What Did We Learn - Illinois

I learned I'm a lot more high strung during games when the wife refuses to knock some out the morning of gameday.

 
What we learned:

  • That Langsdorf DOES have boundary running plays in the playbook...but from the looks of it, they don't practice them too often. They need those in the playbook if they hope to keep Wisky and tOSU honest.
  • A hobbled Tommy really crimps what Langsdorf can do in the running game, and this needs to be fixed this year, as we won't have a running QB next year, and this team will still need to #RunTheBall
  • Our defense has AD/D really bad, which is what I'm using to explain why our defense takes a powder for half a game, and then finally decides to show up and play, only to be silent again, only to show up again...
  • Someone needs to hypnotize CosBanker and convince him there is no such thing as a Prevent defense. Pressure via Blitz worked when it was applied.
  • The B1G is a class act, and what the conference, NW, and Illinois have done so far to honor Sam Foltz...it should help us realize that the B1G is our home. The Big XII wouldn't have given two s**** about this, and wouldn't have gone out of their way to do what our conference has done.
  • Our O-Line, when they remember their assignments, is actually pretty damn good. When they miss their assignments, though...ooff, it's bad. Ole bad.
 
I know a lot of people wish we would win every game 40-10, but personally I enjoy close games so much more. The excitement and the enjoyment are way more fun, as a fan, and as long as we keep pulling away, I'm fine with the team going through the motions at times earlier in games.

5-0 is a fun place to be.

 
I learned this team isn't elite, but we are leaps and bounds from where we have been in a long time. A 10-2 regular season isn't a pipe dream and that exceeds my pre-season expectations.

 
If youve paid any sort of attention this year, and were worried in anyway going into the 4th qtr, then shame on you. This group put the hammer down in winning time.

Cethan Carter is a much bigger loss inthe run game than the pass game. His blocking-or lack there of today-is sometjing you dont notice till its not there anymore like today against some big boy DLineman

Brilliant game mngmnt by our coaches. When be ame clear we didnt have our best stuff, no one panicked. With all the little injuries they didnt put backups and inexperienced guys in positions to fail. They dummied it down and kept thumpin away. Went intoa nice little "just win the game" mode. Ill tell you. For as much as the last staff preached about process, these guys dont have to preach about it. They live it every week.

This is two weeks ina row now where i never had the "f#*k me here we go" sh#t pantsing feeling, but rather a "well get this", non-overreactory feeling. And look what went down. I like feeling that way. Makes it fun.

 
  • We really are a 4th quarter team. I was skeptical after three games, but we have done it 5 games in a row now, so something good is happening
  • We can no longer win the TO margin. This is two games in a row. DBs no longer look for the ball, and RBs are putting too many balls on the turf
  • We are getting into a bad habit of turning the ball over inside the 20
Weren't we even with northwestern?

 
I am learning that it's entirely possible that we have yet to play a team that will make a bowl game.

 
Back
Top