Hiring Mike Schultz was the biggest mistake of Zook's career at Illinois.
Schultz' play calling was atrocious and always seemed to push the opposite of what Juice did well.
Illini Football 2018
- Status
Hiring Mike Schultz was the biggest mistake of Zook's career at Illinois.
Schultz' play calling was atrocious and always seemed to push the opposite of what Juice did well.
I was also at that game. There was a great Halloween atmosphere and Hawthorne's play changed the momentum. It was like the team was determined to not let Black Cat's effort go to waste. That's a great teaching video for all players.
Locks was there for the totally inexplicable 5-7 the year before.
What a wild career that guy has had.
We scored a touchdown (99 yards) less than three minutes after that 4th down play. Amazing.
SampsonRelpenk
- Edwardsville, IL
Wild fact: we went from the #1 rushing offense in the conference in 2007 to the #1 passing offense in 2008. Really makes you appreciate just how awful Schultz was.
Did anyone see practice today? I thought Coach Smith's push for an up tempo offense was finally showing. They moved the quickly down the field with first down after first down. I've missed the last couple days so it seemed like they made a significant jump. AJ seems to really have a good rapport with the OL and the receivers. The kids looked like they were really having fun; they had a bounce to their step. Today I thought, "Wow, these kids look like they could be good." Who is going to see them at Memorial tomorrow?
Inexplicable is a perfect description of that year when advanced stats tell us we had an above average to good Offense AND Defense.
Special Teams however?
107th out of 120
blackdog
- Champaign
I was also there. That stadium on each of those plays that series was the loudest I’d heard it in a while, especially on 3rd & 4th downs with the War Chant...It was a fun game. P.S. Muck Fichigan
I was in Block I for that game. That goal line stand was right in front of us and yea we got super loud. I remember some guys in the front had some cardboard letters that said "fire zook" at the end of the game they changed it to "hire zook".
JDHalfrack
- Springfield, IL
People who are more invested in the actual development of players and the intimate details of the players, can you answer a question for me? Is this offense with Bush a product of "we finally have a competent QB" or a product of "good god... our defense is gonna be a disappointment"?
Don't give me a "little of both answer". I'm sure it is, but pick one for me. I like black and white answers, lol.
From what I've heard the defense has given as good as it's gotten over the course of camp. That's what you want, even, sharp, see-saw competition between O and D.
The offense looked really good with A.J. Bush today. Still no contact on the QB but he was making some plays in space that you could tell it wouldn't have mattered. I think the offense looked much better than years past at the last scrimmage before the season. The O-line looked solid to me. I think a lot of that is due to the fact they aren't switching sides like McGee had them doing. This offense looks much more efficient than years past to the eye test at practice to me. I'm ready for September 1st! Go ILLINI
I agree. There's work to be done, but the offense looks so much better at this point than last year. It's night and day. I'd say even our fourth string QB looked better than our top two from last year, and I don't mean that as a knock on the kids playing last year. I think it's a combination of the system, the kids, the improved OL, and the receivers and backs. The entire offense looks stronger everywhere. I really liked the Pro-Set formation with all the variations off of it. Our backs... elusive and FAST.
The DL made some plays forcing our OL into noticeably holding. The secondary made some great plays with some great hands for some INT's and I think they forced at least one fumble.
There's work to be done for sure, but the kids had fun, the kids looked fast, and plays were made. Who was the FR WR that made that Sportscenter highlight reel catch? Was that Jordan Holmes? I hate to get the kid's name wrong - that catch was AMAZING. Anyway, beautiful day at Memorial Stadium and a lot of fun. Looking forward to the game. Two more weeks? Hard to believe it's so soon. Anyway, fun was had. Kids look like they've been working hard.
Joel Goodson
- respect my decision™
Encouraging. Looks like we're progressing. Thanks for the reports.
I daresay, if our O is halfway competent, we should win some conference games. Gotta stay healthy.
https://247sports.com/Article/Werne...otball-offense-for-the-2018-season-120811758/ Lovie Smith about AJ Bush: "quickly has kind of taken control of the team"
Man, keep that orange kool-aid coming because I am buying big time this season. Enough is enough. I know next year is suppose to be the year of the big move upward in the conference, but having said that, why not this year? With a guy like Bush at the helm? Let's do this!!!
SampsonRelpenk
- Edwardsville, IL
5-7 WITH AN APR BOWL INVITE LET'S GO
It's funny because it's extremely possible with how easy the schedule is. Kent State, WIU should be wins, and then USF, Minnesota, Rutgers, MD, and Purdue are all games that they CAN win if the team stays relatively healthy
Not going to make W/L prediction outside our first 2 should be wins. Sounds like our QB is much better than expected. Our OL, RB, TE, and WR were all true freshmen. A year of experience and growth will make our QB play much better.
Best part of Werner's latest article on AJ Bush:
"NFL scouts who have visited Illinois for decades have told the Illinois staff this month that Bush is the best quarterback prospect they’ve had in a decade."
GIMME DAT KOOLAID
"NFL scouts who have visited Illinois for decades have told the Illinois staff this month that Bush is the best quarterback prospect they’ve had in a decade."
GIMME DAT KOOLAIDDeleted member 631370
D
Guest
Best part of Werner's latest article on AJ Bush:
"NFL scouts who have visited Illinois for decades have told the Illinois staff this month that Bush is the best quarterback prospect they’ve had in a decade."
That's good news. But that's a pretty low bar to clear
Best part of Werner's latest article on AJ Bush:
"NFL scouts who have visited Illinois for decades have told the Illinois staff this month that Bush is the best quarterback prospect they’ve had in a decade."
I'd say a part of that has to do with his size. The NFL loves big QBs.
- Status