Ron Zook walked into his weekly press conference Tuesday, stepped to the podium, then cracked a smile and a joke.

“You all know my stand, that I think it’s important to give your players an open date,” Zook said. “So I talked to Coach Tressler, and I suggested that they give Troy Smith and Ted Ginn and all those guys an open date going into the stretch. But I don’t think he’s going to do that.”

Zook’s half-joking attitude seemed prevalent around Memorial Stadium this week as Illinois (2-7, 1-4 Big Ten) prepares to face No. 1 Ohio State (9-0, 5-0 Big Ten) at 2:30 Saturday afternoon. While the Illini football team knows an almost impossible task lies before them, they are not taking a doom-and-gloom approach to playing a team that some claim is among college football’s all-time best. Instead, the Illini see Saturday as an opportunity to truly measure just how far they’ve come.

“They are deemed a great team, so if they’re the standard of measure, where do I stand?” senior offensive lineman Josh Norris said. “If they’re the greats, where do I fall in comparison?’

On Saturday the team will face a menacing opponent in front of a crowd that may seem disproportionately red. They know a few more victories might add a few thousand more bodies in orange, but are not focusing on the naysayers as they head into the toughest game of the season.

Norris says Illinois actually has an ironic advantage that Ohio State may not be prepared for: the Illini are used to being underdogs.

“The difference between us playing Ohio State and when other teams do is that other teams aren’t used to walking onto the field and feeling inferior,” Norris said. “But this is just a standard game for us. We come in, they think they’re just going to beat our ass, that’s typical for us. I’m not going to play nervous or scared, because this is exactly how we felt last week.”

Zook said his players have the right attitude as they face an opponent that seems stronger with each team it plays. The Buckeyes feature a Heisman candidate in senior quarterback Troy Smith with ace receiver Ted Ginn, Jr., and defensive weapons like tackle Quinn Pitcock, linebacker James Laurinaitis. But the Buckeyes, with 17 fifth-year seniors, aren’t intimidating the youthful Illini. They’re challenging Illinois.

“I know this next one is going to be fun,” Norris said. “If you’re going to play the No. 1 team in the country, you might as well enjoy it.”