Rutgers 35, Illinois 24 POSTGAME
Illwinsagain
- Cary, IL
I should have bet the unfer of 3.5 wins.
Wins or at least decent records. If that cannot be done in 4 years then there is an issue that must be addressed.
We aspire to b what Purdue and IU are w their first yr head coaches
It hasn't worked out long term because fans like you get too down too early. We're a two win team. Go back and look at the old posts and you'll see a lot of us saw this coming. We're weak at QB, we couldn't have any injuries (we always have a ton of injuries, we lacked depth (again), we're starting true Fr (and not just one or two), we're inexperienced, our playbook is limited and on and on.
A lot of really good writers had us pegged for a long, hard season this year with our youngsters taking their lumps. They've had flashes of brilliance (I like to think of them as glimpses into the future) but we've made a pile of nasty mistakes. It is what it is.
If you don't want this year after year after year, then you have to go to the games, look for those flashes of brilliance, AND STAY THE FREAKING COURSE. Only stability and long term support for the program has ANY chance of turning this around. Next year will be bumpy too. Fall 2019 is when we find ourselves in must-win games. I'm looking forward to it.
I'd grade our defense as probably a D today, our offense a D today and our special teams get an F. Today was especially disappointing. I didn't expect a win today, but I was very unhappy with how we lost. I get that. But I'll be at the next home game. I an hoping for some flashes of brilliance. Today was brutal. There will be better days.
Stay the course
I agree that you can't keep changing coaches. However, you can't stay with a loser forever. Here are the coaches that I have followed:
Eliot - 18 years (83/73/11)
Elliott - 7 years (31/34/1)
Valek - 4 years (8/32)
Blackman - 6 years (29/36/1)
Moeller - 3 years (6/24/3)
White - 8 years (47/41/3)
Mackovik - 4 years (30/16/1)
Tepper - 5 years (25/31/2)
Turner - 8 years (32-49)
Zook - 7 years (34/51)
Beckman - 3 years (12/25)
Cubit - 1 year (5/7)
Smith - 1+ year (5/13)
All of these guys were fired except Eliot and Mackovic (Smith). Who, among the others, would you have kept longer?
I agree that you can't keep changing coaches. However, you can't stay with a loser forever. Here are the coaches that I have followed:
Eliot - 18 years (83/73/11)
Elliott - 7 years (31/34/1)
Valek - 4 years (8/32)
Blackman - 6 years (29/36/1)
Moeller - 3 years (6/24/3)
White - 8 years (47/41/3)
Mackovik - 4 years (30/16/1)
Tepper - 5 years (25/31/2)
Turner - 8 years (32-49)
Zook - 7 years (34/51)
Beckman - 3 years (12/25)
Cubit - 1 year (5/7)
Smith - 1+ year (5/13)
All of these guys were fired except Eliot and Mackovic (Smith). Who, among the others, would you have kept longer?
Fans with the rose colored glasses saying get back to me in 2 years are part of the problem. You should be demanding they be better now, other coaches are succeeding in years 1 and 2. Nobody gets 4 bad years unless they coach here where the fans are ok with losing.
Only hope is he quits because that contract buyout is huge.
Only hope is he quits because that contract buyout is huge.
Oldtoysrock
- Sarasota, Florida
:huh:
Those other coaches have WAY more to work with from a talent (and particularly experience) standpoint.
Now I’m not super impressed with the job Lovie and staff have done—especially with recruiting—but the context of the complete headless disaster this program was just 18 months ago is important.
Those other coaches have WAY more to work with from a talent (and particularly experience) standpoint.
Now I’m not super impressed with the job Lovie and staff have done—especially with recruiting—but the context of the complete headless disaster this program was just 18 months ago is important.
Let's be honest Beckmann/Cubit left us with nothing at all in the cupboard. This is a total rebuild. As you see we have some talent but we are young and inexperience up front on both lines. Recruiting could be better but I Trust Lovie and the gang evaluation. Our freshmen have been a pleasant surprise.
FT35
- Naperville
So this is what the bottom feels like :tsk:
What in the world was Carmoni Green doing on that "punt return"? Did he think it was a kick off? After the game Lovie said Green is 4th on the depth chart at punt returner but does he not even understand the basics of returning punts? That's pretty much Football 101 on what NOT to do on a punt return.
Why did Marchese start and play so much? I get playing the younger guys but why is a walk-on Sophomore getting a start nearly half way through the season? Are we trying to show Aaron Antoniou that he can be a PWO here and play? I'm not trying to be rude but there's a reason why he's a walk-on and it showed today.
Jones, Phillips, Harding and Watson all had tackles according to the box score so I'm guessing they weren't all injured? Ayo Shogbonyo also played quite a bit for some reason.
Also, apparently if you are an upper classman on this team it takes almost nothing to end up in the dog house. Kendrick Foster has been out of the rotation since the first game and he was named the MVP of the offense by this staff last December!
