Posted by jweeks on September 12, 2009 at 8:50 PM

AMEN!!!

The last time Illini ran an offense that looked anything like what we saw last night was back when Rashard Mendenhall was our running back. This is the offense I was expecting to see with the addition of Mike Schultz, and this is the offense I want to see every single game. We ran 46 times and passed 17. I know we probably won't see a run pass ratio that extreme, but if we can keep it around 65-35 run to pass, I will be happy, and I think Illinois fans will be happy to.

Eddie McGee did an nice job replacing Juice, and you can look at Juice's injury as a blessing in disguise to an extent. We know Juice will be back next game, and should be, but McGee got some more on-field experience that could help him out when Illinois is really going to need him next year. At running back it should be Jason Ford and Daniel Dufrene every game. We are going to like Jason Ford a lot before his time is done at Illinois.

Being at the station for the post game show, I heard all of the phone calls. One of the big concerns the callers had was the secondary, and they're right. For two straight games, our D-line and linebacker play was good at stopping the run, but our secondary play was horrendous at stopping the pass. Too many guys wide open. Kurt Kittner on the broadcast last night talked about the wide open pass that was 18-22 yards down the field along the sideline. This was a pass that was open quite a bit, and it's because our safeties don't get over there to cover the guy. If we're going to play zone, we got to have all parts of the field covered, or our blitzes have to get in there quicker to put pressure on the QB. Also, I'd still like to see some improvements in form tackling. Big hits are fun to watch, but they don't always knock the guy over.

And that's another thing. I might not know my defense as much as I know offense, but why didn't we try some man coverage? That would have been a good game to try and mix it up. If all we do is zone, I would think that would make it easier for other teams to scout our defense. If there's any chance for our guys to cover anybody man to man, you think it would be against an FCS team.

In the end, it's a win, and this team needed that after Missouri. An extra week off helps us get a little healthier and also gives us some time to work some things out. Coach Zook is aware of the secondary play, so we will see what changes are made, if any, before that trip to Columbus. Plus, our offense better be ready to go. Ohio State only gave up 18 points to USC last night, so the OSU defense is still tough to move against.

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