Illini Football 2025

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#251      
Illini92and96
illinoistradition said:
“Falling” to 8-4 is a pretty big stretch. Yes, technically it’s a step down, but it would still be up there as a top 5 season in the last 25 years. Let’s just keep this winning thing going.
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Agree 100%. But that is not what I am taking about. I’m talking about breaking through. 8-4 is great, and great for the Illini doing Illini things. Personally I would be happy and in my well deserved Illini cynicism think 8-4 ish is our sustainable ceiling. If I try to be optimistic, to change the paradigm of what good, is we need multiple 9 or 10 win seasons over a shorter term period. I’ve seen us ranked as high as 12th. If there is ever a time to expect 9 or 10 wins it’s next year. I hope we meet expectations vs fall back from what is expected.
 
#252      
IlliniwekKDR
DReq said:
As we all know the Illini beat the previous year's national champions at Memorial Stadium in 2024. Wouldn't it be a good tradition to repeat that in 2025? And keep repeating it until, of course, we are the National Champions. I am kind of liking this scenario.
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If we win the national championship, we have a damn good shot at beating ourselves at Memorial Stadium the next season. We've been experts at it for 30 years
 
#254      
the juiceman cometh
OrangeBlue98 said:
I really don’t understand IU not being ranked. While I don’t believe they’ll be as good as this year, I don’t see them doing what Illinois did the last few times they’ve had a season like this. If I were them, I’d have our game circled as well. It’ll be a very important game for both programs.
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They are losing their QB (who had an excellent season), and two running backs who combined for over 1,500 yards rushing. On paper the transfers they have coming in to replace them look good, but I could see why voters would be cautious.
 
#256      
Battle89
IlliniwekKDR said:
This better be his statue
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Just throw trainer shirts on Learning and Labor, and a coach's half-zip (not for sale to the public, but available for monuments) on Alma.
The pose is too perfect.

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#257      
Mr. Tibbs
today was the first day of classes
I hope there are no surprises with any of our guys

its been 45 years since my freshman year. can any recent grad remind me of the typical 5 classes every frosh has
1. Rhet 105
2. Speech Comm (but maybe the semester after Rhet)
3. Classic Civ
4.
5.
 
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#260      
Illiniindian
Illini92and96 said:
We really need to capitalize next year and go at least 9-3. Falling to 8-4 or 7-5 would be deflating knowing this is our chance to set a new momentum for the program. With recruits, fans, donors. Time for Charlie Brown to make the kick instead of the ball getting pulled away.
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I am not sure this is true. I think the goal should be bowl bound every year. 7 wins is still good.
 
#265      
1970 John
BZuppke said:
This
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As I was telling the Ohio State guy here on the boat, this last season when the reigning national champion came to Memorial Stadium, they lost. This fall, the reigning national champion is coming to Champaign. Could history repeat?

He says, “you know, Ohio State be in a rebuilding year.”
 
#268      
PleaseMakeABowlGame
Let's not put the bar too ahead of possibilities. If we have a 7-5 type season, it should still be looked at as adequate and sustained consistency. Here's a program that has made a bowl game 8 times out of the last 24 years.
 
#269      
BretMyBeachHouse
I'm not sure how prevalent the "Bowl games are meaningless" mindset was on this board. There were plenty of adherents.

Would we have finished ranked with a loss? Would recruiting be as hot as it seems to be right now? Would our preseason buzz be as high?

Yes, we're going to find ourselves after the fact in some future year bemoaning and excusing our loss because 4 guys sat out.

But for this year, for this point in Illinois football, that bowl game may turn out to be one of the most consequential wins in program history.
 
#270      
Illinicpa14
BretMyBeachHouse said:
I'm not sure how prevalent the "Bowl games are meaningless" mindset was on this board. There were plenty of adherents.

Would we have finished ranked with a loss? Would recruiting be as hot as it seems to be right now? Would our preseason buzz be as high?

Yes, we're going to find ourselves after the fact in some future year bemoaning and excusing our loss because 4 guys sat out.

But for this year, for this point in Illinois football, that bowl game may turn out to be one of the most consequential wins in program history.
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Our key I think was that it was competitive; we clearly belonged with another top 15 team.
 
#271      
OrangeBlue98
BretMyBeachHouse said:
I'm not sure how prevalent the "Bowl games are meaningless" mindset was on this board. There were plenty of adherents.

Would we have finished ranked with a loss? Would recruiting be as hot as it seems to be right now? Would our preseason buzz be as high?

Yes, we're going to find ourselves after the fact in some future year bemoaning and excusing our loss because 4 guys sat out.

