Oregon (4-2, 2-1 Big Ten) at Illinois (3-3, 1-2 Big Ten). Saturday, Oct. 24, 2 p.m. CT / 3 p.m. ET, Gies Memorial Stadium, Champaign, Ill., Big Ten Network.
Your hosts are Nix Wyatt-Aldana, a Eugene sneaker-and-uniform designer who reviews jerseys and route trees with equal ferocity, and Margery Vandermolen, a prairie-state numbers whiz who explains football like a beloved teacher, with charts.
Nix: Margery, your orange is gorgeous this time of year. Illini uniforms get a sincere nine. The tenth point is reserved for us.
Margery: That's very generous, dear. It's on the chart. The chart is orange. Oskee-wow-wow!
Players to watch
Illinois wide receiver Collin Dixon has 47 catches for 608 yards and nine touchdowns, third in FBS in receiving touchdowns. Running back Aidan Laughery has 391 yards. Linebacker James Kreutz has 34 tackles. Defensive back Matthew Bailey returned an interception 88 yards for a touchdown.
Oregon running back Jordon Davison has 301 yards and six touchdowns. Linebacker Matayo Uiagalelei has five sacks. Defensive back Koi Perich has 34 tackles and two interceptions. Oregon allows just 3.25 yards per carry.
Margery: Nine receiving touchdowns. Class, please take a moment to admire that number.
What happened last week
Oregon beat Nebraska 17-14. Dylan Raiola came in against his former team with Oregon down 14-6. He threw the winning 4-yard touchdown to tight end Jamari Johnson with 28 seconds left. Brock Thomas started and went 9 of 20 for 54 yards.
Illinois had a bye after a 38-37 overtime win at Michigan State on Oct. 10. In that game, freshman Michael Clayton II came off the bench, threw two touchdowns and led the comeback.
Nix: Raiola against his old team, last-minute winner. That's a ten-out-of-ten fit.
Injuries and availability
The official Big Ten report for this game has not been published yet, and both quarterback rooms are worth watching when it posts. Illinois quarterback Katin Houser has 1,440 yards and 12 touchdowns this season, and Clayton is the freshman who led the comeback at Michigan State. Oregon quarterback Dante Moore hasn't played since his fourth game.
Margery: Two quarterback rooms, two question marks. I've drawn a chart with a lot of empty boxes, dear.
Nix: Empty boxes are just blank sneakers, Margery. Somebody's about to design something.
What the coaches are up to
Dan Lanning said Raiola and Thomas will keep competing in practice. His 2024 team went 9-0 in the Big Ten and won the title.
Bret Bielema, an Illinois native, became the program's 26th head coach in December 2020 and said, "Illinois and the Big Ten is home for me". Whoever takes the snaps will face a defense with nine interceptions.
Player storylines
Before his injury, Moore went 69 of 99 for 926 yards, nine touchdowns and no interceptions. Raiola has 515 yards and six touchdowns this season. Whoever starts, Illinois allows 248.3 passing yards per game. For Illinois, the question is how calm the quarterback can be, with help from a run game that averages 5.06 yards per carry.
What's happening on campus
It's Military Appreciation and Foundation Weekend at Gies Memorial Stadium. This is only Oregon's third visit to Illinois, and the first since 1993.
Anything else fun and true
Oregon leads the series 3-1 and won 38-9 in 2024. Illinois's lone win was 20-16 in 1970. Red Grange scored six touchdowns against Michigan on Oct. 18, 1924, four in the first 12 minutes. In 2021, Bielema's Illini won at Penn State in nine overtimes, the longest game in college football history. Oregon's first Heisman winner was Marcus Mariota in 2014.
Margery: Nine overtimes. I made a chart. It's very long. It folds out like a road map, and it still doesn't fit on the refrigerator.
Nix: Ten out of ten for stamina, Margery.
The Cover Window
My call: Oregon Ducks 33, Illinois Fighting Illini 23.