Entering the game on Saturday, the Illinois football defense had a ton to prove after the UAB game.
I wrote an article about the Illini defense and how the matchup with the Blue Devils was going to be a much-needed stress test. Illinois didn’t look good against the Blazers, and a week of preparation should have made the defense look better against Duke.
That didn’t end up being the case. The stress test was a full go, but what ended up happening was the worst-case scenario.
Illinois failed the stress test in epic fashion.
The main worry coming out of week one was the middle of the Illinois defense. The Blazers had an easy time gouging the Illinois soft center, and nothing changed in the Duke game. That soft center got softer.
Nate Sheppard looked like he was running against an FCS opponent. He was blasting up the middle of the Illinois defense like it was nothing. He finished the game with 24 carries for 147 yards and a touchdown.
Just in the game on Saturday, Duke, as a team, had a total of 10 carries of at least nine yards. That is complete domination.
Illinois football just doesn’t have the personnel to defend teams with the 3-3-5 scheme
There were times when Illinois’ defense had good moments. They stopped Duke on their final three drives, giving the Illini offense a chance to win the game. Sadly, that didn’t happen.
Illinois’ defense has a ton of issues, though. The main issue is the scheme. We just don’t have the talent to run this defense at the FBS level.
A three-man rush isn’t getting to the quarterback. When we bring an extra linebacker in for a blitz, the opposing team just runs by us due to massive gaps in the middle of the defense because the linebacker is flying past.
Naturally, you are taking a man out of the box who should traditionally be in the box on a standard 4-3 or 3-4 defense. Having only six in the box in a 3-3-5 kills a defense with Illinois’ level of talent.
On top of that, Illinois dropped by five in coverage, but Duke still torched us to the tune of 206 yards and three touchdowns.
Illinois doesn’t have the defensive personnel to run the 3-3-5 defensive scheme. The scary part is, I think we are stuck with this defense for the rest of the season. It is going to be a wild ride.
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