CHAMPAIGN, Ill — Year five of the Lovie Smith era is not off to a hot start.
Coran Taylor’s first collegiate start was spoiled by Minnesota’s 41-14 rout of the Illini on Saturday afternoon in Champaign.
Illinois (0-3) was without 15 players due to injuries, positive Covid-19 tests and contact tracing, and Minnesota (1-2) exploited a depleted Illini team to net their first win of the year.
PJ Fleck’s squad out-gained Illinois 556-287 and that yardage discrepancy showed on the scoreboard.
Defensively, Jake Hansen showed up in a big way. The Illini recovered his tenth career forced fumble in the first quarter but could not cash in.