Ohio State Buckeyes 2025 Opponent Preview: Illinois Fighting Illini

One of the main reasons why Bielema's squad this season is considered a "sleeper" to make the College Football Playoffs is due to the sheer amount of starters that have returned to the program for the 2025 season. 19 of Illinois' 22 starters on both sides of the ball played at some point last season, giving the Fighting Illini an huge edge this year.

Out of all the players back with the program, quarterback Luke Altmyer was easily the most important to announce his return for 2025. The senior gunslinger threw for 2,717 yards and 22 touchdowns while completing 60.8 percent of his passes in 2024, making him a perfect guy under center for Bielema this year. In addition to Altmyer, Illionis' offensive line will feature all five starters from last season, including tackles JC Davis and Melvin Priestly. Both players are projected to make huge leaps this season, and could boost their draft stock with solid performances in 2025.

Looking at the defense, Illinois kept their core unit from the prior season in both the front seven and the secondary. Junior outside linebacker Gabe Jacas was the program's leader in sacks last season with eight, but he received more support this offseason with transfer portal addition James Thompson. The former Wisconsin defensive end finished last season with 59 tackles and five sacks in seven games last season.

In the secondary, the Fighting Illini kept all of their starters from 2024. Junior safety Matthew Berry led the team in tackles last year with 94, while also tallying seven pass breakups and one interception. And the program's dynamic cornerback duo of senior Torrie Cox and junior Kaleb Patterson combined for six pass breakups and three interceptions during last year's run.

Illinois' Weaknesses

Despite returning most of the starters, Bielema did lose mulitple key weapons on offense from the 2024 season.

Illinois will be without the program's leading rusher from last season in Josh McCray, along with the top two receivers in Pat Bryant and Zakhari Franklin. Luckily for the Fighting Illini, Beielema's usage of three running backs will pay off this season, as both junior running backs Kaden Feagin and Aidan Laughery had plenty of opportunities last year. The two rushers combined for 915 rushing yards and seven touchdowns on 164 attempts in 2024.

However, the longtime Big Ten member will have to rely on some of the program's young receivers in order to replicate the production from Bryant and Franklin. Those two will be senior Hank Beatty and sophomore Collin Dixon, who combined for 558 receiving yards and one touchdown on 38 catches in 2024.

Another weakness for the Fighting Illini this season will be on the defensive side. While the program will return a majority of their playmakers on that side of the ball, Illinois still ranked in the bottom half of the conference in most categories last season. Bielema's squad allowed an average of 373.8 yards per game and 149 rushing yards per game in 2024, which was the fifth worst amongst the conference in their respective categories. And with the Buckeyes' high-power offensive attack, this could spell trouble for Illinois when Day and company come to town.

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