2018 Illinois Fighting Illini football team

2018 Illinois Fighting Illini football
2018 Illinois Fighting Illini football
Conference	Big Ten Conference
	West Division
Record	4–8 (2–7 Big Ten)
Head coach	Lovie Smith (3rd season);
Offensive coordinator	Rod Smith (1st season)
Offensive scheme	Multiple
Defensive coordinator	Hardy Nickerson (3rd season)
Base defense	4–3
Home stadium	Memorial Stadium
	Seasons ← 2017 2019 →

The 2018 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 2018 NCAA Division I FBS football season. In their third season under head coach Lovie Smith, the Fighting Illini compiled a 4–8 record (2–7 in conference games), finished in last place out of seven teams in the Big Ten's West Division, and were outscored by a total of 473 to 312.^[1]

ConferenceBig Ten Conference

West Division

Record4–8 (2–7 Big Ten)

Headcoach

Lovie Smith (3rd season)

Quick facts Illinois Fighting Illini football, Conference ...

Close

More information Conf., Overall ...

2018 Big Ten Conference football standings
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
East Division
No. 3 Ohio State xy$	8	–	1	13	–	1
No. 14 Michigan x	8	–	1	10	–	3
No. 17 Penn State	6	–	3	9	–	4
Michigan State	5	–	4	7	–	6
Maryland	3	–	6	5	–	7
Indiana	2	–	7	5	–	7
Rutgers	0	–	9	1	–	11
West Division
No. 21 Northwestern xy	8	–	1	9	–	5
Wisconsin	5	–	4	8	–	5
No. 25 Iowa	5	–	4	9	–	4
Purdue	5	–	4	6	–	7
Minnesota	3	–	6	7	–	6
Nebraska	3	–	6	4	–	8
Illinois	2	–	7	4	–	8
Championship: Ohio State 45, Northwestern 24
$ – Conference champion x – Division champion/co-champions y – Championship game participant Rankings from AP Poll

Close

The team's statistical leaders included quarterback AJ Bush (1,413 passing yards), running back Reggie Corbin (1,085 rushing yards, 8.5 yards per attempt), wide receiver Ricky Smalling (33 receptions for 406 yards), and kicker Chase McLaughlin (96 points scored, 36 of 36 extra points, 20 of 25 field goals).^[2] McLaughlin was the only Illinois player to receive first-team honors on the 2018 All-Big Ten Conference football team.^[3]

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

[1]

[2]

[3]

Back	B	Center	C	Cornerback	CB	Defensive back	DB
Defensive end	DE	Defensive lineman	DL	Defensive tackle	DT	End	E
Fullback	FB	Guard	G	Halfback	HB	Kicker	K
Kickoff returner	KR	Offensive tackle	OT	Offensive lineman	OL	Linebacker	LB
Long snapper	LS	Punter	P	Punt returner	PR	Quarterback	QB
Running back	RB	Safety	S	Tight end	TE	Wide receiver	WR

Award	Player	Position	Year
John Mackey Award^[4]	Louis Dorsey	TE	SO
Wuerffel Trophy^[5]	Nick Allegretti	OL	SR

Date	Time	Opponent	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
September 1	11:00 a.m.	Kent State*	Memorial Stadium Champaign, IL	BTN	W 31–24	31,898
September 8	6:30 p.m.	Western Illinois*	Memorial Stadium Champaign, IL	BTN	W 34–14	39,252
September 15	2:30 p.m.	vs. South Florida*	Soldier Field Chicago, IL	BTN	L 19–25	21,725
September 21	8:00 p.m.	No. 10 Penn State	Memorial Stadium Champaign, IL	FS1	L 24–63	34,704
October 6	11:00 a.m.	at Rutgers	HighPoint.com Stadium Piscataway, NJ	BTN	W 38–17	36,702
October 13	2:30 p.m.	Purdue	Memorial Stadium Champaign, IL (rivalry)	FS1	L 7–46	41,966
October 20	11:00 a.m.	at No. 23 Wisconsin	Camp Randall Stadium Madison, WI	FS1	L 20–49	79,736
October 27	2:30 p.m.	at Maryland	Maryland Stadium College Park, MD	BTN	L 33–63	30,387
November 3	2:30 p.m.	Minnesota	Memorial Stadium Champaign, IL	BTN	W 55–31	35,774
November 10	11:00 a.m.	at Nebraska	Memorial Stadium Lincoln, NE	BTN	L 35–54	88,316
November 17	2:30 p.m.	Iowa	Memorial Stadium Champaign, IL	BTN	L 0–63	33,313
November 24	2:30 p.m.	at No. 20 Northwestern	Ryan Field Evanston, IL (rivalry)	BTN	L 16–24	37,124
*Non-conference game Homecoming Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game All times are in Central time

	1	2	3	4	Total
Boilermakers	14	15	7	10	46
Fighting Illini	7	0	0	0	7

	1	2	3	4	Total
Hawkeyes	7	28	14	14	63
Fighting Illini	0	0	0	0	0

2018 Illinois Fighting Illini football team

Offseason

Recruiting

Position key

Recruits

Award watch lists

Schedule

Game summaries

Kent State

Western Illinois

South Florida

Penn State

At Rutgers

Purdue

At Wisconsin

At Maryland

Minnesota

At Nebraska

Iowa

At Northwestern

Roster

Awards and honors

Players drafted into the NFL

References

Related Articles

Timelines

Top Qs

Fact Checks

2018 Illinois Fighting Illini football

Conference	Big Ten Conference
Division	West Division
Record	4–8 (2–7 Big Ten)
Head coach	Lovie Smith (3rd season)
Offensive coordinator	Rod Smith (1st season)
Offensive scheme	Multiple
Defensive coordinator	Hardy Nickerson (3rd season)
Base defense	4–3
Home stadium	Memorial Stadium
Seasons ← 2017 2019 →

Player	Position	Coaches	Media
Chase McLaughlin	K	1	2
Nick Allegretti	OG	HM	2
Reggie Corbin	RB	3	3
Blake Hayes	P	HM	3
Alex Palczewski	OT	–	HM
Del'Shawn Phillips	LB	–	HM
Bobby Roundtree	DL	–	HM
HM = Honorable mention. Reference:^[7]

	1	2	3	4	Total
Golden Flashes	7	10	7	0	24
Fighting Illini	3	0	21	7	31

	1	2	3	4	Total
Leathernecks	7	0	7	0	14
Fighting Illini	0	14	10	10	34

	1	2	3	4	Total
No. 10 Nittany Lions	7	14	7	35	63
Fighting Illini	7	10	7	0	24

	1	2	3	4	Total
Fighting Illini	10	14	0	14	38
Scarlet Knights	7	7	0	3	17