The Illinois football program is trying to hold on and make a bowl game this season.
Honestly, the fact that the Illini are 3-3 with how bad the defense has played is quite astonishing.
Illinois’ offense has masked a lot of the defensive deficiencies. Now that we have a true freshman quarterback starting, it will be interesting to see if the offense can keep patching the holes in the boat left by an atrocious defense.
Here is the Illinois football midseason report card
I don’t think you can be mad at what Illinois has produced at the quarterback position.
Katin Houser was as advertised and probably even better. He threw for 1,440 yards, 12 touchdowns, and four interceptions in the first half of the season.
Illinois needed a suitable replacement for Luke Altmyer, and Houser fit that bill. He is now on the mend and will likely miss the rest of the season.
Michael Clayton II had never thrown a pass in college until this past week. He led Illinois to a win over Michigan State. Clayton was 6-of-8 for 88 yards and two touchdowns. You couldn’t ask for more from a true freshman backup quarterback.
Illinois’ running backs have been okay this season. Ca’Lil Valentine was chugging along, averaging 4.5 yards per carry before he went down with a season-ending injury.
Aidan Laughery boosts the Illini running back grade up a bit. He has been solid for the Illini, and he is the lead dog for the rest of the way. I am good with that, as he might end up hitting 1,000 yards for the season.
I think this grade could go up to a B or B+ by the end of the season. There is a talented running back named Javari Barnett who is a freshman but is breaking onto the scene. We have seen limited snaps from him, but I think he will blossom in the second half of the season.
As far as talent, ability, and health, this is the best wide receiver corps Illinois has had in a very long time.
Collin Dixon is on pace for over 1,200 yards and 18 touchdowns. He is a first-team All-Big Ten player and maybe even an All-American.
I like Illinois’ supporting cast, too. Hudson Clement has been a great Robin to Dixon’s Batman. The expected emergence of Brayden Trimble has been nice to watch.
Illinois has been a man down at wide receiver this season as well. We should be getting Jayshon Platt back in the coming weeks, so that is another weapon. I like what Illinois has done at wide receiver.
The tight end position has been solid, too. Illinois doesn't use the tight end a lot in the passing game, but they have been great at helping a depleted offensive line with blocking.
All things considered, I have been pleased with the Illinois offensive line this season.
After the first game, there were some big injuries to the offensive line starters. Illinois lost both guards and only recently got them back.
I have been impressed with what the Illini depth has been able to do to protect Houser and open holes for the Illinois running backs. The offensive line hasn’t been a huge issue this season, despite having the green light to be an issue with so many injuries.
If you are looking for any kind words to say about the Illinois defense, you have come to the wrong place.
Illinois’ defensive line has been nothing this season. We can’t put pressure on the opposing quarterback. The only reason the Illini rank in the top 60 in rush defense is that the pass defense is so bad, so why run the football a ton?
The defensive line has a total of two sacks this season. As a team, Illinois only has five sacks on the season. The 0.8 sacks per game for the Illini ranks No. 125 out of 138 teams in the FBS.
The Illini clearly didn’t put enough NIL resources into the defensive line, and it is showing in an ugly way.
I think the Illinois linebackers are the best group on the defense, but that isn’t saying much.
James Kreutz has had an okay season. Ismael Kante is solid. There is nothing to love about this group, though.
Kante and Kreutz are second and third on the team in tackles, respectively. Someone has to make tackles, though. The linebackers haven’t been able to wreck any offenses, and they struggle in pass coverage.
Illinois did get Daniel Brown back, which was nice against Michigan State. He bulked up this season, and I expect him to improve the linebackers' grade a little by the end of the season.
Overall, the Illinois linebackers are nothing to write home about.
Devon Witherspoon isn’t walking through those doors. Illinois is in a dark place when it comes to the secondary.
I give the defensive backs a grade of an F. This might be too generous, though. What is crazy is that the Illinois secondary has been pretty healthy this season, and they are still awful.
Illinois has two interceptions this season, and only one is by a defensive back. We are giving up 252.4 yards per game through the air, which is bad enough to rank No. 104 in the country.
That isn’t even Illinois’ worst defensive stat. Opposing quarterbacks are completing 70.63% of their passes this season. Think about that. 7 out of 10 passes are completions. That ranks No. 129 in the nation. Again, there are only 138 teams.
This offseason needs a complete overhaul of the Illinois secondary.
I think the Illinois special teams have been solid. Lars Rau has been able to have some good field position punts.
Ethan Moczulski has been a great option in the kicking game. He is 10-of-12 this season, with his long being 54 yards. He hasn’t missed an extra point either.
Illinois doesn’t give up big plays on punt and kick coverage. This unit has been solid, and the special teams don’t put the offense or defense behind the eight ball.
Through the first six games, I am not sure how you give the Illinois coaching staff anything better than an F.
I try to think of the good parts of the coaching staff that have stood out this season. There is nothing that comes to mind. I guess there were some play calls on offense that helped us win the Michigan State game, but the bad far outweighs the good at this point.
Bret Bielema didn’t do enough in the offseason to bolster the defense. We have a MAC-level, if that, defensive unit out there playing in the Big Ten.
On top of that, Illinois’ defensive coaching staff has failed us. Before the midway point, Illinois parted ways with defensive coordinator Bobby Hauck. That hasn’t happened before.
The Illinois defense hasn’t improved since then. We are still near the bottom in every statistical category, and we just gave up over 30 points to the Spartans. I don’t see why the coaching staff would get anything better than an F for the first half of the 2026 season.
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