Illinois Fighting Illini 2010 Season Preview/Prediction
The College Football season may be 6-7 weeks away but our man Kyle Hunter has been deep in study and will provide his take and 2010 College Football Predictions on as many NCAA teams as he can before the 2010/11 season kicks off.
We start from the top and move our way down so keep checking in for more college football previews for the 2010-2011 NCAA Football Season!
2010 NCAA Football Predictions – Teams | Analysis | Previews Online
Big Ten 2010-2011 Football Previews: Illinois Fighting Illini
Coach: Ron Zook
2009 Record: 3-9
Illinois Gambling Odds from Sportsbook.com to win BCS: +10,000
Not only were the Fighting Illini the biggest disappointment in the Big Ten last year, but they were one of the biggest underachievers in the entire country. Ron Zook’s squad just never put it together despite having some tremendous talent on offense, including wide receiver Arrelious Benn. The quarterback spot never was locked down after Juice Williams played poorly and his replacements didn’t do any better.
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This year, the Fighting Illini have a lot less talent on the offensive end, but one would still assume they should win more than three games as they did a year ago. On the defensive side of the ball seven starters return, including Martez Wilson, who has the potential to be a star.
Many think Ron Zook needs to do something soon to prove that he is turning around Illinois football or he may well be on his way out. Zook has found a way to beat some great opponents in the past few years, but the team has yet to find any consistency. 
This year they will simply be looking for some steps in the right direction.
Team Strengths:
The defense will have plenty of speed and they should improve from last season. The best athletes for the Fighting Illini are now on the defense. Martez Wilson has the most potential of anyone on the team, but he will be returning from a serious injury last year. Cory Liuget is a strong defensive lineman who can clog up the line.
On the offensive side they have three returning offensive linemen and Jarred Fayson is a nice talent at the wide receiver position.
Team Weaknesses:
It appears that freshman Jacob Scheelhase will be the starting quarterback for Illinois this year. He proved he was a winner in the high school ranks, but starting right off the bat will be difficult for him. The Fighting Illini will be decent in the running game, but they’ll need some kind of passing threat, and I don’t expect much this year.
The defense is not good against the pass, and the Big Ten has become much more of a passing league than it used to be. They’ll have to put pressure on the quarterback, or their secondary will be in trouble once again.
2010-2011 Illinois Football Prediction: 5-7
Take a look at the beginning of the Illinois Big Ten schedule and you’ll see they have Ohio State and Penn State to start the year. The team will get off to a slow start and I fully expect them to have some serious difficulty winning games in the Big Ten. A team with a freshman quarterback in this conference better be loaded at the rest of the skill positions if they expect to contend, and Illinois is far from loaded.
I think the Fighting Illini will finish the year at 5-7 and Ron Zook’s seat will get even hotter.
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