Illinois opens its season Thursday night with a matchup against UAB, and the number on the board may be asking a little too much of the Blazers.
The Fighting Illini are coming off a strong 2025 under Bret Bielema, finishing 9-4 overall and 5-4 in Big Ten play before closing the year with a Music City Bowl win. That kind of season naturally raises the bar for 2026, and Illinois gets its first chance to chase that next step right away.
UAB, meanwhile, is trying to settle into a new chapter with Alex Mortensen. This is his first full season as head coach after taking over last year when the program moved on from Trent Dilfer. Over the final six games of that season, Mortensen guided the Blazers to a 2-4 record.
One of the biggest names to watch in this game is Illinois quarterback Katin Houser. The transfer has a winding path to Champaign, starting at Michigan State before moving to East Carolina, where he started the last two seasons.
In 2025, he completed 65.9% of his passes for 3,300 yards, 19 touchdowns, and six interceptions. The big question now is whether he can carry that production back into the Big Ten in 2026.
The concern for Illinois is on the other side of the ball. The defense was one of the worst in the country last season, ranking 120th in defensive success rate, and it lost its two best players, Gabe Jacas and Miles Scott, to the NFL Draft. Illinois also did very little in the transfer portal to patch things up, which makes this spread a tricky one.
Illinois should still win the game, but the better betting angle is the underdog. The market may be giving UAB too little credit here, and the points are worth taking with the Blazers.
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Detroits decision to add Josh Dobbs as a more experienced backup made the path to the 53-man roster a tougher one for Altmyer, but the practice squad still offers a real foothold. Illinois fans have seen this route before with former quarterback Tommy DeVito, who began on an NFL practice squad and has since moved forward in his career, a reminder that the first roster decision is not always the final word. [Read more 🡒]