BadgerBlitz.com' brings back its All-Out Blitz weekly series, where you can find everything you need to know about Wisconsin's next opponent. We kick it all off with Illinois.
NEED TO KNOW
Illinois (6-7, 4-5 Big Ten in 2019) vs. No.14 Wisconsin (10-4, 7-2 Big Ten in 2019)
Date/Time – Friday, October 23, 7 p.m. CT
Venue – Camp Randall Stadium (FieldTurf)
Television – Big Ten Network (Brandon Gaudin, James Laurinaitis, Rick Pizzo)
Radio - Wisconsin Radio Network (Matt Lepay, Mike Lucas, Mark Tauscher), Sirius 84, XM 84.
Series – Wisconsin leads 42-37-7 (Wisconsin leads 23-16-4 in Madison, Wis.)
Point Spread – Wisconsin by 19.5
Wisconsin Head Coach: Paul Chryst (9th year, 6th at Wisconsin) 52-16 record as Wisconsin's coach
Illinois Head Coach: Lovie Smith (5th year at Illinois) 15-34 record as Illinois' coach
WHEN ILLINOIS HAS THE BALL
SERIES NOTES
* Illinois snapped Wisconsin’s 9-game win streak in the series with a 24-23 win over the sixth-ranked Badgers last season in Champaign.
* Wisconsin’s 9 straight wins over Illinois from 2008 to 2018 marked the longest win streak by either team in the history of the series. The previous mark of six came when the Illini won six straight over UW from 1987-92.
* Since the Illini’s 6-game win streak ended with a 35-10 Badgers victory in 1993, Wisconsin owns a 18-4-1 (.783) record against Illinois.
* The Badgers have won seven straight meetings with Illinois in Madison, where they hold a 23-16-4 lead in the teams’ all-time series. The Illini’s last win at Camp Randall Stadium came in 2002.
* As a ranked team, the Badgers are 13-4 all-time vs. Illinois.
* Fifth-year Illinois head coach Lovie Smith served as linebackers coach at Wisconsin in 1987, which was UW head coach Paul Chryst’s senior season as a player at UW.
* Wisconsin’s roster features 7 Illinois natives: OL Dylan Barrett (St. Charles), TE Jack Eschenbach (Downers Grove), OLB Izayah Green-May (Bolingbrook), ILB Mike Maskalunas (Long Grove), ILB Maema Njongmeta (Buffalo Grove), WR Kendric Pryor (Hazel Crest) and ILB Jack Sanborn (Deer Park). Only the states of Wisconsin (51) and Michigan (8) have more representation on the Badgers’ roster.
WHEN WISCONSIN HAS THE BALL
WISCONSIN NOTES TO CONSIDER
* Oct. 23 marks the latest start to a Wisconsin football season since the Badgers opened the 1918 campaign — which was delayed due to the Spanish flu pandemic of 1918-20 and came during the final days of World War I — by hosting Camp Grant on Oct. 26. The last time the Badgers opened a season in the month of October came when they hosted in-state rival Marquette at Camp Randall on Oct. 4, 1941.
* The Badgers return eight starters on a defensive unit that finished the 2019 campaign ranked 4th nationally in total defense (287.1 ypg) and 10th in scoring defense (16.9 ppg).
* Led by cornerback Faion Hicks (23) and safety Eric Burrell (19), the Badgers return 96 career starts in the secondary for 2020, fourth-most among Power Five programs behind only Oregon (123), Duke (108) and Arizona State (106).
* With last year’s 14-game starter Jack Coan sidelined indefinitely with a foot injury suffered during training camp, redshirt freshman Graham Mertz is set to serve as the Badgers’ starting quarterback. Mertz will be the first Wisconsin freshman to start a season opener at quarterback in 42 years, since John Josten took the first snap vs. Richmond on Sept. 16, 1978.
ILLINOIS NOTES TO CONSIDER
* Illinois has not played a conference-only schedule since 1919, when the Illini went 6-1 to win the Big Ten title and claim to the national championship during the 1918 Flu Pandemic.
* The Illini put one of the youngest teams in the nation on the field in Lovie’s first few years at Illinois. Now, those young rosters have turned to a veteran 2020 squad. Illinois has more seniors on the 2020 roster (25) than 2018 and 2019 combined (21). In 2019, the Illini started a true-freshman just eight times (DB Devon Witherspoon three games and WR Casey Washington five games) after totaling 118 true-freshman starts over the previous two seasons (86 in 2017 and 32 in 2018).
* In 2019, the Illini forced 28 turnovers in 13 games, 12 interceptions and 16 fumbles, ranking fourth in FBS in turnovers gained. The Illini’s 18 forced fumbles ranked fourth in FBS. Illinois forced at least one turnover in every regular season game in 2019. It was the third-longest streak in FBS until it was snapped in the Redbox Bowl.
* Lovie Smith’s ’09 team finished in the top-25 in eight statistical categories (out of 130 FBS teams), including an FBS-best six defensive touchdowns. The Illini also finished in the top-five as a team in fumbles recovered (2nd), fumbles forced (2nd), turnovers gained (4th) and kickoff return defense (4th). Individually, LB Jake Hansen led nation in forced fumbles (7) despite missing the final four games of the season, while LB Dele Harding (11.8 tackles per game) and Stanley Green (4 FR) ranked second in the nation in tackles and fumble recoveries, respectively.
