5 stressful observations from the Illinois football win over Purdue

At one point, I thought Illinois football was going to cruise to an easy win, but then we came back down to Earth.

Oct 12, 2024; Champaign, Illinois, USA; Illinois Fighting Illini linebacker Luke Zardzin (42) recovers a fumble in the first half against the Purdue Boilermakers at Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Ron Johnson-Imagn Images / Ron Johnson-Imagn Images

2 of 5

2. That might have been Luke Altmyer’s best game

There was a lot of bad in the game against Purdue when it comes to the defensive side of the ball. But when it comes to the Illini offense, I have glowing reviews.

Illinois played some of the best football I have seen in a long time offensively. We looked great, and one of the reasons was Luke Altmyer.

I have gone on and on about how I think Altmyer has improved greatly year over year. He isn’t the same quarterback, as he gets the ball off quicker and has improved his accuracy greatly.

Against Purdue, Altmyer managed to throw for 379 yards and three touchdowns. The best part was that he didn’t throw an interception. He was accurate the entire game, and some of his touch passes were incredible. There was one pass late in the game where Altmyer scrambled out right and both defenders collapsed on him. Altmyer proceeded to dump the ball over them and to Josh McCray for a huge gain.

In addition to the great passing day from Altmyer, he also was crucial on the ground. He had 10 carries for 60 yards and a touchdown. I have been wondering why the Illinois offense hasn’t used Altmyer’s legs more this season. He was finally unleashed on Saturday.

I know Altmyer has had some pretty good games for the Orange and Blue, but this might be his best performance ever. He was a huge reason Illinois didn’t suffer a massive and embarrassing upset against Purdue.

Home/Illinois Football