Illinois Fighting Illini

Illinois Football: Preview of the Fighting Illini Offense

Published Jun. 30, 2017 6:28 p.m. ET

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Heading into the first game of the season, the Illinois football team has a lot to look forward to from the offensive side of the ball.

There were times last season that Illinois was extremely explosive with deep passes and a running game that featured two running backs that could do multiple things in the backfield.

2016 is a whole new year, but the Illini are looking to rely on some of the same faces from last season.

Here are the key players from key positions.

Quarterback: Wes Lunt

When Wes Lunt transferred in from Oklahoma State in 2014 I was excited.  He was a big-time quarterback from a big-time program.

That excitement really hasn’t worn off after two years of having Lunt behind center.  In fact, I can’t wait to see what he brings to the table in his final season in orange and blue.

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In Lunt’s first season with the Illini, he threw for 1,763 yards, 14 touchdowns, and 3 interceptions.  But, we all can remember this was an injury plagued year that eventually had Reilly O’Toole starting at the end of the season.

Lunt went into his junior campaign as the starting quarterback once again.  He threw for 2,761 yards, 14 touchdowns, and 6 interceptions.

In Lunt’s junior campaign he had to deal with a coaching change a week before the season.  So, honestly, it was a miracle the Illini finished 5-7.

Finally, Lunt has a season where there really isn’t anything wrong heading into the first game.  I expect him to have a great season.

In the game against Murray State, I am looking for 280 yards and 2 touchdowns.  I assume that Illinois will be running the ball a lot more in this game because of the bad Racers defense.

Running Back: Ke’Shawn Vaughn

In 2015, Illinois fans witnessed a great running back in Josh Ferguson have to go on the mend one too many times.  But, this left the door open for true freshman Ke’Shawn Vaughn to see some snaps.

Vaughn played in 11 of the 12 games for the Illini last season and the only game he missed was due to injury.

In the 11 games that Vaughn played, I was quite impressed.  He showed a running ability that you usually see out of a seasoned college athlete.

Vaughn ended up rushing for 723 yards and 6 touchdowns on 157 carries.  This came out to 4.6 yards per carry average.

I think Vaughn will improve on those stats from last season.  He now has the full-time role and I expect his yards per carry to increase as well.

I wouldn’t doubt that Vaughn reaches the 1,000-yard mark under Lovie.  He has the talent and ability to hit that mark in 2016.

For the first game against Murray State, I expect Vaughn to have a big day.  I am looking for 180 yards and 2 touchdowns from this sophomore running back.

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Wide Receiver: Malik Turner

A key player in the passing game is wide receiver Malik Turner.

Turner really came onto the scene in 2014 when he caught 25 passes for 256 yards and a touchdown as a true freshman.

This was actually a pretty solid season for a true freshman wide receiver.  The future was extremely bright for Turner.

Last season, Turner improved on his rookie campaign and caught 39 passes for 510 yards and 3 touchdowns.  He really came on late catching 11 passes for 126 yards against Minnesota.

I expect Turner to continue his trend upward.  He has the ability to do great things on the football field and that will show with the new coaching regime.

This season I look for Turner to have around 50 catches for over 600 yards.

In this first game against Murray State, I want to see something like 5 catches for 50 yards.  I don’t expect much because passing will probably be a secondary option.

The Illinois offense should have a great season.  This will all start this weekend with a drubbing of Murray State.

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