Illinois Football: 5 observations from the Illini loss to Iowa

5. Illinois is so close to this season being completely different

It was such a frustrating loss on Saturday. Illinois once again had a team on the ropes but we failed to finish them off. Iowa is not a better team than the Illini, and we proved that for much of the game.

This wasn’t the first time Illinois let a game slip through the cracks, though. We should have beaten Wisconsin a few weeks ago. Illinois was up 21-10 against the Badgers in the fourth quarter. But we couldn’t finish that game either.

Those two games should have been wins. If Illinois could have finished those games and not let them slip away, this program would be 7-4 right now, looking to have another eight-win campaign. Instead, we are sweating the final game of the season against Northwestern to try to get bowl-eligible.

I don’t want to get things misconstrued. I love the direction of the Illinois football program. We have had at least five wins in three straight seasons for the first time since Ron Turner in the late 1990s and early 2000s. I also love what this program is doing in the recruiting game. We are building.

But I can’t ignore the fact that the Illinois coaching staff has let us down in crucial situations. The Illinois players can’t make tackles when the game is on the line. And we can’t convert on short-yardage situations when we need to.

This season could be completely different if Illinois just closes out the Wisconsin and Iowa games. Instead, we have to wait a week to see if we can go bowling in December. Hopefully, one day, we get this thing figured out.