Tim Lane and the Orange visit Illinois on Sept. 16
Countdown to Kickoff: Battle of the Orange and Blue
8/18/2006 4:05:00 PM | Football
GAME 3: at Illinois
Saturday, September 16, 2006-12:00 p.m.
Memorial Stadium, Champaign, Ill.
| ABOUT ILLINOIS... |
| Location: Champaign-Urbana, Ill. |
| Enrollment: 38,000 |
| Nickname: Fighting Illini |
| Colors: Orange & Blue |
| Conference: Big Ten |
| Stadium (Capacity): Memorial Stadium (69,249) |
| Athletics Director: Ron Guenther |
| Starters Returning/Lost: 21/3 |
| Lettermen Returning/Lost: 44/18 |
| Check It Out ... Prominent Illinois Alumni
Jerry Colangelo (Owner, Arizona Diamondbacks;Chairman, USA Basketball), Roger Ebert (film critic), Hugh Hefner (founder, Playboy), Ang Lee (Director), Dick Butkus (Football Hall of Famer), Red Grange (Football Hall of Famer), Shel Silverstein (author and poet), Ray Nitschke (Football Hall of Famer), Jeff George (former NFL QB), Gene Hackman (actor), Gene Shalit (film critic), Lou Boudreau (Baseball Hall of Famer).
Illini Geniuses
Illinois alumni include 16 Pulitzer Prize winners and 10 Nobel Prize winners. Gridiron Rivalries
The Illini battle for three regular season trophies: The Illibuck (Ohio State), The Tomahawk (Northwestern), and The Cannon (Purdue). The Illibuck is a wooden turtle that symbolizes an actual turtle that was passed between the two schools for the first three years of the rivalry before it died.
The Mascot
Chief Illiniwek has been performing at Illinois home games since 1926. The Chief has been portrayed by 36 different students at Illinois and has worn an authentic costume since 1929.
Social Life
Illinois has the largest Greek system in the world with 45 fraternities and 20 sororities.
NFL Illini
Simeon Rice, DE, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Neil Rackers, K, Arizona Cardinals
Eugene Wilson, S, New England Patriots
Brandon Lloyd, WR, Washington Redskins
Fred Wakefield, OG, Arizona Cardinals
Brandon Moore, OG, New York Jets
Greg Lewis, WR, Philadelphia Eagles
Dave Diehl, OG, New York Giants
Jameel Cook, FB, Tampa Bay Buucaneers
Kelvin Hayden, CB, Indianapolis Colts
Brad Hopkins, OT, Tennessee Titans
Kurt Kittner, QB, Chicago Bears |
The Orange hits the road again for its third game of the season to face the Illinois Fighting Illini on September 16 at noon. The two teams first met in 1909 and the Illini leads the all-time series 9-1. Syracuse and Illinois have not met on the gridiron since 1982.
In 15 days, Syracuse will take the field. Visit suathletics.com regularly for 'Countdown to Kickoff' to get an inside look at the 2006 season as the excitement builds. Season and individual game tickets are available via the internet and at the Carrier Dome Box Office (1-888-DOMETIX). To purchase tickets via the internet, click here.
Studying Illinois
Head Coach
Ron Zook is in his second season at Illinois. He came to Illinois last season after three years as the head coach at Florida. Zook is a defensive specialist, working throughout his career primarily with defensive backs. He has served as an assistant coach with Florida, Ohio State, Virginia Tech, Tennessee, Cincinnati and in the NFL with New Orleans, Kansas City and Pittsburgh. Zook was a three-year letter winning defensive back at Miami of Ohio (1973-75).
2005 Record
2-9 / 0-8 Big Ten (11th Place)
2006 Fighting Illini
OFFENSE
The Illini return 10 players on offense, with tight end Melvin Bryant the only player lost. Senior quarterback Tim Brasic returns for his second 
season as the starter. Brasic completed 61.1% of his passes last season for 1,979 yards, 11 touchdowns and 11 interceptions. He was also the team’s second-leading rusher with 420 yards and three scores. Joining Brasic in the backfield are senior running backs Pierre Thomas and E.B. Halsey. Thomas rushed for 664 yards and five touchdowns and was 10th in the conference in all purpose yards (122.7/game). Halsey gained 349 yards on the ground and was the team’s leading receiver with 38 receptions. Sophomore wide receiver Kyle Hudson caught 31 passes for a team-high 469 yards as a true freshman in 2005. The Illini didn’t have a receiver who averaged more than 45 yards per game last season. Junior placekicker Jason Reda made 13-of-20 field goals (65.0%) and was a perfect 20-of-20 on extra points last year.
season as the starter. Brasic completed 61.1% of his passes last season for 1,979 yards, 11 touchdowns and 11 interceptions. He was also the team’s second-leading rusher with 420 yards and three scores. Joining Brasic in the backfield are senior running backs Pierre Thomas and E.B. Halsey. Thomas rushed for 664 yards and five touchdowns and was 10th in the conference in all purpose yards (122.7/game). Halsey gained 349 yards on the ground and was the team’s leading receiver with 38 receptions. Sophomore wide receiver Kyle Hudson caught 31 passes for a team-high 469 yards as a true freshman in 2005. The Illini didn’t have a receiver who averaged more than 45 yards per game last season. Junior placekicker Jason Reda made 13-of-20 field goals (65.0%) and was a perfect 20-of-20 on extra points last year. DEFENSE
Like on offense, the Illini return 10 starters from last year’s defensive unit. Junior safety Kevin Mitchell is the team’s top-returning tackler (78). He is joined in the defensive backfield by junior safety Justin Harrison and senior cornerbacks Sharriff Abdullah and Alan Ball. Ball and Harrison each had an interception in 2005. The linebacking corps features two sophomores and 
a junior, but all three saw action in every game last season. Junior J Leman started every game and was Illinois’ second-leading tackler (67). Sophomores Sam Carson and Brit Miller combined for six starts and 66 tackles. Junior defensive tackle Chris Norwell led Illinois with three sacks last season.
a junior, but all three saw action in every game last season. Junior J Leman started every game and was Illinois’ second-leading tackler (67). Sophomores Sam Carson and Brit Miller combined for six starts and 66 tackles. Junior defensive tackle Chris Norwell led Illinois with three sacks last season. 2005 Review
The Illini opened the 2005 campaign with wins over Rutgers and San Jose State, but lost the remaining nine games. In their nine loses, the Illini scored over 21 points just once and were held under seven three times. Illinois ranked 10th in both total offense and total defense in the Big Ten. The Illini averaged just 17 points a game while allowing nearly 40. Their defense allowed 234 yards on the ground and compiled 11 sacks and eight turnovers all season.
| 2006 Illinois Schedule |
| 9/2 | EASTERN ILLINOIS |
| 9/9 | at Rutgers |
| 9/16 | SYRACUSE |
| 9/23 | IOWA |
| 9/30 | at Michigan State |
| 10/7 | INDIANA |
| 10/14 | CENTRAL MICHIGAN |
| 10/21 | at Penn State |
| 10/28 | at Wisconsin |
| 11/4 | OHIO STATE |
| 11/11 | PURDUE |
| 11/18 | at Northwestern |
Highlights | Women's Lacrosse vs. Duke
Saturday, April 04
Regy Thorpe Postgame Press Conference | vs. Duke
Saturday, April 04
Syracuse Softball Highlights vs. Pittsburgh 4/4/26
Saturday, April 04
MLAX | Postgame Press Conference at North Carolina
Saturday, April 04
