The Illinois Fighting Illini head into the 2011 season with plenty of optimism after capping last year with a resounding 38-14 victory over Baylor. It served as the program’s first bowl victory since 1999.
Led by an offensive line that returns three top-flight offensive linemen, many Big Ten experts believe the program will lead the conference in rushing yards for the fourth time in six years. The main threat of this not happening is finding a solid replacement for the departed Michael Leshoure in the backfield.
Sophomore quarterback Nathan Scheelhaase set a school record by rushing for 868 yards last year and went over the century mark four times. He’s a special talent and connected on 58.7 percent of his passes while throwing 17 touchdowns to eight interceptions.
The offense really took off under coordinator Paul Petrino in the second half of the season, averaging 42.1 points and 448.9 total yards over the last seven games. During the first six games of the 2010 campaign, the unit managed to score just 21.3 points a contest.
Illinois really took advantage of its scoring opportunities last year, picking up points in 49 of its 52 trips inside the red zone. This is likely to continue with playmakers on the offense and talented sophomore kicker Mitch Ewald. He connected on 16-of-19 field goals last year and earned second-team All-Big Ten honors.
Defensively, the program made some big strides under the watchful eye of coordinator Vick Koenning, who came over after spending time as Wyoming’s head coach. He was the architect of a defense that improved 53 spots in total defense from 2009 to 2010.
Prior to giving up 67 points to Michigan on Nov. 6, the Illini ranked 12th nationally in points allowed and 15th in total defense. It’s not out of the question that the team returns to those levels when everything’s done this year.
The defensive line brings back some players with experience and will be led by Akeem Spence, who earned Freshman All-America honors last year. He will be backed up by a pair of redshirt freshmen.
Two of the three linebacker spots are filled and senior Ian Thomas will be the leader of the group, moving back to the middle spot and being the team’s leading returning tackler.
Pass defense is a definitive strength for the group, ranking 61st nationally last year and that number will improve with three returning starters at cornerback to help fill out dime packages. Safety Trulon Henry is the playmaker, leading the team in interceptions and finishing fifth in tackles in 2010.
Playing the Fighting Illini as an underdog was a winning proposition last year, finishing 4-1 ATS when getting points. Don’t miss out on this opportunity in 2011 when matching up with Ohio State, Penn State and Wisconsin.