Illinois football has a chance to put up a big number on UAB on Thursday night.
The Blazers are coming off a 2025 campaign where they gave up 37.9 points per game, which ranked No. 133 out of 136 FBS programs. This is a perfect team for a new bunch of Illini to face in game one.
Bret Bielema did a good job replacing Luke Altmyer, who is now on the Detroit Lions’ practice squad. Katin Houser steps in, and he could shine early and often against UAB. Illinois has a chance to bury UAB early.
Here are three keys for the Illinois football offense to bury the UAB Blazers
1. Get Katin Houser into a rhythm early on
UAB didn’t exactly have the best defense in the world last season. I think this is a perfect opening game for newcomer Katin Houser behind center for the Illini.
I think the key for Houser on Thursday night is to find a groove. Get in a rhythm early, and the rest of the game should come to him quite easily.
The Blazers won’t put too much pressure on Houser throughout the night. They only averaged 1.4 sacks per game in 2025, which ranked No. 112 in the nation.
I am going to be looking to see what wide receivers Houser has chemistry with in game one. My guess is that the usual standouts, Hudson Clement and Collin Dixon, will be the go-to guys, but who will also emerge as a favorite target for Houser?
If Houser can get into a rhythm early on against UAB, it will be a long night for the Blazers. This could end up being a big game for Houser’s inaugural start for the program.
2. Illinois can expose one of the worst run defenses in the country
Illinois went through a bit of a roster change in the offense. Kaden Feagin is now a tight end, and that opens the door for Ca’Lil Valentine to be the lead dog at running back.
Valentine has been by far the most consistent running back in the backfield. He is available in nearly every game, and the kid is electric.
On Thursday night, Valentine will have a chance to have a big game. He is going up against a UAB rush defense that gave up 190.9 yards per game on the ground last season, which ranked No. 113 in the country.
This will be a great opportunity for the Illinois offensive line to gel a little bit without too much pressure. Meanwhile, Valentine should be able to take advantage of a weak UAB defense. I see him going for over 100 yards in game one.
If Illinois can get Valentine going early and often, this game will be over quickly.
3. Let UAB give us free yards by penalty mistakes
I think one of the easiest things to do that no one talks about is letting the other team make the mistakes. Get free yards and let the opponent move us down the field.
Illinois has a chance to do that on Thursday night. This isn’t a disciplined UAB squad, and Illinois can take advantage of that fact.
Bielema put together a well-coached squad last season, logging just 4.6 penalties per game. That ranked No. 18 in the nation. UAB can’t say the same, though. The Blazers averaged a putrid 7.6 penalties per game, which ranked No. 123 in the country.
What this says to me is that there is plenty of opportunity for Illinois to get free yards on Thursday night. I fully expect to see hard counts on offense. Cause UAB to jump offside. Also, get our wide receivers burning down the field and chuck the ball up. Force UAB to get some pass interference calls.
Illinois has a better team all around, but what makes us even better is our discipline. Look for UAB to rack up the penalties.
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