It was almost imperceptible, but something was different during early football practices this week. Players looked a step slower running wind sprints at the end of the day, and those plucked for interviews slouched on the Memorial Stadium sideline.

Juice Williams was one of the first to leave practice Monday night.

“How’s it going, Juice?” one reporter asked, as the quarterback sat down on the concrete barrier between the field and east stands.

“All right, I guess,” Williams said flatly.

After losing to Minnesota, 27-20, the Illini are suddenly 3-3, and the mood around Memorial Stadium wasn’t nearly as bright as it was a week ago.

“It’s hard to come out and try to be as positive as you would after a win,” Williams said.

Fresh off a school-record-tying win over Michigan last weekend, Illinois was favored by double-digits against the Gophers – on Homecoming. The loss that followed was nothing short of shocking, to the players as well as the fans.

“That’s one of those things that hurts, man,” linebacker Brit Miller said. “We set up our goals, every week, of what we have to do to win the game. We accomplished a lot of them, more so than not.”

A year removed from a Rose Bowl appearance, the preseason hype the team carried into the season is now referred to in the past tense.

“We all had high hopes,” Williams said. “We all thought this team was a little bit better than 3-3.”

A tough early season schedule was certainly a factor. Losses to Missouri and Penn State, both top-tier programs, may have derailed illusions of a national championship but were understandable given the sustained success of both teams.

But losing to Minnesota – a team that had just one win in 2007 – was different. Illinois had decisive statistical advantages in nearly every category – except, of course, points.

“We just have to not make mistakes. It’s one person hitting the wrong shoulder, or not forcing the ball inside, that springs a big play,” defensive lineman Will Davis said.

Six games remain on the schedule, and the team’s stated goal will be to prove it is not a one-and-done team on the national stage.

“I know Juice isn’t. I know our defense isn’t. We can go out and stop people, we’ve proven it,” Miller said.

A Big Ten title may be beyond reach, but the Illini feel there’s plenty to play for in the second half of the season.

“We can still win out and still have a pretty good year,” Williams said. “It’s never over.”