CHAMPAIGN, Ill. -- The Illinois football team (1-0, 0-0) will open its conference slate against Indiana (0-0, 0-0) on Friday night at 7 p.m. CT in Bloomington, Indiana. The Illini are coming off a Week 0 win over Wyoming, while the Friday night matchup will be the Hoosiers' season opener.
Running back Chase Brown looks to continue his strong start to the season after running for 151 yards and recording three total touchdowns (two rushing, one receiving) in his team's opener, while quarterback Tommy DeVito will make his first Big Ten start following an impressive and efficient Illini debut on Saturday.
Illinois and Indiana last faced off in 2017, while the matchup will be the first meeting between the teams in Bloomington since 2013.
Kickoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. CT on Friday and will air on FS1, with Tim Brando and Spencer Tillman on the call.
PRESS CONFERENCE
NOTES
ILLINI WIN IN WEEK 0
• Illinois beat Wyoming, 38-6, last week for a Week 0 win in its second straight season. Last season, Illinois beat Nebraska, 30-22, in Week 0.
• The Illini opened the game with a bang with a two-play touchdown drive and never trailed. Chase Brown took his first carry of the season 38 yards up the right sideline before senior Tommy DeVito connected with Brown for a 14-yard TD pass one play later on his first pass attempt as an Illini.
• Illinois allowed just 30 passing yards against Wyoming, its fewest passing yards allowed since Sept. 15, 2012 when the Illini held Charleston Southern to 29 passing yards.
• Illinois has held opponents to 20 points or less in five of its last six games, dating back to Oct. 23, 2021.
• Illinois held the Cowboys to 1-for-12 on third down. Wyoming started the game by going 0-for-11 on third down before picking up a third down in the fourth quarter against the Illini backups.
• Illinois' 477 yards of total offense were the Illini's most under Bret Bielema (most since 490 at Nebraska 11/21/2020).
CHASE BROWN CHASES HISTORY
• Chase Brown surpassed 2,000 career yards in the season opener against Wyoming when he rushed for 151 yards and scored three touchdowns (2 rushing, 1 receiving).
• Brown tied for the national lead in touchdowns during Week 0 with three TDs (Malachi Corley, Western Kentucky and Aidan Robbins, UNLV) and ranked fourth in rushing yards with 151.
• Brown became the 14th 1,000-yard rusher in program history when he broke the 1,000-yard mark in the season finale against Northwestern last year. He finished the season with 1,005 rushing yards on 170 carries (5.9 per carry) and five touchdowns.
• Brown is looking to join an elite group of running backs if he can reach 1,000 yards again in 2022. Only Jim Grabowski and Robert Holcombe have reached 1,000 yards rushing in two seasons for the Fighting Illini.
PALCZEWSKI LEADING ILLINI IN YEAR 6
• Senior offensive lineman Alex Palczewski returns to the Fighting Illini for a sixth season in 2022.
• Following the season-opener vs. Wyoming, the Mount Prospect, Ill., product has now made 53 career starts in the Orange and Blue. His start vs. Wyoming broke a tie with former teammate Vederian Lowe, who is now with the Minnesota Vikings after being selected in the sixth round of the 2021 NFL Draft.
• Palczewski, coming off an honorable mention All-Big Ten (coaches and media) season in 2021, was voted by his teammates as one of four team captains for the 2022 season, returning to the role after also being voted as a team captain in 2019. He helped lead the Fighting Illini to a berth in the Redbox Bowl during his first season as captain.
SERIES vs. INDIANA
Series: 44-24-3
Last: L, 24-14 11/11/2017 at Champaign
Streak: L3
at Indiana: 15-15-3
Bielema vs. Indiana: 7-0
• Illinois leads the all-time series against Indiana 44-24-3.
• Illinois and Indiana are meeting for the second time since 2013 after also meeting in 2017. The four years off ties for the longest break in the series since 1960. The Illini and Hoosiers also had a four-year break from 1991-94.
• Illinois and Indiana were originally scheduled to play Nov. 14, 2020 in Bloomington before COVID-19 altered the schedule and reduced the number of games.
• Illinois fell 24-14 in the teams' last meeting in 2017 in Champaign. Jeff George Jr. connected with Lou Dorsey on a 77-yard touchdown pass in the third quarter, the longest reception in Illinois history by a true freshman.
• In Illinois' last visit to Bloomington in 2013, Illinois had 30 first downs and Nate Scheelhaase threw for a career-high 450 yards but Illinois fell 52-35. Steve Hull had nine receptions for 224 yards, the second most ever by an Illini, and caught touchdowns of 60 and 54 yards. Indiana gained 650 total yards.
• Illinois WR Jonah Morris spent his first two seasons of college football at Indiana. He redshirted in 2016 and played in nine games in 2017, including being named Indiana's Special Teams Player of the Game against Illinois.
• Illinois freshman OL Hunter Whitenack is the Illini's only Indiana native (New Carlisle).
• Illinois offensive quality control staffer Danny Cameron played three seasons at Indiana from 2014-16. His father, Cam Cameron, was Indiana's head coach from 1997-2001.
• Illinois' most receiving yards vs. IND: 224 Steve Hull 11/9/2013
• Illinois' most rushing yards vs. IND: 214 Rashard Mendenhall 9/22/2007
• Illinois' most passing yards vs. IND: 450 Nate Scheelhaase 11/9/2013
• Illinois' longest rush vs. IND: 83 John Karras 10/27/1951, 67 Robert Holcombe 10/5/1996, 67 John Karras 10/28/1950
• Illinois' longest pass vs. IND: 77 Scheelhaase to Jenkins 10/8/2011, 67 Scheelhaase to Jenkins 10/8/2011
• Last 100-yard receiving game vs. IND: Lou Dorsey, 107, 11/11/2017
• Last 100-yard rushing game vs. IND: Donovonn Young, 124, 10/27/2012
• Last 300-yard passing game vs. IND: Nate Scheelhaase, 450, 11/9/2013
