Pregame: Illinois vs Maryland, Saturday, November 15th, 2:30pm CT, FS1

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#26      
BWBW
therealmiket86 said:
an bring b I said before the defense will finish strong and that’ll be the reason to bring back Henry. It’ll be similar to 2 years ago when everyone wanted BL fired. If the defense finishes strong and finishes middle of the pack no way Brett gets rid of his guy Ahen
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Any chance Bret gets Henry a better paying or resume enhancing job somewhere else so we can bring in a proven DC to make the step from Bowl contender to playoff contender?
 
#28      
OB positive
Yes even if we do ok against lower rated offenses it's not enough reason to keep Henry as dc. Keeping lower rated offenses in check is a given for an average defense. The problem is we are rarely ready for the big games against the top rated teams or programs. We don't make any affective in game adjustments and just playing cautious is the wrong answer. Henry was not ready for his elevation to dc and is over his head. Instead of rising to the challenge he has floundered in the defensive coordinator position.
 
#29      
HailtotheChief
GrayGhost77 said:
I actually think Northwestern(sucks) is the toughest remaining game. They have a better overall and much better B1G record thus far. MD should be a W and pretty comfortably as long as we bring our A game again like we did today. We should destroy Wisky (which will be fun, especially as I'm sure Brett and many others remember what happened last time we played there). But yeah, we better be very prepared for NW as it will be the difference between a good and great season for us, and they just might be playing to get into a bowl game.
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I feel Maryland is our most difficult game left. I think they have the best offense of those remaining. Our offense can score I just get more concerned vs more athletic offenses vs our D. They play Nebraska, UCLA with the new coach, and Washington all within 5 pts. Plus they have an athletic QB. I am much more concerned with Maryland beating us than others we have left and it's not close to my worry in the other 2 games
 
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#30      
CDRUSN
I'm hoping the forecast for the Maryland game calls for in-Clement weather, and Hudson has another huge game pulling in any passes Luke makes within his catch radius. That Rutgers game was his breakout. Many outside experts tagged our receivers as questionable before the season with the loss of our two best to the NFL, but they have come through spectacularly. Big shout-out to Beatty, Dixon, Bowick, and Rusk as well. Great effort and results by all. Coaches Lunney and Stepp, and especially Luke, have taken full advantage in developing and using those weapons.
 
#31      
the juiceman cometh
BWBW said:
Any chance Bret gets Henry a better paying or resume enhancing job somewhere else so we can bring in a proven DC to make the step from Bowl contender to playoff contender?
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What AD would pay a lot of money to hire a guy that his current employer doesn't want because he's not performing? How does that conversation go?

"Hey, this is Bret. Look, I'm in a bit of a bind. You know Aaron is my guy. He's been with me for years. But I think I need someone else to propel this program forward. He just can't seem to make that leap. I just can't bring myself to fire him though. So do you think you could do me a solid and offer him your DC position? You gotta offer him a solid pay bump too so he takes it. Say 25% over what we're paying him? Think you can do me that solid?"
 
#32      
therealmiket86
the juiceman cometh said:
What AD would pay a lot of money to hire a guy that his current employer doesn't want because he's not performing? How does that conversation go?

"Hey, this is Bret. Look, I'm in a bit of a bind. You know Aaron is my guy. He's been with me for years. But I think I need someone else to propel this program forward. He just can't seem to make that leap. I just can't bring myself to fire him though. So do you think you could do me a solid and offer him your DC position? You gotta offer him a solid pay bump too so he takes it. Say 25% over what we're paying him? Think you can do me that solid?"
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lol yeah it would be hard to pull the switcharo and get Ahen a guy where he makes more money. I’m sure Brett could help him get a job but it wouldn’t be as a dc and it wouldn’t be for more money.
 
#33      
BWBW
therealmiket86 said:
lol yeah it would be hard to pull the switcharo and get Ahen a guy where he makes more money. I’m sure Brett could help him get a job but it wouldn’t be as a dc and it wouldn’t be for more money.
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Pro. As in a face saving move and most likely resume enhancing.
 
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#39      
BrownTown
Scoregasm said:
I'm hoping for a demotion back to DBs coach. If not, then bring in a DC as associate head coach to help Henry. He clearly needs the help.
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I'm not sure you can do that. I've never seen a demotion lead to a conducive work environment. Only was I can see that working is if it was an in-season promotion from DB coach to DC due to a firing, health issue step down etc.
 
#40      
ForeverOrange
therealmiket86 said:
At the very least we could bring in a veteran dc as an analyst.
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This. A Jim Leonard type to learn under or a co-DC is the only way I see forward if AHen is staying.

The only other option is letting go of some staff beneath Henry and bringing in higher paid/quality position coaches.

That’s all a bad recipe imo though. Never good to keep a guy who the players know is out the door if he doesn’t perform.

And please… no more Bart Miller after this year.


Illinois 30
Maryland 17
 
#42      
aiwpfan
Mr. Tibbs said:
Bret can do whatever he wants

but if he’s not pleased with AHens work , it’s best to cut ties . there is no “easy” or “nice” way to do it
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#44      
IlliniInBuckeyeState
Updated Gies Memorial Stadium Sellout Watch for Maryland.

This will likely end up being just the second game this season for which I get to log an attendance guess (non sellout). With that said, since I've moved to a new way to tracking available/unsold tickets, I don't feel like I have a good feel for how accurate those estimates are. For example the last two seasons, I was typically able to take my ticket tracker number, add 1,500 to 2,500 tickets, and I'd get pretty close to what the announced attendance would be. But for the first game of 2025, I tried something similar and was heavy by almost 2,200 tickets...

I think the ticket tracker is a little heavy on the ticket availability estimates. There are a lot of seats remaining in several parts of the stadium, so I expect we're probably more in line with the draw that we had for the Western Illinois game (56k).


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#45      
DeonThomas
ForeverOrange said:
The toughest of the remaining 3. Win this one and things start feeling good around here again. You could tell there was a little less “zip” in the stadium today. Hope the crowd and student section comes out fired up.
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NW - likely the toughest, because of their current 5-3 record, and the in-state rivalry
WISC - 2nd, because it's on the road
MD - probably the easiest (I suspect the spread will hover around 14 pts.....Rutgers-like)
 
#46      
DeonThomas
therealmiket86 said:
I said before the defense will finish strong and that’ll be the reason to bring back Henry. It’ll be similar to 2 years ago when everyone wanted BL fired. If the defense finishes strong and finishes middle of the pack no way Brett gets rid of his guy Ahen
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BB is a guy with huge CFP aspirations. After watching the OSU, IND and WASH games, I just don't think he's getting CFP quality nor CFP results from his Defensive Coordinator.
 
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