FOOTBALL GAME NOTES FIGHTINGILLINI.COM @IlliniFootball @IlliniFootball IlliniAthletics facebook.com/IlliniFootball #ILLINI @IlliniAthletics @IlliniAthletics facebook.com/IlliniAthletics OPENING KICK GAME 12 • Rivalry Game: The Land of Lincoln rivalry trophy will be on the line Saturday when the Fighting Illini (3-8, 2-6) Saturday, Nov. 26, 2016 // 11 a.m. // BTN face in-state rival Northwestern (5-6, 4-4) in Evanston to close the season (11 am CT on BTN). Evanston, Ill. // Ryan Field (47,130) • Phillips in the Backfield: Senior DE Carroll Phillips is having a monster year, leading the Big Ten in TFLs (17.0) and ranking second in sacks (8.0), totals that rank eighth and 30th in FBS, respectively. Phillips is just outside the Illini single-season top-10 list in both categories (see page 15). • TFL U: As a team the Illini defense has been making plays in the backfield often in 2016. » Illinois ranks 13th in the nation and third in the Big Ten in TFLs per game (7.8) » Senior DE Carroll Phillips is averaging 1.5 TFLs per game, eighth-most in FBS and most in the Big Ten. ILLINOIS (3-8, 2-6) NORTHWESTERN (5-6, 4-4) » Senior DE Dawuane Smoot is second in the B1G during conference play, averaging 1.4TFLs per game » Phillips (17.0) and Smoot (13.0) have combined for 30.0 TFLs, the most of any Big Ten duo and fourth-most TELEVISION BROADCAST | Big Ten Network in FBS behind pairs from Virginia Tech (32.5), Wake Forest (30.5) and NC State (30.5). » Cory Provus (PBP), Glen Mason (analysis) and • Fourth Down ‘D’: A stop on fourth-and-3 in the final seconds sealed the win over Michigan State. That’s Allison Hayes (sidelines) + Jim Ressler (producer) something the Illini defense has excelled at all season, as opponents have converted just five of 15 fourth-down and Tom Huet (director). attempts (.333), best in the Big Ten and seventh-best in FBS. » The game will be streamed live at BTN2Go.com • Declining Penalties: The Illini have cut down on penalties as of late, an issue that plagued the team early in the season. Through five games, Illinois averaged 9.2 penalties/game and 75.0 penalty yards/game, ranking last in RADIO BROADCAST | Fighting Illini Sports Network the Big Ten in both categories. In the last six games, they’re averaging just 3.8 penalties/game and 34.0 penalty » Brian Barnhart (PBP), Martin O’Donnell (analysis), yards/game. In the last four games, those numbers are down to just 3.0 and 24.8, respectively. Carey Davis (sidelines) & Steve Kelly (Pre/HT/Post). • Elementary, Watson: During conference play, sophomore LB Tré Watson is averaging 10.8 tackles per game to » The broadcast also can be heard on TuneIn, SIRIUS lead the B1G. In the last three games, he has made 41 stops (13.7 tpg), including 16 vs. Michigan State and (112) / XM (196) satellite radio and online at 15 vs. Iowa. FightingIllini.com. • Tackling Machine: Graduate transfer LB Hardy Nickerson is averaging 9.4 tackles/game to rank third in the Big Ten. He has 349 career tackles (246 at Cal, 92 at Illinois), fifth-most among active FBS players. No active Power-5 GAMEDAY LINKS player has more career tackles than Nickerson. Gameday Information: FightingIllini.com/gameday • Smoot Point: Senior DE Dawuane Smoot has come on strong in conference play, averaging 1.4 TFLs per game to rank second in the Big Ten during league play. He is currently eighth in Illinois history with 36.5 career TFLs. TRAVEL & TICKET INFORMATION The team will depart for Evanston on Friday afternoon • Jaylen Island: Junior CB Jaylen Dunlap had four PBUs in the win over Michigan State, tied for the fifth-most in via charter bus. There will not be any media availability a game in program history and the most by an Illini since 2002. He has eight PBUs in the last four games, nine in Evanston until after the game. Illinois-Northwestern during Big Ten play (7th-most in the B1G) and has 10 for the season. tickets are available at nusports.com. • Big Play Run Game: Illinois has five runs of 50+ yards this season, tied for 10th-most in the nation. Kendrick Foster had a pair of 56-yard TD runs against Murray State and added a 64-yard TD run against Michigan State, ILLINOIS SCOREBOARD Ke’Shawn Vaughn had a 65-yard TD scamper vs. UNC and Reggie Corbin busted a 53-yard run at Rutgers. Sept. 3 .....Murray State .......................W, 52-3 • Dual Threat: Junior RB Kendrick Foster (721 rush, 532 KOR) is one of only two players in the nation with at least Sept. 10 ....North Carolina . L, 23-48 700 rushing yards and 500 kick return yards (Cal’s Khalfani Muhammad 711 rush/534 KOR). Sept. 17 ....Western Michigan ..................L, 10-34 Oct. 1 ......at #15 Nebraska ...................L, 16-31 • Fresh Start: Illinois has had 28 first-time starters this season, the most in the nation, just ahead of Missouri Oct. 8 ......Purdue .......................L (OT), 