Oct. 15, 2007
- When the Illini host No. 24 Michigan this weekend it will mark the 89th meeting in the series.
- With Michigan jumping back into the rankings at No. 24, Illinois will face its third ranked opponent
this season after defeating then-No. 19 Penn State and then-No. 5 Wisconsin (Missouri was not ranked to
start the season).
- Three Illini earned midseason All-America honors from Rivals.com and Phil Steele's Football Magazine.
Senior linebacker J Leman was named one of three first-teamers for both lists, while junior running back
Rashard Mendenhall and senior offensive guard Martin O'Donnell took second-team honors. Leman and
Mendenhall were second-team midseason All-Americans according to SI.com.
- This week's game vs. Michigan features two of the Big Ten's best running backs in Illinois junior
Rashard Mendenhall and Michigan's senior Mike Hart. Hart leads the conference with his 154 yards per
game rushing, while Mendenhall ranks third with 119.9. Hart has been the talk of the league since his
true-freshman season when he led the Wolverines to a Big Ten title. He is the school's all-time leading
rusher. Mendenhall is enjoying his first season as a starter, posting four games over 100 yards and averaging
6.5 yards per carry.
- It is no surprise to see Leman among the nation's best tacklers. With 81 tackles in seven games, he is
ranked sixth in the nation in tackles per game. The Big Ten leader, Leman is averaging 11.6 stops per
game. He has led the conference in tackles per game for the last 15 weeks, dating back to the 2006 season.
- Illinois leads the Big Ten in rushing and ranks eighth in the NCAA. The Illini are averaging 243.4 yards
per game and 5.5 yards per carry this season.
- This season, the Illinois schedule continues to be a tough one. Illinois plays seven teams that were in
bowl games a year ago and four teams that are ranked in the Top-25: Ohio State is the unanimous No. 1
team in the nation, Missouri is No. 16/17, Michigan is 24th (AP) and Penn State is ranked 25th (USA
Today/Coaches). Along with Illinois, Wisconsin is receiving votes.
- Illinois will have at least three sellouts for the 2007 season. The Penn State game sold out before kickoff
on Sept. 29 and the athletic department announced sellouts for the Wisconsin and Michigan games
during the first few weeks of the season. They are the first sellouts since the 2002 season (Michigan) and
the first time for three sellouts in a season since 1986, when Illinois sold out six games.
- Illinois has taken a lead into the locker room at halftime in five of their seven games this season. In
each of those five games, the Illini have finished the game victorious. In the season opener, the squad was
down 23-6 to now-11th ranked Missouri, but scored 28 second-half points to fall by a 40-34 score. Against
Iowa, the two teams were tied at three apeice, but the Hawks came out on top, 10-6.
- The Illini are 3-0 at Memorial Stadium for the first time since 2001.
- The Illini have had three players named Big Ten Players of the Week this season. Running back
Rashard Mendenhall and defensive end Will Davis earned honors after their performances against Indiana,
and receiver Arrelious Benn was the special teams honoree for his kickoff return for a touchdown vs. Penn
State.
- Michigan leads the series by a 65-21-2 advantage, while also holding the edge in games played in
Champaign, 32-11-1.
- Michigan has won the last five games in the series with the Illini's last victory against the Wolverines
coming in 1999 in Ann Arbor, 35-29. Michigan has been off the Illinois schedule for the last two years.
- Illini head coach Ron Zook is 0-1 against Michigan, with the loss coming to UM while coaching the
Florida Gators in the Outback Bowl. Michigan head coach Lloyd Carr is 7-1 vs. Illinois.
- Senior kicker Jason Reda currently stands fourth on the Illinois career scoring list, needing six points
to pass Doug Higgins for third. Reda needs 38 more points this season to become the career scoring
leader.
- Reda also is third on the career field goals list. He would need nine more field goals to become the
career field goal record holder.
- Rashard Mendenhall has recorded four 100-yard rushing game this season. The school record is six,
held by Jim Grabowski (1965) and J.C. Caroline (1953).
- Mendenhall needs 66 rushing yards to move to 14th on the school's all-time rushing. In three seasons,
he has accumulated 1,697 yards on the ground on just 255 carries, for a 6.7 career yard per carry average.
The highest yard per carry average among Illinois' all-time rushers belongs to Pierre Thomas, who posted 5.6
ypc from 2003-06.
- Wide receiver Arrelious Benn has caught 33 passes for 424 yards through seven games this season,
which is on pace to break Illinois' freshman receiving records. The record of 43 receptions is held by Ty
Douthard in 1993 and the 511 receiving yards were posted by Brandon Lloyd in 1999.
