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2020 ALL-BIG TEN FOOTBALL FIRST TEAM (COACHES): OG Kendrick Green, Illinois,...Illinois' first offensive player to earn First Team All-Big Ten since WR A.J. Jenkins in 2011...Illinois' first offensive lineman to earn First Team All-Big Ten since Martin O'Donnell in 2007...Second career All-Big Ten honor (2019 honorable mention)...Moved from guard to center for two games while starting center Doug Kramer was sidelined. - Illinois Football

(DS#7 OG) rJr/2021

OG *Kendrick Green, Illinois
News Source: Illinois Football
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12/15/20 - Mike Epstein, rSr/2022, Illinois, 5-11, 205 (DS#999 RB) + More +

2020 ALL-BIG TEN FOOTBALL HONORABLE MENTION (COACHES): Mike Epstein,...First career All-Big Ten honor...360 rushing yards on 61 carries and four touchdowns this season...Fifth in the Big Ten in yards per carry (5.9)...Tied career-high 113 rushing yards at Nebraska 11/21/20...Scored a touchdown in four consecutive games...Scored his first touchdown since Rutgers 10/5/18 against Purdue 10/31/20...Mayo Clinic Comeback Player of the Year watch list. - Illinois Football

(DS#999 RB) rSr/2022

RB Mike Epstein, Illinois
News Source: Illinois Football
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12/15/20 - Chase Brown, Sr/2023, Illinois, 5-10, 209 (DS#10 RB) + More +

2020 ALL-BIG TEN FOOTBALL HONORABLE MENTION (COACHES): Chase Brown,...First career All-Big Ten honor...91 carries for 510 yards and two touchdowns and five receptions for 30 yards...Fourth in the Big Ten in rushing yards (510)...Eighth in the Big Ten in yards per carry (5.5)...Ran for a career-high 131 yards on 17 carries at Rutgers 11/14/20...Scored his first career touchdown and added another at Nebraska 11/21/20...Ran the ball for 100+ yards in back-to-back games (at Rutgers11/14/20 and at Nebraska 11/21/20)...Carried the ball 11 times for 73 yards in his first start for Illinois against Purdue 10/31/20. - Illinois Football

(DS#10 RB) Sr/2023

RB Chase Brown, Illinois
News Source: Illinois Football
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12/15/20 - Vederian Lowe, rSr/2022, Illinois, 6-5, 310 (DS#22 OT) + More +

2020 ALL-BIG TEN FOOTBALL HONORABLE MENTION (COACHES): Vederian Lowe,...Five Illini offensive players were named All-Big Ten honorees, the conference announced Tuesday. OL Kendrick Green was a consensus First Team All-Big Ten selection, while RB Chase Brown earned Third Team All-Big Ten by the media and honorable mention by the league's coaches. RB Mike Epstein, C Doug Kramer and LT Vederian Lowe were named All-Big Ten honorable mention by the coaches and media. First career All-Big Ten honor...Has made 33 straight starts for Lowe. - Illinois Football

(DS#22 OT) rSr/2022

OT Vederian Lowe, Illinois
News Source: Illinois Football
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12/15/20 - Doug Kramer, rSr/2022, Illinois, 6-2, 299 (DS#9 C) + More +

2020 ALL-BIG TEN FOOTBALL HONORABLE MENTION (COACHES): Doug Kramer,...Second Career All-Big Ten honor (2019 honorable mention)...Voted a captain by the team for second consecutive year...Wuerffel Award watch list...Rimington Trophy watch list. - Illinois Football

(DS#9 C) rSr/2022

C Doug Kramer, Illinois
News Source: Illinois Football
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12/13/20 - Brandon Peters, rSr/2022, Illinois, 6-5, 228 (DS#15 QB) + More +

Illinois fired coach Lovie Smith on Sunday with one game left in its ninth consecutive losing season. Smith became Illinois' first Black head football coach when he was hired by athletic director Josh Whitman in March 2016. The longtime NFL coach went 17-39 in five seasons at the school. Smith's original deal was for six years and $21 million, but he received a two-year extension through 2023 after Illinois went 4-8 in his third season. The Illini made one postseason appearance under Smith, losing 35-20 to California in the Redbox Bowl in 2019.

