Zook may be a grim keeper: Even with new assistants, Illini could be in for a rough ride in 2010
December 23, 2009 9:47 AM
Illinois again will have a schedule filled with peril -- eight bowl teams plus Southern Illinois, which finished No. 1 in the final FCS rankings.
With its nemesis, Missouri, and perennial powers Ohio State and Penn State once again among the first five opponents, a team that hasn't handled pressure well the last two years again will have a gun to its head from the opening kickoff.
If Illinois, which was 1-3 against nonconference opponents, had scheduled itself to 4-0, it would be 6-6 and engaged in the bowl practices Zook adores. Even a 3-1 nonleague record in 2008 would've nudged the Illini into a tidy-bowl trip.
Gould
With its nemesis, Missouri, and perennial powers Ohio State and Penn State once again among the first five opponents, a team that hasn't handled pressure well the last two years again will have a gun to its head from the opening kickoff.
If Illinois, which was 1-3 against nonconference opponents, had scheduled itself to 4-0, it would be 6-6 and engaged in the bowl practices Zook adores. Even a 3-1 nonleague record in 2008 would've nudged the Illini into a tidy-bowl trip.
Gould
Filed under: Illini Football