- Senior linebacker J Leman needs 14 tackles to move into ninth place on the Illini career tackles list. He
already ranks ninth on the career tackles for loss list with 32.5, one more and he jumps into the eighth spot
and three get him to sixth.
With this season being his first as the primary back, Mendenhall may not be the household name of the
some of the frontrunners for major running back and offensive awards. However, looking at the impact he
has had on Illinois' success this year and his numbers in comparison to the best backs in the country,
Mendenhall should be in the heart of this race.
| NAME | RECORD | YPG | NCAA RK | YPC | NCAA RK* | TD | ALL-PURPOSE | NCAA RK |
| Mendenhall, ILL | 5-2 | 119.9 | 13th | 6.5 | 3rd | 12 | 148.4 | 24th |
| McFadden, ARK | 3-3 | 137.0 | 4th | 5.6 | 13th | 7 | 185.6 | 17th |
| Hart, Mich. | 5-2 | 154.0 | 1st | 5.4 | 20th | 12 | 168.7 | 22nd |
| Hill, WIS | 5-2 | 117.8 | 9th | 4.6 | 37th | 12 | 137.3 | 55th |
| Rice, RUT | 4-2 | 136.3 | 15th | 5.0 | 34th | 14 | 153.6 | 18th |
| Slaton, WVU | 5-1 | 104.2 | 29th | 5.6 | T14th | 10 | 134.0 | 49th |
*min. 95 carries
The goal of the Illini defense is to hold all opposing running backs and skill players to under 100 yards rushing.
So far through seven games, no individual has topped the 100-yard rushing mark vs. Illinois. Here are
some of the highlights:
- Kellan Lewis, Indiana: Lewis entered the Big Ten opener vs. Illinois averaging 105 rushing yards per
game and was a big reason that the Hoosiers' running game was ranked seventh in the nation. When he met
the Illini defense, he was held to just 35 yards on the ground and the team to only 134.
- P.J. Hill, Wisconsin: Hill entered the game with five consecutive 100-yard rushing games and averaged
133 yards per game. Against the Illini, Hill was held to 83.
- At the time the 2006 Butkus Award Watch list was released, Illini linebacker J Leman was an unknown
name to most people outside of the Illinois fan base, but he entered the 2007 season as one of the top
returning linebackers in the country.
- Leman has picked up right where he left off last season, posting six double-digit performances in seven
games. His 20 tackles in the season opener marked his second 20-plus tackle effort (after 22 in the season
finale of 2006 vs. Northwestern). Currently he leads the Big Ten in tackles per contest with 11.6 and ranks
sixth in the nation. He also recorded his first collegiate interception with a touchdown-saving pick against
No. 19 Penn State.
- Midseason award were released by many media sources including Sports Illustrated, Rivals.com and
Phil Steele. Leman earned first-team honors by two and second-team by the third.
- Illinois' 1994 Butkus Award winner Dana Howard says, "Leman should be Illinois' next Butkus Award
winner."
- Last season, Leman jumped onto the national scene with dominant games against Michigan State,
Wisconsin and then-No. 1 Ohio State. He earned Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week honors after totaling 19
tackles and 3.5 tackles for loss against the top-ranked Buckeyes. He followed up that performance with 22
tackles and 2.5 TFL in the season finale at Northwestern.
- Leman led the Big Ten with 12.7 tackles per game and earned first-team All-Big Ten honors. He was also
named to the Sports Illustrated All-American team as an honorable mention and is one of only eight returning
linebackers in the nation to earn all-star honors.
This season, the rushing offense has mainly been in the hands of one running back, junior Rashard
Mendenhall. After working behind two other running backs for the first two years of his career, Mendenhall has
found himself in the spotlight. This season marks the first time since 2002 that the Illini have used primarily
one back. In that year, Antoineo Harris set the school single-season rushing record with 1,330 yards. Through
six games, Mendenhall has rushed for 839 yards, averaging 119.9 ypg. He also is averaging 6.5 yards per carry
and ranks 13th in the nation in rushing. His 10 rushing touchdowns are the most in a season since Steve
Havard's recorded 10 in 1999.
Through six games in the 2007 season, the Big Ten boasts 12 career 1,000 yard rushers. Illinois running back
Rashard Mendenhall ranks eighth among active running backs in the Big Ten. With four 100-yard rushing performances
this year, Mendenhall looks to move up that list.
