Football

Illinois head coach Bret Bielema has repeatedly said he and his staff are using this off week to answer questions about specific problem areas of a his football team after seven straight games. We’ll first start with an issue Bielema has mentioned multiple times as a point of impact during this off weekend - third-down defense.

By Matt Stevens - IlliniGuys Football Writer/Analyst

October 16, 2025

(Cover photo courtesy Illinois Athletics)

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — Bret Bielema can still clearly see Ohio State’s first third-down conversion in his mind from last weekend’s loss.

On a third-and-8 situation, Ohio State quarterback Julian Sayin found Jeremiah Smith on a crossing pattern for 18 yards on a play that allowed the Buckeyes to cross midfield for the first time during what would eventually be a 34-16 victory over the Illini for the top-ranked team in the country.

“You just can’t ask for a better scenario on an opening drive than a third-and-8,” Bielema said on Wednesday. “In my opinion, we did some things in the rush and we did some things in the coverage that are just little details that result in big things in the end.”

As we detailed earlier this week in the IlliniGuys.com Film Review, Ohio State did an excellent job of taking away Illinois pass rusher Gabe Jacas and challenged the rest of his Illini teammates near the line-of-scrimmage to make plays.

With seven games already played before its first off weekend, Illinois head coach Bret Bielema had to go to some ‘Plan B’ decisions on first-year talents showing special teams contributions.

By Matt Stevens - IlliniGuys Football Writer/Analyst

October 15, 2025

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — After a month-long preseason camp and seven consecutive regular season games before its first off week, Bret Bielema knew he’d long have to decisions made on the four-game redshirt threshold for first-year players.

In his Wednesday Zoom media with media, Bielema confirmed that he and his coaching staff have made up their minds on which freshman will likely be participating in more than four regular season games and obviously not be receiving a redshirt season.

The fifth-year head coach gave examples of linebacker Grant Beerman and defensive back Andre Lovett Jr. as players who have impressed so much they’ve reached the status of being on the 74-player travel roster as depth pieces in their positional groups but more so on specific special teams units.

By Kedric Prince – IlliniGuys Sr. Recruiting Analyst

October 15, 2025

(Cover photo courtesy Kedric Prince/IlliniGuys)

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - One of the most coveted four-star recruits in the country was on campus when Illinois hosted defending national champion and No. 1-ranked Ohio State this past weekend. Jordan Haskins, a 5-foot-11 cornerback from Bryan Station High School in Lexington, Kentucky, was among the visitors.

Rivals.com/On3 lists the 2027 prospect as the fourth-best player in the state of Kentucky for his class and the No. 32-ranked safety in the nation. Co-Host of the IlliniGuys Sports Spectacular syndicated radio show, Mike Cagley, said previously, “Illinois recruits well, but if they want to take the next step, they must recruit more speed. All of the really good college football teams have it.”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ra6r-J1FwDE    

A major factor in the Illinois being unable to get any kind of pass rush Ohio State quarterback Julian Sayin is the Buckeyes doubled and sometimes tripled-teamed Gabe Jacas.

By Matt Stevens - IlliniGuys Football Writer/Analyst

October 14, 2025

(Cover photo courtesy Illinois Athletics)

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — Give credit to Ohio State’s trio of coaches that scheme up their passing attack including head coach Ryan Day, offensive coordinator Brian Hartline and co-offensive coordinator & tight ends coach Keenan Bailey.

What these three coaches do so very well when they’re playing the likes of Illinois, Washington or another opponent where they’re a significant favorite (mostly because the Buckeyes have acquired a severe talent advantage on its roster) is identify and initially slow down the defensive disruptor who can individually wreck a drive, quarter and game on that underdog team.

The identification part is relatively easy. As No. 1 Ohio State approached the preparation for a road test at Illinois, Gabe Jacas had Plan A, B and probably C to converting big plays and staying on the field on third down. It’s also likely most of the sold-out capacity crowd at Gies Memorial Stadium knew Jacas was the player who needed to be highlighted and kept out of the Buckeyes backfield for a large portion of success for the road team to consistently happen.