I have no problem with losing and I expected the offense to struggle but Rutgers just continued to punch us in the face all day and we had no response. They had their third string QB out there and hung 35 points on us. It's starting to feel like it's 2005 where we don't even have a chance at being competitive against conference opponents.
I like the young talent on the defensive side of the ball but I'm starting to wonder if a cover 2 defense works against read options, which almost every college team runs now. I know it works well in the NFL but I question how effective it can be at this level of football?
If you're also going to sit upperclassmen in favor of playing for the future, why is Crawford getting snaps over guys like Gay and Carney? Crawford played well today but it totally goes against what we saw with the LBs today
I really liked what Smalling did today. He's the real deal and his athleticism is off the charts. Hobbs is electric on KRs and almost broke one for a TD. The OL also looked okay and gave George time to throw the ball for the most part. Bonner did okay but I'm puzzled as to why Corbin didn't play more? It was also nice to see Brown get some carries after all he has been through. Dorsey continues to impress but obviously needs to add some weight and improve on his blocking, but it's going to take an offseason or two for it to all come together for him. The defense also forced a number of fumbles which is obviously great to see but we had 0 points as a result of TOs!
George did fine but the secondary for Rutgers is very weak as they have two converted WRs back there due to injuries. Jawaun Harris is one of them, and I really only think of him as a baseball player who also graduated from St. Thomas Aquinas. Cam Thomas must be nowhere near ready if we're not playing him after this game since this was the last game that we really had any chance of winning.
It's too bad we had such a bad day when we had so many quality recruits on campus. The Trinity Catholic kids, Perkins as well as Ayodele Adeoye (who has been on campus at least 4 times now by my count!).
This staff is far from perfect but I'd like to see some continuity for at least a few years. If we're still seeing games like this in 2019 then I don't think they'll be anyone arguing that changes shouldn't be made with this staff. Whitman can just look at the stands today to see where our fan base is right now and it's certainly not interested in watching this team play at Memorial Stadium.
One thing that does irk me are the penalties and the staff needs to fix this ASAP. That is a clear sign of an undisciplined team and they need to cut down on them as the season goes on.
What in the world was Carmoni Green doing on that "punt return"? Did he think it was a kick off? After the game Lovie said Green is 4th on the depth chart at punt returner but does he not even understand the basics of returning punts? That's pretty much Football 101 on what NOT to do on a punt return.
Why did Marchese start and play so much? I get playing the younger guys but why is a walk-on Sophomore getting a start nearly half way through the season? Are we trying to show Aaron Antoniou that he can be a PWO here and play? I'm not trying to be rude but there's a reason why he's a walk-on and it showed today.
Jones, Phillips, Harding and Watson all had tackles according to the box score so I'm guessing they weren't all injured? Ayo Shogbonyo also played quite a bit for some reason.
Also, apparently if you are an upper classman on this team it takes almost nothing to end up in the dog house. Kendrick Foster has been out of the rotation since the first game and he was named the MVP of the offense by this staff last December!
I have no problem with losing and I expected the offense to struggle but Rutgers just continued to punch us in the face all day and we had no response. They had their third string QB out there and hung 35 points on us. It's starting to feel like it's 2005 where we don't even have a chance at being competitive against conference opponents.
I like the young talent on the defensive side of the ball but I'm starting to wonder if a cover 2 defense works against read options, which almost every college team runs now. I know it works well in the NFL but I question how effective it can be at this level of football?
If you're also going to sit upperclassmen in favor of playing for the future, why is Crawford getting snaps over guys like Gay and Carney? Crawford played well today but it totally goes against what we saw with the LBs today
I really liked what Smalling did today. He's the real deal and his athleticism is off the charts. Hobbs is electric on KRs and almost broke one for a TD. The OL also looked okay and gave George time to throw the ball for the most part. Bonner did okay but I'm puzzled as to why Corbin didn't play more? It was also nice to see Brown get some carries after all he has been through. Dorsey continues to impress but obviously needs to add some weight and improve on his blocking, but it's going to take an offseason or two for it to all come together for him. The defense also forced a number of fumbles which is obviously great to see but we had 0 points as a result of TOs!
George did fine but the secondary for Rutgers is very weak as they have two converted WRs back there due to injuries. Jawaun Harris is one of them, and I really only think of him as a baseball player who also graduated from St. Thomas Aquinas. Cam Thomas must be nowhere near ready if we're not playing him after this game since this was the last game that we really had any chance of winning.
It's too bad we had such a bad day when we had so many quality recruits on campus. The Trinity Catholic kids, Perkins as well as Ayodele Adeoye (who has been on campus at least 4 times now by my count!).
This staff is far from perfect but I'd like to see some continuity for at least a few years. If we're still seeing games like this in 2019 then I don't think they'll be anyone arguing that changes shouldn't be made with this staff. Whitman can just look at the stands today to see where our fan base is right now and it's certainly not interested in watching this team play at Memorial Stadium.
One thing that does irk me are the penalties and the staff needs to fix this ASAP. That is a clear sign of an undisciplined team and they need to cut down on them as the season goes on.
