It is the most anticipated Illinois Fighting Illini football season in a generation, and it begins Friday, at home, against FCS opponent Western Illinois. The wait is finally nearing an end!
Last year, this Illini football team doubled their win total (from 5 in 2023 to 10 in 2024) from over the previous season. So how did they do it?
Illlini senior edge Gabe Jacas, who CBS ranked as the 20th best overall player in college football, provided an answer.
“Having just the brotherhood meaning in football,” the 6’3″ 275 OLB/DE explained in an exclusive with RG.org
“Always showing up for each other. There were games where we, as a defense, needed the offense. In other games, the offense needed us as a defense.
“So just depending on each other, counting on each other, to show up and do our jobs, and that’s what we did each game.”
Western Illinois at Illini Football FYIs
6:30 pm Fri. Champaign, Illinois (Memorial Stadium)
Streaming: Peacock- Paul Burmeister, Phil Simms (some of his “greatest misses” as a broadcaster), Zora Stephenson
Terrestrial Radio: WLS 890- Brian Barnhart, Carey Davis, Michael Martin
Satellite Radio: SiriusXM (121/195), SXM App
Spread: Illini Football -45.5
Illini Football Feature Links: Early Season Preview Early Bowl Projections Presence in the ESPN College Football Playoff Pundit Poll
Individual Player Features: J.C. Davis Xavier Scott Luke Altmyer Gabe Jacas
Player to Watch: Gabe Jacas
He has the highest draft stock of anybody on the orange and blue, with current projections visualizing him an early second-rounder.
Illini football coach Bret Bielema has a good record when it comes to developing linemen, and getting them to the league, so Jacas is the next beneficiary.
Position Group to Watch: Offensive Line
The o-line took some time to get it together last season, but once they did, it was a special unit. The group returns all five starters, and with that familiarity and chemistry, this will be one of the strongest position groups of the team.
Illinois has depth at the running back position, with Kaden Feagin likely carrying the mail. It’ll be a run-first approach, most likely to the left side, early and often.
Repeatedly calling run plays behind LT J.C. Davis, LG Josh Gesky and C Josh Kreutz is a winning formula.
Skinny on Western Illinois
College football does not have a preseason, so that’s what these early season warm-ups, against lower tier sides, are truly for. Western Illinois visits the Illini in week one, and then Northwestern in week two.
So they’ll have their own personal Land of Lincoln trophy thing going on in the first couple of weeks.
The Leathernecks, coached by Joe Davis, compete in the Missouri Valley Conference. Quoting our friends at Hammer and Rails:
“Last season Western Illinois was 4-8, but their September 28 win over McKendree saw them break a 27-game losing streak as they were arguably the worst Division I team in America the last few years.”
Prediction: Illini Football 49, Western Illinois Leathernecks 7
This game will just be a replay of last year’s season opening rout of Eastern Illinois.
Paul M. Banks is the Founding Editor of The Sports Bank. He’s also the author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America,” and “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry.”
He currently contributes to USA Today’s NFL Wires Network. His past bylines include the New York Daily News, Sports Illustrated and the Chicago Tribune. His work has been featured in numerous outlets, including the Wall Street Journal, Forbes, the Washington Post and ESPN. You can follow him on Linked In and Twitter