- Mike Hart, Sr., Michigan - 4,751 yards
- Albert Young, Sr., Iowa - 2,704 yards
- Tyrell Sutton, Jr., Northwestern - 2,596 yards
- Amir Pinnix, Sr., Minnesota - 2,401 yards
- P.J. Hill, So., Wisconsin - 2,393 yards
- Javon Ringer, Jr., Michigan State - 2,248 yards
- Jehuu Caulcrick, Sr., Michigan State - 2,093 yards
- Kory Sheets, Sr., Purdue - 1,868 yards
- Rashard Mendenhall, Jr., Illinois - 1,697 yards
- Damian Sims, Sr., Iowa - 1,379 yards
- Austin Scott, Sr., Penn State - 1,323 yards
- Chris Wells, So., Ohio State - 1,219 yards
- Rodney Kinlaw, Sr., Penn State - 988 yards
Illinois' true-freshman safety Bo Flowers turns 24 on Nov. 12, and is the oldest player on the Illini roster.
Flowers is beginning his college career this season after four years in professional baseball. He was a fifth-round
draft pick in 2003 by the Detroit Tigers. After spending three seasons in the Detroit organization, he was traded to
the Chicago Cubs where he played the 2006 season. Currently, Flowers is a walk-on on the Illini team because the
Tigers are footing the college bill. He is one of eight active Division I-A football players who have seen action in
minor league baseball: Gary Banks (Troy...Cubs); Mike Conroy (UConn...Indians); Dennis Dixon (Oregon ...
Braves); Bo Flowers (Illinois...Tigers/Cubs); Marquise Liverpool (Temple...Mariners); Michael Machen
(Baylor...Braves/Orioles); Mike Nixon (Arizona State...Dodgers); Jose Perez (SDSU...Yankees)
Illinois defenders Vontae and Will Davis (no relation) are two of the bright spots on this Illini defense which
ranks 27th in rushing and 55th in total defense nationally. Vontae, a two-year starting cornerback, has made an
impact on the Illini program in a short time. Last season, he earned unanimous first-team Freshman All-America
honors and is one of the best corners in the Big Ten this season. He put together three-straight games with interceptions
(Indiana, Penn State, Wisconsin) and has five passes broken up. He also has blocked two punts this year
in just seven games. Will, a junior defensive end, already has 6.5 sacks and 8.5 tackles for loss on the year. He was
named Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week after his performance vs. Indiana, which accounted for four sacks and
five TFL. He currently ranks 16th in the NCAA in quarterback sacks.
Junior receiver Kyle Hudson is in his third year of pulling double-duty as a starting wide receiver on the football
team and starting centerfielder on the Illini baseball team. Hudson led the Illini in receptions last year with 30 and
in receiving yards each of his first two seasons. In three seasons, he has accumulated 967 receiving yards. On the
diamond, he has started 87 of 88 games in two seasons. He led the team in hitting as a freshman and was second
as a sophomore. He is hitting .360 for his two-season average and has stolen 26 bases in that span. As a freshman,
he won the school's Newcomer of the Year award for the impact he made on the two sports.
- The Illini offense has faced two top-15 rushing defenses in 12th-ranked Indiana (allowing 71.3 ypg) and fifthranked
Penn State (allowing 54.8 ypg). In each of those two games, the Illini rushed for over 200 yards - 288 at
Indiana and 216 vs. the Nittany Lions
- The Illini posted five straight 200-yard rushing games this season with 277-yards against WIU, 378 at
Syracuse, 288 at Indiana, 216 vs. Penn State and 289 vs. Wisconsin. The 378 rushing yards vs. SU were the best
under head coach Ron Zook. For the year, Illinois is averaging 243.4 yards per game and 5.5 yards per carry. So far,
the team's per game rushing average is 54 yards better than a year ago when it won the Big Ten rushing title.
- Running back Rashard Mendenhall earned Big Ten Offensive Player of the Week for his performance vs.
Indiana on 9/22. He rushed for a career-high 214 yards on a career-most 27 carries (7.9 ypc).
- Last season, the Illini proved to have big-play ability with 49 plays over 20 yards. Already through seven
games, the offense is on pace to top that number with 36 big plays.
- During the first three weeks of the season, the Illini outgained their opponent. Against the vaunted Missouri
offense, Illinois edged them by a 435-429 margin, while also posting a better average in yards per play, 5.9-4.9.
Against Western Illinois and Syracuse, the offense dominated, more than doubling their opponents, 908-438.
- or the first time in the Zook era at Illinois, the Illini have recorded four games of over 400 yards total offense.
They began the season with 435 yards, posted 400 vs. Western Illinois and topped the 500-yard mark with 508 at
Syracuse. Last week, the Illni posted 410 yards in its upset of No. 5 Wisconsin.
