The Illinois football fan base couldn’t have asked for a better start to the season. The team is 2-0 and confidence is getting higher by the week.
Mike Epstein’s emergence as a leading running back for the Illini program has been one of the main reasons for this undefeated start to the 2017 season. He has stormed onto the scene and is carrying the ball better than we have seen from a freshman running back in the history of this great program.
Now, remember, freshmen weren’t allowed to play until the rules change in 1972. That is why you won’t see some of the more historic, older, names on this list. But, some of the names that do don this list were special players in Illinois lore.
As a fan, I want to see Epstein climb this list throughout the season and already he is on pace to shatter some records. He has already dazzled his way to 32 carries for 165 yards and 2 touchdowns on the ground. This is already good enough to crack the top 20 at No. 19 right behind Chubby Phillips who had 34 carries for 197 yards and 2 touchdowns his freshman season.
But Epstein is only through two games of his freshman season. There are still at least 10 games left for the Illini and this young stud running back. The question now remains; how high can Epstein climb on the freshman rushing record list?
I believe the current top 5 all-time freshmen rushing record list looks something like this; No. 5 Reggie Corbin (523), No. 4 EB Halsey (525), No. 3 Ty Douthard (599), No. 2 Rocky Harvey (634), and No. 1 was just a few years ago as Ke’Shawn Vaughn stormed onto the scene with 723 yards on the ground.
Vaughn’s 723 yards is a solid number but as of right now, Epstein is on pace to shatter that mark. He is currently averaging 82.5 yards per game which projects out to rushing for 990 yards this season if he stays on that pace. He could obliterate the previous record and be the best freshman running back of all-time for the Illini.
Epstein also has 32 yards receiving in the first two games as well. He has a total of 197 all-purpose yards which is No. 19 compared to all previous freshmen in Illini history. That averages out to 98.5 all-purpose yards per game and that projects out to 1,182 all-purpose yards as a freshman. That would set the record currently held by Douthard with 1,005 all-purpose yards.
Next: Top performers against Western Kentucky
Illinois fans have witnessed some great play by Epstein. He is a great player and now he has a chance to be the best freshman running back in program history. The sky is the limit for this kid.