Illinois Football: 5 observations from the Illini loss to Purdue

5. This season is not a loss

Last season, the Illinois football team finished 5-7 and was so close to making a bowl game. We were competitive in just about every contest as well. The hope for the 2022 campaign was to finish better than 5-7 and to make a bowl game.

Those expectations continued when Illinois started the season 1-1 with a loss to the Indiana Hoosiers. This loss was a bit disappointing as we could have easily won that game. But a six-win campaign was still a solid expectation.

Illinois then went on a tear. We won six-straight games to move to 7-1 on the season. It was a great run, and many people changed the expectations for the year despite having the same talent. Illinois had a legit shot to represent the Big Ten West in the conference championship game, we had a good shot at making a New Year’s Six bowl game, and there was a distant outside shot of making the College Football Playoff.

Those expectations might have been a little out of touch, though. The reality is this Illinois team still doesn’t have the depth and talent needed to really make a national impact. I love the run we went on, but we aren’t a top-15 team in the country.

After two losses, I see a lot of negative comments about Illinois. Some of the comments consisted of “fans” saying this is the typical old Illinois team letting us down. But, instead of blaming Illinois for “letting us down” how about we look at the expectations we had for the Illini.

The fact we are 7-3 is an impressive season thus far. Getting to seven wins is an accomplishment this season, and we are already bowl-eligible. Illinois has a tough game against No. 3 Michigan and then finishes with Northwestern. This should be a victory for the Illini.

I wanted Illinois to win the Big Ten West and give our best shot to Ohio State, but those expectations might have been a little out of hand. That doesn’t mean this season isn’t a success, though. Illinois can get to eight wins. We are going to make a bowl game. And we could end up winning a bowl. This is a great building block for the future.