2022 Illinois Fighting Illini football team

The 2022 Illinois Fighting Illini football team was an American football team that represents the University of Illinois in the West Division of the Big Ten Conference during the 2022 NCAA Division I FBS football season. Bret Bielema was in his second season as the team's head coach. The Fighting Illini played home games at Memorial Stadium in Champaign, Illinois.

2022 Illinois Fighting Illini football
ConferenceBig Ten Conference
Record8–5 (5–4 Big Ten)
Head coach
Offensive coordinatorBarry Lunney Jr. (1st season)
Offensive schemeSpread
Defensive coordinatorRyan Walters (2nd season)
Base defense4–3
Home stadiumMemorial Stadium
Seasons
← 2021
2023 →
2022 Big Ten Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team   W   L     W   L  
East Division
No. 3 Michigan xy$^   9 0     13 1  
No. 4 Ohio State ^   8 1     11 2  
No. 7 Penn State   7 2     11 2  
Maryland   4 5     8 5  
Michigan State   3 6     5 7  
Indiana   2 7     4 8  
Rutgers   1 8     4 8  
West Division
Purdue xy   6 3     8 6  
Illinois   5 4     8 5  
Iowa   5 4     8 5  
Minnesota   5 4     9 4  
Wisconsin   4 5     7 6  
Nebraska   3 6     4 8  
Northwestern   1 8     1 11  
Championship: Michigan 43, Purdue 22
  • ^ – College Football Playoff participant
  • $ – Conference champion
  • x – Division champion/co-champions
  • y – Championship game participant
Rankings from AP Poll

Key players included senior quarterback Tommy DeVito and junior running back Chase Brown.

In Week 6, the Fighting Illini became ranked in the Top 25 for the first time since 2011.[1] The Illini clinched a winning season for the first time since that same season.

Schedule

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Illinois announced its 2022 football schedule on January 12, 2022.[2] The 2022 schedule consists of seven home games and five away games in the regular season. The Fighting Illini will host Big Ten foes Iowa, Minnesota, Michigan State, and Purdue and will travel to Indiana, Wisconsin, Nebraska, Michigan and Northwestern.[3] The Fighting Illini will host all three of their non-conference opponents, Wyoming from the Mountain West, Virginia from ACC, and Chattanooga from Division I FCS.

DateTimeOpponentRankSiteTVResultAttendance
August 273:00 p.m.Wyoming*BTNW 38–637,832
September 27:00 p.m.at IndianaFS1L 20–2344,357
September 103:00 p.m.Virginia*
  • Memorial Stadium
  • Champaign, IL
ESPNUW 24–333,669
September 227:30 p.m.No. 10 (FCS) Chattanooga*
  • Memorial Stadium
  • Champaign, IL
BTNW 31–037,579
October 111:00 a.m.at WisconsinBTNW 34–1073,502
October 86:30 p.m.Iowa
  • Memorial Stadium
  • Champaign, IL
BTNW 9–644,910
October 1511:00 a.m.Minnesota No. 24
  • Memorial Stadium
  • Champaign, IL
BTNW 26–1445,683
October 292:30 p.m.at NebraskaNo. 17ABCW 26–986,691
November 53:30 p.m.Michigan StateNo. 16
  • Memorial Stadium
  • Champaign, IL
BTNL 15–2356,092
November 1211:00 a.m.PurdueNo. 21
  • Memorial Stadium
  • Champaign, IL (rivalry)
ESPN2L 24–3145,574
November 1911:00 a.m.at No. 3 MichiganABCL 17–19110,433
November 262:30 p.m.at NorthwesternBTNW 41–325,744
January 2, 202311:00 a.m.vs. No. 22 Mississippi State*ESPN2L 10–1935,797
  • *Non-conference game
  •  Homecoming
  • Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game
  • All times are in Central time

[3]

Game summaries

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Wyoming

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1 2 3 4 Total
Cowboys 3 0 3 0 6
Fighting Illini 7 10 7 14 38

At Indiana

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1 2 3 4 Total
Fighting Illini 7 3 7 3 20
Hoosiers 3 13 0 7 23

Virginia

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1 2 3 4 Total
Cavaliers 3 0 0 0 3
Fighting Illini 14 7 3 0 24

No. 10 (FCS) Chattanooga

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1 2 3 4 Total
No. 10 (FCS) Mocs 0 0 0 0 0
Fighting Illini 10 14 7 0 31

At Wisconsin

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Illinois vs. Wisconsin – Game summary
Quarter 1 2 34Total
Fighting Illini 7 7 17334
Badgers 7 3 0010

at Camp Randall Stadium, Madison, Wisconsin

  • Date: October 1, 2022
  • Game time: 11:00 a.m.
  • Game weather: 58 °F (14 °C) • Wind: NE at 5 miles per hour (8.0 km/h) • Weather: Sunny
  • Game attendance: 73,502
  • Referee: Jerry Servinski
  • TV announcers (BTN): Lisa Byington (play-by-play), Anthony Herron (analyst), Krystle Rich (sideline)
  • [1]
Game information