By Steve Sturm - IlliniGuys Football Analyst

October 14, 2025

(Cover photo courtesy Illinois Athletics)

Not ready for prime time. That was my and most people's take after the painful loss to Ohio State Saturday. Illinois outgained the Buckeyes. They played them evenly on the line of scrimmage and held their own at the skill positions. Luke Altmyer probably outplayed Julian Sayin. But Illinois lost 34-16 and was generally out of reach of the win because of 3 turnovers and a punting foible that was basically a turnover too. In other words, Ohio State looked like a CFP team, while Illinois looked like a team that isn't quite good enough for that. Still though, despite the odd voting that left Illinois out of the AP poll with losses to the 1st and 3rd best teams in the nation, Illinois continued to look like a top 20 type of team. And really, if they take the right lessons away from Saturday's loss, they can still reach that next level.

This play was destined for a loss from the start. Sometimes you can get away with not blocking the end man on the back side of a running play if you create a threat with the quarterback. However, that works a lot better on the wide side of the field, and more importantly, Ohio State's Kenyatta Jackson is just too athletic to be delayed by that type of minor influence. He eats this TFL up like he's back in high school. Note that Collin Dixon has a rare lack of effort on this one. Ohio State's Davison Igbinosun takes inside leverage on this one so it's going to be a tough block, but Dixon lets him free after a token shove.

IlliniGuys.com football writer/analyst gives his outlook of the college football world as we enter the month of October.

October 13, 2025

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — We’ve reached the first off weekend for the Illinois football team and after a month-long preseason camp and seven straight weeks of games, the proverbial pause button has likely come at the perfect time for Bret Bielema’s bunch in Champaign-Urbana.

However, without an immediate game to look forward toward and discuss, IlliniGuys.com realizes with its midseason Top 25 poll and College Football Playoff projections realizes that the there is still potential for a best case scenario for the Illini (5-2, 2-2 in Big Ten Conference) regarding the 2025 Big Ten Championship Game. Is it the Illini being a participant for the first time in school history? No…not directly.

With losses to both No. 1 Ohio State and No. 3 Indiana, two programs that failed to play each other in the regular season, there is a multiverse world (for all my comic book lovers out there) that could easily become a reality where the undefeated Buckeyes and undefeated Hoosiers meet in Indianapolis in the final game of the college football regular season to decide who will likely be the No. 1 seed in the College Football Playoff bracket when it’s revealed on the next afternoon. If that scenario were to play out,

Illinois likely had to play extremely well to pull off a memorable upset of No. 1 Ohio State on Saturday and everybody saw today that certainly didn’t happen.

By Matt Stevens - IlliniGuys Football Writer/Analyst

October 11, 2025

(Cover photo courtesy Illinois Athletics)

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — Bret Bielema watched the entire campus at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign prepare for what he called “a moment”. Illinois quarterback Luke Altmyer circled this game on the Illini schedule from the moment it was officially released in the summer. Both of these men have been around college football long enough to know that when No. 1 in the country comes to your town, you’d like to put up your effort to create a memory worth noting for decades to come. Instead, No. 17 Illinois (5-2, 2-2 in Big Ten Conference) found themselves falling into the mistakes that teams create for themselves when they’re not ready to push through and have an opportunity to be great. The 34-16 loss to No. 1 Ohio State (6-0, 3-0 in Big Ten) in front of a capacity crowd of Gies Memorial Stadium shows the Illini aren’t ready for that kind of leap just yet.

The first lesson Illinois head coach Bret Bielema imparted on this football program is in order to win games, you have to stop yourself from losing games on your own. Illinois is not ready to stop losing games against elite teams.

By Matt Stevens - IlliniGuys Football Writer/Analyst

October 11, 2025

(Cover photo courtesy Illinois Athletics)

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — That very much needed to be seen. That very much needed to be felt. That very much needs to be remembered.

The first lesson that Illinois head coach Bret Bielema attempted to impart when he flew in on Dec. 2020 to take over a football program that had seen decades of losing memories and defeatist attitudes in its locker room, fanbase and even maybe coaching staffs was more college football games are lost than won outright.

