OPENING KICK
• We're Going Bowling: The Fighting Illini (6-6, 4-5 Big Ten), playing in a bowl game for the first time since 2014, fill face the California Golden Bears (7-5, 4-5 Pac-12) in the Redbox Bowl at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara on Monday, Dec. 30, 2019 (1 pm PT/3 pm CT).
• What's at Stake: When Illinois takes the field in Santa Clara, the Illini will be playing for…
…the program's ninth bowl victory
…the first bowl victory since winning the 2011 Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl in San Francisco
…seven wins in a season for the first time since 2011 (7-6)
• Signature Wins: This season, Illinois 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.
• Lovie Ball: 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)
» Second in the nation in fumble recoveries (16)
» Second in the nation in forced fumbles (18)
» Third in the nation in turnovers gained (28)
» Ninth in the nation in turnover margin (+0.92)
» 16th in the nation in tackles for loss per game (7.6)
• Dele Domination: Senior LB Dele Harding is having a monster season.
» 147 tackles, 13.0 TFLs, 3 INTs, 3 FF, 1 FR, 2 touchdowns
» Big Ten leader & second in FBS in tackles (12.3 tpg)
» 13.0 tackles per game in B1G play, 3.7 tpg ahead of second place
» 147 tackles is tied for 10th-most in program history
» First-team All-Big Ten selection by media
» #17 graded linebacker in FBS by PFF (min. 600 snaps)
» #5 graded linebacker in B1G by PFF (min. 600 snaps)
• Hayes, Australian for Boot: Punter Blake Hayes has been a field-flipper for the Fighting Illini.
» Eddleman-Fields Big Ten Punter of the Year
» First-team All-Big Ten by coaches, media & AP
» 44.8 yards/punt, #2 in Illini history (45.4 by Steve Weatherford, 2004)
» #2 in the Big Ten and #18 in the nation in punting average
» 28 punts inside the 20, most in a season in Illini history
» 13 punts inside the 10, including six downed on the 1- or 2-yard lines
» Only two touchbacks on the season
» 20 50+-yard punts, tied for most in a season in Illini history
ILLINI RAKE IN B1G HONORS
A total of 14 Illini earned All-Big honors, seven on the first-, second-, or third team and seven honorable mention.
» P Blake Hayes (Punter of the Year, 1st team c & m)
» LB Dele Harding (1st team media, 3rd team coaches)
» RB Reggie Corbin (3rd team coaches & media)
» KR Dre Brown (3rd team coaches, HM media)
» S Sydney Brown (3rd team coaches, HM media)
» OL Alex Palczewski (3rd team coaches, HM media)
» DL Oluwole Betiku Jr. (3rd team media)
» LB Jake Hansen (HM coaches & media)
» OL Doug Kramer (HM coaches & media)
» OL Kendrick Green (HM media)
» S Stanley Green (HM media)
» CB Nate Hobbs (HM media)
»,WR Josh Imatorbhebhe (HM media)
» DL Jamal Milan (HM media)
ILLINOIS BOWL FACTS
• The 2019 Redbox Bowl will mark Illinois' 19th bowl appearance.
• Illinois has an all-time record of 8-10 in bowl games.
• In five of the last six Illini bowl appearances, including this year, Illinois faced an opponent in its home state. the only exception since 2000 was the 2014 Heart of Dallas Bowl vs. Louisiana Tech in Dallas, Texas.
» 2019 vs. California in Santa Clara, Calif. (Redbox Bowl)
» 2011 vs. UCLA in San Francisco, Calif. (Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl)
» 2010 vs. Baylor in Houston, Texas (Texas Bowl)
» 2007 vs. USC in Pasadena, Calif. (Rose Bowl)
» 2001 vs. LSU in New Orleans, La. (Sugar Bowl)
• Distance from Illinois' Memorial Stadium to Levi's Stadium: 2,156 miles
• Distance from California's Memorial Stadium to Levi's Stadium: 44 miles
| All-Time Illinois Bowl Results (8-10) |
| Date |
Bowl |
Opponent |
W/L |
Score |
| Jan. 1, 1947 |
Rose Bowl |
UCLA |
W |
45-14 |
| Jan. 1, 1952 |
Rose Bowl |
Stanford |
W |
40-7 |
| Jan. 1, 1964 |
Rose Bowl |
Washington |
W |
17-7 |
| Dec. 29, 1982 |
Liberty Bowl |
Alabama |
L |
15-21 |
| Jan. 2, 1984 |
Rose Bowl |
UCLA |
L |
9-45 |
| Dec. 31, 1985 |
Peach Bowl |
Army |
L |
29-31 |
| Dec. 29, 1988 |
All-American Bowl |
Florida |
L |
10-14 |
| Jan. 1, 1990 |
Citrus Bowl |
Virginia |
W |
31-21 |
| Jan. 1, 1991 |
Hall of Fame Bowl |
Clemson |
L |
0-30 |
| Dec. 31, 1991 |
John Hancock Bowl |
UCLA |
L |
3-6 |
| Dec. 30, 1992 |
Holiday Bowl |
Hawaii |
L |
17-27 |
| Dec. 31, 1994 |
Liberty Bowl |
East Carolina |
W |
30-0 |
| Dec. 30, 1999 |
MicronPC.com Bowl |
Virginia |
W |
63-21 |
| Jan. 1, 2002 |
Sugar Bowl |
LSU |
L |
34-47 |
| Jan. 1, 2008 |
Rose Bowl |
USC |
L |
17-49 |
| Dec. 29, 2010 |
Texas Bowl |
Baylor |
W |
38-14 |
| Dec. 31, 2011 |
Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl |
UCLA |
W |
20-14 |
| Dec. 26, 2014 |
Zaxby's Heart of Dallas Bowl |
Louisiana Tech |
L |
18-35 |
FACTS ABOUT THE REDBOX BOWL
The Redbox Bowl is holding its 18th postseason game. The game has previously been know as the San Francisco Bowl (2002-03), Emerald Bowl (2004-2009), Fight Hunger Bowl (2010-2013) and Foster Farms Bowl (2014-2017) before becoming the Redbox Bowl in 2018. The 2019 game will be played at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, Calif. the host site since 2014 and home of the NFL's San Francisco 49ers. Prior to that the game was played at AT&T Park, home of baseball's San Francisco Giants. The Big Ten has been affiliated with the Redbox Bowl since 2014.
