The independent student newspaper at the University of Illinois since 1871

The Daily Illini

The independent student newspaper at the University of Illinois since 1871

The Daily Illini

The independent student newspaper at the University of Illinois since 1871

The Daily Illini

The independent student newspaper at the University of Illinois since 1871

The Daily Illini

Near upset builds confidence for hungry Illini

Before Saturday’s game against No. 2 Ohio State, the Illinois football team had yet to gain much respect. It was a double-digit underdog at home and was almost universally picked to get blown out by the Buckeyes. But those predictions never became reality. Instead, the Illini nearly pulled the upset, losing 24-13 in a game that was close until the final minutes of the fourth quarter.

“I just told our football team (after the game) I was proud of them,” head coach Ron Zook said. “There’s obviously some things we need to clean up, but if we get those things cleaned up we got a chance to be a pretty good football team.”

For running back Mikel Leshoure, the team’s performance just validates the feelings they have had all along.

“We believed in that, if no one else did before this game, that we could play with the best. And it showed there. It was a 60 minute game and we played 60 minutes. We definitely felt like that game could have been the other way, we could have won that, so I think (it builds) a lot of confidence,” Leshoure said. “It’s definitely a confidence booster going into next week. We know what we can do and we plan on winning.”

“We know what we got,” quarterback Nathan Scheelhaase said. “We know that we’re a team that can give any team in the country a game.”

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Scheelhaase knows it will take more than just confidence, though. The redshirt freshman believes the team must still find a way to deliver “the knock-out punch” if it wants to compete in the Big Ten.

“That’s kinda what we’re looking for,” Scheelhaase said.

“We’re in there fighting it out, throwing punch for punch, and obviously that’s a rough feeling when you don’t come out on top.”

Despite coming up just short against Ohio State, Scheelhaase believes the loss will just make the Illini hungrier to prove themselves throughout the rest of the season.

“(The loss) definitely leaves that bad taste in your mouth … It felt like there were some plays that we could’ve capitalized on better, and it definitely leaves you ready to go out there for that next game,” Scheelhaase said.

“Anybody who loves the game of football loves when they get a challenge like that, loves when they kind of get knocked down and backed into a corner. People want to see how you respond. I wouldn’t expect anything less than us coming out hungry and fighting.”

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