WEEKEND PROMOTIONS | LINK
• Senior Day – 17 Fighting Illini will be honored prior to the game.
• Good Works Day Day – Honoring the good works being done in underserved areas of our state by non-profits and inspiring individuals.
• Tailgating at Grange Grove – 8:30-11 (games, food trucks and live music)
• Illini Walk – 8:45 am through Grange Grove
OPENING KICK
• Rivalry Week: The Fighting Illini (6-5, 4-4) will send off their senior class and battle for the Land of Lincoln rivalry trophy on Saturday when in-state rival Northwestern (2-9, 0-8) comes to Memorial Stadium (11 am CT on FS1).
• Senior Send-off: Saturday will mark the final game at Memorial Stadium for 17 Fighting Illini. Seniors Nolan Bernat, Dre Brown, Reggie Corbin, Trenard Davis, Stanley Green, Dele Harding, Kenyon Jackson, Jamal Milan, Tymir Oliver, Richie Petitbon, Caleb Reams, Bobby Walker and Justice Williams, plus RS juniors Kurt Gavin, Brandon Jones, Cam Miller and Griffin Palmer, will be recognized prior to the game.
• Bowl Bound: The Fighting Illini, who opened a bowling alley in the players lounge this August as part of the new Smith Football Center, are bowl eligible for the first time since 2014.
• What's at Stake: On Saturday, when Northwestern comes to Memorial Stadium, the Illini will be playing for…
…the Land of Lincoln rivalry trophy for the first time since 2014
…seven wins in a season for the first time since 2011
…seven wins in the regular season for the first time since 2007 (9)
…an above .500 final Big Ten record for the first time since 2007 (6-2)
• Signature Wins: Within the past month, Illinois has had two of the most memorable wins in its 130-year history.
» The last-second 24-23 win over No. 6 Wisconsin on Oct. 19 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.
» The 25-point comeback win at Michigan State on Nov. 9 was biggest comeback in program history, spanning 1,260 games. The previous mark was 20 points, which happened twice – at Michigan, 10/25/1999 (27-7 deficit), 35-29 and 20 points vs. Rutgers, 9/3/2005 (27-7 deficit), 33-30 OT.
• Comeback Kids: The Fighting Illini overcame double-digit deficits to win in the final seconds against both Wisconsin and Michigan State.
» In East Lansing Nov. 9, Illinois trailed 28-3 in the second quarter and 31-10 entering the fourth quarter, at which time ESPN's win probability calculator gave the Spartans a 99.6% chance to win. The 21-point deficit entering the fourth quarter is tied for the largest fourth-quarter comeback in a Big Ten game in the last 40 seasons (21 points, MSU at NW, 2006; 21 points, MICH at MIN, 2003).
» Against No. 6 Wisconsin on Oct. 19, Illinois trailed by as many as 13 points and faced a deficit of 23-14 with six minutes to play before rallying for a 24-23 victory on James McCourt's walk-off 39-yard field goal to complete the biggest upset in college football this season.
• 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 defensive touchdowns (6)
» First in the nation in turnovers gained (27)
» First in the nation in fumble recoveries (16)
» Second in the nation in forced fumbles (17)
» Fourth in the nation in turnover margin (+1.09)
» Ninth in the nation in tackles for loss per game (8.1)
• Dele Domination: Senior LB Dele Harding is having a monster season.
» Ranks second in FBS and leads the Big Ten in tackles (12.0 per game), a full 2.5 tackles per game ahead of the next closest (9.5). In B1G games, he is almost four tackles per game ahead of No. 2 (12.8-9.0).
» Is the No. 16 graded linebacker in the nation and No. 5 in the Big Ten by PFF (77.3, min. 550 snaps).
» Named National and B1G Defensive Player of the Week after 12 tackles, 2.0 TFL, 1 forced fumble, 1 interception, 1 TD in the win over Rutgers, becoming just the second player in the last 20 years to have 12+ tackles, 2.0+ TFL, 1+ FF, 1+ INT, and 1+ TD in a single game (Kentucky's Mike Edwards vs. MTSU 11/17/2018).
