2008 Illinois Fighting Illini football team

2008 Illinois Fighting Illini football
Conference	Big Ten Conference
Record	5–7 (3–5 Big Ten)
Head coach	Ron Zook (4th season)
Offensive coordinator	Mike Locksley (4th season)
Offensive scheme	Spread option
Co-defensive coordinators	Dan Disch (2nd season) Curt Mallory (2nd season)
Base defense	4–3
Captains	Arrelious Benn David Lindquist Brit Miller Juice Williams
Home stadium	Memorial Stadium
Seasons ←  2007 2009  →

2008 Big Ten Conference football standings

v t e	Conf.							Overall
Team		W		L					W		L
No. 8 Penn State $+		7	–	1					11	–	2
No. 9 Ohio State  %+		7	–	1					10	–	3
No. 24 Michigan State		6	–	2					9	–	4
Northwestern		5	–	3					9	–	4
No. 20 Iowa		5	–	3					9	–	4
Wisconsin		3	–	5					7	–	6
Minnesota		3	–	5					7	–	6
Illinois		3	–	5					5	–	7
Purdue		2	–	6					4	–	8
Michigan		2	–	6					3	–	9
Indiana		1	–	7					3	–	9
$ – BCS representative as conference champion % – BCS at-large representative + – Conference co-champions Rankings from AP Poll

The 2008 Illinois Fighting Illini football team was an American football team that represented the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign as a member of the Big Ten Conference during the 2008 NCAA Division I FBS football season. In their fourth season under head coach Ron Zook, the Fighting Illini compiled a 5–7 record (3–5 in conference games), finished in a three-way tie for sixth place in the Big Ten, and outscored opponents by a total of 344 to 319. ^[1]

Quarterback Juice Williams led the Big Ten with 3,173 passing yards, 22 passing touchdowns, and 16 interceptions. Williams also led the team with 719 rushing yards. The team's other statistical leaders included wide receiver Arrelious Benn (67 receptions for 1,055 yards) and kicker Matt Keller (84 points scored, 39 of 41 extra points, 15 of 20 field goals). ^[2]

The team played its home games at Memorial Stadium in Champaign, Illinois.

Schedule

Date	Time	Opponent	Rank	Site	TV	Result	Attendance	Source
August 30	7:30 p.m. [3]	vs. No. 6 Missouri *	No. 20	Edward Jones Dome St. Louis, MO (rivalry)	ESPN [3]	L 42–52	66,441
September 6	11:00 a.m. [4]	No. 19 (FCS) Eastern Illinois *	No. 24	Memorial Stadium Champaign, IL	BTN [4]	W 47–21	60,131	[5]
September 13	11:00 a.m. [4]	Louisiana–Lafayette *	No. 24	Memorial Stadium Champaign, IL	BTN [4]	W 20–17	58,632
September 27	7:00 p.m. [6]	at No. 12 Penn State	No. 22	Beaver Stadium University Park, PA	ABC [6]	L 24–38	109,626
October 4	2:30 p.m. [7]	at Michigan		Michigan Stadium Ann Arbor, MI (rivalry)	ABC/ESPN2 [7]	W 45–20	109,750
October 11	11:00 a.m. [8]	Minnesota		Memorial Stadium Champaign, IL	ESPN [8]	L 20–27	62,870
October 18	7:00 p.m. [9]	Indiana		Memorial Stadium Champaign, IL (rivalry)	BTN [9]	W 55–13	62,870
October 25	11:00 a.m. [10]	at Wisconsin		Camp Randall Stadium Madison, WI	ESPN2 [10]	L 17–27	81,241
November 1	2:30 p.m.	Iowa		Memorial Stadium Champaign, IL	ABC/ESPN	W 27–24	62,870
November 8	11:00 a.m. [11]	vs. Western Michigan *		Ford Field Detroit, MI	ESPN+	L 17–23	12,865
November 15	12:00 p.m.	No. 10 Ohio State		Memorial Stadium Champaign, IL (Illibuck Trophy)	ESPN	L 20–30	62,870
November 22	2:30 p.m.	at Northwestern		Ryan Field Evanston, IL (rivalry)	BTN	L 10–27	32,166
*Non-conference game Homecoming Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game All times are in Central time

Game summaries

Missouri

See also: 2008 Missouri Tigers football team

	1	2	3	4	Total
Fighting Illini	6	7	15	14	42
Tigers	7	24	14	7	52

Eastern Illinois

	1	2	3	4	Total
Panthers	7	0	0	14	21
Fighting Illini	7	19	14	7	47

Louisiana-Lafayette

	1	2	3	4	Total
Ragin' Cajuns	3	0	0	14	17
Fighting Illini	10	7	0	3	20

In the first quarter, Matt Eller kicked a 51-yard field goal. Brit Miller recovered Michael Desormeaux's fumble for a 27-yard touchdown. Drew Edmiston kicked a 24-yard field goal for Louisiana-Lafayette. Juice Williams passed to Daniel Dufrene for a 10-yard touchdown in the 2nd quarter.

In the second half, Desormeaux rushed for a 34-yard touchdown and passed to Erick Jones for an 11-yard touchdown. Matt Eller kicked a 27-yard field goal for the Fighting Illini.

