Preview

Illinois travels to Ann Arbor, Michigan, on Saturday to take on the No. 3-ranked Michigan Wolverines in the first of two consecutive road games to close the regular season.

The Fighting Illini are looking to snap a two-game skid and take down the Wolverines on the road for the first time since 2008. Illinois heads into the contest with a 7-3 overall record and a 4-3 conference mark, while Michigan is 10-0 overall and 7-0 in Big Ten play.

Saturday's meeting is the first between the two sides since 2019, and it is Illinois' first trip to Ann Arbor since 2016.

The game is scheduled to kick off on Saturday at 11 a.m. CT and will air on ABC. Sean McDonough, Todd Blackledge, and Molly McGrath have the call on ABC. Marc Kestecher, Kelly Stouffer, and Ian Fitzsimmons have the national radio call for ESPN.

Press Conference

Notes

Illini on the Rise

• Illinois is off to a 7-3 start through 10 games, tied for the Illini's best start since the 2007 team started 7-3 on its way to the Rose Bowl.
• Illinois' seven wins are tied for its most since 2007. The Illini finished 7-6 in 2010 and 2011.
• Illinois is 10-5 in its last 15 games dating back to Oct. 23, 2021.
• Illinois has matched its Big Ten wins total from last season (4).
• Following the loss to Purdue, Illinois dropped out of the AP Top 25 for the first time in five weeks.
• Illinois' SP+ rating by ESPN is 38 spots better than 2021 (26th from 64th).
• Illinois is the only team in the nation with three wins over teams in the top 15 of total defense. The Illini have wins over top-15 defense in Iowa (No. 3), Minnesota (No. 8), and Wisconsin (No. 14). Michigan and Illinois enter the week ranked 1st and 2nd in the nation in total defense.
• Bret Bielema is 12-10 in his Illinois career (8-8 Big Ten). It is the best 22-game start for an Illinois head coach since John Mackovic started 14-7-1 in the 1988-89 seasons.
• Bielema's four Big Ten road wins in his first two seasons are the most since Lou Tepper won five Big Ten road games in his first two seasons 1992-93.
• Illinois completed its first undefeated October since 2001 (3-0). The Illini won four games in October for the first time since 1990.
• After winning in Madison for the first time since 2002, Illinois beat Iowa for the first time since 2008. The win over Iowa snapped an eight-game losing streak against the Hawkeyes.
• Illinois beat Iowa and Wisconsin in the same season for the first time since 1989. It is the first time Illinois has beaten Iowa, Wisconsin, and Minnesota in the same year since 1983.
• The 24-point margin of victory over Wisconsin was the third-largest in an Illinois win in Madison and its biggest since 1988. It was the largest margin of victory for the Illini in a Big Ten road game since defeating Purdue by 34 points on Nov. 7, 2015.

Illinois Defense Keeps Trending Up

• Illinois ranks in the top 10 in 20 defensive categories: 1st in interceptions (17), 1st in passing efficiency defense (90.37), 2nd in total defense (246.9), 2nd in touchdowns allowed (13), 2nd in passes defended (69), 2nd in yards per pass attempt (5.3), 3rd in scoring defense (12.5), 3rd in takeaways (23), 4th in third down defense (26.9%), th in rushing touchdowns allowed (5), 4th in passing touchdowns allowed (8), 4th in fewest red zone attempts allowed (21), 5th in passing defense (161.0), 5th in yards per rush (3.0), 5th in third down conversions against (36), 5th in fourth down conversions against (4), 6th in rushing defense (85.9), 6th in first downs allowed (138), 8th in red zone touchdown percentage (42.9%), 10th in tackle for loss yards (305)
• Illinois and Alabama are the only teams with two Bednarik semifinalists (Newton, Witherspoon).
• Illinois' defense is ranked 4th in the nation by ESPN's SP+ metric and 5th by PFF.
• Illinois has allowed only 17 points in fourth quarters, with 10 coming last week against Purdue.
• Illinois has allowed fewer than 100 yards rushing in six of 10 games this season.
• Illinois' pass coverage is ranked third in the nation by PFF and its run defense is ranked fourth.
• Illinois had held six straight opponents to 14 points or fewer before the Michigan State loss, the longest streak since 1989.
• Illinois is 7-0 when allowing fewer than 20 points and 0-3 when allowing more than 20 points.
• Illinois has at least one interception in all 10 games this season and has an interception in 13 straight games dating back to last season.
• Eight different Illini have an interception this season.
• Michigan State and Purdue are the only teams to have gained 100+ yards rushing and 100+ yards passing in the same game against Illinois.
• Illinois has allowed only 13 touchdowns on 127 opponent drives.
• During Illinois' seven wins, opponents have a third down conversion rate of 19.8% (18-91).
• Illinois allowed 11.9 points per game at home this season, its best mark at Memorial Stadium since the 1983 Big Ten championship team allowed 9.4 per game.