Iowa

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Iowa at Illinois
1 234Total
Hawkeyes 3 300 6
Fighting Illini 3 303 9
  • Date: October 8
  • Location:
    Memorial Stadium
    Champaign, IL
  • Game start: 6:40 pm CDT
  • Game attendance: 44,910
  • Game weather: 56 °F (13 °C), Sunny, Wind SW 8 mph (13 km/h)
  • Referee: Greg Blum
  • TV announcers (BTN): Cory Provus (play-by-play), Jake Butt (analyst), and Elise Menaker (sideline)
  

Illinois won for the first time in nine tries in the series since the two teams became part of the Big Ten West. It was also former Iowa player and coach Bret Bielema's first game at Illinois against Iowa, as he missed the 2021 meeting due to issues relating to COVID-19.

[4][5]

Statistics IOWA ILL
First downs 13 18
Total yards 221 316
Rushing yards 52 200
Passing yards 169 116
Turnovers 1 3
Time of possession 28:55 31:05
Team Category Player Statistics
Iowa Passing Spencer Petras 18/36, 169 yards, INT
Rushing Leshon Williams 7 carries, 32 yards
Receiving Sam LaPorta 9 receptions, 100 yards
Illinois Passing Artur Sitkowski 13/19, 74 yards, INT
Rushing Chase Brown 31 carries, 146 yards
Receiving Brian Hightower 5 receptions, 68 yards

Minnesota

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1 2 3 4 Total
Golden Gophers 0 7 7 0 14
No. 24 Fighting Illini 7 6 7 6 26

At Nebraska

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No. 17 Illinois Fighting Illini (6–1) vs Nebraska Cornhuskers (3–4) – Game summary
Quarter 1 2 34Total
No. 17 Fighting Illini 6 14 3326
Cornhuskers 3 6 009

at Memorial StadiumLincoln, NE

  • Date: October 29, 2022
  • Game time: 2:30 p.m.
  • Game weather: Sunny, 70 °F (21 °C)
  • Game attendance: 86,691
  • Referee: Greg Blum
  • TV announcers (ABC): Dave Pasch (play-by-play), Dusty Dvoracek (analyst), Tom Luginbill (sideline)
  • Sources:
Game information
First quarter
  • (12:33) ILL – Isaiah Williams 46-yard pass from Tommy DeVito (Drive: 5 plays, 75 yards, 2:27; Illinois 6–0)
  • (1:49) NEB – Timmy Bleekrode 26-yard field goal (Drive: 9 plays, 73 yards, 3:15; Illinois 6–3)
Second quarter
  • (9:38) NEB – Travis Vokolek 56-yard pass from Casey Thompson (Drive: 5 plays, 93 yards, 2:24; Nebraska 9–6)
  • (6:03) ILL – Chase Brown 1-yard run, Caleb Griffin kick (Drive: 2 plays, 11 yards, 0:28; Illinois 13–9)
  • (0:23) ILL – Chase Brown 12-yard pass from Tommy DeVito, Caleb Griffin kick (Drive: 11 plays, 72 yards, 4:08; Illinois 20–9)
Third quarter
  • (3:29) ILL – Caleb Griffin 36-yard field goal (Drive: 13 plays, 70 yards, 7:27; Illinois 23–9)
Fourth quarter
  • (11:12) ILL – Caleb Griffin 41-yard field goal (Drive: 4 plays, 2 yards, 2:00; Illinois 26–9)
Statistics ILL NEB
First downs 18 9
Total yards 367 248
Rushes/yards 48–188 25–60
Passing yards 179 188
Passing: Comp–Att–Int 20–22–0 11–24–3
Time of possession 38:13 21:47
Team Category Player Statistics
Illinois Passing Tommy DeVito 20/22, 179 yards, 2 TD
Rushing Chase Brown 32 carries, 149 yards, TD
Receiving Isaiah Williams 9 receptions, 93 yards, TD
Nebraska Passing Casey Thompson 7/15, 172 yards, TD, 2 INT
Rushing Anthony Grant 12 carries, 61 yards
Receiving Travis Vokolek 1 reception, 56 yards, TD

Michigan State

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Week Nine: Michigan State at No. 16 Illinois– Game summary
Quarter 1 2 34Total
Michigan State 3 6 14023
No. 16 Illinois 7 0 0815

at Memorial StadiumChampaign, IL

  • Date: November 5, 2022
  • Game time: 3:40 p.m.
  • Game weather: 58 °F (14 °C), Cloudy, Wind: SW 30 mph (48 km/h)
  • Game attendance: 56,092
  • Referee: Larry Smith
  • TV announcers (BTN): Cory Provus (play-by-play), Matt Millen (analyst)
  • Sources:
Game information