By IlliniGuys Staff October 11, 2025 CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - […]

In 2010, with his Wisconsin team ranked No. 18, Bret Bielema’s squad knocked off the No. 1 team in the nation in one of the more special moments in Madison. Today, Bielema gets another chance at a top-ranked Buckeyes program.

No. 1 OHIO STATE at No. 17 ILLINOIS

Records: Ohio State 5-0, 2-0 in Big Ten; Illinois 5-1, 2-1 in Big Ten

Date/Time/Place: Saturday, Oct. 11, 2025: 11 a.m. CST, Gies Memorial Stadium, Champaign, Ill.

Surface: FieldTurf

Capacity: 60,670

Series notes: Ohio State leads the all-time series 69–30–4. Ohio State has won nine straight in the series dating back to Illinois' upset over the No. 1 ranked Buckeyes in 2007. Saturday will be the first ranked-vs.-ranked matchup between the teams since 2001, when No. 12 Illinois beat No. 25 Ohio State, 34-22, in Champaign on its way to the Big Ten title. Illinois will host the #1 team in the nation for the 11th time in history and the first time since 2006. Illinois is 3-13 against top-ranked teams. Illinois knocked off top-ranked opponents in back-to-back opportunities at home in 1950 and 1956, plus beat No. 1 Ohio State in Columbus in 2007. Saturday will be the first time a ranked Illinois team will host a top-ranked team since 1950 (No. 8 Illinois beat No. 1 Ohio State).

TV: FOX; Gus Johnson (play-by-play); Joel Klatt (color analyst) and Jenny Taft (sideline reporter)

Radio (Illinois): Brian Barnhart (play-by-play), Carey Davis (analyst), Michael Martin (sideline), and Steve Kelly (pre/half/post). The broadcast can be heard live on TuneIn online radio, SiriusXM 82, the SiriusXM App, and at FightingIllini.com/live.

By Matt Stevens - IlliniGuys Football Writer/Analyst

October 11, 2025

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — A top-ranked Ohio State squad riding a long winning streak is coming to your home stadium where your squad in ranked in the top 20 of polls but is a significant home underdog to the Buckeyes. Yes, Bret Bielema has lived out this kind of script before.

During the third Saturday in October in the 2010 season, No. 1 Ohio State came to Camp Randall Stadium to play Bielema’s Wisconsin squad when it was presumed that Jim Tressel’s team led by quarterback Terrelle Pryor, wide receiver Dane Sanzenbacher and defensive lineman Cameron Heyward would roll into Madison, Wisconsin and win its 13th game in a row. However,

By Zeno Jo - IlliniGuys Staff Writer October 10, […]

By Kedric Prince – IlliniGuys Sr. Recruiting Analyst

October 10, 2025

(Cover photo courtesy player's X page)

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - The class of 2026 Illinois football commits appear to be a tight-knit group, staying in touch weekly and sending a message to each other: remain committed and don’t let other programs pull you away.

From the Lone Star State, linebacker Kaedyn Cobbs, a 6-foot, 195-pound recruit from Denton Guyer High School, has become one of the leaders in setting that tone.

Cobbs committed to Illinois this past February, choosing the Illini over

October 10, 2025 The Illini made the IlliniGuys look […]

Whether we’re talking yards given up, points given up or pretty much any statistical category, Illinois isn’t that far off its 2024 pace after facing some of the nation’s best offenses.

By Matt Stevens - IlliniGuys Football Writer/Analyst

October 10, 2025

(Cover photo courtesy Illinois Athletics)

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — The defense being played by the football team at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign isn’t nearly as poor as you may think.

One note before we go any further. If you’re reading and have reached the mental and emotional stage of ‘Aaron Henry should be terminated as soon as possible and nothing else will satisfy me’ then please stop reading this piece right now. If you’re at that point, no editorial piece is going to change your mind and IlliniGuys.com recognizes that, in this instance, we simply are not the audience for your needs.

For the rest of you, this in-depth is going to mostly be statistical in nature so let’s start with the idea that the statistic of total defense (yards a defense surrenders per game)