Bret Bielema made the right choice with Katin Houser in a post-Luke Altmyer era

Katin Houser is the quarterback who had to come in and fill Luke Altmyer's shoes, and that is not an easy thing to do. Illinois fans got a taste of Houser's abilities against UAB Thursday night, and his stat line really doesn't tell the whole story of his performance.

Houser finished the night 13-for-17 with 182 passing yards, averaging 10.7 yards per pass and 29 rushing yards, while accounting for four total touchdowns (three passing, one rushing). The running game was working for Illinois, which racked up 150 rushing yards and really, that was all that was needed to beat the Blazers.

Most importantly, head coach Bret Bielema was happy with his QB's play, even if Houser wasn't, as Bielema alluded to. Bielema loves the way he approaches every day, and with that kind of mindset, he can do big things with the Illini this season.

"He [Houser] is a special kid, he's got a lot of upside," Bielema said. "I think the thing that's fun about him is he literally takes every day as a new challenge."

Katin Houser may not have been happy with his play but Illinois was

It was Houser's first game with Illinois; he was limited with his receivers due to some injuries in fall camp, and he still ended the day with four total touchdowns. If that is a bad day on the football field, then I wonder what Houser would consider a good day.

Understandably, Houser will probably always feel he could have performed better- what athlete doesn't- but he also can't be too hard on himself. This was his first bit of real action with a new team, and three passing touchdowns are nothing to scoff at. He got a lot of help from special teams with good field position as well, and the run game, as mentioned before, was working well, so ride the hot hand.

Even those on social media felt Houser played a fine game, taking the time to share their thoughts on his performance.

There were some questions about Houser's level of play coming from ECU and Michigan State before that, but his performance, even though it was only UAB, was a strong one.

Some of the plays Houser made, especially when evading pressure, were great to watch. He took care of the football, made strong passes, and was very accurate.

With more than a week before the next game, it might be good to watch the highlights from Houser and this Illinois offense for a few days.

Houser did just fine in his Illinois debut. Obviously, with different teams, the play calls will change, but he proved he could manage the offense effectively. In my opinion, being able to handle that is the most important job of a quarterback, and then when you can heave a ball 54 yards for a Hail Mary and score, that is just the cherry on top.

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