Yardbarker: Illinois Fighting Illini

Miami’s Davis left to face the facts

Mon, 09 Nov 2009 01:16:06 -0500

FOXBOROUGH - Vontae Davis was 10 years old when Randy Moss started playing in the NFL. Throughout Davis’s teen years, he watched Moss set records with the Vikings and Davis was still playing for Illinois when Moss teamed with Tom Brady for their record-setting season in 2007.

Dogged Illini pull off 2nd straight win, but QB Juice hurt

Sat, 07 Nov 2009 21:54:25 -0500

Quarterback Jacob Charest fine in relief of injured Juice Williams MINNEAPOLIS -- As defensive end Clay Nurse walked off a sun-splashed TCF Bank Stadium field Saturday and stared at a smattering of Illinois fans, he repeated his team's nickname placing emphasis on the first word.

Illinois loses QB Williams, but beats Minnesota

Sat, 07 Nov 2009 16:22:01 -0500

Terry Hawthorne returned an interception for a touchdown and Clay Nurse had four of Illinois' eight sacks to lead the Illini to a 35-32 victory.

Upon Further Review: Offense vs Illinois

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 13:51:04 -0500

Personnel notes: Odoms did not play and was replaced by Roundtree. Patrick Omameh got a series late in the first half, probably because Dorrestein was injured. It sounds like Dorrestein might miss the Purdue game, with Patrick Omameh his likely replacement at RG. Robinson did not play until the game was over. Ln Dn Ds O Form RB TE WR D Form Type Play Player Yards M30 1 10 Shotgun 3-wide 1 1 3 Nickel Pass Long handoff Mathews 5 Illinois walks a safety d...

The Only Thing Corey Liuget And I Will Ever Have In Common

Mon, 02 Nov 2009 11:47:44 -0500

10/31/2009 – Michigan 13, Illinois 38 – 5-4, 1-4 Big Ten To paint with broad strokes, I probably don't have much in common with 6'3", 290 pound black guys from Miami who think it's a good idea to play for Ron Zook. Our worlds are unlikely to intersect at a Lil Wayne show or the Ann Arbor Film Festival. Cory Liuget has probably never thought to himself "that reminds me of a Morrissey song." Of late, I think that all the time. But at around 6:30 on October 31st...

Unverified Voracity Says Nice Unfinished Hotel

Tue, 27 Oct 2009 11:54:09 -0500

The rotate. Illinois will look to the future on Saturday by rotating in redshirt freshman Jacob Charest, who you can see making sweet love to your whole body with his mind to the right. Hey, baby, Jacob Charest would like to know if you like emo bangs and nonchalant poses from his trip to North Korea. Yeah, baby, Jacob Charest wore his Illini uniform to Pyongyang Stadium. Because Illini up, that's why. Charest is a 6'4" pro-style QB out of North Carolina who was a middling thre...

Third-string QB could start for desperate Illinois

Tue, 20 Oct 2009 14:26:28 -0500

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. (AP) -- Ron Zook isn't saying who Illinois will start at quarterback Saturday at Purdue, but he isn't ruling out third-stringer Jacob Charest.

Illini still undecided at quarterback

Wed, 14 Oct 2009 22:43:17 -0500

Anyone looking for Illinois' secret quarterback decoder won't find answers by scanning the list of this week's captains. Juice Williams and Eddie McGee are both captains for Saturday's game at Indiana, but coach Ron Zook hasn't decided which one will start. The staff has discussed implementing redshirt Jacob Charest the ...

In case you hadn't already, go ahead and stick a fork in Illinois

Sat, 10 Oct 2009 14:10:37 -0500

Join the Doc's game day live blog, covering every game all day long. Michigan State 24, Illinois 7. For all the negativity surrounding their 1-3 start, the Illini still had a chance to begin bailing out their sinking ship today: Michigan State, in Champagne, offered a realistic opportunity to break the Big Ten slide begun against powerhouses Ohio State and Penn State, to find some kind of spark on offense with Eddie McGee in place of longtime starter Juice Williams and set a course for ....

