WEEKEND PROMOTIONS | LINK
• Dads Day – Annual Dads Association Dads Weekend on campus Nov. 1-3
• Military Appreciation – Veteran military servicemen & women will be honored throughout the game
• Tailgating at Grange Grove –11:30-2:30 (games, food trucks and live music)
• Illini Walk – 12:15 pm through Grange Grove
OPENING KICK
• Back Home: The red-hot Fighting Illini, fresh off back-to-back victories over No. 6 Wisconsin and at Purdue, look to make a three straight wins this Saturday when Rutgers comes to Memorial Stadium (2:30 pm on BTN).
• The Cannon Comes Home: With Saturday's 24-6 victory at Purdue, the Fighting Illini claimed 'The Cannon' rivalry trophy for the first time since 2015. The Illini dominated from the start, especially defensively, to break a tie in the 95-year old series against the Boilermaker. Illinois now holds a 45-44-6 edge all-time against Purdue.
» Illinois held Purdue to six points, the Boilermakers' lowest total in six seasons since a 56-0 loss vs. Ohio State 11/2/2013 and head coach Jeff Brohm's fewest ever during his six-year head coaching career.
• Signature Win: The Oct. 19 win over No. 6 Wisconsin marked the Fighting Illini's first victory over a top-10 team since beating No. 1 Ohio State 28-21 on 11/10/2007. It also snapped a string of 24 straight losses to AP-ranked opponents dating back to a 17-14 win over No. 22 Arizona State on Sept. 17, 2011.
• Havoc on D: Like his signature Chicago Bears defenses, Lovie's Illini D excels at forcing turnovers, scoring points and making negative plays for the opposing offense. The Illini rank…
» First in the nation in fumble recoveries (13)
» Second in the nation in forced fumbles (14)
» Second in the nation in turnovers gained (19)
» Fourth in the nation in defensive touchdowns (3)
» Eighth in the nation turnover margin (+1.13)
» Ninth in the nation in tackles for loss per game (8.3)
• Hansen, So Hot Right Now: Junior LB Jake Hansen has become one of the biggest takeaway threats in the game.
» Leads the nation in both forced fumbles (7) and fumbles recovered (3).
» Seven forced fumbles are the second-most in a season in Illini history behind only Whitney Mercilus' school record of nine in 2011 and is the third-most in a season in Big Ten history (since 2000).
» Current 0.88 forced fumbles per game average (7 FF, 8 G) is on pace to break the NCAA record (since 2000) for forced fumbles per game. The current mark is 0.83 by Louisville's Elvis Dumervil in 2005 (10 FF, 12 G).
» Has two more forced fumbles (7) than any other player in the nation (Ohio State's Chase Young, 5) and as many or more as 87 FBS teams.
» Named Walter Camp National Defensive Player of the Week and B1G Defensive Player of the Week after posting 11 tackles, two forced fumbles, one sack and one TFL in the Illini's upset win over No. 6 Wisconsin on Oct. 19.
» Is the No. 16 graded linebacker in the nation and No. 2 in the Big Ten by PFF (78.0, min. 400 snaps).
• Dele Domination: Senior LB Dele Harding continues to lead the Big Ten in tackles (11.8 per game), ranking fifth in FBS following the Purdue game. Along with his 94 tackles, Harding has 6.5 TFLs, two interceptions, two forced fumbles and one touchdown on a 40-yard pick six at Minnesota.
• Corbin Climbing: Senior RB Reggie Corbin climbed to 12th on the Illinois all-time rushing list last week, passing Keith Jones (2,194). Corbin enters the Rutgers game with 2,212 yards, 273 yards behind 11th-place Howard Griffith (2,485).
» Corbin's career 6.7 ypc ranks fourth among active FBS players and is the most for any Illini with at least 2,000 rushing yards.
» Corbin has had 10 scrimmage plays over 50 yards in his career, all coming against B1G competition (list on page 3).
