Season-defining themes repeat in loss to close Smith’s third year
By Gavin Good, Staff writer
November 26, 2018
Filed under Football, Men's Sports, Sports
The finale of Lovie Smith’s third year at Illinois repeated familiar themes. Illinois failed to convert on multiple opportunities to score, allowed another team to dominate them with the run game and dropped an abundance of passes. Lovie Smith has won four Big Ten games along the way to a 9-27 ...
Lovie Smith’s contract extended
By The Daily Illini Sports Desk
November 25, 2018
Filed under Football, Men's Sports, Sports, Sports Top Stories
Illinois athletic director Josh Whitman announced Sunday head football coach Lovie Smith's contract has been extended a further two years, through the 2023 season. “We recognize that our work is far from finished, with improvement needed in every phase of our program's development, but our plan...
Northwestern loss concludes regular season
By Tatiania Perry, Staff writer
November 24, 2018
Filed under Football, Men's Sports, Sports
Illinois fell to in-state rival and Big Ten West Champion Northwestern to conclude the season Saturday. After last week’s record-breaking 63-0 defeat handed out by Iowa, Illinois was hoping to get the “bad taste out of its mouth” before the season was finished, according to head coach Lovie...
Iowa spoils senior night, takes down Illinois in historic 63-0 loss
By Gavin Good, Staff writer
November 17, 2018
Filed under Football, Men's Sports, Sports, Sports Top Stories
During the week, Illinois football head coach Lovie Smith called the game against Iowa his team’s playoffs. The Illini followed up the challenge with a 63-0 loss, tying the program’s record margin of defeat, which came in a 63-0 loss at the University of Chicago in 1906. “We didn't play wel...
Illinois to face Iowa in final home game
By Tatiania Perry, Staff writer
November 16, 2018
Filed under Football, Men's Sports, Sports
Illinois will be welcoming Iowa to Memorial Stadium for the 34th time on Saturday. The teams have met a total of 74 times, with Illinois leading the series 38-33 with two ties. Iowa is currently on a five-game winning streak dating back to 2008. Last season in Iowa City the game was tied 13-10 late ...
Rushing proves to be team’s most consistent success
By Gavin Good, Staff writer
November 15, 2018
Filed under Football, Men's Sports, Sports, Sports Top Stories
Nobody has run the football like the Illini have so far in November. Through the first half of the month, Illinois led the country with 813 rushing yards, 9.68 yards per carry and 10 rushing touchdowns. Those stats are reflective of the offensive improvements, particularly on the ground, under Rod Smith f...
Notes and grades from Illinois’ 54-35 loss at Nebraska
By Gavin Good, Staff writer
November 10, 2018
Filed under Football, Men's Sports, Sports, Sports Top Stories
One way to lose games in the Big Ten, especially on the road, is to turn the ball over. That’s what the Illini did on Saturday, coughing the ball up seven times and losing three fumbles. In his return to Nebraska, where he didn’t play a snap in 2014 or 2015, quarterback AJ Bush was intercepted twice....
Illinois drops game against Nebraska
By Tatiania Perry, Staff writer
November 10, 2018
Filed under Football, Men's Sports, Sports
The Illini had an opportunity to push their season record to the .500 mark but fell fast in a matchup with the Cornhuskers in Lincoln, Nebraska, 54-35. Both Nebraska and Illinois have made improvements in their offensive play this season, with a lot of the credit going toward the offensive line, a unit...
Brown’s time at UI is full of highlights
By Tatiania Perry, Assistant sports editor
November 8, 2018
Filed under Football, Men's Sports, Sports, Top Stories
Dre Brown graduated high school early with his sights set on college football. The 17-year-old three-star recruit and No. 6 player in the state of Illinois chose to stay home to wear orange and blue. In 2015, he arrived on campus, but it wouldn’t be until the fall of 2017 that Brown would finally see...
Illinois looks to continue win streak away at Nebraska
By Gavin Good, Staff writer
November 8, 2018
Filed under Football, Men's Sports, Sports
Illinois got a much-needed win at home against Minnesota last weekend, but as head coach Lovie Smith said during the week, now it’s about stringing two complete games together. The Illini (4-5, 2-4 Big Ten) is tasked with traveling to Lincoln, Nebraska, to take on a young Cornhusker squad (2-7, 1-5 Big ...
Press Box Bundle: Illinois vs. Minnesota
By Eli Schuster, Sports Editor
November 7, 2018
Filed under Football, Men's Sports, Sports
The Daily Illini Game Day Podcast: https://soundcloud.com/user-296791221/the-daily-illini-game-day-podcast-illinois-vs-minnesota Observations: It only took one game for the Illini to flip the script on the 2018 season. A Lovie Smith-led defense showed huge signs of improvement and the Rod Smith...
Illini bounce back strong against Gophers
By Tatiania Perry, Staff writer
November 4, 2018
Filed under Football, Men's Sports, Sports, Sports Top Stories, Top Stories
Illinois broke its three-game losing streak with a home win against Minnesota to push its record to 4-5. The 55-31 victory started off hot on offense with a 72-yard breakaway touchdown by senior running back Reggie Corbin 39 seconds into the game. Corbin went on to collect 213 rushing yards by the end of...
