Football
Preview
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — The Illinois football team hits the road for the first time under first-year head coach Bret Bielema when it matches up against Virginia on Saturday at 10 a.m. CT on ACC Network. The Illini and Virginia will meet in the regular season for the first time in history after the teams' two previous meetings have been bowl victories for Illinois (1990 Florida Citrus Bowl, 1999 MicronPC.com Bowl).
Illinois (1-1, 1-0 Big Ten) is coming off a 37-30 loss to UTSA after beating Nebraska 30-22 in Week 0. Offensively, Illinois is led by WR Isaiah Williams, who is coming off his first career 100-yard performance. On the defensive side, DB Tony Adams leads the team with 18 tackles and DB Devon Witherspoon is the national leader in passes defended with six.
Virginia (1-0) shut out William & Mary 43-0 in the Cavaliers' opener last weekend. Virginia out-gained William & Mary, 545-183, behind 339 yards passing and two touchdowns from QB Brennan Armstrong.
Chris Cotter (play-by-play), Mark Herzlich (analyst), and Jalyn Johnson (sideline) have the call for ACC Network. Brian Barnhart (play-by-play), Martin O'Donnell (analyst), and Michael Martin (sideline) have the Illinois radio call on the Busey Bank Illini Sports Network.
ILLINOIS STATS AND NOTES
ILLINOIS HITS THE ROAD
- Illinois travels to Virginia for its first road game under first-year head coach Bret Bielema.
- Illinois will play a road game against a nonconference Power-5 team for the first time since traveling to North Carolina on Sept. 19, 2015.
- Illinois will play an ACC opponent for the first time since 2016 against North Carolina.
- Illinois and Virginia will meet in the regular season for the first time. The teams have played twice in bowl games, the 1999 MicronPC.com Bowl and the 1990 Citrus Bowl.
- Illinois will play in the Commonwealth of Virginia for the first time in program history.
1-0 START IN THE BIG TEN
- Illinois was the first team to start 1-0 after beating Nebraska in the first of the college football game of the season and the only Power-5 vs. Power-5 game of Week 0.
- Illinois reeled off 28 points in a span of just 13:50, scoring four TDs that turned a 9-2 deficit with less than three minutes left in the first half into a 30-9 lead with just over four minutes remaining in the third quarter.
ILLINOIS-UTSA NOTES
- WR Isaiah Williams led the Illini with eight catches for 101 yards. Williams is the first Illinois player with 100+ receiving yards in a game since Josh Imatorbhebhe had 178 yards on Nov. 9, 2019 at Michigan State.
- RB Josh McCray made his Illini debut in the second quarter, and gained 18 yards on three consecutive carries to begin the first Illini scoring drive. He finished the game with five carries for 16 yards.
- WR Deuce Spann, a converted QB, scored the first touchdown of his Illini career, hauling in a 31-yard pass from Artur Sitkowski with 9:21 left in the second quarter.
- RB Reggie Love III ripped off a career-long 18-yard rush to set up the Illini's second touchdown of the game. Love finished as the Illini's leading rusher with 11 carries for 39 yards.
- TE Daniel Barker recorded five catches for 74 yards with two touchdown receptions. Barker's two touchdowns marked a career-high. He is only the third Illinois TE to have two receiving touchdowns in a single game in the last 25 years (since 1996), joining Matt LaCosse, vs. Miami (OH) on Sept. 28, 2013, and Illini Director of Athletics Josh Whitman, at Ohio State on Nov. 13, 1999.
- K James McCourt hit two field goals from 50+ yards on Saturday, giving him six for his Illini career and moving him past former teammate Chase McLaughlin (2014-18) for the Illini career record.McCourt became the first Illini to hit two field goals from 50+ yards in a single game.
VIRGINIA SEASON OPENER NOTES
• Billy Kemp had four receptions against W&M and now has 108 for his career, tied with Patrick Jeffers for the 19th most in UVA history.
• Kemp's career-high, 55-yard punt return in the first quarter setup the game's only points in the first quarter, a 39-yard field goal by Justin Duenkel.
• The Cavalier defense held William & Mary to 183 yards of total offense, the first time holding an opponent to under 200 yards since limiting the Tribe to 193 in 2019.
• Virginia's last shutout in a season opener came on August 30, 2003, a 27-0 blanking of Duke
• Virginia is 31-6-1 against W&M and has won five-straight meetings
• Saturday's shutout was the 13th against William & Mary in 39 all-time games. The last time the Cavaliers shutout the Tribe was in 1951, a 46-0 victory in Charlottesville.
• It marked the first time William & Mary was shutout since September 29, 2018 (23-0 against Colgate).
• Quarterback Brennan Armstrong passed for 336 yards, his second 300-yard passing game of his career.
• The Cavalier offense amassed 500 yards of total offense for the three-straight home game. The Cavaliers compiled 518 yards against Abilene Christian on Nov. 21 and 549 against Boston College in last year's home finale.
• Armstrong scored Virginia's first touchdown of the season, a two-yard rush in the second quarter. The signal caller also scored the first of the year last year, a four-yard score against Duke.
• UVA has now won nine-straight games against non-conference opponents at Scott Stadium. UVA is 10-2 under Mendenhall against non-ACC foes.
• Since 2019, Virginia is 13-1 at Scott Stadium.
• Linebacker Nick Jackson led UVA with 12 tackles, the eighth time in his career he's recorded 10 or more tackles.
ALL-TIME SERIES
ILLINOIS vs. VIRGINIA
- Illinois leads the all-time series against Virginia, 2-0.
- This is the first time Illinois and Virginia will meet during the regular season.
- This will be Illinois' first ever game in the Commonwealth of Virginia.
- Illinois' two wins over Virginia have come in bowl games (1990 Florida Citrus Bowl and 1999 MicronPC.com Bowl).
- Illinois had the ninth most offensive yards in a game in program history (603) against Virginia in the 1999 MicronPC.com Bowl.
- Neil Rackers' nine extra points in the MicronPC.com Bowl is tied for the most in program history.
- Illinois set several bowl game records against Virginia...
» Yards gained in a bowl game (611) in the 1999 MicronPC.com Bowl
» Most first downs in a bowl game (29) in the 1990 Cirtus Bowl
» Most rushing touchdowns in a bowl game (6) in the 1999 MicronPC.com Bowl
» Fewest punts in bowl game (0) in the 1999 MicronPC.com Bowl - No. 11 Illinois snapped a 26-year bowl victory drought with a 31-21 win over No. 16 Virginia in the 1990 Florida Citrus Bowl
- In the 1990 Citrus Bowl, Jeff George threw for 321 yards and three touchdowns while Mike Bellamy had eight receptions for 166 yards and one touchdown.
- Illinois is 22-12 all-time against teams currently in the ACC. The Illini's last win over a team currently in the ACC was a 41-20 victory in 2007 over Syracuse, which was a part of the Big East at the time. The Illini's last win over a then-ACC affiliated opponent was the 1999 MicronPC.com Bowl victory over Virginia.
- Former Illinois offensive coordinator Rod Smith was hired as an analsyt at Virginia in August 2021.
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