For those of you who can’t get enough Illini football pre-season analysis, this item will probably be redundant, but for the rest of you who don’t want to be caught off-guard by office conversations revolving around Juice and Zook and the like, here are some links to several reputable season previews:
- Sporting News thinks the Illini will definitely be back in a January bowl.
- ESPN (need to be an Insider) gives the defense and intangibles high marks.
- FanIQ thinks the season hinges on Juice.
- Deadspin would be happy with a trip to the Motor City Bowl.
- FOX Sports says Zook is trying to prevent the Illini from making any assumptions about the season.
- USA Today is pretty circumspect, but they leave open the possibility that Illinois could be better this season than last.
It seems like most prognosticators have the Illini slated somewhere between #10 and #30 in the Football Bowl Subdivision (rolls off the tongue, doesn’t it?). What do you think about their chances? Will they continue their improvement, take a step backward or stay put?