Illinois vs. Indiana Game Notes in PDF Format

For Openers

• Saturday's game marks the 96th Homecoming celebration on the University of Illinois campus.

• Illinois middle linebacker J Leman leads the Big Ten in tackles with 11.0 per game. He has posted four straight games of 10-plus tackles, including 11 in Illinois' win over Michigan State.

• With 110 yards rushing against Michigan State, senior running back Pierre Thomas passed legendary Illini Red Grange on the Illinois career rushing list. Thomas now stands at eighth all-time.

• Illinois placekicker Jason Reda earned Big Ten Special Teams Player of the Week honors after his game-winning field goal against Michigan State last weekend.

• Illinois' win over Michigan State marked some firsts for the Illini. It was Ron Zook's first Big Ten win, his first road win as Illini head coach, kicker Jason Reda's first game-winning field goal and true-freshman quarterback Juice Williams' first career win.

Indiana Series Notes

• This week's game marks 64th meeting between the Fighting Illini and the Indiana Hoosiers. The Illini hold a 41-19-3 series advantage, and 27-7-1 lead when playing in Champaign.

• The Illini have won the last 10 meetings against the Hoosiers at Champaign's Memorial Stadium.

• Indiana head coach Terry Hoeppner is 1-0 against the Illini, while Ron Zook is 0-1 vs. Indiana. The only meeting between these two coaches was last season when the Hoosiers won 36-13 in Bloomington.

• Two Illinois starters hail from the state of Indiana, safety Kevin Mitchell and punter Kyle Yelton, as well as four others on the Illini roster: RB Charles Bailey, OL Brandon Jordan, OL Dan Motuliak, OL J.J. Simmons.

• Illinois secondary coach Curt Mallory served as defensive backs coach under Gerry DiNardo at Indiana from 2002-04. He also got his start at Indiana, getting his master's degree when his father Bill Mallory was IU head football coach.

Illinois Highlights Against Indiana

• In 2005, kicker Jason Reda hit his career long field goal of 52 yards, the sixth longest in school history.

• Last year, the Illini defense recorded three turnovers - an Alan Ball interception and two fumbles one forced by J Leman.

• In 2004, running back Pierre Thomas rushed for 185 yards on 21 carries and scored on a 44-yard touchdown run.

Illini Homecoming

• The University of Illinois boasts being one of the first Universities to celebrate Homecoming, a tradition on almost every college campus. It was conceived in 1909 by students C.F. Williams and W. Elmer Ekblaw, members of the Shield and Trident senior society. They joined with another society, Phoenix, to organize the three-day event. The first homecoming celebrated on Illinois' campus was on Oct. 15, 1910, which the Illini won 3-0 over Big Ten rival Chicago.

• Illinois is 41-52-2 all-time in Homecoming games and are 3-1 vs. Indiana in Homecoming games. The last time these two teams met in Champaign for Illinois homecoming was in 2002 when the Illini won 45-14.

• For years there has been a debate over which University had the first homecoming. Historians from various schools found research that puts Illinois among one of the first five Universities to celebrate the Homecoming tradition. Baylor has documented proof of a formally named Homecoming celebration in 1909, but then took a six-year hiatus before celebrating the second event at the school in 1915. Northern Illinois had alumni events beginning in 1906, but didn't use the proper noun "Homecoming" until 1911. Indiana University renamed their 1909 Gala Day, Homecoming on Nov. 5, 1910 and Michigan began inviting alumni back to campus in 1897, but the formal name began on the Ann Arbor campus in 1916.

Youth Gone Wild

• Through five games this season 16 true freshmen have logged mintues. Fourteen saw time in the season opener and since then one new player has been added in each game (DE Melvin Alaeze vs. Rutgers and DE Clay Nurse vs. Syracuse). They are: DL Melvin Alaeze, S Travon Bellamy, PK Michael Cklamovski, TE Jeff Cumberland, CB Vontae Davis, CB Chris Duvalt, CB Dere Hicks, TE Michael Hoomanawanui, DE Antonio James, WR Chris James, WR Joe Morgan, DL Clay Nurse, LB Rahkeem Smith, WR Marques Wilkins, QB Juice Williams, P Kyle Yelton.

• Illinois' debut of 16 true freshmen this year are the second-most of any team in Division I-A. Temple has played 19, followed by the Illini and Florida State with 16.

• Illinois has played 65 athletes this season, 23 of which were making their first collegiate appearance for Illinois, over 35 percent of the team.

