College Football

Illinois Football: 3 Areas to Work on During the Bye Week

Updated Mar. 4, 2020 9:51 p.m. ET

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Sep 3, 2016; Champaign, IL, USA; Illinois Fighting Illini wide receiver Samuel Harlib (82) and Illinois Fighting Illini offensive lineman Joe Spencer (71) celebrate with head coach Lovie Smith after the game against the Murray State Racers at Memorial Stadium. Illinois defeated Murray State 52 to 3. Mandatory Credit: Mike Granse-USA TODAY Sports

The Illinois football team will not lose this week and I can guarantee that is a fact.

Every Illinois Fighting Illini fan is happy that their beloved team has a bye week so the program can regroup and hopefully come out against Nebraska tough.

Through the first three games this season the tires seem to be falling off the bus. But, in actuality, it is only a flat tire. The program will be okay, just give Lovie some time.

Although, you can’t look past what has happened so far this season.

Illinois did a great job game one against Murray State but then started to show their true colors in the North Carolina game and then collapsed during the Western Michigan contest.

There are many things this Illini team did wrong, but I wanted to only go over three that I think could improve this team immediately.

These three issues I have with the team currently can go from making the Illini a potential bowl miss to a bowl team this season.

I am not asking for the stars and moon here. I am just asking for some things to be tweaked and some areas to be focused on.

Here are the three areas that Illinois needs to work on during the bye week.

Nov 14, 2015; Champaign, IL, USA; A detailed view of the Illinois Fighting Illini helmet before the game against the Ohio State Buckeyes at Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mike DiNovo-USA TODAY Sports

Offensive Line Play

The Illinois football team has a few running backs that can be pretty special if they had some help with the blocking up front.

Ke’Shawn Vaughn is only averaging 4.7 yards per carry which should be a lot more because he is a special running back.

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But, due to injuries and inability to block, the Illini haven’t lived up to expectations on offense.

I know that Illinois has had some injuries on the offensive line that includes losing Gabe Megginson during the North Carolina game to a leg injury. He also missed the Western Michigan game as well.

The depth has really killed the Illini during this stretch too. But, the bye week will hopefully get things going in a better direction.

Jordan Fagan replaced Megginson in the last game against the Broncos and that didn’t work out so well.

I would like to see Lovie and Luke Butkus work with Darta Lee in this week off to get him ready to fill in for Megginson if he can’t go against Nebraska.

Illinois needs to figure out something with the offensive line because it is killing any offensive flow.

The Illini are giving up an average of 2.67 sacks per game which ranks No. 97 in the nation. They are also allowing 6.67 tackles for loss per game which ranks No. 82 in the nation.

This has to stop if Illinois wants to keep their offense on the field and productive. They need to help Lee progress as a guard and move him into that role for Megginson for the time being.

Oct 3, 2015; Champaign, IL, USA; Illinois Fighting Illini running back Ke

Focus On the Run

I know that the Illinois football team has troubles on the offensive line but I think the lack of balance in the offense has something to do with the lack of production.

Last season Vaughn was productive for most of the year and Ferguson had a solid campaign for the snaps he was healthy.

Some of this production was thanks to a solid offensive line. But, some of it was because Illinois was running the ball more last season.

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Illinois is averaging only 19 rushing attempts per game this season. That is about 5 attempts less than the average of the 2015 season.

Another reason I believe that we were pounded by Western Michigan was because we went away from the run way too soon.

Western Michigan jumped on the Illini early and was up 21-0 just barely into the 2nd quarter. There was still a lot of football left to play.

But, against North Carolina, Illinois was alive all the way into the 4th quarter because they ran the ball more.

The pass to run ratio in the North Carolina game was 35 passes to 27 runs. This is a nice balance that I would love to see every game.

In the Western Michigan game, it was a different story. Illinois passed the ball 42 times and only rushed 10 times in this game.

That is why the game got out of hand and the Illini fell to a MAC program. I know the offensive line isn’t the best but you can’t abandon the run that quick in a game.

Oct 24, 2015; Champaign, IL, USA; Illinois Fighting Illini defensive end Carroll Phillips (6) celebrates after sacking Wisconsin Badgers quarterback Joel Stave (2) at Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mike Granse-USA TODAY Sports

Round Out Defensive Line

The Illinois defensive line is one of the best in the country at rushing the quarterback. They have some of the most talented players in that aspect.

Illinois averages 4.33 sacks per game which ranks No. 5 in the nation. That is quite impressive and they need to continue dominating the quarterbacks.

But, where this line really falls short is rush defense.

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Despite a great pass rush, though, they do give up 158 yards per game on the ground which ranks No. 78 in the country.

Having an opposing offense go for so many yards on the ground really wears the defense out and keeps the Illinois offense off the field.

This needs to stop if the Illini want any success in the future.

During this bye week, the Illinois defensive line needs to work on gap assignments. They can’t keep breaking down and letting the running backs get by them on the line.

This is crucial to having success against the run. While it is fun just barnstorming the quarterback, they still need to keep discipline and stay in their lanes.

There are many areas the Illini need to work on during the bye week, but these three need to be focused on to start creating wins.

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