The Illinois football defense kept us in the first half against the Ohio State Buckeyes.
This game could have easily gotten out of reach, but the Illini didn’t fold. The defense held strong despite some big errors throughout the first half.
Illinois has a chance to get back in this game to start the third quarter. We can make the Buckeyes sweat a little bit with a good drive.
Here are three big adjustments needed for Illinois football in the second half vs Ohio State
- Stop making the dumb mistakes
The errors really hurt Illinois in the first half. The interception by Luke Altmyer wasn’t completely his fault, but the ball was a little bit behind his wide receiver.
Illinois fumbled the ball away deep in our own territory, which was unacceptable. Ca’Lil Valentine did get hurt on the play, which was sad to see. But that turnover killed us.
Keelan Crimmins taking a knee on a punt when he was trying to pick up a snap was brutal as well. That put Ohio State in Illinois territory to start their drive.
The fact that we are only down 20-3 at halftime with, essentially, three turnovers is nothing short of a miracle. Let’s stop the dumb mistakes, and we can compete with the Buckeyes.
- Keep the up-tempo offense
It was a tough first half to watch, but the second-to-last drive of the first half for Illinois was good. We drove down the field and were able to score a field goal to get the score down to 20-3.
This drive by the offense was by far the best of the game. The key to the drive was that Illinois started to play more up-tempo football.
Altmyer started to complete passes, and wide receivers were getting space. A lot of this had to do with the Ohio State defensive backs being tired because of the hurry-up offense. Let’s keep doing that in the second half, and we might have a shot at getting the upset.
- Let Luke Altmyer loose
To piggyback on the last up-tempo section, Illinois needs to let Altmyer loose in the second half. The Illini offense can move the football, but Altmyer just needs to start slinging it around.
Altmyer looked good on that second-to-last offensive possession of the first half. We need to see more of that. Let’s go away from the run. I know it is good to have it to keep the defense honest, but at this point, let’s bombard the Ohio State defensive backs with our weapons.
I believe Altmyer is extremely talented. When Illinois sends wide receivers down the sidelines, good things have happened. A solid air attack in the final 30 minutes is what Illinois needs.