‘We can’t give away two quarters of football’: behind Illinois’ second half adjustments against Western Michigan

As Illinois made its way back into the locker room at halftime with a 10-0 lead over Western Michigan, head coach Bret Bielema’s frustration had boiled over. Bielema slapped his board in frustration; his hand became numb to the point where he thinks he’ll need to get it checked out.

Illinois had made too many mistakes in the first half.

“I can’t repeat what I said at halftime. I was probably as spirited as I’ve ever been since I’ve been head coach here at Illinois,” Bielema said after the game. “I know what this team is probably capable of doing.”

By no means is a 38-0 win over Western Michigan a blemish on Illinois’ resume. But perfect football, or as close as the program can get to it, will be paramount as Illinois approaches more daunting tasks ahead. None bigger in the immediate future than next week’s game at No. 22 Indiana.

“It’s infuriating when we’re not at the ability or putting ourselves in the position to win football games,” Bielema said. “We can’t give away two quarters of football and expect to be in the contest at the end.”

Entering their first sell-out crowd of the season on Saturday night, Illinois was expected to wipe the floor with a middling MAC program in Western Michigan. Still, for the second week in a row, Illinois had failed to dominate for four quarters in the way top 10-ranked teams should dominate against inferior opponents.

“A whole lot of frustration, because we knew that wasn’t us. We respected what they were doing, but we weren’t really unified,” quarterback Luke Altmyer said. “To play good football, all 11 guys have to be doing the right thing, and there were too many times where that didn’t happen.“

Illinois’ offense stalled in the first half, the offensive line allowed two sacks, and Altmyer could not quite get in rhythm with his weapons as running backs Kaden Feagin and Ca’Lil Valentine struggled to establish the run, only averaging 3.1 yards per carry, combining for 47 yards in the first half.

“I think sometimes we can overthink the moment,” Bielema said. “I want these problems proactively solved, not reactively solved on the field.”

Bielema’s halftime theatrics were well received. The offense seemingly woke up in the second half and tore through Western Michigan’s defense. Illinois drove 53 yards through just over two minutes to go up 17-0 early in the third quarter. A drive that instilled confidence and rhythm back into the arms of Altmyer.

“We were all just kind of chilling, and we heard a loud bang. That’s what we needed, somebody to come up and get us going as an offense,” Feagin said. “I think that helped us get our energy up.”

Illinois, however, for the second straight week, displayed riveting offense in the second half. A stark contrast to a failed third-and-one conversion that resulted in offensive coordinator Barry Lunney Jr. getting a talking to.

“Barry pops a call, I got after his ass for a little bit,” Bielema said. “I think we did a nice job at adjusting and making corrections in the second half and obviously the results showed.”

The most significant change entering the second half of Saturday’s game was the return of the up-tempo and Russ-Pass option offense. It’s a style of play Altmyer thrives in and a style that has made players like former Illinois wide receivers Pat Bryant and Zakhari Franklin shine.

“That’s kind of how I grew up playing this game, I think I’m very comfortable doing it, playing backyard football and playing really fast,” Altmyer said. “It’s so good because defenses can’t communicate a whole lot.”

Up-tempo offense has also seen receiver Hank Beatty become the primary beneficiary this season. Beatty finished Saturday’s game with 53 yards and a touchdown. Another key player that emerged on Saturday was wide receiver Ashton Hollins, who had the longest reception of the day with a 35-yard catch and a subsequent 6-yard touchdown grab.

Illinois will have to address its first-half stumbles in a hurry as it looks to turn the page to a top-25 matchup in Bloomington, Indiana, on primetime on national television.

“I have confidence, I know I have the best group of coaches I’ve ever had, I know I have the deepest roster I have ever had,” Bielema said. “We have a lot of good players all around, we just have to put them in the right positions.”

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