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The fact that the Illini are having to play & start so many freshmen speaks to what sad shape the program was in when Lovie took over. Lovie has only had one recruiting year & the in coming group will be his second.
This year, the key is to develop these young players. Much will also depend on an off season regiment which will get them ready physically to compete in Big football.
I am fully expecting to see a lot of improvement next season. In two years we should be bowling.
I'm frustrated as well and have wondered why we haven't been competitve the last two decades especially.
But I know that Lovie is a great coach and has solid asst.These young players are going to be B10 caliber in 2 years. We need to build bottom up, and have a system. Can't be firing coaches every 3 years and expect a turnaround.
But I know that Lovie is a great coach and has solid asst.These young players are going to be B10 caliber in 2 years. We need to build bottom up, and have a system. Can't be firing coaches every 3 years and expect a turnaround.
Out of these coaches i would have kept zook. I think mike Thomas jumped the gun on his firing. I believe zook was building a very nice illinois squad with an identity. With petrino and especially koenning leading the defense we were on the way to a decent team.
Now i see people complaining about the lovie regime. I want to know what exactly did u guys think we were goinh to take the big 10 by storm with a team full of freshmen n sophmores???? Come on im giving him till year 4 just to see consistent improvement. Lovie is the best coach we had n a while. I trust the process i didnt believe for 1 sec that we were even going to a bowl this year.
JDHalfrack
- Springfield, IL
Nope. Not even close.
vvv We all seem to forget that we're only 2 years removed from all of this vvv
Ex-Illini Simon Cvijanovic accuses Tim Beckman, football staff of mistreatment
Former Beckman players from Illinois, Toledo, speak out about treatment
More former Tim Beckman players allege improper treatment by Illinois coach
More ex-players speak out negatively about Illinois coach Tim Beckman
Tim Beckman dodges questions about allegations of player abuse in fiery Big Ten Media Day appearance
Illinois fires Tim Beckman, allegedly for mistreatment of injured players
Illinois trustees approve $1.2 million contract for Bill Cubit
Illinois fires coach Bill Cubit less than four months after hiring him
^^^ We all seem to forget that we're only 2 years removed from all of this ^^^
The real truth is, Lovie - and McGee, by extension (and why did McGee leave Louisville when he had a Heisman candidate to coach? How often does that happen?), has thrown the program under the bus playing freshmen at every position he can. Cubit would have taken the same team last year and beat Lovie. Lovie LOST the Nebraska game at Nebraska, by, among other things, playing a freshman on the O line who couldn't find his helmet with a map (and the kid is no longer in school, btw), and punting when he should have gone for it on fourth down with time running out. But those are just two examples. Lovie lost the Purdue game because he didn't even bother to ice Purdue's kicker... Lovie says "It is Xs and Os" just like the pro game, but he cant bring guys in every Tuesday to try them out (like in the pro game). He's got to work with what he has. And at that he ran out the walk-on players last year - then held a try out to find walk ons because he didn't have enough bodies for practice.
Point taken - but to prove the point, scale your data and add context (i.e. Zook’s W/L record 18 games in and Turner’s cupboard of talent). To the latter, I remember Mendenhall being onboard.
Ubermensch
BOOM! Feed my ego.
Been in a coma the last XX years?
Illini football has been at the bottom for so long that Northwestern-level success is the goal.
Ugh. Beckman/Cubit and their penchant for JUCOs is the reason we have to play 18 true freshmen this year. Those guys sold out their futures every recruting cycle to limp to six wins because bowl eligibility was how they kept their jobs. Somebody someday had to break off our dependency on short-term stop-gap roster building. And like shaking off junk cold turkey, it wasn't ever going to be pretty.
Pete Elliott was fired because of the slush fund scandal. In his last 4 years at Illinois, his teams went 24-14-1 and 17-10-1 in Big Ten play. Also his 1963 team won the Rose Bowl. During this time, there were only 7 conference games.
mattcoldagelli
- The Transfer Portal with Do Not Contact Tag
But this is what happens when you're going into full-on, burn it down rebuild mode - you're going to get surprised in really good ways and in really bad ways. We have traded in all of our experience and maturity chips, and I feel that at least most of us around here went into that deal with eyes wide open.
I was hoping we could win this one, too, but you pretty much have to just roll with the punches this year, look for the guys getting better, and hope we don't have any disastrous injuries.
Deleted member 16340
D
Guest
I had no expectation of any wins this year with our situation. I did however, expect: 1) a more disciplined team by this point in the season. Penalties destroy any momentum we may establish. 2) more continuity in the rotations, and 3) more football IQ. Sometimes it feels like Beckman is still around...
mattcoldagelli
- The Transfer Portal with Do Not Contact Tag
It was clear to me we'd be really bad this year after the Ball State game. Not surprised we lost today. Sure, our team is young and will get better in the coming years, but I think our recruiting really needs to improve. No matter how good our coach is we won't be true contenders in the Big Ten with a bunch of 2-3 star recruits.