Remember Week 1? The Illini left us flush with optimism following their blowout 42-3 win against Akron. Last week, Illinois was a three-touchdown favorite ON THE ROAD against the Connecticut Huskies, and our expectations crashed back down to earth a bit (some dope on this site said to bet your grandmother’s inheritance money on the Illini covering the spread, though I can’t remember who).
An early pick-six by Brandon Peters, iffy playcalling, poor protection by the offensive line, and the secondary getting gashed by a true freshman QB (whom we didn’t even know was starting until right before the game) almost resulted in one of the most disappointing losses of the Lovie Smith era.