Five Numbers That Defined Illinois’ Dominant Win Over Western Illinois

It starts up front, and Illinois edge defender Gabe Jacas was as good as advertised Friday night. Jacas twice sacked Western Illinois quarterback Chris Irvin and showed why he's one of the most feared pass rushers in the Big Ten – and the nation – entering 2025.

Illinois yards per play: 7.6

Gone are the days of continuous long drives that chew up the clock and shorten games. Although that will likely always be present to some degree on Bret Bielema-coached teams, Illinois' big-play offense must also demonstrate the ability to beat teams deep and gain a significant chunk of yards in a short amount of time.

Hank Beatty punt return yards: 133

Anytime you pass Red Grange in the Illinois football record book, you're clearly doing something right. Hank Beatty was a force as a punt returner on Friday, totaling 133 yards on four returns, including the 69-yard touchdown shown above. He nearly broke another, contributing to his record-setting total.For good measure, Beatty added another 108 receiving yards, including a 59-yard reception on the night.

Western Illinois rushing yards: 29 (on 26 carries)

One key for Illinois to take the next step is stopping the run. Last year it allowed 4.4 yards per carry, good for the 79th-best run defense in the FBS. If the Illini are going to go from pretty good to great, run defense is a place to improve. Yes, it was against Western Illinois, but the foundation was put down and is something to build off of in next week's trip to Duke.

Attendance: 56,040

Memorial Stadium was packed, which speaks to the excitement of this Illinois season, but credit is due to the Fighting Illini faithful. On the same night that high school football kicked off across the state of Illinois (it's not exactly Texas high school football but also not a small thing), more than 56,000 fans packed the stands in Champaign against, of all teams, Western Illinois."If you build it, they will come."If Friday was any indication, there will be some special environments in Champaign this fall, and the Illini might just make it a season to remember.