Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/592872
P R E G A M E R E P O R T I L L I N O I S @ P E N N S T A T E N O O N , O C T . 3 1 E S P N 2 ILLINOIS FACTS COACH Bill Cubit (Delaware, '75) COACH'S RECORD 4-3 as in- terim head coach; career record of 89-68 in 14 seasons with stops at Western Michigan and Division III Widener 2015 RECORD 4-3, 1-2 Big Ten Conference - West RECORD VS. PSU The Nittany Lions lead the all-time series, 17- 5, including an 8-1 mark in Beaver Stadium. MOST RECENT MEETING Penn State held a 14-10 fourth-quarter lead before Illinois kicker David Reisner connected on a pair of field goals, including the game- winner with only eight seconds left. That gave the Illini a 16-14 vic- tory inside Memorial Stadium on Nov. 22, 2014. GOOD NEWS Illinois is tied for fourth in the Football Bowl Subdivision with three blocked kicks this season. The Fighting Illini have blocked two punts, returning both for touchdowns, and one field goal. BAD NEWS Averaging just 125.7 rushing yards per game and 3.8 yards a carry, Illinois has the least-effective rushing attack in the Big Ten. DID YOU KNOW? On Oct. 15, Penn State's grounds crew replaced the Beaver Sta- dium turf with a new Kentucky bluegrass surface. This will be the first time since October 2005 that PSU plays on new grass. Grown on Tuckahoe Turf Farms in Ham- monton, N.J., approximately 70,000 square feet of sod was used to complete the stadium playing surface and the nursery on campus. | CLOSING TIME Anthony Zettel pressures Wes Lunt during Illi- nois' 16-14 win in 2014. Photo by Steve Manuel KEEPING THE FAITH Cubit keeps Illini pressing forward in face of adversity It's hard to )nd a head coach in college foot- ball nowadays whose team is fresh o* back- to-back losses, who has a losing record in conference play, yet still can )nd a silver lining quite like Bill Cubit. Why wouldn't he? He's a head coach again for the )rst time since 2012, pro- moted on an interim basis when Illinois )red Tim Beckman before the start of the season, and for all intents and purposes, he's got the Illini playing as well as or maybe even better than Beckman ever did in his 37 games as head coach. For Cubit, who has previous head coaching experience at Western Michigan and Widener, this stint might last only )ve more games – six if he gets two more wins and achieves bowl eligibility. Might as well enjoy it while it lasts. "There are a lot of good things happening," Cubit said at his press conference Monday. "Now we've got to take that next step." Despite getting o* to a hot start – Illinois'