Two thoughts that spring to mind:
1. Holy cow, take a bow Ryan Walters. If he vs Mike Sanford today were a boxing match, the referee needs to step in and stop the fight. Masterclass, Minny had no clue.
2. It wouldn't be me if I couldn't come up with a negative, I feel like that's the first game this year, win or loss, that really felt like we were carried by the super seniors. Veteran savvy from Peters, great OL performance, Carney and especially Gay had their best performances of the year, it does make you wonder what it looks like when we lose that experience and depth in the trenches.earned along
Sydney brown nuff saidMinny was perhaps the first B1G game where we looked physically superior much. IMO, two players in made a huge difference: Randolph on defense, and Pearl on offense. Carney has been a force and Perry competitive on D, and Kramer and Lowe solid on O. Palko looking better at G than T. Even as we could/should have beaten PU and MD, we weren’t dominating in those games like we were for much of this Minny game.
I think Walters would tell you that this defensive success is a product of a total team effort including the assistant coaches (knowledgeable, capable and cooperative), the players (dedicated, disciplined and determined) and the support staff (prepared and persistent).
Uhh...you did know BB coached in Madison, did you not?My biggest issue so far is that whenever we get a lead, our playbook gets to be about as diverse as Tecmo Super Bowl, and we wear our defense out by riding them like Seabiscuit in the second half with short drives that have zero ambition.
If our leads were children, Peterson and/or Bielema are terrible helicopter parents who don't let them do anything at the park but yell at them to stop climbing on stuff.
I think the one thing the staff has done well is to put players in positions to be successful. The changes to the o-line seem small but have made a big difference. The secondary has been night and day and are seldom caught out of position to make a play. D line getting pressure. They didn’t all suddenly become better athletes. But they are becoming better football players. Jmho.I think Walters would tell you that this defensive success is a product of a total team effort including the assistant coaches (knowledgeable, capable and cooperative), the players (dedicated, disciplined and determined) and the support staff (prepared and persistent).
There will be lots of frustration over playing conservative football. Sometimes it will work out sometimes it won’t. I’ll take this brand over the 63-0 games all day long.Uhh...you did know BB coached in Madison, did you not?
Don't forget about the Maryland game.Great road win. Just imagine if we would have taken care of business in the UTSA, Purdue, & Rutgers games! Congratulations Fighting Illini players & coaches!!!! Two road wins against ranked big ten foes.
With the experience coming back there was hope that this could have been a solid season. Too many holes and we lost winnable games. There is a part of me that is glad that we are not 8-2 or 7-3 right now as we might see a downturn in the next couple of years until BB's recruits get here and get experience. The only wildcard is the transfer portal.I’m somewhat shocked at how so many seemed to give Underwood time to turn the basketball program around but expected BB to win in season one at one of the worst P5 programs in the nation. These guys have to learn how to win. The culture is changing. Give it a chance.
XxxDon't forget about the Maryland game.
Kinda like Christopher Columbus to the Queen.With the experience coming back there was hope that this could have been a solid season. Too many holes and we lost winnable games. There is a part of me that is glad that we are not 8-2 or 7-3 right now as we might see a downturn in the next couple of years until BB's recruits get here and get experience. The only wildcard is the transfer portal.
Been a Steelers fan forever so i know a little bit about grind it out football games. Especially before Big Ben came along and started slinging it. Lots of roller coaster games will wear you out. I need naps after the emotional ups and downs of the 2 teams i root for most.There will be lots of frustration over playing conservative football. Sometimes it will work out sometimes it won’t. I’ll take this brand over the 63-0 games all day long.
Agreed. We're probably just about where we should be.It's really satisfying to see such improvement in the football program. It's also enjoyable to watch a press conference with a head coach who has a decent personality and can speak reasonably well. I don't agree with the people who insist that we should have 2-3 more wins at this point -- although that would be nice. We have won a few close games and we have lost a few close games. That's life. We haven't beaten anybody by more than 10 points -- and that was a not-very-good Charlotte team. Our 4-6 record accurately reflects the current state of the program right now, but let's hope that better days are yet to come.
Too bad Mrs. Brown didn’t have quintuplets.Sydney brown nuff said
Rather have 2 sets of twins!Too bad Mrs. Brown didn’t have quintuplets.