The Illinois football team takes on the Northwestern Wildcats this Saturday for the last game of the season.
This is a big game for both teams. Northwestern doesn’t need the win to make a bowl. They are already in a bowl game and, actually, they have clinched a spot in the Big Ten Championship game after winning the West Division. But, this is their rivalry game and going into the Big Ten Championship, you don’t want to have a bad taste in your mouth from a loss. You would want to have momentum.
On the other hand, this is a huge game for the Illini for different reasons. The Illini aren’t bowl eligible and, even with a win, they can’t become bowl eligible. This game is huge for confidence, recruiting and rivalry. Illinois is coming off the worst loss in school history. They need this win. They also need to continue showing recruits that this program is on the right track. And, it would also be sweet to beat our rival who happens to be ranked. How are we going to do that, though?
Well, Northwestern has a below average offense. They are currently scoring 23.6 points per game, which ranks No. 96 in the nation. This will be a chance for our defense to show that the 63 points given up last week was just a fluke. Let’s pin our ears back and dominate.
What scares me some is the fact the Wildcat’s strength is their passing attack, which is Illinois’ weakness. Northwestern is only averaging 101.5 yards per game on the ground, which ranks No. 124 in the nation. But, their passing game is solid. They are averaging 248.5 yards per game through the air, which ranks No. 42 in the nation.
When you look at what Northwestern brings to the table, I think our defensive backs have to step up on Saturday. I am going to need big games from Tony Adams, Nate Hobbs and the rest of the Illini defensive backs. They haven’t been great this year as they have averaged giving up 275.2 yards per game through the air, which ranks No. 122 in the nation. This is the last game of the season against our biggest rival, though. It is time to step up and show the country that they are difference makers.
So, now that we know who needs to step up on defense, who needs to step up on offense? Northwestern is pretty good in the rush defense department. They are giving up 132.9 yards per game on the ground, which ranks No. 29 in the nation. Their pass defense is a little weaker. They are giving up 234.1 yards per game through the air, which ranks No. 65 in the nation.
These numbers mean one thing; AJ Bush has to be the player of the game for the Illini. I am not just talking about his running ability, though. He will need to be effective in that department, but I also look for him to be throwing the ball more today as well. The Illinois wide receivers need to help him out, but he also needs to be on-point. He is going to be the driving force for this Illini offense, especially if Reggie Corbin sits.
The two big areas that need to be on-point today are the Illini defensive backs and AJ Bush. They both need to play A games for the Orange and Blue to pull out a victory. I think they can. It is the last game of the season for the program and the final one in Bush’s career. Let’s see something special.