Illinois Football: Illini MVP in the win over the Rutgers Scarlet Knights

The Illinois football team got its first win against Rutgers 23-20 last Saturday afternoon, and some players played great in the win.

Illinois beat Rutgers 23-20 after James McCourt made a game-winning field goal with three seconds left in the game. There were multiple players who played well against Rutgers, so that is why I chose to give out co-MVPs.

The two players I am giving MVP to from the Rutgers game are Isaiah Williams and Jake Hansen. Both of these players had tremendous outings.

Williams stats consisted of 104 yards passing, 192 yards rushing, and 1 touchdown. He didn’t have the greatest game, though, as he made some good and bad plays. But when Illinois needed big plays on offense in the fourth quarter, he delivered.

Williams showed that he is resilient. When he was having a bad game early, he didn’t put his head down. He came back to help lead Illinois to this win. This was Williams’ first start since coming to Illinois, which is also a reason I named him as one of the MVPs.

Hansen’s stats consisted of 15 tackles, 1 tackle for loss, 1 sack, and 1 interception. This award could have also gone to Nate Hobbs or Khalan Tolson, but Hansen was all over the field with his 15 tackles. His interception also gave Illinois the ability to drive down the field and tie the game.

Williams and Hansen both played well. They helped this Illinois football team improve to 1-3. The Illini can, hopefully, carry this momentum to their next game against the Nebraska Cornhuskers.