ILLINOIS FIGHTING ILLINI NEWS

College football odds Week 7: How to bet Minnesota-Illinois

Here's everything you need to know about Minnesota-Illinois, from the point spread, moneyline, total Over/Under and expert pick from Sam Pan...

OCTOBER 12, 2022

Big Ten football at midseason: Bret Bielema and 5-1 Illinois are the surprise of the conference Second-year coach Bret Bielema and his Illinois football team are achieving at a rate not seen in the program in a long time. A very long ti...

OCTOBER 11, 2022 • CHICAGOTRIBUNE.COM

Artur Sitkowski - Steps in during win Sitkowski completed 13 of his 19 passes for 74 yards and zero touchdowns to one interception during Saturday's 9-6 win versus Iowa. He also netted 15 rushing yards on four carries.

Impact Sitkowski was called upon to take over for injured starting quarterback Tommy DeVito, who exited with an apparent lower leg injury during the first half of Saturday's win. The backup signal-caller managed to keep things on track for the Fighting Illini's prolific rushing offense, though he did commit a crucial fourth-quarter interception while throwing for the end zone. Sitkowski completed 74 of his 148 passes for 704 yards and a 6:2 TD:INT ratio over five games last season, and should be able to handle a conservate game-manager role if DeVito remains out.

OCTOBER 11, 2022 • ROTOWIRE

Brian Hightower - Notches 68 yards versus Iowa Hightower caught five of six targets for 68 yards in Saturday's 9-6 victory over Iowa.

Impact Hightower came up with numerous big-time catches for the Fighting Illini's offense Saturday, including a game-long 34-yard reception from backup quarterback Arthur Sitkowski, who relieved injured starter Tommy DeVito (lower leg) in the first half. The 215-pound junior has been the second most consistent wideout for Illinois this season, hauling in 73.3 percent of his 30 targets through six games. Hightower could be called upon to step up into an even bigger role moving forward after top pass catcher Isaiah Williams sustained a concussion in the second half against the Hawkeyes.

OCTOBER 11, 2022 • ROTOWIRE

Bielema, surging Illini collect AP Big Ten midseason honors

A 5-1 start has netted No. 24 Illinois three Big Ten midseason awards from The Associated Press

OCTOBER 11, 2022 • ASSOCIATED PRESS

Chase Brown - Logs 146 rushing yards Brown rushed 31 times for 146 rushing yards while hauling in four of his six targets for 17 yards during Saturday's 9-6 win over Iowa.

Impact Brown averaged a hard 4.7 yards per carry as he accounted for all but 54 of the Fighting Illini's 200 rushing yards against the stout Hawkeyes defense. The 205-pound junior also finished over 100 rushing yards for the sixth straight game this season, and he logged season highs in receptions and targets Saturday. Brown could stand to see even heavier usage moving forward after starting quarterback Tommy DeVitoa was forced to exit with an unspecified lower body injury suffered during the first half against Iowa. Illinois will face yet another stout rushing defense during next week's game against Minnesota.

OCTOBER 10, 2022 • ROTOWIRE

Isaiah Williams - Suffers concussion Saturday Illinois head coach Bret Bielema said that Williams sustained a concussion during Friday's 9-6 win over Iowa, Doug Bucshon of Rivals.com reports.

Impact Williams temporarily exited during the third quarter and returned before exiting for the remainder of Friday's game, though it's unclear exactly when the sophomore suffered this injury. As a result, the slot receiver will likely be considered doubtful heading into next Saturday's game against Minnesota. Williams finished with three receptions (four targets) for negative-seven yards and two rushes for three yards during Illinois' last-minute win. The 5-foot-10 wideout also fumbled twice, including a muffed punt recovered by Iowa linebacker Jack Campbell.

OCTOBER 9, 2022 • ROTOWIRE

Backup kicker's field goal lifts Illini to 9-6 win over Iowa

Backup, walk-on kicker Fabrizio Pinton hit a 36-yard field goal with 2:46 to go and Matthew Bailey made a late interception to lift Illinois to a 9-6 win over Iowa, its first over...

OCTOBER 9, 2022 • ASSOCIATED PRESS

Baker, Williams lead way as So. Illinois tops Missouri St.

Nic Baker threw two touchdown passes, Javon Williams Jr. ran for two scores and Southern Illinois defeated Missouri State 38-21

OCTOBER 8, 2022 • ASSOCIATED PRESS

VIP: Top247 WR Jordan Anderson excited by U-M's offense, talks bond with Semaj Morgan TMI has the latest on one of the Wolverines’ targets

OCTOBER 6, 2022 • 247SPORTS.COM

Big Ten: Illini go for 4 wins in row in showdown with Iowa

Illinois hosts Iowa on Saturday night in a matchup of two of the nation's best defenses

OCTOBER 5, 2022 • ASSOCIATED PRESS

College Football odds Week 6: How to bet Iowa-Illinois, pick

Here's everything you need to know about Iowa-Illinois, from the point spread, moneyline, total over/under and expert pick from Sam Panayoto...

OCTOBER 5, 2022

Big Ten West teams are mild, but division race could be wild

The Big Ten West is a mess

OCTOBER 4, 2022 • ASSOCIATED PRESS

Brian Hightower - Leading receiver Saturday Hightower caught all five of his passes for 59 yards during Saturday's 34-10 win over Wisconsin.

