Illinois Football: Illini report card against the Maryland Terrapins

It was a tough loss last Friday to the Maryland Terrapins, but the Illinois football team managed to show some fight.

After back-to-back losses, one of which was a blowout to Virginia, the Illini took on a tough Maryland squad. Despite being up seven points with under five minutes to go, Bret Bielema’s program let the game slip through the cracks.

Here is the weekly report card for the Illinois football program.

• Offense: D+

The biggest frustration I had during the Maryland game was the lack of offensive production, mainly from the quarterback position.

Brandon Peters couldn’t get anything going through the air, albeit this is his first full game under Bielema’s tutelage. Peters still didn’t throw well, though. He completed just 38.5% of his passes and failed to get the ball in the endzone. On top of failing to score, he also threw an interception.

Illinois’ offensive line struggled mightily as well. They couldn’t protect Peters, and the running game only did well due to the hard running style of the Illini running backs. I was extremely disappointed with how some of the mainstay offensive linemen blocked against Maryland.

The only reason the offensive grade isn’t an F is due to the fact Illinois has a nice backfield. Josh McCray was the show stopper on Friday night with his eight carries for 60 yards and a touchdown. He is definitely the future of the Illini running game.

I love what Reggie Love brings to the field. He is a great runner, 10 carries for 63 yards, and his pass blocking is exceptional as well. There will always be a role for him with the Illini.

Chase Brown did some good work on the ground too. He ended the night with 14 carries for 57 yards. All three Illini running backs – McCray, Love, Brown – averaged 7.5, 6.3, and 4.1 yards per carry, respectively. If we can get that in every game, then the Illini will be competitive this season.

• Defense: B-

Who would have thought that the defense would be the most impressive thing to come out of the game against Maryland?

The Illini defense showed up for almost the entire night and was the only reason the Illini were in the game. They could have easily given up 35 or more points, and that was expected. But they didn’t. Illinois’ defense held strong and only gave up 20 points against the Terrapins.

The defensive line is the best part of the Illinois defense. Players like Johnny Newton and Rod Perry are terrorizing the interior of the offensive lines. They are some of the best defensive linemen in the Big Ten.

I love what is starting to develop at linebacker as well. Some of the players who transitioned from defensive end to linebacker are really starting to play some good football. Seth Coleman and Owen Carney Jr. are two of the main players I am noticing.

Illinois’ secondary, while still needing a ton of work, didn’t play badly on Friday. They managed to cover the Maryland wide receivers well. There were multiple quarterback hurries that were caused by the great coverage played by the Illini. That doesn’t go unnoticed.

I would say the only reason the defensive didn’t get a B+ or even an A- was the fact they gave up two scores late in the game. Illinois shouldn’t have been in that position, though. We should have scored more on the offensive end.

• Coaching: C

The offensive play calling really hurts this grade. They were pretty terrible the entire night. It reared its ugly head late in the game. Illinois could have put this game away, but there were some questionable play calls down the stretch. These questionable play calls gave the ball back to Maryland, which would ultimately be our demise.

On the defensive side, I loved what we did. The coaching was on-point and they game-planned well for Maryland. Hopefully, Ryan Walters can put together this good of a defensive game plan the rest of the season.