Hearing some grumbling from the folks at the Middle Fork Dark Sky Park that the glow from the scoreboard is interfering with their operation. I think it is about 25 miles NE of Memorial Stadium. Is there any type of cap on the scoreboard to direct the glow downward?
Illinois 42, UAB 23 Postgame
If we beat a cupcake 59-0 we learn next to nothing
UAB's running backs were very good... quick and strong. Our linebackers for the most part did not appear to be strong enough or quick enough to bring them down. Don't know how you fix that other than another year in the weight room and upgrade in recruiting. I'm hoping they'll respond and be more efficient moving forward.
Tackling was the biggest issue Thursday. I don't think our defense looked "bad". Tackling looked bad, which allowed UAB to stay on the field longer than they otherwise should have. Yes, this is bad, but here's fun stat:
Yards per minute of possession
UAB: 10.06
ILL: 17.52
Last year, UAB averaged 12.92 ypm, which was actually better than Illinois' 12.10 ypm. Illinois' ypm against UAB was higher than any of Illinois' OOC games last year. So, while everyone is worried about the yards given up, which does have some merit, I'd argue that it's more a reflection of how quickly Illinois scored and how long UAB was on the field as a result of that plus poor tackling.
Quite honestly, UAB's game was VERY inefficient, and only looks "better" because of the TOP disparity. There are not many (if any) things about UAB's game that made me scream "oh crap... we're in trouble". The tackling is the only real issue. Fix that, or at least be better, and I think we may actually be on to something here.
I still hate the 3-3-5 though.
Yards per minute of possession
UAB: 10.06
ILL: 17.52
Last year, UAB averaged 12.92 ypm, which was actually better than Illinois' 12.10 ypm. Illinois' ypm against UAB was higher than any of Illinois' OOC games last year. So, while everyone is worried about the yards given up, which does have some merit, I'd argue that it's more a reflection of how quickly Illinois scored and how long UAB was on the field as a result of that plus poor tackling.
Quite honestly, UAB's game was VERY inefficient, and only looks "better" because of the TOP disparity. There are not many (if any) things about UAB's game that made me scream "oh crap... we're in trouble". The tackling is the only real issue. Fix that, or at least be better, and I think we may actually be on to something here.
I still hate the 3-3-5 though.
Non night games shouldn't be an issue.
With maybe 3 night games per year and just one more scheduled for ‘26, the effect is measured in hours per year, 6-9 total.
Gosh you're right, "On second thought..." there are only 14 players from the 2023 team on NFL rosters.... bad team. We were 2 missed FGs from going 7-5. BTW That team gave up 3.9 yards/rush and 6.8 yards/pass, no different from last year's team. Maybe, "and I'm just spiffballing here" the 2023 wasn't so bad.
lstewart53x3
- Scottsdale, Arizona
What were the yards per play?
UAB - 5.23 ypp
ILL - 7.72 ypp
Last year's OOC games:
WIU: 3.52 ypp
ILL: 5.68 ypp
ILL: 5.74 ypp
DUKE: 6.95 ypp
WMU: 3.00 ypp
ILL: 5.68 ypp
So obviously not our best defensive production as far as that goes, but again... 7.72 ypp on offense is going to result in your opponents' offense getting their opportunities. We tackle slightly better, we win this game by 45.
I’m just still kind of in shock at how small we are on the front 7 of the defense.
I would point out that Brett Biliema has never won fewer than 5 games in I believe 6 years. This post could be meaningless if Illinois does not meet expectations this year. I was thinking after the game the other night that under previous regimes the score might have ended up 43-42. Of course that is pure speculation on my part. As a very long time fan, I have come to expect a certain level of consistent competency in the play of Illinois that has not been evident since the Macovic era.
I know there has been some discussion of the Ron Turner era. In the latter part of his coaching tenure, I was at a Michigan State game , and it was evident that MSU was much bigger than Illinois particularly on the defefensive side of the ball. So i am also somewhat concerned about the defense.
UAB averaged 404 offensive yards per game last year. UAB plays in the same conference as North Texas. North Texas out-gained Indiana @ Indiana 367 to 365, yet lost 52 -16 in a game not all that dis - similar to our game against UAB.
What is your point and more specifically, what is it that we need to be concerned about?
Last time I checked, I need to be candid its been while, the team that scores the most points (not the team that gains the most yards) wins the game.
I actually like the reason for the 3-3-5 by getting more of the best players on the field. But, that first "3" seem awfully small. When I looked at the defensive players lineup presnap, physically wise, it actually looked more like 2-4-5 to me. I think it will be interesting to watch, or very embarrassing during B10 play. We just have to score a lot very slowly.
blackdog
- Champaign
The defense isnt designed to be stout, its designed to cause havoc. They are going to live and die by being able to cause negative plays.
Illini4Chief
- TENNESSEE
The point is our lack of Defense......future times headlines. Illinois 88, UAB 67.......Illinois wins...
I think there is a misunderstanding here. I'll try to clarify. I believe that OP understands that wins are awarded by points and not total yards. What he's trying to do is project that performance vs higher caliber future opponents.
IlliniFanHere
- New York
True,I expected our D to be alot better than shown. Our guys look small, and slow......lotta arms movin but poor technique
I can see that. They looked very fast as a team. I hope they keep sending the pressure. It works against the rush and pass. Especially with the talent in the d-backs. The tackling will improve. I don't want to sound negative, I am excited to watch this defense. I am just worried we might see games like Penn State, from the Zook era, when Paterno tried to take mercy by running straight into the line 14 times in a row, and we still couldn't stop them.
mhuml32
Gesture of Northern Aggression
This is missing some nuance. Yes, USC won 42-26 against a bad SJSU team. What you're missing is that USC was winning 35-3 going into the fourth quarter. It was also winning 42-11 with ~6 minutes left. Illinois fans would feel different if the Illinois-UAB game followed the same timeline.
Allowing 400+ is alarming against a non-P4 opponent, but this is also missing some nuance. Yards-per-play is the distinction that matters. What's funny is the best comp for being out-gained but winning the YPP for Illinois is the 2023 Toledo game everyone is talking about, but I'll also throw in the 2025 Duke game.
| Game | ILL yards | Opp. yards | ILL YPP | Opp. YPP | Play differential |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 UAB | 332 | 413 | 7.7 | 5.2 | UAB +36 |
| 2023 Toledo | 374 | 416 | 6.1 | 5.3 | Toledo +18 |
| 2025 Duke | 419 | 438 | 5.74 | 6.95 | ILL +10 |
You can see there is a big gap between that performance against Toledo and this season's opener. Illinois' offense was performing at an elite level, similar to last year's USC or Purdue games. From what I could find, the UAB game was the 4th best YPP performance under Bielema. So compared with UAB:
2023 Indiana: 9.32 YPP
2025 USC: 8.10
2025 Purdue: 8.05
2026 UAB: 7.72
2024 Purdue: 7.62
2021 Northwestern: 7.52
The Duke game was the bigger warning sign that we were hoping was actually a positive because of all the created turnovers by the defense (alas....).
Imagine how much better this defense would be if we had McCollum, coenen and Tomiwa. Even just having one of them would’ve been huge. I also think Jojo Hayden and Malachi Hood would’ve been better in this defense. Hell I would even take Curt Neal or Jeremiah Warren back
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How about 'The OrangeKrushinit Crew?