It’s SCHEDULE RELEASE SZN!
Brad Underwood’s Illinois Fighting Illini revealed their complete 2022-23 non-conference schedule late last month.
Before I get into anything else, let me just say that this is a totally fine schedule. There is a nice blend of challenging games against NCAA Tournament-caliber squads (UCLA, Baylor/Virginia, Syracuse, Texas), the annual Braggin’ Rights matchup with Mizzou, and cupcake opponents (or “buy games,” if you prefer to be polite) such as UMKC, Lindenwood, and Bethune-Cookman.
I was also pleasantly surprised to see a date with Eastern Illinois on this year’s schedule.