BATTLE FOR THE LAND OF LINCOLN TROPHY
• Illinois and Northwestern will play for the "Land of Lincoln" trophy on Saturday, the 11th battle for the relatively new rivalry trophy. Illinois is 3-7 against Northwestern since the beginning of the Land of Lincoln trophy.
• Illinois owns "Land of Lincoln" trophy wins in 2014, 2011 and 2010.
• The Fighting Illini and Wildcats played for the "Sweet Sioux" Tomahawk from 1947-2008. Illinois led the traditional trophy series by a 32-28-2 mark, but Northwestern won the final meeting for the Tomahawk with its 27-10 win in 2008. The Tomahawk was retired following the 2008 season.
• The combined trophy series (Sweet Sioux Tomahawk and Land of Lincoln Trophy) stands even at 35-35-2.
• The Land of Lincoln Trophy, a bronze replica of a stovepipe hat famously worn by Abraham Lincoln, was chosen by fans of both schools in 2009 in an online vote to replace the 62-year-old Tomahawk Trophy.
THE ILLINOIS-NORTHWESTERN SERIES
• Saturday's game will be the 113th meeting between Illinois and Northwestern.
• Illinois leads the all-time series 55-52-5.
• Illinois is 27-30-1 when playing the Wildcats in the Illini's Big Ten finale.
• Last season, Illinois scored 10 fourth-quarter points but could not complete a comeback in a 24-16 loss at Northwestern. AJ Bush Jr. threw for 281 yards and a touchdown and ran for another 56 yards.
• In Northwestern's last trip to Champaign, Illinois fell to the No. 23 Wildcats 42-7 at Memorial Stadium to finish the 2017 season. Dre Brown rushed 12 times for 51 yards and returned four kickoffs for 125 yards, including a long of 50 yards.
• Illinois' last win in the series was a 47-33 victory in Evanston in 2014. The Illini used 291 yards rushing to reclaim the Land of Lincoln Trophy and with a 47-33 win over Northwestern in the 2014 regular-season finale. Illinois forced five turnovers - three interceptions and two fumbles - and held the Wildcats to 62 yards in the first half.
• Prior to the 2014 win, Illinois' two previous wins over Northwestern came in incredible fashion. In 2011, the Illini rebounded from a 28-10 third-quarter deficit to beat Northwestern 38-35 after Nathan Scheelhaase's one-yard touchdown plunge with 13 seconds left in the game. In 2010, the Illini crushed the Wildcats 48-27 at Wrigley Field in Chicago behind Mikel Leshoure's record-breaking 330 rushing yards. It was the first college game played at Wrigley Field in 40 years and was famously played one way, as all offensive drives went toward the west end zone due to safety concerns with the wall behind the east end zone.
ILLINOIS-NORTHWESTERN CONNECTIONS
• Northwestern linebackers coach Tim McGarigle coached at Illinois under head coach Lovie Smith during the 2016 season.
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)
ILLINI STORYLINES
• #97Strong – Playing for Bobby: All-Big Ten defensive end Bobby Roundtree will miss the 2019 season after suffering a severe spinal injury on May 18, 2019, in a swimming accident near his home of Largo, Florida. The Illini have kept Roundtree close to the team despite him being in Chicago while recovering. Roundtree regularly facetimes into the defensive line meetings and had joined in the post-win celebrations via facetime. The Illini are wearing '97' stickers on their helmets and touch a '97 Strong' sign before entering the field each home game. Coach Smith and Illinois Athletics setup a GoFundMe page to help raise money toward Roundtree's medical expenses that reached the $97,000 goal within four days. It is currently nearing $120,000 raised.
• Scholarships Earned: Coach Lovie Smith has had two special announcements at team meetings this season. On Aug. 26, walk-on long snapper Ethan Tabel was awarded a scholarship for the 2019 season by Lovie. Then on Nov. 7, walk-on WR Donny Navarro was put on scholarship by Lovie at a team meeting.
• 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.
• 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 44.6 yards per punt.
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-Northwestern Game Notes (PDF)
