LIVE 04:09 2nd Nov 22
TEM 10 17.0 o55.5
UTSA 21 -17.0 u55.5
LIVE 07:09 1st Nov 22
PUR 3 14.0 o48.5
MSU 0 -14.0 u48.5
UNLV -7.5 o60.0
SJSU 7.5 u60.0
MISS -11.5 o55.5
FLA 11.5 u55.5
ILL 1.0 o46.5
RUTG -1.0 u46.5
CONN 10.5 o54.5
SYR -10.5 u54.5
SMU -10.0 o55.5
UVA 10.0 u55.5
SHSU 6.0 o57.0
JVST -6.0 u57.0
WAKE 23.5 o66.5
MIA -23.5 u66.5
IU 10.0 o52.5
OSU -10.0 u52.5
UNC -2.5 o52.0
BC 2.5 u52.0
IOWA -4.0 o43.0
MD 4.0 u43.0
MASS 42.0 o55.0
UGA -42.0 u55.0
WKU 1.5 o56.5
LIB -1.5 u56.5
UTEP 41.0 o52.5
TENN -41.0 u52.5
CHSO 33.5 o44.5
FSU -33.5 u44.5
BGSU -11.5 o55.5
BALL 11.5 u55.5
RICE -7.0 o52.0
UAB 7.0 u52.0
NMSU 3.5 o53.0
MTU -3.5 u53.0
JMU -7.5 o58.5
APP 7.5 u58.5
FIU -9.0 o42.5
KENN 9.0 u42.5
ARIZ 10.5 o59.5
TCU -10.5 u59.5
CHAR -3.0 o48.5
FAU 3.0 u48.5
USA -23.5 o54.0
USM 23.5 u54.0
ULM 3.0 o52.5
ARST -3.0 u52.5
ECU 3.0 o72.5
UNT -3.0 u72.5
BYU 3.5 o48.5
ASU -3.5 u48.5
PSU -11.5 o45.0
MINN 11.5 u45.0
COLO -2.5 o59.5
KU 2.5 u59.5
UK 20.5 o46.5
TEX -20.5 u46.5
UCF -3.5 o61.5
WVU 3.5 u61.5
STAN 14.5 o53.5
CAL -14.5 u53.5
TTU -4.0 o66.0
OKST 4.0 u66.0
TLSA 17.5 o60.5
USF -17.5 u60.5
SDSU 5.0 o61.0
USU -5.0 u61.0
NW 10.5 o36.5
MICH -10.5 u36.5
WIS 1.0 o41.0
NEB -1.0 u41.0
GASO 2.5 o58.5
CCU -2.5 u58.5
CIT
CLEM
PITT 8.0 o58.0
LOU -8.0 u58.0
WOF 42.5 o49.5
SOCAR -42.5 u49.5
LT 24.0 o48.5
ARK -24.0 u48.5
MIZZ -7.5 o58.0
MSST 7.5 u58.0
TROY 9.5 o52.0
ULL -9.5 u52.0
GSU 20.5 o59.0
TXST -20.5 u59.0
ARMY 14.0 o45.5
ND -14.0 u45.5
BSU -23.0 o56.0
WYO 23.0 u56.0
WSU -11.0 o56.5
ORST 11.0 u56.5
BAY -8.0 o50.5
HOU 8.0 u50.5
ISU -6.5 o42.0
UTAH 6.5 u42.0
MRSH 3.0 o51.5
ODU -3.0 u51.5
TAM -2.5 o45.5
AUB 2.5 u45.5
ALA -14.0 o46.5
OKLA 14.0 u46.5
VAN 7.5 o54.0
LSU -7.5 u54.0
CIN 9.5 o53.5
KSU -9.5 u53.5
VT -3.0 o46.5
DUKE 3.0 u46.5
USC -4.5 o51.5
UCLA 4.5 u51.5
CSU 3.0 o45.0
FRES -3.0 u45.0
AFA 3.0 o44.5
NEV -3.0 u44.5
Final Nov 19
AKR 38 -10.5 o49.0
KENT 17 10.5 u49.0
Final Nov 19
WMU 14 -6.5 o56.5
CMU 16 6.5 u56.5
Final Nov 19
NIU 9 1.0 o43.0
M-OH 20 -1.0 u43.0
Final Nov 20
BUFF 37 1.0 o53.0
EMU 20 -1.0 u53.0
Final Nov 20
OHIO 24 1.0 o46.5
TOL 7 -1.0 u46.5
Final Nov 21
NCST 29 7.5 o51.5
GT 30 -7.5 u51.5
Kent State 11th Mid-American2-10
Illinois 13th Big Ten4-8

Kent State @ Illinois preview

Memorial Stadium (Champaign, IL)

Last Meeting ( Sep 5, 2015 ) Kent State 3, Illinois 52


Two teams looking to bounce back from ugly two-win seasons face off when Illinois hosts Kent State on Saturday afternoon in a non-conference season opener for both squads. Coach Lovie Smith is in his third year at the helm of the Illini, and he’ll look for his first winning season at the school with a team that has only eight seniors -- the least of any team in FBS.

One of those seniors will start under center as Smith named AJ Bush Jr. as his quarterback days before the opener. Another player in his final season at Illinois, wide receiver Mike Dudek, is hoping to recapture the form that he had as a freshman (76 catches, 1,038 yards) before injuries limited him to seven games over the last three seasons. Smith will need to find some defense to keep the Illini in games after they allowed 31.5 points last season, and Smith is looking at another senior, linebacker Del’Shawn Phillips (85 tackles), to lead the way. Sean Lewis, the youngest head coach in FBS at 32, brings the fast-paced offense he ran as offensive coordinator at Syracuse to his first year with the Flashes, promising a much more uptempo attack than years past.

TV: Noon ET, Big Ten Network. LINE: Illinois -16.5

ABOUT KENT STATE (2017: 2-10): Lewis is trying to bring a new attitude to Kent State, looking to ignite the program with his offense that topped FBS in snaps per game with 87.8 at Syracuse a season ago. The Golden Flashes didn't know who their starting quarterback would be days before the opener -- sophomores Woody Barrett and Dustin Crum were the top candidates -- but whoever starts at each of the offensive positions on the field had better be ready to play, because Lewis doesn't like substitutions that slow down his offense. Kent State scored only 12.8 points per game a season ago -- second-fewest in FCS to UTEP (11.8), including five contests with three points or fewer, but Lewis is banking on that changing quite a bit in 2018.

ABOUT ILLINOIS (2017: 2-10): Though he's a senior, Bush Jr. doesn't have a lot of playing experience at the collegiate level, having played at three other schools before making his way as a graduate transfer to Champaign for his final campaign. Bush spent two years at Nebraska without seeing the field before spending a season at Iowa Western, which led to a season at Virginia Tech, where he played in five games and attempted 11 passes. Smith likes Bush's experience, though, saying that he trusts the dual-threat signal caller in his first collegiate start because he's learned how to handle himself throughout his time in college, even if he hasn't spent a lot of it on the field.

EXTRA POINTS

1. Illinois WR Ricky Smalling ranked fourth in the Big Ten with 16.5 yards per catch as a freshman, finishing with a team-high 510 receiving yards.

2. Kent State LB Jim Jones leads the team's defense, coming off a junior season in which he paced the Flashes with 98 tackles and six sacks.

3. Illinois has won 20 consecutive home openers, the fourth-longest active streak in the nation.

PREDICTION: Illinois 35, Kent State 21

Pages Related to This Topic

Weather Forecast