2001 was the first year I was old enough to really be able to pay attention and follow the team so the collapse of the Turner era is something I've given a borderline Sisyphean amount of thought. Two things baffle me more than anything though:
1) The monumental talent valley of the 2003 through (extending into Zook's first year) 2005 seasons. In that period it was glaringly obvious top to bottom that there was just absolutely nothing left, save for a stray Kelvin Hayden or Christian Morton, on those rosters in terms of upperclassmen able to contribute at a power conference level, despite being made up of classes that were recruited during and immediately after a four year period where our average record was 7-5 (excellent, obviously, by Illinois football standards). Then Zook's Rose Bowl team is led by a bunch of juniors and seniors recruited by Turner when he was absolutely floundering. Just weird.
2) The clear cut Jekyll and Hyde 2002 season in which we were absolutely clowning around on the field for the first six games and then looked like borderline conference title contenders in the latter six. I don't know how you go from letting yourself get torched by Asad Abdul-Khaliq to causing complete mayhem in 13-0 National Champion Ohio State's backfield in the span of four games but we did it. And it was Turner's one Kittner-less season where we had good, yes, good quarterbacking. Almost no one remembers Jon Beutjer that year was #3 in yards, #2 in TDs, and #3 in efficiency in the conference, and did it while missing a game and a half (injured vs Purdue and sat during The Great Dustin Ward First Half Experiment vs Mizzou). Then we lose our four NFL receivers and two NFL lineman, he gets thumped around too much the year after and is never the same.