They were 6-4 last season after a thrilling comeback victory at Michigan State, but then dropped their last three games. The slide continued into this year, with Illinois losing its first three by a combined 117-45 score. It is 2-5 after it was pushed around in a 28-10 loss at Northwestern on Saturday, allowing 411 yards rushing in its sixth straight loss in the series against the in-state Wildcats. Whitman said Smith will not coach the team's final game of the season. - AP College Football

(DS#15 QB) rSr/2022

QB Brandon Peters, Illinois
News Source: AP College Football
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12/11/20 - Tarique Barnes, rSr/2024, Illinois, 6-1, 231 (DS#46 ILB) + More +

Leading into its Nov. 21 game at Nebraska, Illinois football's defense may have had its healthiest group of contributors available since before the 2020 season began. Defensive tackle Jamal Woods made his return from a two-game absence. Linebacker Milo Eifler and defensive lineman Keith Randolph Jr. still were sidelined, but coach Lovie Smith could rely on a steady stream of veteran playmakers. That showed when the Illini blew past the Cornhuskers 41-23 and forced five turnovers. But that victory also included a new crack to Illinois' health. Linebacker Tarique Barnes, who himself was an injury replacement for starter Jake Hansen after Hansen suffered a concussion during the Illini's 45-7 loss at Wisconsin on Oct. 23, suffered what Smith later said was a season-ending injury. - News Gazette Tribune

(DS#46 ILB) rSr/2024

ILB Tarique Barnes, Illinois
News Source: News Gazette Tribune
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12/10/20 - Jake Hansen, rSr/2022, Illinois, 6-1, 239 (DS#14 ILB) + More +

There's a science to the way Jake Hansen approaches forcing fumbles, one he's apparently mastered. The Illinois linebacker doesn't frantically flail at the football, simply hoping he will jar it out of the defender's hands. He's methodical. When he hopped on the back of former Wisconsin running back Jonathan Taylor last season to force the ball free at a crucial moment in what turned out to be an upset of the then-No. 6 Badgers? That was something he noticed in film. There's a method to his madness and it's translated to 10 career forced fumbles, which is tied for third in program history behind Simeon Rice (13) and Whitney Mercilus (11). In the last two seasons, Hansen has been involved in 14 total takeaways, which is five more than his closest competition.

"I don't know a lot of guys who can strip the ball away (10) times in his career," linebacker Milo Eifler said. "He's been doing that for a long time. For him it's muscle memory...To play with somebody that special and that dedicated to stripping the ball, it helps our defense that much more." Hansen is 13th in the Big Ten with 51 tackles, 11th in tackles for a loss (6.5), tied for second in forced fumbles (2), fumbles recovered (2) and tied for fourth in interceptions (2). He and Syracuse linebacker Mikel Jones are the only two linebackers in the nation with multiple interceptions, forced fumbles, and fumble recoveries in 2020. - Herald-Review Times

(DS#14 ILB) rSr/2022

ILB Jake Hansen, Illinois
News Source: Herald-Review Times
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12/10/20 - Tommy DeVito, rSr/2023, Illinois, 6-1, 210 (DS#18 QB) + More +

Quarterback Tommy DeVito will return to Syracuse for the 2021 season, his father told syracuse.com Monday morning. "We want to finish what we started here because it feels like we never got started," DeVito's father, Tom, said. "Tommy's not going anywhere. Tommy's committed. He's staying." It quiets speculation DeVito will seek a transfer and leave the program with two years of eligibility remaining. DeVito has been the team's starting quarterback each of the past two seasons. He injured his ankle late in SU's 38-24 loss to Duke on Oct. 10 and missed the team's final seven games as SU finished 1-10. It did not win a game after DeVito's season-ending injury. - The Post-Standard

(DS#18 QB) rSr/2023

QB Tommy DeVito, Illinois
News Source: The Post-Standard
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12/03/20 - Mike Epstein, rSr/2022, Illinois, 5-11, 205 (DS#999 RB) + More +

Illinois running back Mike Epstein is one of 42 college football players on the Mayo Clinic Comeback Player of the Year Award's revised watch list, which was released Tuesday. Epstein, a junior, suffered a season-ending knee injury in last year's opener against Akron and, coming into the 2020 campaign, last scored a touchdown on Oct. 5, 2018, against Rutgers. Epstein and sophomore running back Chase Brown have formed a potent dual threat in the Illini backfield this year, with Epstein compiling 338 rushing yards and a team-high four rushing touchdowns through five games. Epstein also has a pair of 100-yard rushing performances to his name this year. - News Gazette Tribune

(DS#999 RB) rSr/2022

RB Mike Epstein, Illinois
News Source: News Gazette Tribune
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12/03/20 - Mike Epstein, rSr/2022, Illinois, 5-11, 205 (DS#999 RB) + More +

Peters has had a particularly tough run of the season. He missed three games with a positive COVID test, returned for a blowout win against Nebraska on Nov. 21 and must wait until Saturday's home game against No. 24 Iowa to take the field again. That means, if he plays each of the remaining three games, Peters will have played five games in his senior season - with the possibility of a bowl game making it six. All college football teams are eligible for bowl games this year. Playing just two games by the time the calendar flipped to December isn't exactly what he anticipated going into his senior season.

