Before the start of the 2007 season, I figured the Illinois football team would be better.
Coming off a 2-10 finish, including 1-7 in the Big Ten, the improvement bar was low.
There were signs of life in '06. Like a 23-20 win at Michigan State and a 17-10 home loss against No. 1 Ohio State.
Something happened to Ron Zook's players. In a good way. They went from two wins to nine. And into the Rose Bowl.
The team is having a reunion this weekend in Champaign-Urbana with Zook and many of the players and staff returning.