Illinois & Louisville Football 2015 – Better, worse or about the same?

Illinois Football 2015 – Better, worse or about the same?

ILLINOIS OFFENSE

The offense pretty much hinges entirely on if Wes Lunt can stay healthy or not. If Lunt stays upright, this offense should hum. WR Mike Dudek will miss the OOC schedule, but will likely be back for the majority of Big Ten play. Dudek and Geronimo Allison give Lunt two legitimate deep threats on every passing down which should open plenty of room underneath for all-purpose back Josh Ferguson to wreak havoc on opposing linebackers unfortunate enough to have to cover him. If Lunt goes down for a significant period of time though things look more bleak.

ILLINOIS DEFENSE

I have a hard time seeing the defense being a particularly different beast in any meaningful way, which isn’t a good thing. The defensive line transfers will all have a full year of experience under their belts, but the pass rush was all but non-existent last season. Until the front four learn to get through, the defense will remain in the bottom third of the conference.

BUY OR SELL?

If Dudek hadn’t torn his ACL, I would be more willing to bet that this year’s Illini squad could pull off a seven win year. As is, I see 3-1 in the OOC (loss to UNC). And even though all three games are in Champaign, Nebraska, Wisconsin, and Ohio State can all safely be written off as losses already. So that leaves games at Iowa, at Purdue, at Minnesota, at Penn State, and hosting Northwestern at Soldier Field. I see three wins in that bunch at most, so it’s looking like a 6 win season at best with 5 wins feeling like the more likely outcome, with a coaching search to follow.

Mark Primiano of the Illini blog The Champaign Room provided the information for our Illinois football 2015 spring recap. For more Illinois football information, commentary and analysis, you can follow Mark on Twitter @SBN_UGod.

Louisville Football 2015 – Better, worse or about the same?

LOUISVILLE OFFENSE

The Louisville offense will be better, just having Coach Bobby Petrino back for his second season. Lots of question marks, however with quarterback the situation has yet to be resolved. Freshmen Reggie Bonnafon and Kyle Bolin are returning and transfer Tyler Ferguson are still vying for the starting position. The Cardinals lost some veteran wide receivers, namely DeVante Parker, Gerald Christian and Eli Rogers to the NFL draft. Someone is going to have step up there, specifically James Quick, a five-star recruit entering his junior season. Brandon Radcliff, the team’s leading rusher, returns, as does L.D. Scott.

LOUISVILLE DEFENSE

UofL’s defense will miss Gerod Holliman, a safety who tied an NCAA record with 14 interceptions, and cornerback Charles Gaines, who was the fastest player on the team last season. B. J. Dubose, a defensive tackle, James Sample, the other safety, will be major losses as well. Lots of positions needing to be filled quickly, with Auburn as the opening foe and Clemson the first conference foe the third game of the season.

BUY OR SELL?

Petrino’s mastery of the offensive game is the best reason for optimism, having had more time to bring in players who fit his system. His teams have a tendency for exceeding expectations. Look for at least seven wins next season.

Charles Springer of U of L Card Game provided the information for our Louisville Football 2015 Spring recap. For more Louisville football information, commentary and analysis, you can follow Chalres on Twitter @UofLCardGame.