• True-freshmen tight end Jeff Cumberland, punter Kyle Yelton and cornerback Vontae Davis all got starts in the season opener, marking the first time since the 1997 season that three true freshmen were in the starting lineup. Against Rutgers, true-freshman tight end Michael Hoomanawanui got the start, alternating for Cumberland.

Records to Watch

• For the past two and a half seasons, senior running back Pierre Thomas has been among the Big Ten's best all-around running backs. He has twice led the team in rushing and has been very productive in the kickoff return game. He topped 1,300 all-purpose yards in 2004 and 2005, and is 911 yards short of the Illinois career all-purpose yardage record, which is currently held by Robert Holcombe (4,737).

  Senior running back Pierre Thomas registered the seventh 100-yard-plus rushing game of his career last Saturday at Michigan State.

• Both Thomas and senior running back E.B. Halsey rank among the school's best runners. Thomas has compiled 2,139 career rushing yards and with a strong senior year could break into Illinois' top-5. He needs 55 yards to improve to seventh on the all-time list. Halsey is currently 20th on that same list with 1,442 yards. He will improve to 19th with 99 yards.

• Junior kicker Jason Reda has made 23 field goals in his two-year career at Illinois, which ranks eighth on the all-time field goal list. He connected for seven as a true-freshman, 13 last season and currently has three made field goals this season. The school record is 53 held by Chris White, but with one more made field goal, Reda will move to seventh on the list.

• Illinois quarterback Tim Brasic rushed for 420 yards in 2005, the most in a single season by an Illinois quarterback. With 71 yards so far this season, Brasic needs 25 yards to surpass the 516 yards recorded by Fred Custardo from 1963-65, which is the most on the ground by an Illinois signal-caller.

The Juice is Loose

• Illinois true-freshman quarterback Isiah "Juice" Williams led the Illini to a victory at Michigan State on Sept. 20 in just his second career start. He is one of four Illinois quarterbacks to win the second game of their careers - Kurt Kittner (1998), Jason Verduzco (1990) and Jack Trudeau (1983).

• Williams got his first collegiate start in the Illini's Big Ten opener against Iowa. He is the first true-freshman QB to start for the Illini since Kurt Kittner opened the game against Iowa on Sept. 26, 1998.

• With Williams' TD passes of 76 and 69 yards (against Syracuse) and 69 yards (at Michigan State), he became the first quarterback in school history to thrown three touchdown passesof more than 65 yards in a career.

• Williams has proven he has quick-strike, big-play ability. His four touchdown passes this season have been for 76, 69, 69 and 31 yards. The scoring drives have been 1, 3, 4, and 5 plays in length with the longest time elapsed being 1:46.

• Williams made his college debut in the season opener in the second quarter and led his team on a 61-yard, 12-play drive for a touchdown. With that score, he became the first true-freshman quarterback in school history to lead a scoring drive on his first collegiate try.

Freshmen Quarterbacks

• Last February on national signing day, many high profile prep quarterbacks joined teams with the talk of early playing time. So far this season, five of the eight quarterbacks that were listed among the national top-100 recruits in 2005 have played and/or started for their respective teams. Here is a compliation of their statistics:

  Player, School	GS-GP	Record as starter	Pct.	Att.	Comp.	Yds.	TD	Int.
  Mitch Mustain, Arkansas	3-4	3-0	65	33	50.8	487	5	5
  Matthew Stafford, Georgia	2-5	2-0	75	36	48.0	485	1	3
  Tim Tebow, Florida	0-5	0-0	12	8	.667	116	0	1
  Pat Devlin, Penn State	---	--	--	--	--	--	--	--
  Juice Williams, ILLINOIS	2-5	1-1	78	31	39.7	549	4	4
  Jevan Snead, Texas	0-4	0-0	18	13	72.2	181	1	1
  Jake Locker, Washington	---	--	--	--	--	--	--	--
  Alex Cate, Oklahoma State	---	--	--	--	--	--	--	--

Transfers Making a Difference

• In addition to the many members of the freshman class making an impact in the season opener, three transfers have found themselves in the starting lineup to begin their first season at Illinois: OT Akim Millington, S Justin Sanders and LB Antonio Steele.

• Steele and Sanders came to the Illini via the junior college route, Steele from Long Beach City College and Sanders from NE Mississippi Junior College. Both players have NFL bloodlines with Steele's older brother, Markus, having played for five seasons with the Dallas Cowboys and Denver Broncos. Sander's father, John, played for six years with the New England Patriots and Philadelphia Eagles.