More on the Illinois Defense

• Illinois is outscoring opponents 98-41 in the second half.
• Illinois held Wisconsin to just two yards rushing, the fewest yards the Badgers have rushed for at home since being held to 12 yards on Nov. 3, 2007, vs. Ohio State.
• Illinois did not allow a touchdown in nonconference play for the first time since 1921 (52-0 vs. South Dakota, 21-0 vs. DePauw), helping Illinois complete its first undefeated nonconference schedule since 2011. It was the first time Illinois played 3+ nonconference games without allowing a TD since 1917 (22-0 vs. Kansas, 44-0 vs. Oklahoma, 28-0 vs. Camp Funston).
• Illinois has allowed 50 passing yards or fewer in three games (30 vs. Wyoming, 49 vs. Chattanooga, 38 vs. Minnesota).
• Kendall Smith and Sydney Brown are tied for 10th in the nation in interceptions (4) and second in the Big Ten. Illinois is the only team in the nation with two players with four interceptions.
• Johnny Newton (46) and Seth Coleman (32) have 78 combined pressures, the most in the Big Ten among teammates, according to PFF.
• Devon Witherspoon and Jartavius Martin have combined for 27 passes defended, tied for the most in the nation among teammates (Virginia's Anthony Johnson and Fentrell Cypress II).

Spoon - Thorpe Award Semifinalist

• Devon Witherspoon is one of 12 semifinalists for the Thorpe Award, given to the nation's top defensive back. Witherspoon is the fourth Illini in history to be a Thorpe semifinalist, joining Henry Jones (1990), Eugene Wilson (2002), and Vontae Davis (2007, 2008).
• Witherspoon is the highest graded cornerback in the nation by PFF.
• Witherspoon has the best coverage grade in the nation by PFF.
• Witherspoon is tied for the national lead in forced incompletions (14) with Alabama's Kool-Aid McKinstry, according to PFF.
• Witherspoon is third in the nation in reception percentage against (35.2), according to PFF.
• Witherspoon is fifth in NFL passer rating against (37.4) among cornerbacks, according to PFF.
• Witherspoon is eighth in the nation in passes defended (13).
• Last week, Witherspoon allowed only two receptions for 29 yards in man-to-man matchups vs. Purdue's Charlie Jones, who ranks second in the nation in receptions and sixth in receiving yards.
• Witherspoon has allowed fewer than 20 receiving yards in eight of 10 games this season.

The Law Firm

• Defensive linemen Jer'Zhan "Johnny" Newton and Keith Randolph Jr., who go by the nickname "The Law Firm," have been one of the top defensive tackle duos in the nation to date.
• Johnny Newton is the third-highest graded defender in the nation by PFF and No. 1 in Power-5.
• Newton leads the nation in QB hits (18) and ranks fifth in the nation in pressures (46).
• Newton and Randolph's combined 68 pressures are the most in the nation among any interior defensive line tandem. Newton has 46 QB pressures and Randolph has 22.
• Newton leads the Illini in TFLs (12.0), and sacks (5.5), while Randolph ranks second on the team in both TFLs (11.0) and sacks (4.0). 

Time of Possession

• Illinois is sixth in the nation in time of possession (34:15).
• Illinois has held the ball for 10+ minutes of the fourth quarter in seven of its 10 games.
• Illinois doubled up Minnesota in time of possession, 40:04 to 19:56, after Minnesota came to Memorial Stadium as the national leader in time of possesion, averaging 37:58 per game.

Offense Making Strides

• Illinois has improved 72.4 yards/game from 2021, by far the best improvement in the Big Ten.
• Illinois is 59th in the nation in total offense (402.2), an improvement of 53 spots in the national rankings year-over-year.
• Illinois is 49th in the nation in passing efficiency (141.9), an improvement of 72 spots in the national rankings year-over-year.
• Illinois is 40th in the nation in rushing (183.6), an improvement of 11 spots in the national rankings year-over-year.