Impact Hightower topped the Fighting Illini's receiving corps in yards and catches for the first time this season as he finished with a game-long 35-yard receptions during Saturday's upset win. The 6-foot-3 wideout also notched season-highs across these two categories while serving as the No. 3 target for quarterback Tommy DeVito (18-of-24 passing, 167 yards). Hightower averaged 3.0 receptions (4.8 targets) for 30.0 yards through the first four games of the season, and he'll continue to vie for targets while playing opposite Pat Bryant (four receptions, six targets, 51 yards) this season.

OCTOBER 3, 2022 • ROTOWIRE

Pat Bryant - Four catches in Week 5 Bryant recorded four receptions (six targets) for 51 yards during Saturday's 34-10 win against Wisconsin.

Impact Bryant accounted for his second most receptions and targets so far this season despite the fact that quarterback Tommy DeVito attempted a season-low 24 passes Saturday. The 6-foot-3 sophomore once again operated amongst the Fighting Illini's top receiving trio alongside Isaiah Williams (seven receptions, 31 yards) and Pat Bryant (five receptions, 59 yards). Bryant averaged 3.5 receptions (4.5 targets) for 65.5 yards through the first four games of the season, and his overall production should remain relatively limited during next week's contest against Iowa.

OCTOBER 3, 2022 • ROTOWIRE

Isaiah Williams - Top target in win Williams hauled in seven of his nine targets for 31 yards during Saturday's 34-10 victory over Wisconsin.

Impact Williams paced the Fighting Illini's wideouts in targets, though he averaged a moderate 4.4 yards per receptions. The sophomore slot once again served as a short-yardage target while accounting for just under half of quarterback Tommy DeVito's completions (18) in Week 5. Williams has averaged 7.0 receptions (9.6 targets) for 58.2 yards so far this season, and he'll likely be heavily relied upon during Illinois' next game against Nebraska on Friday.

OCTOBER 3, 2022 • ROTOWIRE

Chase Brown - Notches long rushing score Brown rushed 25 times for 129 yards and one touchdown during Saturday's 34-10 win over Wisconsin. He also hauled in his lone target for six yards.

Impact Brown added his fifth straight 100-yard rushing performance of the season Saturday, averaging 5.1 yards per rush while totaling his second-highest touches of 2022. However, the majority of this production came from his season-long 49-yard rushing touchdown after the 205-pound back finally wore down the Badgers' rush defense midway through the third quarter. Brown has averaged a conference-best 146.6 rushing yards on 24 carries per game through the first five weeks of the season, though he'll face his toughest test thus far against Iowa this coming Saturday.

OCTOBER 3, 2022 • ROTOWIRE

Wisconsin Football: Report Card From Blowout Loss to Illinois Handing out grades for the offense and defense after Saturday’s home loss to the Illinois Fighting Illini:

OCTOBER 2, 2022 • USATODAY.COM

DeVito puts up rare stat line at Wisconsin, and Illinois keeps winning How did Syracuse football transfers fare in Week 5 of the college football season?

OCTOBER 2, 2022 • SYRACUSE.COM

College football top plays: Michigan beats Iowa; OK State tops Baylor

Week 5 of the college football season was filled with excitement, highlighted by Michigan's win over Iowa. Here are the top plays!

OCTOBER 2, 2022

10 incredible stats from Week 5 of the college football season

College football fans were treated to thrilling upsets, come-from-behind victories, and plenty of jaw-dropping stats on Saturday.

OCTOBER 2, 2022

Tommy DeVito - Burrows in three rush TDs DeVito completed 18 of his 24 passes for 167 yards to go along with three rushing touchdowns and negative-two rushing yards over seven carries during Saturday's 34-10 win over Wisc...

Impact DeVito notched his first three rushing scores of the season as he converted one-yard quarterback sneaks to cap off three of the Fighting Illini's four touchdown drives Saturday. The Syracuse transfer also completed 75 percent of his attempts for the second time this season while tossing for a season-lows in passing attempts and yards. DeVito has totaled 12 touchdowns to four total turnovers, and he'll likely play a similarly conservative passing role against Iowa's dominant defense next week.

OCTOBER 2, 2022 • ROTOWIRE

Illinois pounds Wisconsin 34-10 in Bret Bielema's return to Camp Randall — the Illini's 1st win in Madison since 2002 Chase Brown rushed for 129 yards, QB Tommy DeVito had three short touchdown runs and Illinois trounced Wisconsin 34-10 on Saturday.

OCTOBER 2, 2022 • ORLANDOSENTINEL.COM

AP Top 25 Takeaways: Bleak outlooks for Oklahoma, Wisconsin

The second month of the college football season often reveals issues that nonconference play might have masked

OCTOBER 2, 2022 • ASSOCIATED PRESS

Bielema has happy return as Illinois pounds Wisconsin 34-10

Chase Brown rushed for 129 yards, Tommy DeVito had three short touchdown keepers and Illinois trounced Wisconsin 34-10 on Saturday to give coach Bret Bielema a triumphant return to...

OCTOBER 1, 2022 • ASSOCIATED PRESS