Dre Brown has been on fire running the ball which has helped the Illini on this win streak.
Everything is hot in Champaign-Urbana these days and there is a lot of excitement surrounding the football team. Illinois routed Rutgers 38-10 on Saturday to rattle off their third straight Big Ten win for the first time since 2007. There has been rough times around this team the past decade, this is the streak that coach Lovie Smith needed to get this program back to its powerhouse status it used to have.
This run by the Illini came out of nowhere, after dropping 4 straight to go to 2-4 many fans, including myself felt this was another disappointing season. After a stunning upset in the final seconds over the undefeated and sixth ranked Wisconsin Badgers things felt different about the team. Many questioned if the Illini would be able to keep it up going on the road to Purdue the next week.
They proved that the upset was no fluke as they rolled Purdue 24-6 on a cold, rainy day in West Lafayette. The buzz began to grow as the Illini reached .500 at 4-4, but would they be able to win 3 straight coming back home to take on Rutgers? I was in attendance on Saturday and I could feel the buzz in the air at the stadium cheering for a team that was once again promising.
The Illini had no problem taking down Rutgers 38-10 and fans leaving Memorial Stadium Saturday afternoon understood that the Illini are just one win away from bowl eligibility. We will head on the road next Saturday to play a good Michigan State team, I expect it to be close and the Illini to have a chance to get that 6th win.
After Michigan State the boys get a bye week before going to battle in Iowa City against a tough opponent in Iowa. If both of these games result in losses the Illini host a struggling Northwestern team to finish the season to hopefully get that 6th win and reach a bowl game for the first time since 2014.
Reaching a bowl game would be monumental for a program that has struggled recently and a fan base that is hungry to get back to the winning ways of the past. I predict the Illini to steal one on the road at Michigan State next week and become bowl eligible. I believe they won't stop here though, the Illini will give Iowa a good game on the road and come home and beat a struggling Northwestern team. I believe my boys in orange and blue will finish with 7 maybe 8 wins and end a great season with a bowl win.
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