31-34 (27). Included in that number are 13 freshmen (four true-freshmen and nine redshirt-freshmen). Oct. 15 .....at Rutgers .........................W, 24-7 Oct. 22 .....at #3 Michigan .....................L, 8-41 • Final Go: Saturday’s game at Northwestern will mark the final college game for 24 Illini seniors. Rob Bain, Taylor Oct. 29 .....Minnesota (Homecoming) ............L, 17-40 Barton, Man Berg, Connor Brennan, Dillan Cazley, Chunky Clements, Andrew Davis, Ryan Frain, Zach Grant, Nov. 5 ......Michigan State.....................W, 31-27 Justin Hardee, Ainslie Johnson, Wes Lunt, Michael Martin, Darius Mosely, Hardy Nickerson, Carroll Phillips, Nov. 12 .....at #7 Wisconsin .....................L, 3-48 Gimel President, David Reisner, Austin Schmidt, Dawuane Smoot, Joe Spencer, Mike Svetina, D.J. Taylor and Nov. 19 .....Iowa..............................L, 0-28 Tyler White all were recognized on the field at Memorial Stadium last Saturday, their final home game. Nov. 26 .....at Northwestern .................11 am (BTN) All times Central … rankings are AP poll on week of game WHERE TO FIND... BATTLE FOR THE LAND OF LINCOLN TROPHY SID Contact Info 2 NORTHWESTERN SCOREBOARD • Illinois and Northwestern will play for the “Land of Lincoln” trophy on Media Information 2 Sept. 3 .....Western Michigan ..................L, 21-22 Saturday, the eighth battle for the relatively new rivalry trophy. Illinois is Homecoming History 3 Sept. 10 ....Illinois State.........................L, 7-9 3-4 against Northwestern since the beginning of the Land of Lincoln trophy. Stadium Renovation 12 Sept. 17 ....Duke.............................W, 24-13 Records to Watch 15 Sept. 24 ....#20 Nebraska .....................L, 13-24 • Illinois owns “Land of Lincoln” trophy wins in 2014, 2011 and 2010. Last Game’s Starters 16 Oct. 1 ......at Iowa...........................W, 38-31 • The Fighting Illini and Wildcats played for the “Sweet Sioux” Tomahawk Pronunciations 16 Oct. 15 .....at Michigan State ..................W, 54-40 from 1947-2008. Illinois led the traditional trophy series by a 32-28-2 Oct. 22 .....Indiana ..........................W, 24-14 Key Player Quick Facts 17 mark, but Northwestern won the final meeting for the Tomahawk with its Oct. 29 .....at #6 Ohio State....................L, 20-24 Updated Rosters 18-19 27-10 win in 2008. The Tomahawk was retired following the 2008 season. Nov. 5 ......#8 Wisconsin . L,, 7-21 The Last Time 20 Nov. 12 .....at Purdue.........................W, 45-17 • The Land of Lincoln Trophy, a bronze replica of a stovepipe hat famously 2016 Game Summaries 21-24 Nov. 19 .....at Minnesota .....................L, 12-29 worn by Abraham Lincoln, was chosen by fans of both schools in 2009 in Nov. 26 .....Illinois .......................11 am (BTN) Player Bios 25-40 an online vote to replace the 62-year-old Tomahawk Trophy. Stats 41-45 1 // FIGHTINGILLINI.COM // @ILLINIFOOTBALL // #ILLINI 2016 ILLINOIS FOOTBALL // GAME NOTES ILLINOIS WEEKLY MEDIA SCHEDULE // NORTHWESTERN GAME 21 MONDAY 22 TUESDAY 23 WEDNESDAY 24 THURSDAY 25 FRIDAY 26 SATURDAY 27 SUNDAY Smith Press Conference Post-practice availability No availability Off Day. No availability. No availability GAME DAY No availability (1:30 pm, Press Box, L8) - Players who weren’t at Illinois at Northwestern Monday availability. (11 am CT, BTN) Coordinators and Select (approx. 1 pm) Players Available (1:45-2:30 pm, Press Box) Postgame player/coach availability THE ILLINOIS-NORTHWESTERN SERIES MEDIA INFORMATION • Saturday’s game will be the 110th meeting between Illinois and Northwestern. MONDAY’S SELECTED PLAYERS • Illinois leads the series 55-49-5 overall. Illinois has split the last six games against Northwestern. Illini coordinators and players will be available on Monday • The Illini are 27-27-1 when playing the Wildcats in the Illini’s Big Ten finale. at about 1:45 pm following head coach Lovie Smith’s • Illinois is 27-27-3 all-time in Evanston. press conference on the 8th floor of the Memorial Stadium • Northwestern won last year’s meeting, 24-14, at Soldier Field in Chicago. threw for 241 yards and Press Box. The players this week are QB Wes Lunt, LB Wes Lunt Ke’Shawn Vaughn had 62 yards on 12 carries in the loss to the 17th-ranked Wildcats. Hardy Nickerson, DE Dawuane Smoot, OL Joe Spencer and LB Tré Watson. • Illinois won in its last trip to Evanston, 47-33, in 2014. The Illini used 291 yards rushing to reclaim the Land of Lincoln Trophy and with a 47-33 win over Northwestern in the 2014 regular-season finale. Illinois forced five turnovers - three interceptions and two fumbles - and held the Wildcats to 62 yards in the first half. POST-PRACTICE INTERVIEWS The first 30 minutes of practice are open to media on • Prior to the 2014 win, Illinois’ two previous wins over Northwestern came in incredible fashion.