Preview

Illinois rounds out its regular-season schedule with a trip north to Evanston to take on in-state foe Northwestern on Saturday afternoon.

The Fighting Illini (7-4, 4-4) look to close its Big Ten slate on a strong note against the Wildcats (1-10, 1-7) and win the Land of Lincoln Trophy for the second straight year.

Chase Brown remains the nation's leading rusher ahead of the final week of conference play, and he sits 116 yards back from the program's single-season rushing record. Brown notched 140 yards on the ground against Michigan, which marked a program-record-tying 16th time in his Illini career that he eclipsed 100 rushing yards in a game.

Saturday's kickoff is set for 2:30 p.m. CT at Ryan Field and will air on Big Ten Network.

Notes

Illini on the Rise

• Illinois is looking for its first 8-win season since the Rose Bowl team in 2007 went 9-4.
• Illinois is looking to finish above .500 in the Big Ten for the first time since the 2007 team went 6-2.
• Illinois has matched its Big Ten wins total from last season (4).
• Illinois is still alive in the Big Ten West race. The Illini need a win over Northwestern, Iowa to lose toNebraska, and Purdue to lose to Indiana to make it to Indianapolis for the Big Ten Championship.
• Illinois' SP+ rating by ESPN is 41 spots better than 2021 (23rd from 64th).
• According to SP+, Illinois is the most improved team in the Big Ten and the 11th-most improved team in the nation year-over-year. TCU (+74), South Alabama (+69), USC (+68), Kansas (+63),Washington (+62), Tulane (+62), Duke (+56), LSU (+52), Troy (+51), and Vanderbilt (+42) are the only teams that have made bigger jumps in the SP+ than Illinois' 41-spot leap.
• Illinois is the only team in the nation with three wins over teams in the top 12 of total defense. TheIllini have wins over top-12 defense in Iowa (No. 6), Minnesota (No. 7), and Wisconsin (No. 12).
• Bret Bielema is 12-11 in his Illinois career (8-9 Big Ten). It is the best 23-game start for an Illinois head coach since John Mackovic started 15-7-1 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 BigTen road games in his first two seasons 1992-93.
• Illinois completed its first undefeated October since 2001 (3-0). The Illini won four games inOctober for the first time since 1990.
• After winning in Madison for the first time since 2002, Illinois beat Iowa for the first time since2008. 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 timeIllinois 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 17 major defensive categories: 1st in passing efficiency defense(91.8), 2nd in interceptions (17), 2nd in total defense (258.6), 2nd in touchdowns allowed (14),3rd in scoring defense (13.1), 3rd in rushing touchdowns allowed (6), 3rd in passing touchdowns allowed (8), 3rd in passes defended (74), 3rd in yards per pass attempt (5.4), 4th in red zone touchdown percentage (40.0%), 6th in takeaways (24), 6th in third down defense (28.1%), 6th in fewest first downs allowed (155), 7th in passing defense (165.3), 7th in rushing defense (93.4),9th in fewest red zone attempts allowed (25), 9th in third down conversions against (43)
• Illinois and Alabama are the only teams with two Bednarik semifinalists (Newton, Witherspoon).
• Illinois' defense is ranked 3rd in the nation by ESPN's SP+ metric and 5th by PFF.
• Illinois has allowed only 26 points in fourth quarters, with 19 coming in the last two weeks (10 vs.Purdue, 9 at Michigan).
• Illinois has allowed fewer than 100 yards rushing in six of 11 games this season.
• Illinois' pass coverage is ranked third in the nation by PFF and its run defense is ranked seventh.
• 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 19 points and 0-4 when allowing 19 points or more.
• Last week against Michigan, Illinois snapped a streak of 13 straight games with an interception, which was the longest active streak in the nation.
• Eight different Illini have an interception this season.
• Illinois has allowed only 14 touchdowns on 138 opponent drives (10.1%).
• 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 112-53 in the second half this season.
• 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 12th 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.
• Illinois and Kansas State are the only teams in the nation with three players with 3+ INTs.
• Johnny Newton (50) and Seth Coleman (33) have 83 combined pressures, the most in the Big Ten among teammates, according to PFF.
• Devon Witherspoon and Jartavius Martin have combined for 29 passes defended, the most in the nation among Power-5 teammates.
• Jartavius Martin has the top tackling grade in the Big Ten among cornerbacks and the No. 2 grade in the nation.

