2. Illinois was caught looking ahead
Let’s be honest, Illinois wasn’t exactly playing a juggernaut on Saturday. Western Michigan is not a good team, as they now move to 0-3 on the season.
With that being said, I think Illinois was looking ahead in the schedule and overlooked a team that is filled with DI talent. The Broncos caught Illinois schedule watching in the first half.
Western Michigan’s defense wasn’t letting Illinois do too much offensively. Luke Altmyer struggled to move the ball consistently, and we only had two drives over seven yards in the first 30 minutes of action.
On the defensive side of the ball, things weren’t much better despite holding Western Michigan to zero points. The Broncos were able to move the ball quite well, especially at the end of the half.
The last two first half possessions were great for Western Michigan. An 11-play, 43-yard drive was proceeded by an 11-play, 80-yard drive. Thankfully, the first of those drives ended in a wide right field goal. The second was an incredible goal-line stand that saw Illinois make a huge play and stop Western Michigan at the one-yard line.
Starting slowly against a bad team was clearly a wake-up call for Illinois. The second half was much better, and now we can set our eyes on the Indiana Hoosiers.