Penn State 56, Illinois 21

#2      

Illini-Rule

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Illini-Rule
Why does it seem as if Iowa always gets so many home games? Whether football or basketball. Seems like we are always on the road...
 
#8      

KOTC2

K
KOTC2
Both teams had disappointing seasons - Illinois was projected to be at least a bowl team and and even worse PSU was a pre-season top ten team.
 
#10      

IlliniFanHere

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New York
IlliniFanHere
BWBW said:
Buahahahahahahaha..........when did Miles Smith ever coach during a game?? Perhaps a more accurate statement would be: Miles Smith will not travel with the team to Penn State.
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I looked up CRONYISM in the dictionary.....Miles name cameup. Pundits have named the Illinois/P.State game the : Whatever" Bowl.
 
#18      

trtl

T
trtl
FightingIllini40 said:
Actually not dreading this one with Lovie gone. Can watch this one knowing whatever happens doesn't matter.
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Agree and at least people will watch bc it’s Penn State. Our players deserve that. No one would have watched Maryland and no one would have noticed if we beat MD. They’ll notice if we beat PSU even if only to kick dirt on PSU. I hope for our players’ sake that the coaches give them a legit chance to compete. They’ve been through a lot the past few years.
 
#19      

Chukwuwumba

Chukwuwumba
Chukwuwumba
Really happy to see BIG change it up for these matchups. Minn vs wisc and IU vs PU. Better to have these rivalries vs a crossover.
And OSU vs NW was right move.

interested to see who starts at QB, is there any difference in scheme for OFF? Def? These coaches will be looking for other jobs as well
 
#22      

IllinoisssssssVarsity

I
IllinoisssssssVarsity
I wonder if well really mix some things up defensively with a new play caller for this one.

Maybe see some more blitzes just for the hell of it or some coverages we don’t normally run, specifically designed to capitalize on Penn state’s weaknesses to force them to run their offense in the least efficient way.
 
#23      

Dan

Dan
Admin
Dan
https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1338567570966843394

Rod Smith: Jimmy Lindsey calling the defense. Dylan Roney will take over as DEs coach. Carson Hall will assume LBs coach role. Both those guys were coaching those guys. Ilir Emini working with safeties.

Rod Smith: Mike DiAngelo stepping in as QBs coach to alleviate some of the duties he now has to take on.

Rod Smith: We're here for the kids. We will do the damndest to allow them to finish this thing up.

Rod Smith: It's the job. It's the business. We all know what we signed up for. No one wants to go through this. ...You're a professional first. You do your job.

Rod Smith: "Basically you treat this like a bowl game."

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#25      

Dan

Dan
Admin
Dan
LB Jake Hansen: "A lot of disappointment. Sad, kind of frustrated. But at the end of the day you’ve got to move forward and move on past it, and unfortunately it is a business. … We weren’t productive enough while Coach Smith was here."

Hansen: "I still will stand behind Coach Smith. I think he’s a phenomenal coach. ... This team’s in a lot better shape, and we have more talent on this roster when I came in. … I owe everything to him. I owe a lot of my career to him."

Hansen on Smith's firing piling on to pandemic struggles: "I didn’t commit to Illinois for a coach. It’s about playing football and not allowing them to take it away from you and not allowing people to say we can’t play and understand(ing) that nothing’s guaranteed."

Hansen on his #Illini future: "I’m going to evaluate that after Penn State and make a decision from there." Says he thinks you could look at it both ways for upperclassmen deciding whether they'll use extra year of eligibility or not now that Lovie is gone.

Hansen on Penn State matchup post-Lovie firing: "Definitely adds a big challenge to it, I can’t lie. But I would say, not that there’s no pressure, but there’s a lot less pressure. We can be a little bit more loose … maybe have a little bit more fun with it." #Illini

Hansen on what he's playing for this weekend: "You’re playing for each other. You’re playing for if you love football, if you love the game, and playing for the University of Illinois." Thinks Lovie would agree with that assessment #Illini

Hansen on conversation with Lovie after the coach was fired: "Just thanked him for everything that he’s done for me elevating my career."

Hansen keeps it simple when asked what he took away from Rod Smith addressing the #Illini this morning: "He just kind of got me fired up to play Penn State."

Illini center Doug Kramer on now ... "It was in the morning right after we got (COVID-19) tested. We had a team meeting, and Coach (Lovie) Smith addressed the team for the last time. That’s how I learned about it. I didn’t know it was going to happen before it happened."

Kramer: "(Lovie) definitely helped me grow as a professional. He was a very level-headed person. That’s something I learned from him: don’t let your emotions get too high, too low. … He was kind of steady through this whole process." #Illini

Kramer was among the athletes to address the team this morning after Rod Smith did. "My message from right when this happened was, 'Tough times don’t last, tough people do.'" #Illini

Kramer on what he sees from #Illini football post-Lovie: "There are people here who really do want to win, who take a lot of pride in playing for this school, who chose to come to this school and really love it."

Kramer on treating the Penn State game like a bowl game: "I’ve never felt like this. This is a unique feeling to have before a game."

Kramer doesn't comment on his health for the Penn State game after missing the second half of last week's loss at Northwestern but says only ways he's coming off the field at Penn State are if he can't walk or needs to be carried off #Illini

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