Illinois football is going to need as much help as we can get against Ohio State on Saturday.
I believe there is a strong chance the Illini defense gets shredded by the Ohio State running game. A way to combat the Buckeyes’ offensive attack is to be able to move the football on offense as well.
Ohio State has a nasty defense, and with the way the Illinois offensive line has been dealing with injuries, it could be a long day. The first availability report gives me hope that we could be healthy up front, though.
On Thursday, that availability report was released, and Illinois had a laundry list of names on it. Under the questionable tag, the Illini had starting guards Maika Matelau and Brandon Henderson.
That is positive news considering they are two huge pieces of the Illinois offense. Matelau and Henderson both started against UAB, and we haven’t seen them on the field since. Having both players back for the game against Ohio State would give Katin Houser more time in the pocket.
Despite Illinois only playing three games so far this season, we have had three different starting offensive lines. When Matelau and Henderson went down, Brandon Hansen and TJ McMillen filled in at guard.
In game two against Duke, McMillen then went out with a season-ending injury. For game three against Southern Illinois, we had to have freshman Champ Smith start.
It would be nice to have a healthy offensive line. The lack of consistency has to be tough on the Illinois offense, and particularly on Houser. If he can’t trust what is going on in front of him, that leads to hesitation, jitters, and pulling the ball down without going through his progressions.
Illinois’ offensive line could lead to keeping the Ohio State game respectable on Saturday
It is going to be tough for Illinois to keep this to a margin under 20 points. Ohio State has way more talent on the field, and the Illini have had so many injury issues. I mean, just look at the injury report. Ohio State has four players out. Illinois has 10 players missing.
What a healthy offensive line could do for the Illini is keep the score respectable. With the offensive line blocking well, Illinois can control the clock a little more. We can find holes in the defensive line and get first downs. Houser will have time to drop back and find Collin Dixon, Hudson Clement, or Brayden Trimble over the middle for a first down.
Getting quality protection and blocking back would be huge for the Orange and Blue. Ohio State already has advantages out of the wazoo, so why give them another advantage by going up against a tattered offensive line?
If Illinois can get Matelau and Henderson going for the game on Saturday, I think the spread could be within that 27.5-point line. If not, we could be looking at a dismantling of massive proportions.
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