The calm before the swarm in Rantoul

He will preach the idea of a swarming defense this fall, using numbers and depth to avoid fatigue -- and a late-season swoon that jeopardized the bowl berth last season. When Illinois reached the Texas Bowl and manhandled Baylor for a 38-14 win, an upset with the oddsmakers and a 7-6 record, the Illini defense won with numbers rather than going too long with starters who run out of gas.

"That was the plan going into it," Koenning said. "Baylor was so fast. We substituted liberally with the thought process that we couldn't be a step slow. We had to be at top speed. We couldn't let guys get tired."

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