The most impressive side of the ball for the Illinois football program in week one was the offense.
I thought the Illini came out and looked pretty good against UAB. While the start was slow, the offense started to click and was a cohesive unit.
Illinois has plenty of great wide receiver talent, and in the offseason, we snagged Katin Houser to get them the ball. Everything is coming together, and now we have a tough ACC team in Duke coming to town.
Here are three keys for the Illinois offense against a tough Duke squad
1. Getting Katin Houser throwing early and often
Illinois is heading into a game against a tough Duke defense. It will be tough in the running game, as the Blue Devils have one of the toughest run defenses in the country. I think Illinois can make a lot of hay with the passing game, though.
For the Illini offense to see great success, Katin Houser has to get going early and often. He needs to be flinging the ball around the field, as this is how you shred a Duke defense.
Luke Altmyer did it last year to the tune of 296 yards and three touchdowns. Even in week one against Tulane, the Blue Devils gave up 204 yards through the air to a lowly Green Wave quarterback room.
Duke’s weakness on defense is pass coverage. Houser could have a big game and what some would call a coming-out party against the Blue Devils.
2. Pass protection has to be at a premium for Illinois
I touched on this in the previous section, but Illinois needs to pounce on a weaker Duke secondary. Their first two layers of defense are solid, though.
Duke is a fierce program. They can get to the quarterback, and that kind of scares me, considering Illinois’ offensive line is still pretty new to each other.
In week one, Duke finished with three sacks, which ranks No. 12 in the country. Illinois can’t let Houser get sacked that many times, or it could be a long Saturday.
We are already going to be without right guard Brandon Henderson, which is terrifying. With that being said, protect Houser. Keep him upright, and Illinois should be able to come out of the game with a victory.
3. Win the turnover battle with Duke
The obvious key to the Illinois offense is to win the turnover battle with Duke. Don’t let Duke take the ball away, and we should win the game.
Turnovers have been a big issue in the past. Last season, when the two teams met up, Illinois didn’t have a single turnover. We didn’t let Duke gain momentum by taking the ball away.
Houser needs to be flinging the ball around, but he has to be efficient. He was great in week one, and he has the highest QBR in college football right now. That is what I want to see again against Duke.
On the other side, Duke had five turnovers in the matchup last season. That completely turned the game.
The Blue Devils were also in a battle in week one against Tulane. A big reason is that the Green Wave weren’t reckless with the football. The turnover battle was 1-1.
If Illinois can at least tie, if not win, the turnover battle, this should be a solid win for the Orange and Blue.
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