Early games could impact Illinois football in the long run

There is a chance that Illinois football doesn’t have to play a game and we can move up in the AP Top 25.

It is always depressing not having the Illini suiting up on Saturday. Bye weeks are never fun, as I want to watch the program on the field.

But even with Illinois not playing this week, there is a chance for us to move up in the AP Top 25 poll that is going to be released on Sunday.

The early slate of college games fared decently well for the Illini this week. What games affected the Orange and Blue, though?

Illinois football could see a slight bump with the results of the early games

Coming into the week, Illinois was ranked as the No. 24 team in the country. So, realistically, we need to keep an eye on the teams ahead of us.

In the early slate, No. 22 Louisville fell to an unranked SMU program. This loss, 34-27, should see the Illini move up a spot. I wouldn’t think the Mustangs would pass the Illini, and Louisville will surely drop out of the top 25.

Another big loss was No. 9 Missouri falling to No. 25 Texas A&M. This game isn’t going to help Illinois, as the Aggies will jump us and Missouri won’t fall behind us, but in the long run, it could be impactful.

Missouri didn’t just lose to Texas A&M, they were thrashed 41-10. This was an ugly loss, and when it comes to teams possibly making the College Football Playoff, a big loss like this could mean someone like Illinois makes it and Missouri doesn’t.

As far as the early games go, these two were the biggest contests for the Illini. We should still be around the same spot with these results, but they were good losses for Illinois in the long run. Let’s see how the evening games progress.