Orange and Blue Spring Game

The spring game is here at last. For the last three years the spring has come and gone, and one thing was constant. Juice Williams was the starter. This year the quarterback position is up in the air giving us a opportunity to watch two guys battle it out for the chance to open the season as "the guy". But what should one hope for when watching a spring game? You would love to be entertained by 30 yard completions and Leshoure runs up the middle for 8 at a time, but what would that mean for your defense? It would be fun to watch Terry Hawethorne take two INT's to the house... but wouldn't that make you feel even more insecure about replacing a four year starter in Juice? The best way to go about it is to break it down into smaller pieces.

Does the offense has a sense of consistancy? It may be a little early to expect these guys to all be on the same page every snap, but what this team has been lacking is the ability to sustain a long drive. The M.O. for this offense has been big play or punt. With the exception of the Rose Bowl season, Ron Zook hasn't had the pieces to make this work. Juice was inconsistant in his passes, and the line couldn't hold up long enough to develop a running game. The defense would just sit back on us and wait to react. This year the throwing arms aren't as strong, and the running game will start with the quarterback behind center as opposed to the shotgun. I would like to see the quarterback hit receivers in stride and let them go to work with the ball in their hands. Paul Petrino always has said his system opperates on one theme, FTS... Feed The Studs.

Does the running game look in sync? Look at the offensive line and see if they are blocking people... I know that sounds simple, but this is a new system on offense, and these guys are learning a new way to open holes for the running back. On top of that, this year's defense is stunting and doing things the offense isn't used to doing in the last few years. Zook has said that his offensive line is lighter this year, so look for them to try and get up field to block.

Are the Defensive backs in the right place? Count the number of times you see a wide receiver wide open and figure out whose man he was. It can be a little confusing, but this new defense will be trying hard to hide their coverage. My hope is that the new style will open up more oppertunities for defensive take aways as well, another area the Illini have been lacking in over the last few seasons.

Overall the Spring game is just a fun day for fans and a good oppertunity to work out a few kinks. People should be careful not to overvalue things like who is with the first and second teams, because there is still a lot of time until the season. The Camp Rantoul scrimmage is a much better barometer of how the team is progressing.