Touchdown Times: Week Five (Nebraska)
September 28, 2017
Did you know?
The Illini are tied for first in the FBS in blocked kicks, as the team has blocked three — two field goals and an extra point attempt — so far this season. Tied with Illinois are South Florida, Utah State and and Hawaii, though each of those teams have played four games so far while the Illini have played three.
Matchups
Lovie Smith vs. Mike Riley
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Mike Riley is undoubtedly on the hot seat coming into this Friday night showdown in Champaign. Since losing back-to-back at Oregon and at home against Northern Illinois, Riley has been under much fire from the Nebraska fanbase. The school also just fired athletic director Shawn Eichorst, the man who hired him. For Riley, this game could be the final straw, but on the other hand, for Lovie Smith, it’s a chance to get a win in a game most people had already marked as an automatic loss going into the season. Smith has been coy about which quarterback — physical runner Chayce Crouch or pocket passer Jeff George Jr. — will get the nod at the start of the game, which means the Cornhuskers have had to prepare for two opposing quarterbacks. If Smith can execute his game plan and the Illini emerge victorious, it could be a program-building win.
Eye on the Illini
Versatile senior James Crawford has completed his three-game suspension and will be on the field for the first time this season. Crawford started three games and played in eight last season before missing the last four games with an injury. The Deerfield, Florida native recovered a fumble in Illinois’ loss to Michigan last year and had a career-high seven tackles against both Murray State and North Carolina. A solid outing from Crawford could be a monumental boost to the young Illini defensive front.
Eye on the Enemy
Last time out, Nebraska quarterback Tanner Lee struggled against bottom feeders Rutgers. The junior completed 12 of his 26 pass attempts, throwing for 109 yards and two interceptions in the Cornhuskers’ 27-17 win over the Scarlet Knights. The success of Nebraska’s offense will depend on Lee’s decision making and accuracy — he has thrown nine interceptions already this season — four of which came in the 42-35 loss at Oregon on Sept. 9. If the Illinois defensive line can get solid penetration in the trenches and put pressure on Lee, he may be forced into hasty decisions or inaccurate passes, which could open the door for takeaways that can put the offense in good position to score.
Schedule
Illinois
9/29 – Nebraska
10/7 – Iowa
10/14 – Rutgers
10/21 – Minnesota
10/28 – Wisconsin
11/4 – Purdue
11/11 – Indiana
11/18 – Ohio State
11/25 – Northwestern
Nebraska
9/29 — Illinois
10/7 — Wisconsin
10/14 — Ohio State
10/28 — Purdue
11/4 — Northwestern
11/11 — Minnesota
11/18 — Penn State
11/24 — Iowa
Rosters
Nebraska
Offense
QB Tanner Lee 13
RB Devine Ozigbo 22
RB Mikale Wilbon 21
WR Stanley Morgan Jr. 8
WR De’Mornay Pierson-El 15
TE Tyler Hoppes 88
C Cole Conrad 62
T Nick Gates 68
T David Knevel 77
G Tanner Farmer 63
G Jerald Foster 67
Defense
DE Freedom Akinmoladun 91
DE Carlos Davis 96
NT Mick Stoltenberg 44
ILB Chris Weber 49
ILB Dedrick Young 5
OLB Marcus Newby 3
OLB Alex Davis 22
CB Eric Lee Jr. 6
CB Lamar Jackson 21
S Aaron Williams 24
S Joshua Kalu 46
Special Teams
K Drew Brown 34
P Caleb Lightbourn 35
KR JD Spielman 10
PR De’Mornay Pierson-El 15
History
Playing Nebraska a total of 11 times, Illinois trail the all time series 3-10-1. The 2015 Cornhuskers team was the most recent to fall last team the Illini. The win over Nebraska was a nail-biter as the then quarterback Wes Lunt found wide receiver Geronimo Allison for a 1-yard touchdown with 10 seconds remaining to give the Illini a 14-13 victory. Illinois ran 72 yards in the final 41 seconds for the winning score. Last season the Illini fell to the Cornhuskers 31-16.
Running back bios
Epstein
Running back Mike Epstein had his second career two-touchdown game in just the third game of his career. He ran eight times for 56 yards and a touchdown, caught two passes for 27 yards and a touchdown last in his last game. The freshman stand out is quickly living up to the hype and as he is tied for fourth in the nation in touchdown among true freshman and is sixth for true freshman rushing yards per games.
Devinve Ozigbo
This junior is one of three seasoned backs who will have a pretty equal amount of playing time, along with Mikale Wilbon and Tre Bryant. Ozigbo has been the Huskers’ top reserve at the position the past two years. The 6-0, 230-pound Ozigbo has shown the versatile ability to run with power and elusiveness along with showing signs of an effective receiver in the backfield. Ozigbo rushed for 101 yards on a career-high 24 carries against Rutgers, his second career 100-yard rushing effort.
Rosters
Illinois
Offense
QB – #7 Chayce Crouch
RB – #26 Mike Epstein
WR – #18 Mike Dudek
- #11 Malik Turner
- #4 Ricky Smalling
TE – #19 Louis Dorsey
OL – # 53 Nick Allegretti
- #72 Gabe Megginson
- #76 Larry Boyd
- #67 Christian DiLauro
- #63 Alex Palczewski
Defense
DE – #97 Bobby Roundtree
- #92 Isaiah Gay
DT -#55 Jamal Milan
- #96 Tymir Oliver
LB – #3 Del’Shawn Phillips
- #33 Tré Watson
CB – #6 Tony Adams
- #8 Nate Hobbs
- #1 Jaylen Dunlap
S – #21 Patrick Nelson
- #4 Bennett Williams
Special Teams
K – #43 Chase McLaughlin
P – #14 Blake Hayes
Illinois Defense v Nebraska Offense
Coming off of the loss to the mobile Heisman contender of South Florida, the breakout freshman Bobby Roundtree and Isaiah Gay will be back in their niche with a passing quarterback. Roundtree is the leading nation in true freshman sacks, third in the Big Ten and 12th in the nation. Nebraska’s Tanner Lee struggled against Rutgers shaky defense last weekend and will likely have trouble with the Illini as well.