5 sad observations from the Illinois football loss to Minnesota

3. Luke Altmyer’s two errors erased a decent game

I think Luke Altmyer is a much better quarterback than he was in 2023. He can hit wide receivers well, and he has the ability to throw the ball downfield with accuracy.

With that being said, there are still some issues with Altmyer’s game. One of the issues I have is that he stares down his wide receiver too often. There was one play in the game when Minnesota’s linebacker should have had an interception, and it was due to Altmyer looking at his wide receiver for far too long before throwing the football.

That isn’t the biggest issue I have with Altmyer, though. I have dealt with this as a Chicago Bears fan with Justin Fields. While Fields is a good quarterback, he tends to make some backbreaking turnovers. That is what is happening with Altmyer.

Altmyer had a solid game against Minnesota. He was 20-of-33 for 226 yards and a touchdown. I am not mad at that stat line, although it could have been better. His passing didn’t lose us the game.

There were two huge turnovers for Altmyer that cost us this contest. That fumble early in the game that led to the Golden Gophers getting three points was big. That gave Minnesota so much momentum and started Illinois on the wrong path.

The Illini could have recovered from just one mistake. We had a chance to tie the game up and take this thing into overtime. That is when the ultimate backbreaker occurred.

I know the Illinois offensive line isn’t good. They didn’t protect Altmyer one bit. But Altmyer should know that there is someone coming around the edge because his offensive line isn’t good. That hit at the end of the game that forced the fumble was devastating. It completely ruined any chances of a comeback, and it also erased any goodwill that Altmyer built up in this game. He can’t keep having these brutal turnovers in big games.