Illinois Football: 3 observations from the Illini loss to Purdue

1. Coran Taylor earned another start

It was a painful game at times, but there is no doubt in my mind that quarterback Coran Taylor has earned another start under center.

I am not going to overlook Taylor’s issues. He had two interceptions that were ugly. One was a throw that was too high for Daniel Barker to catch and it landed in the Purdue player’s hands. The other was a bad throw deep in Illinois territory.

Taylor also had a play inside the Illinois 10 yard line where he got hit and fumbled the ball, which was scooped up and returned for a touchdown. No matter how hard the hit is, you have to hang onto the ball.

With that being said, Taylor impressed me with his play.

Yes, the three turnovers were killer, but this was Taylor’s first start at the college level. The youngster is going to make mistakes. But those can be corrected. The good coming from Taylor is exciting.

Taylor finished the game throwing for 273 yards and 2 touchdowns to go along with his turnovers. He had a completion percentage of 58-percent, which is pretty solid. He also ran for 32 yards. I was impressed with his ability to get the ball to the receiver.

Taylor has an arm. He can zip the ball into the pass-catcher with speed and not terrible accuracy. His legs make him dangerous, but his arm is going to make him special. I think he has earned another shot at starting for the Illini against Minnesota next weekend.