"It's really hard," Peters said. "You've got to understand circumstances and why these things are happening but at the same time it takes a toll on you mentally a little bit. It is frustrating because you want to be out there every Saturday. This is the first season something like this has happened where the game can be taken from you in an instant and unexpectedly. "Mentally, it's challenging, especially when you prepare all week and you feel like everybody is ready for the game, you have a lot of momentum and stuff like that. It's tough, but at the same time you've got to lock in and keep rolling with the punches." - Herald-Review Times

(DS#999 RB) rSr/2022

RB Mike Epstein, Illinois
News Source: Herald-Review Times
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12/01/20 - Alex Palczewski, rSr/2023, Illinois, 6-7, 303 (DS#20 OT) + More +

Illinois football has lost a pair of key players for the remainder of its 2020 campaign, as coach Lovie Smith announced Monday that both Alex Palczewski and Tarique Barnes recently underwent season-ending surgery. The senior offensive lineman Palczewski suffered a right leg injury early in the Nov. 14 Illini win at Rutgers and was replaced by Danville product Julian Pearl, who started the Nov. 21 victory over Nebraska. Palczewski had started 40 consecutive games, the last of which was in New Jersey. "When you lose player like that, it hurts an awful lot," Smith said. "He checks every box...He'll be around in a different way." - News Gazette Tribune

(DS#20 OT) rSr/2023

OT Alex Palczewski, Illinois
News Source: News Gazette Tribune
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11/27/20 - Brandon Peters, rSr/2022, Illinois, 6-5, 228 (DS#15 QB) + More +

Brandon Peters could not avoid the question. In fact, it was the first one asked of the Illinois senior quarterback on Monday afternoon. Does possessing an bachelor's degree from the University of Michigan make Saturday's 11 a.m. kickoff between the Illini (2-3) and No. 3 Ohio State (4-0) - the Wolverines' main rival - more meaningful to Peters? "For me, it's another game," said Peters, who transferred from Michigan to Illinois ahead of the 2019 season. "So being at Illinois now, it's obviously not a huge rivalry. But it's a huge game for Illinois this week, so we've got to treat it that way."

It's a spot for the Illini's current momentum, built by way of the last two weeks' road wins against Rutgers and Nebraska, to shoot into the stratosphere. The Buckeyes have won the last nine games with Illinois, though the Illini's last victory versus Ohio State came when the Buckeyes were ranked No. 1 in the nation in 2007. Peters should play a sizeable role in any success Illinois experiences this weekend at Memorial Stadium. His return last Saturday from a three-week absence necessitated by a positive COVID-19 test saw Peters connect on 18 of 25 passes for 205 yards and a touchdown while rushing for another score as the Illini put up more than 40 points in a Big Ten game for only the second time in the last five seasons. "As far as completion percentage goes and execution," Peters said, "it was definitely, by far, my best game that I've played." - News Gazette Tribune

(DS#15 QB) rSr/2022

QB Brandon Peters, Illinois
News Source: News Gazette Tribune
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11/24/20 - Brandon Peters, rSr/2022, Illinois, 6-5, 228 (DS#15 QB) + More +

The quarterback showed little rust after missing three consecutive games following a positive COVID-19 test. Instead, the senior left no doubt that the Illini offense still runs through him by leading it to nearly 500 yards while expertly controlling the tempo. He threw for 205 of those yards and contributed two total touchdowns. - News Gazette Tribune

(DS#15 QB) rSr/2022

QB Brandon Peters, Illinois
News Source: News Gazette Tribune
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11/21/20 - Jake Hansen, rSr/2022, Illinois, 6-1, 239 (DS#14 ILB) + More +

Lovie Smith didn't move Jake Hansen from inside linebacker to outside linebacker because of any shortcomings on Hansen's part. Even with his appearance in the season opener against Wisconsin shortened by injury, Hansen compiled 22 tackles, three tackles for loss, two forced fumbles and a fumble recovery as an inside linebacker during Illinois football's first three games of 2020. Yet Hansen was told he'd be deployed differently in preparation for last week's game at Rutgers. The result? More dominance from the 6-foot-1, 230-pound senior. Specifically 15 tackles, one tackle for loss, one sack, one pass breakup and one interception in the Illini's 23-20 victory over the Scarlet Knights.

"It's kind of a natural transition just because I played it all last year," said Hansen, whose 10 career forced fumbles have him tied him for third in Illinois history. "Just having a good knowledge of the defense helps that out as well." Smith said after Saturday's win and reiterated the point again on Monday afternoon ahead of this Saturday's 11 a.m. game between Illinois (1-3) and host Nebraska (1-2) that Hansen changed positions in order to give sophomore Tarique Barnes more repetitions. - News Gazette Tribune

(DS#14 ILB) rSr/2022

ILB Jake Hansen, Illinois
News Source: News Gazette Tribune
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