- Against Missouri, the Illini passed for 316 yards, combining the quarterback numbers of Juice Williams
(59) and Eddie McGee (257). It was the first 300-yard passing performance for an Illini team since the squad
put up 430 yards on California on Sept. 20, 2003.
- After forcing only 20 turnovers last year as a defense, this year's campaign already is on pace to top that
number. Through seven games, the Illini have forced 14 turnovers -- seven fumbles and seven interceptions.
The squad also put together back-to-back four-turnover games against Indiana and Penn State.
- With his start vs. Penn State, senior defensive tackle Chris Norwell became the Illinois record holder for
most games started by a defensive lineman. He now has 40 for his career, topping All-American Moe Gardner's
37 starts from 1987-1990.
- Defensive end Will Davis was named the Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week for his game against
Indiana on 9/22. He recorded four sacks and five tackles for loss (both rank second in Illinois' single-game
record books).
- With its 21-0 win over Western Illinois, the Illini recorded its first shutout since blanking Iowa on Oct. 14,
2000. It was also the fewest total yards allowed during the Zook era at (152), fewest passing yards (71) and
fewest first downs (4).
- Beginning at the 8:32 mark of the fourth quarter vs. Missouri, the Illini defense held its opponents scoreless
for 99:21. It ended in the third quarter at Syracuse when the Orange kicked a field goal at 14:11.
- The defense is extremely experienced, returning nine of 11 starters. All three starting linebackers return,
along with three lineman and three defensive backs. Five Illini on defense have recorded 20 or more starts in
their career: SS Justin Harrison (32), LB J Leman (35), FS Kevin Mitchell (28), DT Chris Norwell (40), DE Derek
Walker (30).
- Senior placekicker Jason Reda has been perfect on his nine field goal attempts of the year. After not
attempting a kick in the first two games of the season, he has made nine field goals in the last five contests.
He has connected on two 50-yard field goals this season, the second-longest of his career (50 vs. Wisconsin
and Syracuse). He also has made three 40-plus field goals (45 vs. Indiana, 46 at Iowa and 47 vs. Penn State).
- Arrelious Benn returned Illinois' first kickoff of the game vs. Penn State 90 yards for a touchdown. He was
the first Illini to score on a kickoff return since Pierre Thomas did it in 2004 against Western Michigan. Even
more impressive, he scored on his first-ever kickoff return attempt. It also was the first kickoff return for a
touchdown against a Penn State team since 1994. He gave Illinois a 7-3 lead over Penn State, which it never
relinquished.
- For his performance against Penn State, Benn was named the Big Ten Special Teams Player of the Week. It
marks the first time a true-freshman earned a Big Ten weekly honor since Northwestern's Tyrell Sutton on Sept.
12, 2005.
- After an offseason position battle, redshirt-freshman Anthony Santella earned the starting punter job.
Santella has punted 39 times for a 35.9 average. But of those 39 punts, only 10 have been returned (26 percent)
for a total of 53 yards (5.3 yard per return). He has placed 11 punts inside the 20 yard line (28 percent)
and seven have been fair caught.
- Sophomore cornerback Vontae Davis has now blocked two punts this year. He got his second of the season
against Indiana. When he got a hand on a Missouri punt in the season opener, it was Illinois' first blocked punt
since the 2004 season. He recovered the block at the 2 yardline and took it in for the score.
- Oddly enough, Illinois this year boasts a trio of four-year starters on the field goal and extra point units.
Long snapper Kyle Knezetic, holder Frank Lenti Jr. and Reda have worked together extensively throughout their
careers as Illini, giving the coaching staff a great deal of confidence in that special teams unit.
- The Illini have played nine true-freshmen through six games: Arrelious Benn has started four games at
wide receiver; Josh Brent (DT), Nate Bussey (DB), Bo Flowers (DB), Brian Gamble (WR), Troy Pollard (RB),
Erique Robertson (LB), Marcus Thomas (DB) and Martez Wilson (LB) are the other eight.
- In addition to the nine true-freshmen, nine others have seen their first collegiate football action this year:
junior wide receiver Will Judson, sophomore running back Daniel Dufrene, redshirt freshmen defensive end Jerry
Brown, defensive back Garrett Edwards, offensive guard Randall Hunt, offensive guard Brandon Jordan, quarterback
Eddie McGee, offensive lineman Ryan Palmer and punter Anthony Santella.
- This year Illinois play in domes for three of its six away games. With its 41-20 win over
Syracuse in the Carrier Dome on Sept. 15, the Illini broke a streak of nine straight losses in
Domes, dating back to the 1994 season.
