Illinois football hasn’t been getting love from the AP Top 25, as we aren’t much of a thought right now.
The Illini entered the UAB game last week with nine votes and unofficially the No. 33 team in the country. We left that game with a 19-point win, some questions, and less confidence from the AP Top 25 voters.
In the updated AP Top 25 poll released on Tuesday, Illinois has only six votes to be ranked. We are also No. 37, which is a four-spot drop.
This isn’t something to worry about too much. Honestly, it is right where Illinois should be right now, as we haven’t proven anything other than that we can beat a below-average team by 19 points.
It is also good that Illinois is still on the radar of the AP Top 25. We have votes, but the Illini are in a holding pattern. The schedule through one game hasn’t been tough, so there is no reason to move us up in the rankings.
The rest of the Illinois football schedule would prove our worth to be in the AP Top 25
Despite Illinois not making the AP Top 25 once again, there are still plenty of games ahead to get us with a number next to our name.
Illinois is lying in the weeds right now, ready to pounce on the top 25. My guess is that Duke this week won’t move the needle too much, unless Illinois beats them in convincing fashion. I think a 20+ win over the Blue Devils would get us double-digit votes.
The rest of the way out is going to be a big-time proving ground for the Illini, too.
Illinois has No. 1 Ohio State in a few weeks. No. 6 Oregon is scheduled for October 24. In back-to-back weeks in November, the Illini head to UCLA, which has seven top 25 votes, and then No. 21 Iowa comes to Champaign for a game.
While the AP Top 25 doesn’t think Illinois is good enough to be ranked, we just have to keep winning, and then the number will come. The Illini have plenty of proving-ground games coming up. Just play well, and everything will fall into place.
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