The Illinois football team was able to put up a lot of points last week and the game against UConn shouldn’t be much different.
In 2018, the Huskies averaged giving up 276.2 yards per game through the air, which ranked No. 124 out of 130 teams. Their rush defense was even worse. They gave up 347.5 yards per game on the ground, which ranked dead last in the county.
Here is a breakdown of the UConn Huskies defense.
Defensive Line
The UConn Huskies don’t have a ton of experience on the defensive line. While they did return five out of their top six tackling defensive linemen from last season, those linemen are also now just sophomores. They all played as true freshmen last year.
None of the returning defensive linemen played well against Wagner last Saturday. The leading tackling defensive lineman was redshirt freshman, Pierce DeVaughn. He finished the game with 3 tackles and 1 sack.
I would say the defensive line is still one of the weak points for the UConn defense right now. In a year or two, this might be a strength, though. There is too much youth upfront to be able to stop this solid Illinois running game.
Linebackers
I would say the strength of the UConn defense is their solid linebacker play. Just from the 2018 team alone, the Huskies brought back three out of their top five linebackers.
The leading linebacker for UConn against Wagner was a newcomer, though. DJ Morgan came into this program and instantly made an impact. He was a graduate transfer from Notre Dame who led the Huskies with eight tackles against Wagner.
UConn’s other linebackers are returning players who are still doing well. Omar Fortt had 7 tackles and 1 pass deflection last Saturday. Ryan Gilmartin had six tackles, and Dillon Harris added another four tackles. This linebacker corps is solid for UConn. I am curious to see how they do managing a balanced Illini offense.
Defensive Backs
The secondary isn’t bad for UConn either. They are returning their top four leading tackles at defensive back. The leader of this pack is Tyler Coyle.
Coyle finished 2018 with 108 total tackles, which ended up leading the entire team. He is now back as a redshirt junior this season. Coyle finished the Wagner game last week with four tackles. Another notable returning defensive back is Tahj Herring-Wilson. He had 2 tackles and 1 pass deflection last Saturday.
Overall
I believe the Illini can tear apart of the UConn defensive line. We have running backs that can get to the second level of the defense. I wouldn’t be surprised to see a 100-yard rusher from Illinois on Saturday.
As far as the passing game is concerned, this could be a tougher test for Brandon Peters than last week. I think UConn’s linebackers and defensive backs are better than Akron’s. I am curious to see how efficient he is throwing the ball against the Huskies.
I think Illinois puts up a lot of points again this weekend. We should be able to cover the -20 point spread that is out there. This Illini offense shouldn’t have a tough time against the UConn defense.