- The team kicked off the season at the Edward Jones Dome in St. Louis against Missouri,
and fell to 0-3 at the venue after a 34-40 loss to the Tigers. The squad evened its record on
the year with a 41-20 win over Syracuse in the Carrier Dome to improve to 3-0 in the arena.
- In week 10, the squad heads to the Metrodome to play Minnesota in an evening contest.
The Illini are 3-5-1 in the Metrodome since the Gophers began playing there in 1982.
Illinois defensive end Will Davis' family are natives of the Republic of Liberia. He has
spent his entire life in the United States, and was able to visit Liberia as a young child before
Civil War broke out. Now that the war has ended his mother, Pearine Davis-Parkinson, recently
returned home to become the Deputy Minister in the Ministry of State office. The Ministry of
State supports the work of the President of the Republic of Liberia, Ellen Johnson Sirleaf. The
major departments of the Ministry of State are the Office of the President, Administration, and
Public Affairs and Communications Technology. Davis' mother played basketball for the
Liberian national team and at the University of Liberia. His uncle, John Davis, played soccer for
Liberia. She should be in town in the month of October to attend Illinois football games.
It is hard not to pay attention to the 12-letter long last name of freshman tight end Michael
Hoomanawanui. The difficulty in its pronunciation has caused coaches and teammates to nickname
Michael "Huh-oh" representing the first two syllables of his name. The name is one of
Hawaiian descent, which he gets from his father, Isy's, side of the family, who hails from Oahu.
The name is not the most common in its nativeland, but retains the special meaning "patience."
- Six Illini already have earned their college degrees -- FB Justin Ijei, WR Frank Lenti, Jr., DB
Tyler Rouse, LB J Leman, DT Chris Norwell and OL Martin O'Donnell.
- Illinois junior linebacker J Leman is not only a standout on the field, but his accomplishments
in the classroom include a bachelor's degree in just three years. He maintained a 3.7
GPA in communications, graduating in August of 2006. He is currently pursuing a master's
degree which he will complete this December.
- The Illini's starting center Ryan McDonald is pursuing his undergraduate degree in one of
the most difficult academic fields at the University of Illinois. Illinois is known for its engineering
cirriculum, ranking in the Top-10 in all nine disciplines, including the top-rated civil engineering program. McDonald has recorded a 3.87 in aeronautical engineering, a program which ranks eighth
nationally. He had an internship this summer on campus working with NASA.
For the second straight summer the team hosted an event to raise money for the Cunningham Children's
Home, located locally in Urbana. The event was a 12-hour supply drive to raise goods and money for the home
from their Wish List. The team congregated on the East side of Memorial Stadium and along with the help of
local radio stations, solicited the help of community members to give supplies and money to the Home. The
team's two-year total of goods and money raised is $20,000. Among the money in 2007 was a $250 donation
from tight end Jeff Cumberland. Cumberland won the Slam Dunk contest at the 2007 Gus Macker basketball
tournament and gave his winnings to the team's charity.
- Great excitement has surrounded the 2007 Illinois football season. More than 14,000 Illini fans became
new season ticket holders and the school sold out its South Endzone "Horseshoe" section prior to the start of
the season. Students also jumped on board, with season ticket sales increased by 2,500.
- Phase I of the Memorial Stadium project was completed in time for Illinois' home opener against Western
Illinois. The students are now housed in the brand-new North Endzone seating as well as the Marching Illini.
This was the first part of a $116 million renovation taking place at the historic stadium right now.
- Illinois have announced at least three sellouts for the 2007 season. The Penn State game sold out before
kickoff on Sept. 29 and the athletic department announced sellouts for the Wisconsin and Michigan games
during the first couple weeks of the season. They are the first sellouts since the 2002 season (Michigan) and
the first time for three sellouts in a season since 1986, when Illinois sold out six games.
The Marching Illini will reclaim music from the rich history and tradition of University of Illinois football
this season. "Fight! Illini!" was written in the early 1920's and sub-titled "The Stadium Song." This piece
was recently discovered by Marching Illini director Dr. Peter Griffin. It was written by two Illinois graduates
Sampson Raphaelson ('17) and Rose J. Oltusky ('22). "Fight! Illini!" will be played following Illinois point after
touchdowns this season. Harold Hill and Howard Green wrote "Cheer Illini," "Hail to the Orange" and "Oskee
Wow Wow." "Cheer Illini" was used decades ago by the Marching Illini as a downfield motion piece to float
the band off the field at the end of its pre-game show. It was also used at basketball games for many years
during player introductions.
