After going 2-6 and changing head coaches, everyone knew things would — and needed to — change.

A defense that ranked among the worst in the Big Ten, an offense that managed just over 20 points per game and a coaching staff that struggled to recruit its own state were just part of the problem. 

And despite playing just two games so far this season since the major staff turnover, Bret Bielema has unlocked and solved part of the problem on offense: increasing the involvement of his tight ends.

Daniel Barker was a frequent target for the Illini last season, finishing with the second-most receptions (19), receiving yards (268) and touchdowns, behind Josh Imatorbhebhe, but Lovie Smith brought in another tight end via the transfer portal in 2019: Luke Ford.

Ford, Georgia transfer and four-star recruit out of high school, barely contributed last year, making just two catches for 15 yards despite being healthy for all eight games.

After just two games this season, Ford has already surpassed his totals in both categories. In fact, he passed his total 2020 yardage after one catch: the first Illinois offensive play of the season against Nebraska in the team’s Week 0 win, a 19-yard completion less than three minutes into the season opener. After making one catch against UTSA on Saturday, Ford now has four catches for 35 yards and a touchdown, the lone score of his career.

Though Ford wasn’t as effective against the Roadrunners on Saturday, Barker put together a standout performance, making five catches for 74 yards and two touchdowns, both of which cut two-score Illini deficits to just a field goal difference.

With Imatorbhebhe choosing to forgo the extra year of eligibility and pursue the NFL, Bielema needed his receivers to step up. Isaiah Williams and Deuce Spann have looked like reliable targets for whoever is under center, as the former has nearly three times as many receptions (14) as the second-best receiver (Barker), and the latter has come up with two long, game-changing receptions, including one on Saturday that was the first of his career. Ford and Barker also have looked up to the task, and it was clear after the spring game that the duo would be a big part of Tony Petersen’s offense.

Smith seemed content with using the pair for blocking purposes, failing to take advantage of their size, height and physicality. But having someone like Luke Ford on your roster and not effectively using his abilities was illogical and idiotic, and Bielema and Petersen are exposing the massive mistake Lovie and Rod Smith made during their tenures in Champaign.

“It was an awesome experience,” Luke Ford said following the Illini’s win last weekend. “It was just all the team coming together. Art threw a perfect ball, the o-line blocked great, wide receivers ran the routes. Just an awesome experience.”

Obviously having a talented quarterback who can get them the ball is important, but Barker and Ford have shown that it doesn’t matter who’s throwing them the ball; they’re gonna strive and make big plays.

“I think we’re going to use a lot of tight ends,” said tight end coach Ben Miller back in April. “You’re going to see guys rotate in and out. You’re going to play inside receiver, outside receiver, unit tight end. We’re going to be in the backfield. We’re going to be doing a bunch of different things that just correlate to being a great blocker, being a great receiver, getting you into open space into green grass against a smaller defender that we can use your talents. I’m really excited about what the tight end position is becoming in our offense as we go through this thing together.”

Miller’s unit has lived up to and have potentially surpassed his preseason expectations, and while good play, design and creativity from Petersen also are essential to this tight end success, continuing to establish the chemistry between the quarterback and tight end units should be a priority.

Watching my favorite NFL team, the Chicago Bears, finding a balance with Jimmy Graham and Cole Kmet gives me optimism that Illinois can hopefully find a way to continue to incorporate both Ford and Barker.

Not just this, though: The Illini need to find a way to work both of them in more consistently, or else trouble could be brewing going forward for an inexperienced receivers room with an increasingly difficult schedule on the horizon.

There’s no other option.

@JacksonJanes3

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