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 (91.2).
• Witherspoon has the best coverage grade in the nation by PFF (91.6).
• Witherspoon leads the nation in forced incompletions (16), according to PFF.
• Witherspoon is third in the nation in reception percentage against (34.4), according to PFF.
• Witherspoon is third in NFL passer rating against (37.6), according to PFF.
• Witherspoon is fourth in the nation in passes defended (15).
• Devon Witherspoon's last two weeks in coverage vs. No. 1 receivers:
  • vs. Ronnie Bell (MICH), 4 targets, 1 rec., 16 yards, 1 PBU
  • vs. Charlie Jones (PUR), 4 targets, 2 rec., 21 yards, 1 PBU
• Witherspoon has allowed fewer than 40 receiving yards in 10 of 11 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 No. 9 graded defender in the nation by PFF (91.1, min. 300 snaps).
• Newton leads the nation in QB hits (19) and ranks fourth in the nation in pressures (50).
• Newton and Randolph's combined 74 quarterback pressures are the most in the nation among any interior defensive line tandem. Newton has 50 pressures and Randolph has 24.
• Newton leads the Illini in TFLs (13.0), and sacks (5.5), while Randolph ranks second on the team in both TFLs (11.0) and sacks (4.0).

Reese's Senior Bowl Invites

• Three Illini have accepted invitations to the Reese's Senior Bowl: SS Sydney Brown, S Jartavius "Quan" Martin, and CB Devon Witherspoon.
• The Illinois record for Senior Bowl participants is two, set on multiple occasions, since the all-star event began in 1950.

Time of Possession

• Illinois is 10th in the nation in time of possession (33:25).
• Illinois is on pace to shatter the program record for time of possession of 32:19 set in 2010.
• 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 possession, averaging 37:58 per game.

Chase Brown: Chasing History | FightingIllini.com/ChaseBrown

• Chase Brown is the nation's leading rusher with 1,582 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 (1,779) without having return duties.
• Brown leads the nation in rushes of 10+ yards (45), 100-yard games (10), and rushing attempts per game (28.1)
• Brown is fourth in the nation in forced missed tackles (74), fifth in the nation in yards after contact (903), and sixth in the nation in first down runs (75), according to PFF.
• Brown had one of his most impressive games last week at #3 Michigan. Against a defensive unit leading the nation in rushing defense (72.7), Brown ran for 140 yards and two touchdowns. He was just the third running back to rush for over 140 yards at Michigan Stadium during Jim Harbaugh's tenure (2015-), joining Ohio State stars J.K. Dobbins (2019) and Ezekiel Elliott (2015).
• In four road games against Top 25 teams over the last two years, Brown is averaging 138 rushing yards and has three 100-yard games. In two road games against Top 10 teams over the last two years, Brown is averaging 181.5 rushing yards.
• Brown tied the Illinois record at #3 Michigan with his 16th career 100-yard games, matching the record set by Robert Holcombe from 1994-97.
• Brown set the Illinois single-season record for 100-yard rushing games with his 10th of the year at #3 Michigan.
• Brown rushed for 100+ yards in an Illinois record 10 straight games before falling just short with 98 rushing yards against Purdue. He has rushed for 100+ in 11 of the last 12 games.
• 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 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 3,145 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 3,497 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 14-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.

Offensive Improvement

• Illinois has improved 65.4 yards/game from 2021, by far the best improvement in the Big Ten.
• Illinois ranks third in the nation in team completion percentage (70.0%), an 18.8% improvement of last year's completion percentage (51.2%) and a jump of 119 spots in the national rankings.
• Illinois is 64th in the nation in total offense (395.3), an improvement of 48 spots in the national rankings year-over-year.
• Illinois is 52nd in the nation in passing efficiency (140.0), an improvement of 69 spots in the national rankings year-over-year.

Tommy DeVito Passing Efficiently

• DeVito ranks third in the nation in completion percentage (70.0%).
• DeVito ranks among the Big Ten's best in completions (2nd), passing efficiency (5th), passing touchdowns (7th), and passing yards (6th).
• DeVito's 143.7 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.
• 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 (539) according to PFF.
• Williams has at least one catch in all 23 games of the last two seasons.
• Williams ranks 16th in the nation and second in the Big Ten in receptions per game (6.3).
• 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 63 and is two away from tying the NCAA record set by App State WR Thomas Hennigan from 2017-21.
• Palczewski has helped the O-line be one of nine in the nation up for the Joe Moore Award.
• 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. 12 graded tackle in the nation and No. 4 in the Big Ten according to PFF (min. 500 snaps) this season.
• Palczewski has gone 645 consecutive pass blocking snaps without allowing a sack. He has not allowed a sack this season in 405 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.