Purdue

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1 2 3 4 Total
Boilermakers 0 14 7 10 31
No. 21 Fighting Illini 7 7 7 3 24

At No. 3 Michigan

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Illinois at No. 3 Michigan
(rivalry)
1 234Total
Fighting Illini 0 3140 17
No. 3 Wolverines 7 039 19
  • Date: November 19
  • Location: Michigan Stadium
    Ann Arbor, MI
  • Game start: 12:07 p.m. EST
  • Elapsed time: 3:29
  • Game attendance: 110,433
  • Game weather: 25 °F (−4 °C), sunny, SW 15 MPH
  • Referee: Michael Cannon
  • TV announcers (ABC): Sean McDonough, Todd Blackledge, Molly McGrath, and Todd McShay
  • Sources:
Statistics UI No. 3 UM
First downs 20 18
Plays–yards 64–326 74–376
Rushes–yards 34–148 40–168
Passing yards 178 208
Passing: compattint 21–30–0 18–34–0
Time of possession 24:57 35:03
Team Category Player Statistics
Illinois Passing Tommy DeVito 21/30, 178 yards
Rushing Chase Brown 29 carries, 140 yards, 2 TD
Receiving Casey Washington 6 receptions, 53 yards
No. 3 Michigan Passing J. J. McCarthy 18/34, 208 yards
Rushing Blake Corum 18 carries, 108 yards, 1 TD
Receiving Colston Loveland 3 receptions, 50 yards

At Northwestern

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1 2 3 4 Total
Fighting Illini 7 10 17 7 41
Wildcats 0 0 0 3 3

Vs. No. 22 Mississippi State (ReliaQuest Bowl)

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No. 22 Mississippi State Bulldogs vs. Illinois Fighting Illini (ReliaQuest Bowl)
Quarter 1 2 34Total
No. 22 Mississippi State 0 3 01619
Illinois 0 7 3010

at Raymond James StadiumTampa, Florida

Rankings

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Ranking movements
Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking
— = Not ranked RV = Received votes
Week
PollPre1234567891011121314Final
APRV2418171421RVRVRVRVRV
CoachesRVRV20181320RVRVRVRV
CFPNot released1621Not released