» Corbin's career rushing numbers: 328 carries, 2,212 yards, 6.7 yards per carry, 16 touchdowns (more on Corbin on page 3).
• Let's Go Streaking? Illinois is looking for their first three-game winning streak since starting the 2011 season 6-0.
» Illinois is looking for their first three-game Big Ten winning streak since 2014-15 when the Illini finished the 2014 season with victories over Penn State and Northwestern, then beat Nebraska to start the 2015 conference schedule.
» Illinois is looking for their first three-game Big Ten winning streak in a single season since beating Minnesota, No. 1 Ohio State, and Northwestern to end the 2007 regular season en route to the Rose Bowl Game.
THE ILLINOIS-RUTGERS SERIES
• Illinois leads the all-time series against Rutgers, 3-2.
• The teams split a nonconference home-and-home in 2005 and 2006, before Illinois has won two of three Big Ten Conference games in the last three seasons. Each team won on the road in 2016 (Illinois win at Piscataway), 2017 (Rutgers win at Champaign), and 2018 (Illinois win at Piscataway).
• Illinois and Rutgers will meet for the fourth time since Rutgers joined the Big Ten in 2014. The teams are scheduled to meet again in 2020 at Piscataway, 2021 at Champaign, and 2024 at Champaign.
• Illinois is 1-1 all-time against Rutgers in Champaign (win in 2005, loss in 2017).
• Illinois' defense forced three Rutgers turnovers to lead the Fighting Illini to a dominant 38-17 win in the teams' last meeting Oct. 6, 2018. After missing two games due to injury, senior quarterback A.J. Bush Jr. made his return and ran 18 times for 116 yards and a pair of scores. Bush Jr. also added 89 yards on 10-of-18 passing, including an 11-yard touchdown pass to Ricky Smalling early in the fourth quarter. Reggie Corbin rushed for a then-career-high 137 yards on just 11 carries (12.5 yards per carry) and blew the game open in the second quarter, breaking free on a 73-yard run to put the Illini up 24-7.
• Illinois dropped a 35-24 decision in 2017 in Rutgers' last trip to Champaign. Ricky Smalling led the Illini with 111 receiving yards, including a 30-yard touchdown reception from Jeff George Jr., who threw for 308 yards.
• Illinois won the program's first meeting in overtime on Sept. 3, 2005 in Champaign. Illinois trailed 27-7 in the third quarter before scoring 20 unanswered points to fore overtime. After Rutgers hit a field goal in the first possession of overtime, Pierre Thomas' two-yard touchdown run ended the game 33-30. The 20-point comeback is tied for the largest comeback win in Illinois history along with the Illini's 35-29 victory at Michigan on Oct. 25, 1999.
• Reggie Corbin has ran 20 times for 227 yards (11.4 yards/carry) in his career against Rutgers, including 11 carries for 137 yards and one touchdown last season.
ILLINI STORYLINES
• More Than a Football Player: Graduate transfer Oluwole Betiku Jr. has been a beast on the field since arriving at Illinois (8.0 sacks and 11.5 TFLs in four games), but there's much more to the former 5-star recruit than football. Off the field, Betiku's passions include painting, sketching and playing guitar and piano. An immigrant from Lagos, Nigeria, at the age of 16, Betiku had never played football before coming to the U.S. Two years of high school football were enough for a scholarship to USC, but injuries and circumstances kept him off the field. After earning a bachelor's degree in international relations in three years from USC, Betiku came to Champaign this summer.
• Future Coaches: Illini RB Reggie Corbin got a taste of coaching over the summer. Corbin, along with Illini teammates Justice Williams and Dele Harding coached the 'Chargers' to a successful second season in the Tuscola Flag Football League. The trio connected with 10-year old Illini superfan Colton Rahn, who has cerebral palsy, in the winter of 2017 when a group of football student-athletes drove to Tuscola to cheer on Colton's basketball team. It marked the second straight summer Corbin and Williams coached a flag football team in Tuscola.