• Millington was a transfer from Oklahoma, where he was slated to be in the starting lineup. A family situation forced him to leave the Sooners and sit out the 2005 season. He arrived in January to begin working out with the Illini. Millington has only played football for a short time, beginning in high school. He grew up in Trinidad playing soccer and fishing. He taught himself to play football by reading books in the library.

Two-Sport Double-Duty

• Sophomore receiver Kyle Hudson returned to the football field this fall after leading the team in 2005 in receiving yards. He compiled 469 yards receiving on 31 catches, falling just 42 yards short of the Illinois freshman receiving record. He also was Illinois' deep threat a year ago, posting seven catches over 25 yards. During his offseason, Hudson was the starting centerfielder for the Illini baseball team, also leading the squad with a .375 batting average. Working around the spring football season, Hudson started in 34-of-35 games played. He also stole 10 bases. For his efforts, he was named the University of Illinois' Male Newcomer of the Year.

Versatile Warren

• Soon the Illinois roster will need to list junior DaJuan Warren as a slash. In five games, the Southfield, Mich., native has played his regular position of wide receiver and added punter to the mix. He has seven catches for 112 yards and has seven punts. To make things even more confusing, he has attempted a pass and has 26 yards rushing on three carries.

What's In a Name?

• It is hard not to pay attention to the 12-letter long last name of freshman tight end Michael Hoomanawanui. The difficulty in its pronunciation has caused coaches and teammates to nickname Michael "Huh-oh" representing the first two syllables of his name. The name is one of Hawaiin decent, which he gets from his father, Isy's, side of the family, who hails from Oahu. The name is not the most common in its native land, but retains the special meaning "patience".

1,000-Yard Rushing Duos

Through the third week of the 2006 season, Illinois is one of two Big Ten teams to boast a pair of career 1,000-yard rushers on its current roster in seniors Pierre Thomas (2,029 career yards) and E.B. Halsey (1,436 career yards). Michigan State is the other. In all, there are nine 1,000-yard career rushers currently listed on Big Ten rosters:

Sharing the Wealth

• The Illini once again have a triple threat at the tailback position in seniors E.B. Halsey and Pierre Thomas and sophomore Rashard Mendenhall.

• Against MSU, the Illini rushed for 252 yards, topping the 200-yard mark for the second time this season. The trio of backs combined for 133 yards.

• In the season opener, the three tailbacks combined for 283 yards - Thomas led the team with 126, followed by Halsey's 82 yards and Mendenhall's 75. In the season opener against Eastern Illinois, the trio combined for 283 yards (the first 300-yard rushing game for an Illini team since the 1999 Micronpc.com Bowl game). The last time an Illinois team had three backs with over 75 yards in a game was in the 2001 Big Ten Championship year against Indiana. The trio also averaged 7.9 yards per carry against EIU.

• For years, the Illinois running game has consisted of the two-headed monster tailback philosophy. Dating back to 1998 (and with the exception of the 2002 season), two or more running backs have split time in the backfield. With all three tailbacks returning for the 2006 season, the running game looks to be much of the same. The following is a list of Illinois' tailback tandems:

  1998	Rocky Harvey (634) & Steve Havard (584) 1,218 (110.7 ypg)
  1999	Rocky Harvey (774) & Steve Havard (806) 1,580 (131.7 ypg)
  2000	Rocky Harvey (683) & Antoineo Harris (772) 1,455 (132.3 ypg)
  2001	Rocky Harvey (620) & Antoineo Harris (629) 1,249 (104.1 ypg)
  2002*	Antoineo Harris (1,330) 1,330 (110.8 ypg)
  2003	E.B. Halsey (525) & Pierre Thomas (233) 758 (62.2 ypg)
  2004	Pierre Thomas (893) & E.B. Halsey (461) 1,354 (123.1 ypg)
  2005	Pierre Thomas (664), E.B. Halsey (349) & Rashard Mendenhall (218) 1,277 (116.0 ypg)
  2006	Pierre Thomas (349), E.B. Halsey (107) & Rashard Mendenhall (160) 616 (123.2 ypg)
  * only season since 1998 Illinois has had one featured back

Retooled Offensive Line

• With the additions of large bookend tackles Akim Millington and Charles Myles, the Illinois offensive line has increased its size to over 1,500 pounds. Each starter weighs in at over 300 pounds and the five starters average 308 pounds. Millington joined the team in the spring as a transfer from Oklahoma, where he played in 2004. Myles is a transfer from the defensive side of the ball, where he played defensive tackle for the Illini in 2003 and 2004.

