3. The Illini front seven completely disappeared
It was amazing how bad the Illinois secondary was on Saturday night. The talent we had in there was like we inserted an FCS defensive backfield. But while they were awful, that wasn’t any excuse for the Illinois front seven to disappear.
The Illini have one of the best outside linebackers in the country in Gabe Jacas. The man is a monster who can get to the quarterback and cause chaos. While his physical body was there against Indiana, he failed to show up in the biggest way possible.
Jacas made zero impact on the game in a positive way. He had four tackles, and that is it. This was by far his worst game as a member of the Illinois football team.
But it wasn’t just all Jacas. The Illinois defense line couldn’t put pressure on Fernando Mendoza. They had nothing for nearly the entire game. I was disappointed in the Illinois linebackers, too.
Dylan Rosiek was held to a quiet game. He failed to make a few big tackles which led to big plays. All around, it was an ugly game for the Illinois front seven. We needed them to help cover up the depleted secondary, and they didn’t come through.