But for this year, for this point in Illinois football, that bowl game may turn out to be one of the most consequential wins in program history.
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I think it's all about your team's perspective.

I know it was an extreme example, but last year's Florida State team clearly did not think the bowl game was important at the time. Now, maybe they should have thought it was more meaningful, but that's a different discussion for a different day.

For Illinois, it was clearly meaningful. I know Pat Bryant didn't play, and I will still fully support that decision. But for Illinois, that was a big game. They were playing a SEC team in SEC territory. The game was on ABC. I didn't think the game was "win or bust", but Illinois had to come out and be really competitive in that game. If anyone thought the game was meaningless, Bret Bielema forever gave us proof that it was not when he played Shane Beamer like a fiddle late in the third quarter. I also think South Carolina took the game really seriously as they felt they had a gripe about not making the CFP and wanted to prove a point.

And I agree with you 100% that the Citrus Bowl was an incredibly consequential win. I think we had three of them this season - Michigan (always a statement to beat them, and they were the defending national champions), Rutgers (culture-defining win), and South Carolina (all of the reasons I've mentioned).
 
#272      
Battle89
OrangeBlue98 said:
I think it's all about your team's perspective.

I know it was an extreme example, but last year's Florida State team clearly did not think the bowl game was important at the time. Now, maybe they should have thought it was more meaningful, but that's a different discussion for a different day.

For Illinois, it was clearly meaningful. I know Pat Bryant didn't play, and I will still fully support that decision. But for Illinois, that was a big game. They were playing a SEC team in SEC territory. The game was on ABC. I didn't think the game was "win or bust", but Illinois had to come out and be really competitive in that game. If anyone thought the game was meaningless, Bret Bielema forever gave us proof that it was not when he played Shane Beamer like a fiddle late in the third quarter. I also think South Carolina took the game really seriously as they felt they had a gripe about not making the CFP and wanted to prove a point.

And I agree with you 100% that the Citrus Bowl was an incredibly consequential win. I think we had three of them this season - Michigan (always a statement to beat them, and they were the defending national champions), Rutgers (culture-defining win), and South Carolina (all of the reasons I've mentioned).
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Title still checks out

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#274      
the juiceman cometh
OrangeBlue98 said:
I think it's all about your team's perspective.

I know it was an extreme example, but last year's Florida State team clearly did not think the bowl game was important at the time. Now, maybe they should have thought it was more meaningful, but that's a different discussion for a different day.

For Illinois, it was clearly meaningful. I know Pat Bryant didn't play, and I will still fully support that decision. But for Illinois, that was a big game. They were playing a SEC team in SEC territory. The game was on ABC. I didn't think the game was "win or bust", but Illinois had to come out and be really competitive in that game. If anyone thought the game was meaningless, Bret Bielema forever gave us proof that it was not when he played Shane Beamer like a fiddle late in the third quarter. I also think South Carolina took the game really seriously as they felt they had a gripe about not making the CFP and wanted to prove a point.

And I agree with you 100% that the Citrus Bowl was an incredibly consequential win. I think we had three of them this season - Michigan (always a statement to beat them, and they were the defending national champions), Rutgers (culture-defining win), and South Carolina (all of the reasons I've mentioned).
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Yeah, I'll admit I was in the camp that did not think bowl games were important at all anymore. I was wrong.

I think where I was coming from was the misconception that opt outs were going to keep getting more and more common. They didn't. We barely had any opt outs. South Carolina barely had any opt outs. And the players that played, on both sides, really wanted it.

I don't know that every bowl game every season is going to matter. Maybe if we'd gone 7-5 and were playing in the Mayo Bowl against VT, it wouldn't have mattered. But this one certainly did matter.
 
#275      
OrangeBlue98
the juiceman cometh said:
Yeah, I'll admit I was in the camp that did not think bowl games were important at all anymore. I was wrong.

I think where I was coming from was the misconception that opt outs were going to keep getting more and more common. They didn't. We barely had any opt outs. South Carolina barely had any opt outs. And the players that played, on both sides, really wanted it.

I don't know that every bowl game every season is going to matter. Maybe if we'd gone 7-5 and were playing in the Mayo Bowl against VT, it wouldn't have mattered. But this one certainly did matter.
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I think there is always SOME level of importance to a bowl game, because you get those additional 15(?) practices. But I would agree with you that being 6-6 and playing some lower-level ACC team or a Group of 5 team in the Armed Forces Bowl or New Mexico Bowl (just two random examples) wouldn't be as big of a deal from a results or "being competitive" standpoint compared to a game like the Citrus Bowl against a really good P4 team.

In other words, some bowl games mean a little more than others do, and that's OK. But the additional practice time is always really important.
 
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