Past Redbox Bowl Results
2002 - Virginia Tech 20, Air Force 13
2003 - Boston College 35, Colorado State 21
2004 - Navy 34, New Mexico 19
2005 - Utah 38, Georgia Tech 10
2006 - Florida State 44, UCLA 27
2007 - Oregon State 21, Maryland 14
2008 - California 24, Miami (Fla.) 17
2009 - USC 24, Boston College 13
2010 - Nevada 20, Boston College 13
2011 - Illinois 20, UCLA 14
2012 - Arizona State 62, Navy 28
2013 - Washington 31, BYU 16
2014 - Stanford 45, Maryland 21
2015 - Nebraska 37, UCLA 29
2016 - Utah 26, Indiana 24
2017 - Purdue 38, Arizona 35
2018 - Oregon 7, Michigan State 6
BOWLING IN THE BAY
The 2011 Kraft Fighting Hunger Bowl win over UCLA was the Illini's last trip to the state of California. In that game, CB Terry Hawthorne took home defensive MVP honors thanks to a 39-yard pick-six late in the third quarter to give the Illini a lead they would not give up. Game Offensive MVP Nathan Scheelhaase sealed the victory with a 60-yard touchdown pass to A.J. Jenkins midway through the fourth quarter. The final score was 20-14 in favor of the Illini.
A stingy Illinois defense limited the Bruins to 18 yards rushing and only 219 total yards of offense, while recording five sacks. Consensus All-American Whitney Mercilus recorded 1.5 sacks, equaling Simeon Rice's school-record 16 from 1994, and giving him 22.5 tackles for loss on the season, the second-most in school history.
The game was played under unique circumstances as both schools had interim coaching staffs for the game, most of which were not retained after the bowl.
ILLINI BOWL EXPERIENCE
» QB Brandon Peters – Michigan vs. South Carolina (Outback Bowl 1/1/18) - 20-44, 186 yards
» RB Chase Brown – Western Michigan vs. BYU (Famous Idaho Potato Bowl 12/21/18) - 4 carries, 15 rush yards
» LB Derrick Smith – Miami vs. Wisconsin (Pinstripe Bowl 12/27/18) - played
Miami vs. Wisconsin (Orange Bowl 12/30/17) - played
THE ILLINOIS-CALIFORNIA SERIES
• Illinois leads the all-time series against California, 7-3.
• The teams last met in 2005, a 35-20 win for Cal in Berkeley. It was the fourth of two home-and-homes (2000, 2001, 2003, 2005), in which Illinois and Cal split. Illinois won in 2000 and 2001, then Cal won in 2003 and 2005. Prior to the recent meetings, Illinois and Cal met six times from 1955 to 1974 with the Illini winning the first five meetings.
• Illinois has outscored Cal 228-183 in the 10 meetings.
• Illinois held Cal to zero rushing first downs in the 1955 meeting. It is one of only two times in Cal history the Bears have had zero rushing first downs.
• Illinois had 21 passing first downs against Cal in 2003, the fourth-most ever allowed by the Bears.
• This will be the first bowl meeting between Illinois and California.
ILLINOIS-CALIFORNIA CONNECTIONS
• Illinois defensive line coach Austin Clark played football at Cal and graduated with a degree in American studies in 2014. His fiancé, Alyssa Jensen, played volleyball at Cal and ranks sixth in Bears' history in assists (3,342).
• Illinois defensive backs coach Keynodo Hudson was a defensive assistant at USC when Cal head coach Justin Wilcox was the Trojans' defensive coordinator from 2014-15.
• College Football Hall of Famer Pete Elliott coached Cal to the Rose Bowl in 1959, before becoming Illinois' head coach in 1960 and staying for seven seasons, coaching the likes of Dick Butkus and Jim Grabowski.
• Hardy Nickerson was a Cal captain before transferring to Illinois as a grad transfer in 2016. Nickerson's father, Hardy, a Cal football all-time great, was formerly Illinois' defensive coordinator.
• Illinois has six California natives on its roster: LB Milo Eifler (Berkeley), QB Matt Robinson (San Juan Capistrano), WR Trevon Sidney (Pasadena), RB Kenyon Sims (San Diego), DB Delano Ware (Richmond), and DB Dylan Wyatt (Oakland). Also, DL Oluwole Betiku attended Serra HS in California and WR Josh Imatorbhebhe's family lives in California.
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 Redbox Bowl Guide (PDF)
