After a 5-7 season that saw them miss out on a bowl appearance, Illinois will kick off their 2024 campaign with a showdown against Eastern Illinois on Thursday night.
WHAT’S AT STAKE?
Illinois needs a decisive victory to show it has tossed aside the disappointing conclusion to last season -- two-point losses in the final two games cost them a bowl bid -- and has the ability to make some noise in the Big Ten. Bret Bielema is 18-19 in three seasons in Champaign, with a promising 8-5 finish bookended by two 5-7 seasons.
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Eastern Illinois, 8-3 a year ago and ranked No. 24 in the final FCS poll, has an opportunity to pull off a major upset against a foe just 56 miles from its campus in Charleston.
KEY MATCHUP
Eastern Illinois QB Pierce Holley vs. the Illinois defense. Holley, a two-year starter, passed for 2,741 yards and 17 touchdowns last season, his first at Eastern Illinois after transferring from Georgetown. The Illini led the nation in scoring defense in 2022 (12 points per game) but slipped last season to No. 95 (29 points per game). The Illini hope CB Terrance Brooks, a transfer from Texas, will shore up their secondary.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Eastern Illinois: LB Elijawah Tolbert is a two-time first team All-Big South/OVC selection. He led the Panthers last season with 87 tackles, including seven for loss. Tolbert entered the transfer portal after last season and went through spring practice at Missouri State, but returned to Eastern Illinois during the summer.
Illinois: WR Zakhari Franklin, a transfer from Ole Miss, is college football’s active career leader in receptions (266), receiving yards (3,386) and receiving touchdowns (38). He’s been reunited with Illinois offensive coordinator Barry Lunney Jr., who was Franklin’s OC at UTSA, where he began his college career.
FACTS & FIGURES
Illinois is 3-0 in season openers under Bielema, beating Nebraska, Wyoming and Toledo at home. ... Former Eastern Illinois football player Chris Wilkerson returned to his alma mater in 2022 to coach the Panthers after a successful eight-year run as the coach at the University of Chicago. After a 2-9 season in Wilkerson’s first year as Eastern Illinois’ coach in 2022, the Panthers turned things around last season. They were one of the final four teams considered for the FCS playoffs. ... Of the 120 players on the Illinois roster, 45 are new to the program. ... Illinois offensive linemen have a combined 96 starts and 168 games in their collegiate careers ... The Illini have 17 players, including nine transfers, who have started 10 or more games in college. ... Illinois and Eastern Illinois last met in 2008. The Illini won 47-21.
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