Penn State

The Illini lost on the road to the Nittany Lions 38–24 in a nationally televised, prime time, "White Out" game at Beaver Stadium. Illinois jumped out to a 14–7 lead, becoming the first team to take a lead on the Nittany Lions and the first to score points against them in the first quarter this season. However, the Nittany Lions responded with two touchdowns en route to a 21–14 halftime lead. The Illini wouldn't score again until kicking a field goal on the final play of the third quarter after recovering a Stephfon Green fumble, but Derrick Williams returned the ensuing kickoff for a touchdown.

The loss was head coach Ron Zook’s first as a head coach against a ranked opponent. The Illini's 24 points were the most allowed by Penn State this season as were their 189 total rushing yards. ^[12]

Penn State wide receiver Derrick Williams became the first player under PSU head coach Joe Paterno to score a rushing, a receiving, and a kick return touchdown in the same game. ^{[12] [13]} Williams was selected the Big Ten Special Teams Player of the Week. ^[14]

See also: 2008 Penn State Nittany Lions football team

	1	2	3	4	Total
Fighting Illini	14	0	3	7	24
Nittany Lions	14	7	3	14	38

Michigan

See also: 2008 Michigan Wolverines football team

	1	2	3	4	Total
Fighting Illini	3	14	7	21	45
Wolverines	14	0	0	6	20

Minnesota

See also: 2008 Minnesota Golden Gophers football team

	1	2	3	4	Total
Golden Gophers	7	0	7	13	27
Fighting Illini	0	3	3	14	20

Indiana

See also: 2008 Indiana Hoosiers football team

	1	2	3	4	Total
Hoosiers	7	0	3	3	13
Fighting Illini	14	14	13	14	55

Wisconsin

See also: 2008 Wisconsin Badgers football team

	1	2	3	4	Total
Fighting Illini	0	10	7	0	17
Badgers	3	7	7	10	27

The Fighting Illini fell to the Badgers 27–17 for Wisconsin's first Big Ten win of the year. The Badgers outscored Illinois 17–7 in the second half.

Iowa

See also: 2008 Iowa Hawkeyes football team

	1	2	3	4	Total
Hawkeyes	0	6	3	15	24
Fighting Illini	7	3	7	10	27

Western Michigan

See also: 2008 Western Michigan Broncos football team

	1	2	3	4	Total
Fighting Illini	7	0	3	7	17
Broncos	3	17	0	3	23

Ohio State

See also: 2008 Ohio State Buckeyes football team and Illibuck

	1	2	3	4	Total
Buckeyes	9	14	0	7	30
Fighting Illini	7	6	0	7	20

Northwestern

See also: 2008 Northwestern Wildcats football team and Sweet Sioux Tomahawk

	1	2	3	4	Total
Fighting Illini	0	0	7	3	10
Wildcats	6	7	3	11	27

Rankings

See also: 2008 NCAA Division I FBS football rankings

Ranking movements
Legend:██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking
— = Not ranked RV = Received votes

	Week
Poll	Pre	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	Final
AP	20	24	24	22	22	RV	RV	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
Coaches	19	25	RV	23	21	RV	RV	—	RV	—	RV	—	—	—	—	—	—
Harris	Not released						RV	RV	RV	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	Not released
BCS	Not released								—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	Not released

References

1. "2008 Illinois Fighting Illini Schedule and Results". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved July 25, 2025.
2. "2008 Illinois Fighting Illini Stats". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved July 25, 2025.
3. "Kick Time Changed For 2008 Opener". University of Illinois at Champaign/Urbana Department of Athletics. May 22, 2008. Archived from the original on January 21, 2013. Retrieved May 22, 2008.
4. "Game Times And Future Schedules Set For Illinois Football". University of Illinois at Champaign/Urbana Department of Athletics. July 2, 2008. Archived from the original on July 6, 2008. Retrieved July 4, 2008.
5. Durando, Stu (September 7, 2008). "Illini let Juice run loose". St. Louis Post-Dispatch . p. D5. Retrieved December 4, 2021– via Newspapers.com.
6. "Big Ten Announces Five Prime-Time Football Games to Appear on ABC, ESPN or ESPN2 During 2008 Season". Big Ten Conference. April 16, 2008. Archived from the original on April 20, 2008. Retrieved April 16, 2008.
7. "Time, Television Set for U-M Homecoming Tilt vs. Illinois". Michigan Sports Information. May 12, 2008. Archived from the original on May 17, 2008. Retrieved May 12, 2008.
8. "Illinois Homecoming Game Time Set". University of Illinois at Champaign/Urbana Department of Athletics. May 12, 2008. Archived from the original on May 14, 2008. Retrieved May 12, 2008.
9. "Illinois-Indiana Game Set For Prime Time". Illinois Athletics. May 21, 2008. Archived from the original on January 20, 2013. Retrieved May 22, 2008.
10. "Welcome home:Badgers, Illini kickoff set". Wisconsin Badgers Sports Report. May 10, 2008. Retrieved May 11, 2008.^{[ dead link ]}
11. "Illinois-WMU game time set". Illinois Athletics. June 13, 2008. Archived from the original on June 18, 2008. Retrieved June 13, 2008.
12. Thomas, Eric (September 29, 2008). "Not Just Getting by Anymore". The Sentinel . Carlisle. Retrieved September 29, 2008.
13. "Penn State Remains Unbeaten, Tops Illinois, 38–24". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette . September 27, 2008. Retrieved September 28, 2008.
14. "Michigan, Northwestern and Penn State Football Players Honored After Big Wins". Big Ten Conference. September 29, 2008. Archived from the original on October 1, 2008. Retrieved September 29, 2008.