Roster

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2022 Illinois Fighting Illini football team roster
Players Coaches
Offense
Pos. # Name Class
RB 0 Josh McCray So
WR 1 Isaiah Williams So
RB 2 Chase Brown Jr
QB 3 Tommy DeVito Sr
WR 4 Khmari Thompson Jr
WR 6 Ashton Hollins Fr
WR 7 Brian Hightower Jr
WR 8 Shawn Miller   Fr
QB 9 Artur Sitkowski Jr
QB 10 Donovan Leary   Fr
QB 11 Jake Huber Fr
WR 11 Jonah Morris Sr
QB 12 Kirkland Michaux Fr
WR 13 Pat Bryant So
WR 14 Casey Washington Jr
QB 15 Jameson Sheehan Fr
QB 17 Ryan Johnson Sr
WR 18 Chase Miller Fr
WR 19 Eian Pugh Fr
TE 20 Naivyan Cargill Fr
RB 21 Aidan Laughery Fr
RB 22 Chase Hayden Sr
RB 23 Reggie Love III So
RB 24 Nick Fedanzo So
RB 25 Jordan Anderson Fr
TE 40 Lucas Althaus Fr
TE 42 Michael Marchese Sr
TE 43 Griffin Moore So
TE 44 Ben Clawson Fr
TE 48 Mike Cernigila Jr So
OL 53 Devin Hale Fr
OL 54 Julian Pearl So
OL 56 Magnus MØller Fr
OL 57 Evan Kirts So
OL 58 Matt Fries Fr
OL 62 Sam Tsagalis Fr
OL 63 Alex Palczewski Sr
OL 64 Josh Kruetz Fr
OL 65 Joey Okla Fr
OL 66 Jordyn Slaughter Jr
OL 68 Zachary Barlev Fr
OL 70 Tommy Cronin So
OL 71 Hunter Whitenack Fr
OL 72 Zy Crisler So
OL 73 Josh Gesky Fr
OL 74 Dylan Davis So
OL 75 Alex Pihlstrom Sr
OL 76 Clayton Leonard Fr
OL 78 Isaiah Adams Jr
OL 79 Luciano Elias Fr
WR 80 Hank Beatty Fr
WR 81 Daniel Edwards Fr
TE 82 Luke Ford Sr
WR 83 Keion Battle Fr
TE 84 Owen Anderson Fr
WR 85 Miles Scott Sr
WR 86 Weston Adams Fr
WR 87 Kody Case Sr
TE 88 Henry Boyer Fr
TE 89 Tip Reiman So
WR Tyler McClure   Fr
Defense
Pos. # Name Class
DB 1 Kionte Curry Fr
DB 2 Matthew Bailey Fr
DB 3 DD Snyder II Fr
DL 4 Johnny Newton So
LB 5 Calvin Hart Jr Jr
DB 6 Terrell Jennings Jr
DB 7 Kendall Smith Sr
LB 8 Tarique Barnes Jr
DB 9 Tyson Rooks Fr
DB 10 Tahveon Nicholson So
DB 12 Elijah Mc-Cantos Fr
DB 14 Xavier Scott Fr
DB 15 Prince Green Fr
DB 16 Peyton Vining Sr
LB 17 Gabe Jacas Fr
DB 20 Tyler Strain Fr
DB 21 Quan Martin Sr
DL 23 Terah Edwards Fr
LB 25 Jared Badie Fr
DB 26 Mike Manning So
DB 27 Matt Bobak Fr
LB 28 Dylan Rosiek Fr
DB 29 TJ Griffin Fr
DB 30 Sydney Brown Sr
DB 31 Devon Witherspoon Jr
DB 32 Tailon Leitzsey Sr
LB 33 Ezekiel Holmes   Jr
LB 34 Ryan Meed So
DB 35 Grayson Griffin   Fr
LB 36 Ben Schultz So
DB 37 Solo Turner So
LB 38 Isaac Darkangelo Sr
LB 39 Kenenna Odeluga Fr
LB 40 Shammond Cooper So
LB 41 James Kruetz Fr
LB 42 Luke Zardzin Fr
LB 45 Malachi Hood Fr
LB 48 Bryce Barnes Jr
LB 49 Seth Coleman So
DL 52 Verdis Brown Jr
DL 55 Sed McConnell Fr
DL 57 Evan Kirts So
DL 88 Keith Randolph Jr. So
LB 90 Alec Bryant Fr
DL 91 Jamal Woods Sr
DL 93 Calvin Avery Sr
DL 94 Raashaan Wilkins Jr Jr
LB 98 Deon Pate Sr
DL 99 Christian Lorenzo Sr
Special teams
Pos. # Name Class
K 5 Caleb Griffin Jr
K 16 Will McManus Fr
K, P 98 Fabrizio Pinton Fr
P 19 Hugh Robertson Fr
P 96 Josh Leff Fr
LS 36 Lane Hansen Fr
LS 39 Aidan Hall So
LS 47 Preston Engel Jr
LS 95 Nico Crawford Fr


Head coach
Coordinators/assistant coaches
  • Barry Lunney Jr.Offensive Coordinator / Quarterbacks
  • Ryan WaltersDefensive Coordinator
  • Ben MillerSpecial Teams Coordinator/Tight Ends
  • Cory Patterson – Running Backs
  • Terrance JamisonDefensive Line
  • George McDonaldWide Receivers / Assistant HC
  • Aaron Henry – Defensive Backs
  • Bart Miller – Offensive Line
  • Andy Buh – Linebackers
  • Kevin KaneOutside linebackers / Associate HC
  • Sean Snyder - Special Teams/Specialists

Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  •   Injured
  •   Redshirt

Roster
Last update: September 21, 2021

Coaching staff

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Name Position Consecutive season at
Illinois in current position
Bret Bielema Head coach 2nd
Ryan Walters Defensive coordinator 2nd
Barry Lunney Jr. Offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach 1st
George McDonald Wide receivers Coach / assistant head coach 2nd
Kevin Kane Outside linebackers Coach / associate head coach 2nd
Bart Miller Offensive line coach 2nd
Andy Buh Linebackers coach 2nd
Terrance Jamison Defensive line coach 2nd
Aaron Henry Defensive backs coach 2nd
Ben Miller Tight ends coach/special teams coordinator 2nd
Cory Patterson Running backs coach 5th

References

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  1. ^ "Illinois Football Ranked in the AP Top 25". University of Illinois Athletics. October 9, 2022. Retrieved September 8, 2024.
  2. ^ "Illinois & Northwestern get their football schedules shuffled for 2022". Retrieved February 4, 2022.
  3. ^ a b "2022 Illinois Football Schedule". Retrieved February 4, 2022.
  4. ^ "Iowa Visits Illinois In Battle Of Big Ten West Contenders". Associated Press. October 6, 2022. Retrieved October 8, 2022.
  5. ^ "Backup kicker's field goal lifts Illini to 9-6 win over Iowa". Associated Press. October 8, 2022. Retrieved October 9, 2022.