If Illinois wants to build or at least equal its 9-3 regular season record from last season, it will have to have a good start in the non-conference schedule. In recent times, they have experienced some hiccups. In 2023, Illinois lost to Kansas, and in 2021, they lost to UTSA at home. Virginia in Charlottesville, 2019. Eastern Michigan tripped up Illinois in Champaign. South Florida won in Chicago in 2018 and in Tampa in 2017.
Not all non-conference games are created equal. Let’s take a look at this
season’s slate of games.
First up is:
Western Illinois from the OVC-South, a combination of schools from the Ohio Valley Conference and the Big South. They finished 4-8 overall last season, 3-5 in conference.
The Leathernecks don’t return many players from last year, but they do have a stable of competent receivers, an O-Line that has experience. JR QB Chris Irvin is considered football-smart with a strong arm and athletic running talent. In the running game, eyes are on transfer Ernest Temple (DuPage), the Division III Touchdown leader from last season. Defensively, they have what they consider a solid linebacker group—starting with Christian Pierce, who was a defensive back last season but has moved to outside linebacker. He had 54 tackles for Western Illinois the previous year. They also have Jr transfer Estaban Guillory from Murray State, 32 tackles and 4.5 tackles for loss.
Illinois is 3-0 vs. Western Illinois all-time and is favored by 45.5 points in the home opener. It might be less than that given the uncertainty in the Illini D-Line and receiving corps in the first game.
Week 2, the Duke Blue Devils.
Duke, out of the ACC, finished with nine wins last season. But only beat one team with a winning record.
The Blue Devils upgraded the roster with the top-ranked transfer QB Darian Mensah, who threw for 2,700 yards and 22 TDs at Tulane. Duke also has a rebuilt WR corps, most notable is transfer Cooper Barkate from Harvard, 1,742 yards and 14 TDs in three seasons. SR RB Jaquez Moore, coming off injury, is hoping to get back to form, which saw him garner 1,180 yards and 11 TTDs in 2022 & 23.
The defense is attack-oriented, they led the ACC in tackles for loss with 116. tied for second in sacks (43). They have solid returnees on the D-Line, In the secondary, CB Chandler Rivers is looking to improve coming off his best season with 54 tackles, one sack, eight passes defended, three picks, and two forced fumbles. He is joined by returning Safety Terry Moore, who had 71 tackles, five passes defended, one sack, two forced fumbles, and four picks.
All in all, this is a team that Illinois cannot take lightly. Historically, the Illini are 1-1 vs Duke, with the loss coming in Durham (1958). Also, the last time the Illini played an ACC team on the road was 2021, a 42-14 loss to Virginia. The Illini can win but must be ready to play.
The final non-conference game is Western Michigan.
The Broncos were 6-7 last season, 5-3 in the MAC. They had a strong running game but a weak passing attack. The top rusher, Jayden Nixon, moved on to UCF. They still have Jalen Buckley (683 yards, nine TDs) and transfer Cole Cabana from Michigan, but Cabana has limited experience. JUCO QB Brady Jones is a name that they hope will upgrade the passing game if he can beat out returning. Soph Broc Lowery. They do feature the best Tight End in the MAC with Blake Bosma. The rest of the receiving corps is mostly transfers.
Defensively, the Broncos have a lot of questions. They only return four players from last season. The bulk of the loss was in the Linebacker room. That much turnover doesn’t bode well for a defense that was in the lower half of the MAC.
Things look good for Illinois here. But WMU did have a productive offense last season, and if the new pieces fit, they could be good again. Illinois has a 4-2 all-time record against the Broncos. However, the last matchup was in 2016, where the Illini lost 34-10 in Champaign.
My outlook is that the Illini have a very good chance to go 3-0 IF they don’t overlook Duke. A 3-0 start will be critical when it comes to the first four games in the Big Ten. (Indiana, USC, Purdue, and Ohio State). Thanks for reading and GO ILLINI!
