Illinois 14, Minnesota 6 Postgame

#127      
Minny 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.
 
#128      
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

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).
 
#130      
Minny 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.
Sydney brown nuff said
 
#131      

DeonThomas

South Carolina
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).

I tend to agree. And I'm really anxious to see how Iowa's low-octane offense performs against Walters' "D" when he has a bye-week to prepare.

BTW..........nice use of alliteration. (Might I suggest conversant rather than "knowledgeable" to make it even more pronounced!)
 
#132      
To add a little perspective to what the D accomplished, Auburn was the only ranked team this weekend to score fewer points (3) than Iowa, and that was against another ranked opponent (TA&M).
 
#133      
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.
Uhh...you did know BB coached in Madison, did you not?
 
#134      

illini80

Forgottonia
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).
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.
 
#136      
If memory serves, before the season we were picked to finish dead last in the B1G, and Vegas had our over/under at 3.5 wins. Coach B has reached the over, exceeded the expectations of the conference's sports-writing geniuses, and evidently has a non-zero chance to go bowling.

I'll be a lot happier when the inexplicable inconsistency goes away, but I'm grateful for the high points nonetheless. Congratulations Illini, on over-performing media expectations.
 
#137      
After a night to sleep on my thoughts that we could really be like 7-3 or 8-2 right now, I woke up with an additional perspective.

I’m hopeful that the returners know they left some out there this year, and that drives them like hell in the off-season. They should have a unique blend of fire from not winning the games they could have, but experience and confidence from winning some games they should not have.
 
#138      

tspinner

Champaign, IL
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.
Don't forget about the Maryland game.
 
#139      

tspinner

Champaign, IL
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.
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.
 
#141      
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.
 
#142      
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.
Kinda like Christopher Columbus to the Queen.

"The only wild card is the ocean."

Seriously, off seasons are going to be unbelievably tumultuous forever while this situation exists. Look at Adam Miller. Start every game as a freshman and then transfer. Guys we're inking in for next year are going to leave. We just have to be prepared for that.

One thing we have going for us is that the big name road wins probably give us a bit of cachet with potential transfers.

But coaches now are going to be expected to be good at HS recruiting and coaching but also free agency and employee retention. I think we've yet to figure out what coaches are best able to perform under the new rules. Hopefully we've got one.
 
#143      
What we're all going to be doing the moment the gun goes off at the end of the Northwestern game, is playing Quarterback Roulette. Artur? Ryan? Transfer? Incoming freshman? Let the opinionizing begin!
 
#144      

pruman91

Paducah, Ky
Is Walters still coaching from the sidelines instead of the press box area.....???

If he is then maybe that might be something that the OC might consider......................Just saying ........
 
#145      

Dbell1981

Decatur, IL
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.
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.
 
#147      

DeonThomas

South Carolina
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.
Agreed. We're probably just about where we should be.

We've won three close games - NEB, PSU, MINN (2 of the 3 currently ranked)
We've lost four close games - MD, PURD, UTSA, RUTG (2 of the 4 currently ranked)

WISC, UVA and CLT were not close.