Football Preview

2008 Illini football game-by-game breakdown

Illini vs. Missouri (St. Louis) Aug. 30, 7:30 p.m., ESPN

Most students don't have their first exam until around October, but quarterback Juice Williams is going to be tested early against an experienced Mizzou secondary. Last year, these teams lit up the scoreboard, and I don't see that being any different this season .

8/27/2008 - 12:00 AM    Post your comment
Zook dries off in the Zone

Every season the sights and sounds of the Illinois football team are typically the same: the orange, the blue, the marching band and the thousands of screaming college students. With the success of the 2007 season that ended with a surprising run to the Rose Bowl, football fanatics have been rushing to get their latest Illini fix.

8/27/2008 - 12:00 AM    Post your comment
Never Benn healthier

After spending most of spring practice on the sidelines recovering from shoulder surgery, a return to full contact drills at Camp Rantoul made Arrelious Benn's once-nagging injury a distant memory.

Now, the only thing that lingers is the enormous hype for the Illini's standout wide receiver.

8/27/2008 - 12:00 AM    Post your comment
Illinois football sizes-up this season's talent

Throughout the spring and summer seasons, Illinois coaches have said repeatedly that the defensive line would be the strength of the team. But what does the team think of their coach's predictions, and if they have to look at the other side of the ball, who is going to standout?

After polling the team in the early days of the season and at Camp Rantoul, it seems that, at least defensively, the players agree with the coaches.

8/27/2008 - 12:00 AM    Post your comment
Big Ten Network's "Journey" starts with Illinois football

Finally, the wait is over. The Big Ten Network is here.

As almost every Fighting Illini sports fan knows, Comcast and the BTN reached an agreement over the summer, allowing Illinois residents to access the network.

But what does this mean for Illini football fans? Well, quite a bit, actually.

8/27/2008 - 12:00 AM    Post your comment
Dufrene leads candidates to replace Mendenhall

As if following up a Rose Bowl appearance isn't enough of a challenge for Illinois football, it will have to replace likely the biggest reason it was in Pasadena, Calif., - Rashard Mendenhall.

Mendenhall's early departure from Illinois left a void and a question mark for running back, a position for the Illini that had been good historically but not first-round caliber, until the arrival of the Niles, Ill.

8/27/2008 - 12:00 AM    Post your comment
Crowded picture at tight end has promising future with Illini football

Coming into 2006, Ron Zook's second year at Illinois, expectations were growing after the country got a look at some of the athletes he was bringing into the program. Juice Williams, Vontae Davis and Dere Hicks were just a couple of parts of an Illini recruiting class that modestly surprised some people in the college football world.

8/27/2008 - 12:00 AM    Post your comment
If they hope to build on '07, Illini football can't beat themselves

As a fifth-year student returning to the University of Illinois for graduate school, I now officially qualify as an "old guy" by campus standards. I remember when CRCE was referred to as WIMPE and when the closest place to get a Potbelly's sandwich was Chicago.

8/27/2008 - 12:00 AM    Post your comment
Zook looks to avoid fluke with tough summer workouts

If Ron Zook ever takes a moment to rest on his laurels, he's not admitting it. His players certainly aren't getting a breather anytime soon, either.

A nine-win Rose Bowl season undoubtedly moved mountains for the national reputation of the once-doubted head coach, who simultaneously extracted the Illinois football program from the annals of national obscurity and shrugged off the label of "great-recruiter-who-fizzles-on-gameday.

8/27/2008 - 12:00 AM    Post your comment
Zook, Illini: Don't drop the ball when expectations are high

Ron Zook, your table is waiting.

Sorry, we weren't able to get you a seat near the front where you can smell the roses. That's been reserved for Lloyd Carr and his free ride - Mike Hart and Chad Henne.

And I apologize, but you won't be sitting anywhere close to Bret Bielema.

8/28/2007 - 12:00 AM    Post your comment
With core starters returning, Illini could be bowl bound

After all the talk of improvement, recruits, the mind boggling amount of text messages and everything else that has taken place since the Illini took their final loss against Northwestern in November last year, the time has come to see what Ron Zook and Illinois football are capable of.

8/28/2007 - 12:00 AM    Post your comment
Impact players look to shine in 2007

The start of a new school year brings the hope of the beginning of the turnaround for Illinois football. The Illini return nine starters on both offense and defense, along with key special teams players. Head coach Ron Zook has Campustown buzzing with optimism after inking a top-20 recruiting class.

8/28/2007 - 12:00 AM    Post your comment
Illini set for season opener in St. Louis

The Fighting Illini football team returns to game action this Saturday in St. Louis against the Big 12's Missouri Tigers. Illinois was just 4-19 in the past two seasons, but 20 returning starters, a nationally acclaimed recruiting class and a stadium renovation have increased excitement for the season.

8/28/2007 - 12:00 AM    Post your comment
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