• Despite returning all five starters to the offensive line, only left guard Martin O'Donnell is in the same position as a year ago. Myles and Millington joined at the tackle positions, giving the coaching staff the ability to move sophomore Ryan McDonald inside to his more natural center position. Senior Matt Maddox, who played center in 2005, has returned to right guard where he played in every game as a freshman and sophomore.

Classroom Standouts

• Illinois junior linebacker J Leman is not only a standout on the field, but his accomplishments in the classroom include a bachelor's degree in just three years. He maintained a 3.7 GPA in communications, graduating this past August. He is currently pursuing a master's degree with two seasons of eligibility still remaining.

• The Illini's starting center Ryan McDonald is pursuing his undergraduate degree in one of the most difficult academic fields at the University of Illinois. Illinois is known for its engineering ciriculum, ranking in the Top-10 in all nine disciplines, including the top-rated civil engineering program. McDonald has recorded a 3.87 in aeronautical engineering, a program which ranks eighth nationally.

Offensive Notes

• In the Sept. 1 issue of The Sporting News, Illinois offensive coordinator Mike Locksley was named one of the top-5 minority assistant coaches on the rise in the hunt for head coaching positions.

• Illinois running back Pierre Thomas (110) and quarterback Juice Williams (103) both rushed for over 100 yards in the victory over MSU. It was the first time the Illini had a pair of 100-yard rushers in the same game since Rocky Harvey and Antoineo Harris accomplished the feat at San Diego State in 2000.

• The Illini have rushed for over 200 yards for the second time this year. They piled up 252 yards against MSU last weekend and posted 345 vs. EIU earlier this season.

• Against Michigan State, the Illini offensive line, while missing left tackle Akim Millington, helped block for 252 yards rushing and didn't allow a sack, for the first time this season.

• Thomas has now rushed for over 100 yards seven times in his career, following his 110 yards against MSU. He scored two touchdowns in a game for the fifth time in his career with his two TD runs against the Panthers.

• The Illini have taken advantage of opportunities in the red zone, scoring on nine of 10 trips inside the 20.

• In five games this season, sophomore wide receiver Kyle Hudson has converted first downs on 9-of-13 catches. Including his freshman year, Hudson now has 31 first-down catches in 44 career receptions.

• Of Illinois' 107 carries by running backs this year, only three have been for negative yardage (-6).

• Thomas has rushed for 2,139 yards in three-plus seasons, carrying the ball 380 times. Druing that time, Thomas is averaging 5.6 yards per carry, while scoring 17 career touchdowns.

• Illinois tied its longest drive in school history with a 99-yard drive against Syracuse that resulted in Kyle Hudson's 69-yard TD catch. This is the third time that the Illini have had a 99-yard drive, and the first time since Oct. 7, 1989 vs. Ohio State.

• Against EIU, the Illini offense recorded six big plays of over 25 yards, including two runs of over 35 yards. Against Syracuse, the offense added another three big plays, which include passes of 76 and 69 yards. For the season, the Illini have 12 plays over 25 yards.

• With a 76-yard pass to Rashard Mendenhall and 69-yard hookups with Kyle Hudson and Jacob Willis this season, Williams has engineered the program's first- and third-longest completions in school history since the 1994 Liberty Bowl.

• Not only does the Illini offense spread the wealth in the rushing game, but Williams and Brasic have found 12 different targets for 61 completed passes.

• Illinois had six rushing touchdowns against Eastern Illinois. The last time Illinois had six rushing TDs in a game was in the Micronpc.com bowl victory over Virginia on Dec. 30, 1999.

David Lindquist and his defensive 'mates wreaked havoc with Michigan State's passing game last Saturday in East Lansing.

Defensive Notes

• The Illini defense held Michigan State's potent running game to a mere 82 yards rushing, 173.5 yards below their average. The Spartans were averaging 476.8 yards of total offense for the season and the Illinois allowed only 259 yards, 217.8 below their average.

• Illinois middle linebacker J Leman has recorded four games of 10-plus tackles to lead the team (12 vs. Rutgers and 15 vs. Syracuse, 12 vs. Iowa, 10 at MSU). For the season, he is averaging 11.0 tackles per game, which ranks No. 1 in the Big Ten and seventh nationally.

• Against Michigan State, the Illini defense posted five sacks, the most in a game during the Ron Zook era.