Illinois' Asamoah: 'We got to get this right'

Sat, 03 Oct 2009 20:19:14 -0500

Illinois senior guard Jon Asamoah could turn his focus from the Illini's sorry start to his bright NFL prospects. After his team's 35-17 home loss to Penn State on Saturday, Asamoah seemed intent on helping turn things around in Champaign. Here are some of the postgame thoughts he shared with reporters, including Sporting News' Dave Curtis: Q: What's your attitude right now after the team starts 1-3? A: There's a fight tomorrow, and the next day. Don't le...

Malicious Internet Interrogation With Hail To The Orange

Thu, 01 Oct 2009 09:01:05 -0500

This week Penn State goes on the road for the first time this season to meet the Illinois Fighting Illini. So we sat down with Joe from Hail To The Orange to get his perspective on Penn State and the game. BSD: Penn State fans can sympathize with Illinois fans this week. We know what it's like to see your team not live up to your expectations. How are you coping with it? HTTO: I suppose I have become numb to Illini football failure, seeing as how there hasn't ever really been ...

Illinois Fighting Illini Preview By The Numbers

Wed, 30 Sep 2009 09:00:35 -0500

Penn State Value (Nat'l Rank) Value (Nat'l Rank) Illinois Fighting Illini Advantage Rushing Offense (ypg) 127.3 (80) 132.3 (59) Rushing Defense (ypg) Push Passing Offense (ypg) 247.5 (40) 253.7 (100) Passing Defense (ypg) Pass Efficiency 133.8 (52) 144.7 (102) Pass Efficiency Defense Total Offense (ypg) 373.8 (56) 386.0 (90) Total Defense (ypg) Scoring Offense (ppg) 25.0 (75) 280 (88) Sco...

Illinois is wasting Arrelious Benn

Tue, 29 Sep 2009 14:59:00 -0500

In junior Arrelious Benn, the Illinois Fighting Illini houses one of the most talented receivers in college football. Of course, you wouldn’t know that based on the way Ron Zook and quarterback Juice Williams waste Benn’s talent every week. Zook said this summer that the Illini needed to find more ways to get the ball into Benn’s [...]

Illini's Leshoure suspended for Illinois St. game

Wed, 09 Sep 2009 15:14:24 -0500

Illinois will be without one of its leading rushers Saturday when it tries for its first win of the season. Illinois coach Ron Zook says Mikel Leshoure has been suspended for an unspecified violation of team rules. The sophomore running back won't play in Illinois' home opener against Illinois State. Leshoure and fellow back Troy Pollard led Illinois with 38 yards each in last weekend's 37-9 loss to Missouri. Zook says Leshoure is suspended for a week.

It's Signing Day

Wed, 04 Feb 2009 09:55:49 -0500

Here's a subject we don't get into that much on NQTC: NCAA football recruiting. Today is like Christmas for those of us who spend way too much time paying attention to where a 17 or 18 year old kid is going to college. Hey, at least Chris Hansen isn't paying us a visit. Anyway, today is National Signing Day for high school seniors to officially decide where they are playing college football next season. I could spend a lot of time rambling about recruiting classes, but I'...

Coming Soon: Zook TV

Sun, 06 Jul 2008 09:57:58 -0500

Zooker is getting his shot on cable tv.

"Runnin' Down a Dream"

Fri, 14 Mar 2008 18:38:33 -0500

All throughout high school, Frank Lenti, Jr. earned respect both on and off the field. At Mount Carmel High School in Chicago, he starred as captain of both the Caravan varsity football and baseball teams. Lenti was labeled a multi-sport all-conference athlete by the Chicago Sun-Times and set almost every school receiving record. After a stellar senior campaign on the gridiron and an eventual graduation with honors in 2003, the South Holland, Ill., native embarked on a new challenge: walking on to the University of Illinois Fighting Illini football team..

2007 Football Recruiting Roundup: Illinois Fighting Illini (Big 10)

Mon, 18 Jun 2007 12:12:35 -0500

There are few times in life you will want to follow the trends of Ron Zook, but when it comes to getting new players for your college fantasy football team, watching out for Zook's recruits at the University of Illinois is probably a wise thing to do. Here's a look at the 2007 Illini recruits by Pre Pro Sports.