• Rugby Champ: In addition to being an undefeated flag football coach, Reggie Corbin was a national champion rugby player while also starring on the football field in high school. Corbin helped Gonzaga HS in Washington D.C. to back-to-back rugby national titles in 2014 and 2015 after joining the team on a dare by star player Ben Cima, who plays on the U.S. national rugby team. The team lost only two games in Corbin's two years on the team.
• Best Buds: RB Reggie Corbin and OL Richie Petitbon, best friends at Gonzaga HS in Maryland, are reunited in Champaign this season after four years apart. Both fifth-year seniors, Corbin has become one of the top backs in the nation while Petitbon spent the last four years at the University of Alabama, where he was a part of two national championship teams as a backup. Now reunited with Corbin, Petitbon has been a mainstay on the Illini offensive line.
• Scholarship Earned: Coach Lovie Smith had a special announcement at the first game-week team meeting on Aug. 26. Walk-on long snapper Ethan Tabel was awarded a scholarship for the 2019 season by Lovie. Tabel was mobbed by his teammates after the announcement. A redshirt-junior, Tabel is in his third season as the team's primary long snapper.
• First-time Footballer: Junior punter Blake Hayes, a native of Melbourne, Australia, had never played in or attended an American football game until making his Illini debut against Ball State on Sept. 2, 2017. Hayes played Australian rules football before training at ProKick Australia for two years in hopes of getting a college scholarship in the United States. It paid off, as the Aussie earned honorable mention All-Big Ten honors as a true-freshman and then upped that to third-team All-Big Ten in 2018. This year has been his best yet, averaging 45.0 yards per punt.
GRADS ON GRADS ON GRADS
The 2019 Fighting Illini roster features 11 student-athletes that already earned 12 college degrees prior to the season – seven at Illinois and five at different schools
Student-Athlete | Bachelor's Degree » Degree Pursuing
Oluwole Betiku Jr.| International Relations (May '19 at USC) » Recreation, Sport & Tourism
Dre Brown | Recreation, Sport & Tourism (Dec. '18 at Illinois) » Management
Reggie Corbin | Communication (May '18 at Illinois » Recreation, Sport & Tourism
Josh Imatorbhebhe | Business Administration (May '19 at USC) » Strategic Brand Communication
Jamal Milan | Sociology (May '19 at Illinois) » Communication (2nd bachelor's)
Brandon Peters | General Studies (June '19 at Michigan) » Recreation, Sport & Tourism
Richie Petitbon | Communication Studies (Dec. '18 at Alabama) » Sport Management
Caleb Reams | Community Health (May '19 at Illinois) » Management
Trevon Sidney | Communication (June '19 at USC) » Recreation, Sport & Tourism
Bobby Walker | Political Science (Dec. '18 at Illinois) » Management
Justice Williams | Business Management (Aug. '18 at Illinois) » Already finished M.S.
Justice Williams | M.S., Business Administration (Aug. 19 at Illinois) » Spanish (2nd bachelor's)
STATE-OF-THE-ART SMITH FOOTBALL CENTER OPENS TO ILLINI
The state-of-the-art Henry Dale and Betty Smith Football Center opened its doors for the team Aug. 18, becoming the new home of Illinois football. The $79.2 million Smith Center is a 107,650 square foot facility adjoining to the south end of the Irwin Indoor Practice Facility. The facility features new and expanded strength and conditioning and sports medicine space, coaches' offices, position meeting rooms, player development areas, locker rooms, and other areas for recruiting and prospect hosting. The grand opening is scheduled for Oct. 12 when the Fighting Illini host Michigan at Memorial Stadium. More information on the project can be found on page 21 of these Game Notes and at http://illinoisrenaissance.com.
» Complete Illinois-Rutgers Game Notes (PDF)
