Mike Cagley, Co-Host IlliniGuys Sports Spectacular & Big Sports Radio

September 8, 2024

With the win last night against the #19 ranked Kansas Jayhawks, the Illini season and expectations for Illini success seem to have had the ceiling removed - or at least the fans have hit the "up" button and the elevator is rising!

The Illini will face the Central Michigan Chippewas next Saturday at Memorial Stadium at 11 am on Peacock. For those not excited to purchase another streaming service, this broadcast supplies the motivation to purchase tickets and see the game live.

What is the ceiling of the Illini now that the Illini have defeated the Jayhawks?

• The Illini still face three ranked teams - #8 Penn State, #10 Michigan, and #7 Oregon with Penn State and Oregon on the road. At the same time, Penn State's offense hasn't been consistent, Michigan hasn't displayed much offense while their defense was shredded by Texas and Oregon is having a slow start - by Oregon standards.
• Currently, the Illini are favored to win in ESPN's Matchup Predictor for the following games - Central Michigan, Purdue, Minnesota, Michigan State, and Northwestern. That puts the expectations for the Illini at 7-5.

The keys for the Illini are twofold - can they secure an upset in one of the games they're not supposed to win - Penn State, Michigan or Oregon? No win is out of the question based on the Illini's upset of #7 Penn State on the road in 2021 under Bielema in the game that set the all-time record with 9 OTs.

At the same time, the staff has to guard against the upset loss that has make life tough for the Illini in recent memory.

• 2021 - Early season home losses to UTSA and Maryland stopped the Illini from going to a bowl despite beating both #7 Penn State and #20 Minnesota. The Illini finished 5-7.
• 2022 - A 2nd week loss to Indiana and head scratching losses to Michigan State and Purdue prevented the Illini from a breakout year that could've seen the Illini go 11-1 and have their only loss be by 2 points in a controversial loss at Michigan. The Illini finished 8-4.
• 2023 - The Illini were blown out by a fired-up Purdue team, an up and down Nebraska team, and allowed Northwestern to slip past them to miss bowl eligibility. The Illini could've finished 8-4 instead of 5-7.

The team looked impressive as they found a way to beat Kansas on a night that Bret Bielema's priorities of his offense running the ball and his defense stopping the run didn't work as well as he desired. Against the #19 team in the country, coming out with a win under those conditions is an impressive feat. What happens if the Illini figure out a way to accomplish those two goals for the balance of the season? How good can the Illini be?

This could be a bowl season with a 7-5 record. With hard work, continuous improvement, and a bit of good fortune with injuries, this could be the breakout season the Illini football program has been looking for since 2007.

Stay tuned in to see what happens next.