Chase Brown: Chasing History | FightingIllini.com/ChaseBrown

• Chase Brown is the nation's leading rusher with 1,442 yards.
• Illinois launched a campaign website for Brown on Oct. 19 to promote Brown's candidacy for national awards. The site launched at FightingIllini.com/ChaseBrown.
• Brown leads the nation in all-purpose yards (1,615) without having return duties.
• Brown leads the nation in rushes of 10+ yards (49), 100-yard games (9), and rushing attempts per game (28.0)
• Brown is fourth in the nation in yards after contact (803), according to PFF.
• Brown is fifth in the nation in forced missed tackles (68), according to PFF.
• Brown is seventh in the nation in first down runs (69), according to PFF.
• Brown rushed for 100+ yards in an Illinois record 10 straight games before falling just short with 98 rushing yards against Purdue.
• Brown was the first Illini in history to rush for 100+ yards in the first nine games of a season.
• Brown was the first Big Ten player to record 100+ rushing yards in the first nine games of a season since Ohio State's Ezekiel Elliott in 2015.
• Brown has 15 career 100-yard games, one away from tying the Illinois record of 16 set by Robert Holcombe from 1994-97.
• Brown was the first running back in the nation to 1,000 yards and tied the Illinois record for the fastest to 1,000 when he eclipsed the mark in just seven games (tied J.C. Caroline, 1953).
• Brown was the first player in program history to rush for 140+ yards in the first three games of a season. He went for 146 yards on 20 carries against Virginia, had 199 yards on 36 careers at Indiana, and 151 yards on 19 carries against Wyoming in Week 0.
• Brown joined an elite group to reach 1,000 yards in two seasons for Illinois. Only legends Jim Grabowski and Robert Holcombe reached 1,000 yards rushing in two seasons before Brown.
• Brown has 3,005 rushing yards for his career at Illinois, No. 2 on Illinois' career rushing list behind only Robert Holcombe's 4,105 (1994-97).
• Brown also tallied 352 yards as a freshman at Western Michigan for 3,357 for his career, good for sixth on the NCAA's active career leaders list.
• Brown was the 13th and 14th 1,000-yard rusher coached by Bielema in his 13-year head coaching career.
• Brown's 223-yard rushing game at Penn State last season marked his second game of 2021 with 200+ yards (257 vs. Charlotte). He joined Howard Griffith (1990) and Rashard Mendenhall (2007) as the only players in Illinois history with multiple 200-yard rushing games in a single season. Brown nearly became the first Illini running back to rush for 200 yards on three occasions, falling one yard short at Indiana this year.

Tommy DeVito Passing Efficiently

• DeVito ranks sixth in the nation in completion percentage (70.0%).
• DeVito ranks among the Big Ten's best in completions (3rd), passing efficiency (5th), passing touchdowns (6th), and passing yards (7th).
• DeVito's 146.2 passer rating ranks fifth in the Big Ten and is on pace to break the Illinois record of 141.6 set by Wes Lunt in 2014.
• Illinois ranks fifth in the nation in team completion percentage (70.0%), a 18.8% improvement of last year's completion percentage (51.2%) and a jump of 119 spots in the national rankings.
• DeVito is on pace for career highs in nearly every statistical category including completions, passing yards, and completion percentage.
• DeVito's .909 completion percentage at Nebraska broke the Illinois record (min. 20 attempts) previously held by Reilly O'Toole (.839 [26-31] vs. Charleston Southern, 9/15/2012). It also set the stadium record at Nebraska's Memorial Stadium.

#1 from QB to WR

• Former quarterback Isaiah Williams has been Illinois' leading receiver over the last two seasons, his first two seasons playing wide receiver in his life.
• Williams set career highs in receptions (9) and receiving yards (112) at Indiana. He has tied his career-high nine receptions on two more occasions this season (Chattanooga, Nebraska).
• Williams is third in the nation in yards after catch (518) according to PFF.
• Williams has at least one catch in all 22 games of the last two seasons.
• Williams ranks 16th in the nation and second in the Big Ten in receptions per game (6.4).
• Last season, Williams was third in the nation among Power-5 freshmen in receptions (47), behind only Texas' Xavier Worthy (62) and Georgia's Brock Bowers (56).

Sixth-Year Palczewski

• Alex Palczewski is the NCAA's active leader in career starts with 62 and is three away from tying the NCAA record set by App State WR Thomas Hennigan from 2017-21.
• Palczewski is the active leader in snaps, according to PFF.
• Palczewski has started every game for the Illini in 2018, 2019, 2021, and 2022. The only games he has not started were one as a true freshman in 2017 and four after a knee injury in 2020.
• Palczewski is the first 6-year starter in college sports history (min. 50% starts of team games).
• Palczewski is the No. 11 graded tackle in the nation and No. 3 in the Big Ten according to PFF (min. 500 snaps) this season.
• Palczewski has gone 613 consecutive pass blocking snaps without allowing a sack. He has not allowed a sack this season in 373 pass blocking snaps. • Palczewski will be only the second Illini in history to captain two bowl teams, as he was also a captain for Illinois' 2019 Redbox Bowl appearance. Moe Gardner, who was selected for College Football Hall of Fame induction this year, captained Illinois bowl teams in 1989 and 1990.