It was an exciting first half, but Illinois football made the game boring against UAB in the final 30 minutes.
The Blazers were keeping up with the Illini in the first two quarters. Despite Illinois having a successful Hail Mary to end the first half, UAB was still within striking distance, only down 21-13.
Illinois came out in the second half and dominated. A quick touchdown led to the Illini putting their foot on the gas and increasing the lead to nearly 30 points. There was a lot of good, and a few things that need to be corrected coming out of this 42-23 win over UAB.
Here are five huge observations from the Illinois football win over UAB
1. Katin Houser is an arm Illinois can rely on
The post-Luke Altmyer era is awfully nerve wracking, but Katin Houser came and passed the sniff test. He had a great game for the Illini, but more importantly, he was crisp with the football.
Honestly, there wasn’t one throw when I was scratching my head. He didn’t hesitate with the football. He had confidence in himself, and that is exactly what the Illini paid for out of the transfer portal.
What was a happy surprise was that Houser has a great ability to hit wide receivers going to the sidelines. He can zip the ball in and get it out of his hands on time.
I realize this was against UAB. Houser had to look good, and he passed the first test of the season. I think we could be in for a good 2026 campaign.
2. 3-3-5 defense is leaving a lot of room in the middle of the field
There was skepticism about how well a 3-3-5 defense would work at the high level of college football.
Illinois’ defense struggled at times against UAB. There were some good areas that impressed me, like the pass rush. But then there are some other major issues.
One that stuck out to me was how soft the middle of the Illinois defense was against the Blazers.
Once the pass rush took off, the secondary then drops back. That leaves the middle of the field wide open. UAB took advantage of the soft defense, and that is why they were able to move the football well at times.
UAB also had success in the running game when they got past the first level of defense. They would find very little resistance at the second level, which allowed them to gain a few more yards each play.
3. Illinois came out in the second half with much-needed strength
UAB made this a tough fight in the first half, as they narrowed the margin to just one at 14-13. Thankfully, a miracle throw at the end of the first half gave Illinois a 21-13 halftime lead.
The Blazers could have easily come out and stopped Illinois in the second half. That would have given them a ton of momentum. We didn’t let that happen, though.
Illinois set the second half tone. On the first drive of the third quarter, we drove down the field on an 11-play, 75-yard drive that resulted in a touchdown.
This touchdown drive was exactly what Illinois needed. It expanded our lead to double digits, and it put UAB in a position where they would have to throw the ball more.
Coming out of the gates and flexing on the Blazers was huge. Illinois didn’t look back after that and continued putting the pedal to the metal against UAB.
4. Collin Dixon is clearly Katin Houser’s trusted weapon
Coming into the game on Thursday night, I was looking to see which wide receivers gelled with Katin Houser.
There were a few options I was thinking about, and then throughout the game against UAB, the top dog emerged.
Collin Dixon is clearly Houser’s go-to target. Coming off a season where he had 548 yards and five touchdowns receiving, Dixon has a new player throwing him the football. That didn’t matter against UAB. Dixon came out and had one of the best games of his career.
Dixon ended the night with six receptions for 70 yards and two touchdowns. The receptions and touchdowns were both career highs for the favorite target.
This is only the beginning of a special duo for the Illini. I fully expect more connections throughout the season, and don’t be shocked if Dixon goes for over 1,000 yards in 2026.
5. You can see the potential in Brayden Trimble
There are players on the Illinois roster who have tremendous potential. These players will get playing time and continue gaining experience.
One player I have my eye on is Brayden Trimble. He got the start against UAB, and it was a roller coaster result.
Trimble had some bad moments. He dropped a ball or two that could have easily been caught. I also didn’t care for his blocking in the open field. He needs to greatly improve in that area.
With that being said, you can see this kid is going to be good. Trimble had some flashes of brilliance for Illinois on Thursday night.
There was one play when Houser tossed the ball out to Trimble on a wide receiver screen. He was able to move around defenders for a decent gain when it looked like he was going to be tackled.
The speed and burst of Trimble are present. If he can get up to speed on the little things, he could be a great Big Ten wide receiver.
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