What happened
Illinois couldn’t capitalize on an early chance to score and the offense fizzled from there. The loss was the first of the Bill Cubit era and kept the team from an early signitaure win that many considered critical going into the game.
What it means
Illinois can forget about earning any votes in the AP poll this week. And the coaches who had the Illini listed last week need to find somebody else to rank. Illinois might end up with a winning season and bowl bid, but the team looked a long way from that against what is considered to be a so-so North Carolina team.