SEATTLE — After losing to the Washington Huskies on the road, the Illini fall to 5-3 on the season, a record that will likely put them out of reach of making the College Football Playoff.
The narrative
surrounding Saturday’s game was that it was a playoff elimination game, meaning that if either the Illini or the Huskies wanted to keep their name in the conversation, they’d have to win out for the rest of the season.
Unfortunately for Illinois fans, their team won’t be able to keep that dream a reality after suffering a 17-point loss.
The Husky offense had its way with the Illini defense, as they scored 42 total points and six of their seven drives resulted in touchdowns.
Washington also won the turnover battle, picking off Illinois quarterback Luke Altmyer two times and playing mistake-free football on their end.
Illinois entered Saturday’s game as a four-point underdog, likely the last time that they’ll be underdogs for the rest of the season, so their schedule was stacking up for a potential win streak to end the season.
With four games left to play, their schedule wraps up with home games against Rutgers, Maryland and Northwestern and an away game against Wisconsin.
With that being said, there’s still a lot of football left to be played.
Even though Saturday’s end result left a lot to be desired and Illinois probably won’t make the College Football Playoff, they’re just one victory away from being bowl-eligible, and a nine-win regular season is certainly still on the table.
When looking back on the Illinois history books, eight to nine wins and a shot at a solid bowl game is more than a successful season.
