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Illinois Football: 3 observations from the Illini loss to Wisconsin

By Rees Woodcock

Oct 23, 2020; Madison, Wisconsin, USA; Wisconsin Badgers fullback Mason Stokke (34) catches a pass to score a touchdown during the first quarter against the Illinois Fighting Illini at Camp Randall Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Hanisch-USA TODAY Sports
Oct 23, 2020; Madison, Wisconsin, USA; Wisconsin Badgers fullback Mason Stokke (34) catches a pass to score a touchdown during the first quarter against the Illinois Fighting Illini at Camp Randall Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Hanisch-USA TODAY Sports /
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Oct 12, 2019; Champaign, IL, USA; An Illinois Fighting Illini helmet sits on the field as players stretch before the start of the game between the Illinois Fighting Illini and the Michigan Wolverines at Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Michael Allio-USA TODAY Sports
Oct 12, 2019; Champaign, IL, USA; An Illinois Fighting Illini helmet sits on the field as players stretch before the start of the game between the Illinois Fighting Illini and the Michigan Wolverines at Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Michael Allio-USA TODAY Sports /

1. Stop with the hurry-up offense

Listen, I understand the concept of hurry-up offense. You want to rush to the line of scrimmage to get another play off before the defense can get set. It is a solid concept, but one the Illini should not be using.

Hurry-up offense is great for teams who have a well-oiled machine on that side of the ball. It is perfect for a program that has a quarterback who can complete passes or a running game that gouges the defense. That isn’t us, though.

On Friday night against Wisconsin, Illinois tried to do hurry up just about every offensive possession and it killed the team. We only had the ball for 16:32 in the game compared to Wisconsin who had the ball for 43:28. That is a bad margin and one that doesn’t bode well for the Illini.

Nine out of the 11 drives the Illinois football team had on Friday night were two minutes or less. That is a mind-blowing number. When the offense can’t sustain drives, they give the ball back to the opposing team so they can potentially score.

People wonder why the defense gave up 45 points. Well, they are on the field for three-times the amount of time as the offense. They get no time to rest before they have to jog back out for another series.

I think it is painfully obvious that Illinois needs to eat the clock more often. There is a time for hurry-up offense, but we are not good enough to use it all of the time. Let the clock run down. Let Brandon Peters get into a huddle. Let’s slow down and try to win the time of possession. Like Lovie Smith always says, you can only control what you can control. That is something we can control.

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