The Illinois Fighting Illini had something of a party last week after beating Minnesota. The Illini used a late fumble return to beat Minnesota for the first home Big Ten win of the Tim Beckman era and just the second conference win overall during that era (the only other one was against winless Purdue last year). Heck, things went so well for the Illini that Beckman rushed onto the field in celebration at the end of the game while STILL avoiding a sideline interference penalty.
How to watch Illinois vs. Ohio State: Game guide, TV/streaming, odds
Will the Illini bounce-back continue!?(No.)
Trevor Ruszkowski-USA TODAY Sports
Can the Illini hurdle their next obstacle and start a winning streak!? The only correct answer to that question is no, they cannot.
The Illini head to Columbus this week to take on an Ohio State Buckeyes team that had a rough offensive game against Penn State last week, but was still able to take the Nittany Lions down in overtime. Now, the Buckeyes get a nice break (sorry Illini) before a monster game against Michigan State. Maybe Illinois can catch Ohio State sleeping? Don't count on it.
How to watch, listen, and stream
Game time: 8 p.m. ET
TV: ABC
Online streaming: WatchESPN
Our blogs on these schools
The numbers
Rankings and records: Ohio State is 6-1 and the Buckeyes are ranked 13th in both the AP Poll and the Coaches Poll, but No. 16 in the College Football Playoff rankings. Illinois is 4-4 and unranked.
Vegas: Ohio State opened as a 28.5-point favorite and the line has rose to 29 with an over/under of 65, per Odds Shark.
Weather forecast: Cloudy with a chance of rain, a high of 44 and a low of 28.
Two things at stake
Ohio State could use a blowout win in this game to claim that it is among the top 10 teams in the country.
Illinois can’t really expect to win this game, but not getting blown out would be a nice moral victory after last week to show that there might be some hope for this year’s team to win another Big Ten game.
One big matchup
Illinois defense vs. Ohio State offense: For all the perceived struggles Illinois has had on offense, especially since quarterback Wes Lunt went down with an injury, it has actually proven to be somewhat productive at times. The defense is a different story. The unit has a tendency to give up big plays, and the game against Minnesota was in no way a defensive masterpiece.
Even though he struggled a bit against Penn State, J.T. Barrett has been a very solid player for the Buckeyes, and he gets to go against a very bad secondary. Unless Illinois has its best defensive game of the year, this one won't stay close.
Further reading
Read The Champaign Room for more on Illinois and Land-Grant Holy Land for more on Ohio State.
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