Illinois Game

[HappyPenguin]

Its not too early to talk about this is it? 

Anybody know what hotel the team will be using?

What are our chances?

Can we make it to this game before the fire Strollo\Wolf\everyone in the athletic dept. talk starts?

[Wick250]

This is our one and apparently only chance to play a second division Big Ten team.  The good news is that Illinois has less talent than Ohio State, Penn State, and Michigan State.  The bad news is that they still have better players than we do, and they won't hesitate to run up the score if they can.  Just as the Big Ten heavyweights continually run the score up on them.

Can anybody that watched the "old" defense get shredded by SDSU and the "new" defense get annihilated in the spring game offer us any realistic hope for this season?

[HappyPenguin]

Both very good point Wick...our only hope is they don't bother to prepare for what we do, like Pitt didn't seem to.

I really doubt we can expect light-years improvement in our D from the spring unfortunately. Offense should be good enough to win quite a few games. We'll be hurt by our inability to get off the field on 3rd downs. Plenty of athletes on that side, not enough football players lol.

Don't underestimate Liste being gone either! He was very good at giving us a field position advantage if we could trade punts.

[ysufan0505]

I think we can be competitive but not sure it will be enough. Too young up front and at QB. Jitters galore for first game at a Big10 opponent.

[paladin]

05 gets the brass ring. Ill. isn't very good, but this year they should be improved with a starting QB, a transfer from Okla.St. Strong arm and they think he makes good decisions. Several good receivers and big OL. LOts of Ohio kids on this team.  YSU has no experience at QB and a young  OL. And don't  see the D improved all that much. Illini will be at least a 3 TD favorite. Maybe more.

I think a .500 club , but we'll see what the MVFC poll says. 

[DoubleE]

Its make or break year for Illinois coach, was great at toledo and then continued in zooks awfulness since taking the gig. I understand there was a complete lack of offensive talent and between the 5 star qb they brought in last year (Bailey) and the oklahoma state QB transfering in Illinois should be better this year then in the last 2 years, atleast the coach hopes so for his jobs sake

[ValleyTalk]

Their defense may have been worse than ours last year, and that is pretty hard to do. They averaged giving up 35 ppg, including giving up 34 to Southern Illinois early in the year.

I anticipate our offense to be solid again this year, but with a new QB I'm sure we will have some early growing pains. I still believe this should be a competitive game even with our defense looking shaky. Too shaky defenses can be exposed by two high scoring offenses.

[HappyPenguin]

Their defense may have been worse than ours last year, and that is pretty hard to do. They averaged giving up 35 ppg, including giving up 34 to Southern Illinois early in the year.

I anticipate our offense to be solid again this year, but with a new QB I'm sure we will have some early growing pains. I still believe this should be a competitive game even with our defense looking shaky. Too shaky defenses can be exposed by two high scoring offenses.

Sounds fun to me...cant wait to hear the doom and gloom if we lose.

[ValleyTalk]

This Illinois site is predicting Illinois 35-24 over YSU. Not much confidence in their team:
http://writingillini.com/2014/07/28/illinois-football-2014-schedule-preview-youngstown-state-penguins/

[DoubleE]

This Illinois site is predicting Illinois 35-24 over YSU. Not much confidence in their team:
http://writingillini.com/2014/07/28/illinois-football-2014-schedule-preview-youngstown-state-penguins/

refresh my memory but they havnt won a B1G game in 3 years right ?

their offense was meh last year and replace their QB with a tranfer from oklahoma state. they run a similar system to YSU (little bit more wr screens but very similar) both defenses are awful

I could see it being close with Illinois pulling it out in the 3rd or 4th

[Lets_Talk]

Illinois went 1-7 in the BIG, 4-8 overall last season, winning 20-16 at Purdue. In 2012, they went 0-8 in the BIG, and 2-10 overall.
In 2011, 2-6, but finished 7-6 overall and beat UCLA in the Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl. They also finished 7-6 in 2010 and beat Baylor in the Texas Bowl . In the past 4 seasons, UI has gone 2 bowl games twice, winning each of those games. So, while Illinois is definitely a bottom tier BIG team, this is not the same as when YSU had much better teams than they do now, and would play lower level teams from the MAC.

Also, not sure what their record against BIG teams matters, given YSU is in the MVFC, and plays at the FCS level?Given all that YSU lost on offense, and the way this team has played defense under Wofford, not sure why people would think YSU has much of a chance in this game?

As for Illinois in previous years against FCS teams, they are 11-0 since the 2000 season when they first played an FCS team. This includes 6-0 against teams from the MVFC.

[Wick250]

Reading the Illinois analysis, it seems that they had trouble containing talented running backs. We have not been able to run the ball effectively against the Big Ten giants....obviously.  If our young line can open a few holes, it might give us a glimmer of hope to make this game competitive.

Of course anything we do on offense will not matter if the defense has not been rebuilt over the summer.  The entire season rests upon the shoulders of Jamie Bryant.  He must succeed where his two predecessors failed.  Namely, he must mold inferior talent into a serviceable unit.  An above average defense that can give our offense an opportunity to outscore the opponents.  Is that asking too much?

[ysufan0505]

At the end of the day, they are still Big 10 athletes. I say we can score some points, but with a young inexperienced QB and O-Line, it's gonna be tough. And I have no faith in the defense, and we have no proof to be realistic on that side of the ball....

[penguinpower]

At the end of the day, they are still Big 10 athletes. I say we can score some points, but with a young inexperienced QB and O-Line, it's gonna be tough. And I have no faith in the defense, and we have no proof to be realistic on that side of the ball....

Dead on analysis.

[Karl Hungus]

That's why they play the game. Y ;Dou guys said the same damn thing about Pitt.