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was thrust into action in week two of the current season, after graduate transfer A.J. Bush went down with a hamstring injury against Western Illinois. Bush sat out the Illini's nonconference finale last week against South Florida. Rivers filled in, hit- ting 20 of 29 passes for 168 yards, but he wasn't able to engineer a comeback after the Illini surrendered 18 points in the fourth quarter. On the final play of the game from the South Florida 25-yard line, Rivers overthrew Ricky Smalling in the end zone, allowing the Bulls to escape Soldier Field with a 25-19 victory. "He had us in position," Smith said. "The things we need to improve are the things we would be talking about [with any quar- terback] after his first start. You just can't really prepare them for everything that happens over the course of a game. There are so many learning situations in that game for M.J. "But in the end, he had the ball in his hands, we had the ball in our hands with a chance to win the game at the end. In order for that to happen, the quarterback has to make a lot of great decisions throughout that game. That's what M.J. has done. This next step, though, is to clean up some of those things." Smith didn't say whether Bush would re- turn against Penn State. Nor did he elabo- rate on the status of five players who were suspended for the Illini's first three games. Held out for undisclosed violations of team rules, those players included three return- ing starters: safety Bennett Williams, cor- nerback Nate Hobbs and tight end Lou Dorsey. If they're back on the field on Fri- day night – and a report Tuesday in The (Champaign-Urbana) News-Gazette says they will be – Illinois' chances of engi- neering a second consecutive home win over the Lions will rise accordingly. The Illini's secondary has been lit up for an av- erage of 325.3 yards per game through three games, so Williams and Dorsey, who combined to make 17 starts as freshmen last year, would give them a boost where they need it most. Even though this is his first matchup with Penn State since taking over the program two years ago, Smith is well aware of the difficulties that the Nittany Lions pose as he and his team try to break a 12-game Big Ten losing streak. Those difficulties start – but hardly end – with quarterback Trace McSorley. "He's mobile, he's accurate throwing the ball, a good athlete," Smith said. "They have a good stable of running backs, wide- outs, linemen. You just kind of go down the list, and they have good players at most po- sitions. Where we are with our program, we look forward to this challenge." The Illini haven't made the dramatic up- turn that so many Illinois fans have been seeking since Smith's arrival. In their opener, they needed to rally for 28 second- half points to defeat a visiting Kent State team that Penn State demolished 63-10 two weeks later. But there have been signs of progress. A year ago, they surrendered six touchdowns in a 47-23 loss to South Florida, but they were competitive in last week's rematch. They took a 12-point lead into the fourth quarter before the defense buckled, surrendering 199 yards in the final 15 minutes. And now, with Penn State's impending arrival, the Illini will have a chance to shock the world and show to their doubters that the program is headed in the right direc- tion. "We're going to show up excited about seeing exactly how much improvement we can make and how we come back from ad- versity," Smith said. "Usually, that sends you one way or the other. I just know the direction it's going to send us." S E P T E M B E R   1 9 ,   2 0 1 8 B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M 3 NATE BAUER 3-0 | Penn State's high-octane offense is going to be trouble for an Illinois defense that has allowed a 28-points-per-game average against the likes of Kent State, Western Illinois and South Florida leading into Friday night's matchup. And for all of the talk that this oddly scheduled game will generate, the actual on-field impact seems un- likely to be of any real significance. Once again, one-dimensional offenses are catnip to this Penn State defense, which I expect to be the case with the Illini's run-heavy attack. The Nittany Lions will roll through the Illini en route to a prime time matchup of unbeat- ens next weekend at Beaver Stadium. | PENN STATE 56, ILLINOIS 10 PHIL GROSZ 3-0 | Given the success that Penn State enjoyed in nonconference games against Appalachian State, Pitt and Kent State, I'm expecting an offensive explosion for the Nittany Lions against Illinois on Friday night. Illinois' defense ranks 14th in the Big Ten, allowing 480 yards per game. The Fighting Illini are 13th in the league against the pass and 10th against the run. With its balanced offensive attack, Penn State should be able to run up and down the field. | PENN STATE 52, ILLINOIS 17 MATT HERB 3-0 | The Nittany Lions had three touchdowns called back last week against Kent State, so it doesn't feel quite right to say that they've hit their stride. But that game, along with the second halves of the Pitt and App State games, offered an indication of just how potent this group of offensive playmakers can be. The Illini gave up a lot of yards in the nonconference season, and they weren't exactly facing a murder's row. I think the prime time atmospherics might work in their favor on Friday night, and the short practice week probably hinders the home team less than the road team. Also, Illinois has a great kicker, so it will have a good chance to come away with points whenever it gets inside the Lions' 30-yard line. But field goals aren't going to be sufficient against a Penn State team that is adept at scoring touchdowns. It may not be as lopsided as their past two games, but the Lions will leave Champaign with a victory... and with a bit of extra time to prepare for next week's titanic battle with Ohio State. | PENN STATE 45, ILLINOIS 16 TIM OWEN 3-0 | I could see the timing of this out-of-routine Friday night kickoff slightly interrupting PSU's flow, but not enough to knock it off-track. | PENN STATE 48, ILLINOIS 13 RYAN SNYDER 3-0 | The Nittany Lions averaged 53 points during nonconference play, and I expect that scoring binge to continue this weekend. ABer playing Kent State, West- ern Illinois and South Florida, the Illini defense is allowing an average of 480 yards to the opposition. Can Penn State reach 600 yards of offense like it did last weekend? I think it's possible. | PENN STATE 58, ILLINOIS 17 S T A F F P R E D I C T I O N S

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