• The Illinois defense has allowed 14 touchdowns and seven field goals this season. However, seven of those 14 touchdowns came on a short field when the opponent started in Illini territory, as well as five of the seven field goals.

• The Illinois defense has recorded seven scoreless quarters this season.

• The Illini defense held the Iowa offense scoreless for the game's first 24:05, marking the longest scoreless time span to start the game by an opponent in the Ron Zook era. Iowa did not score in the first or third quarters, which mark the fifth and sixth scoreless quarters of the season by UI opponents. After giving up 21 points in the final 5:55 of the first half, the defense shut down the Hawks for only three points in the final half.

• Sophomore defensive end Derek Walker leads the team in sacks in just his second year as a starter. In five games, he has recorded 4.5 sacks for a loss of 21 yards. He ranks fourth in the Big Ten and 18th nationally.

• In five games this season, the Illini have forced eight turnovers, tying the number recorded during the entire 2005 season. The squad posted a season-high three turnovers against Rutgers.

• Of those eight turnovers, five have been interceptions, which surpasses the total number (4) from a year ago. Both freshman Vontae Davis, sophomore Brit Miller and junior Kevin Mitchell have posted their first collegiate interceptions this season.

• Six times this season opponents drives deep in the red zone have been thwarted by turnovers. Against Eastern Illinois, freshman corner Vontae Davis' endzone interception halted an EIU goal line stand, Alan Ball recorded an endzone interception at Rutgers, linebacker J Leman forced a fumble at the goal line against the Scarlet Knights, safeties Justin Harrison and Kevin Mitchell have intercepted passes at the one yardline and Harrison stripped MSU's Drew Stanton at the two-yardline.

• The Illinois defense has held their ground in the red zone this year. In 18 trips by Illini opponents only 11 times their foes have come away with scores, which ranks second in the Big Ten at 60.0 percent.

Special Teams Notes

• Junior placekicker Jason Reda converted his first career game-winning field goal when he connected for a 36-yard kick with 10 seconds left at Michigan State, to lift Illinois over the Spartans, 23-20. It was the first game-winning field goal for an Illini kicker since Chris Richardson made a 41-yarder against Ohio State for the 10-7 win on Oct. 22, 1991.

• Reda has been the model of consistency when it comes to extra-point kicking. In three seasons, he is a near-perfect 58-of-59, including his last 48 attempts.

• Reda has also connected on 23 made field goals in two-plus seasons as the starter, which ranks eighth on the Illinois career list. With one more field goal, he would climb up the list to seventh, tying John Gockman.

• Senior running back E.B. Halsey is Illinois' punt returner for the fourth-straight year. He has a career average of 7.5 yards on 57 returns, including a 41-yard touchdown in 2003 against Purdue.

• The Illini started true-freshman Kyle Yelton for its punting duties in the season opener. In five games, Yelton is averaging 37.5 yards per kick on 20 attempts. The last time Illinois used a true-freshman punter was in 1998 when Steve Fitts got the call. That season, Fitts averaged 41.3 yards per kick (77 - 3,182 yards).

• Beginning in Illinois' game against Rutgers, wide receiver DaJuan Warren was employed as a second punter. Warren, who did punt in high school, worked on the "rugby-style" punt, which has become more popular in college football. In three games at punter, he has averaged 27.4 yards on seven punts, including a 50-yarder.

Memorial Stadium Gets a Facelift

• Recently the Illinois Board of Trustees approved a $116 million renovation for Illinois' historic Memorial Stadium. The renovation project is slated to begin following the completion of the 2006 football season and IHSA championship football games. Construction will occur on the north, west and east sides of the stadium, with permanent seating on the north end being completed for the 2007 season. The remaining areas, which include the east and west side, should wrap up in time for the 2008 season.(updated photos and renderings available upon request).

• Among the renovation on the west side is the addition of luxury suites, indoor and outdoor club areas and a refurbishment of the concourses. An outdoor club space, the Colonnades Club, will be added under the west balcony and will allow for indoor game day hospitality, as well as outdoor chair back seats for contest viewing. In the west balcony, a three-level structure will be built to house two floors of suites and an indoor club space as well as a new press box for media seating and game day operations. The indoor club, which seats 200, has been named "77 Club" to honor the retired number of Illinois gridiron legend Harold "Red" Grange.

• The funding comes in large part from the sales of suites, club seats and naming rights, which covers nearly 85 percent of the total cost. The remaining 15 percent will be funded by a ticket surcharge, which was inacted this year.