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Illinois Football: 3 takeaways from loss to Cal in Redbox Bowl

By Dante Pryor

SANTA CLARA, CALIFORNIA - DECEMBER 30: Reggie Corbin #2 of the Illinois Fighting Illini fights off the tackle of Ben Schrider #98 of the California Golden Bears during the first half of the RedBox Bowl at Levi's Stadium on December 30, 2019 in Santa Clara, California. (Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images)
SANTA CLARA, CALIFORNIA - DECEMBER 30: Reggie Corbin #2 of the Illinois Fighting Illini fights off the tackle of Ben Schrider #98 of the California Golden Bears during the first half of the RedBox Bowl at Levi's Stadium on December 30, 2019 in Santa Clara, California. (Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images) /
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MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA – OCTOBER 05: Head coach Lovie Smith of the Illinois Fighting Illini looks on during the first quarter of the game against the Minnesota Gophers at TCF Bank Stadium on October 5, 2019 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Photo by Hannah Foslien/Getty Images)
MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA – OCTOBER 05: Head coach Lovie Smith of the Illinois Fighting Illini looks on during the first quarter of the game against the Minnesota Gophers at TCF Bank Stadium on October 5, 2019 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Photo by Hannah Foslien/Getty Images) /

1. Redbox Bowl yielded positives for the future

It is not easy gauging what a bowl game means in the grand scheme of a football program. For these two teams, however, both California and Illinois can use this game as a positive. The Golden Bears have everyone coming back offensively and should make strides on that side of the ball. They do lose some veterans on defense, but California head coach Justin Wilcox has never had four and five-star recruits, so he’ll coach up the next crop of defensive players.

What the Bears need to focus on is the health of quarterback Chase Garbers. They are a different team when he doesn’t play.

For Illinois, they exceeded expectations this year. Most prognosticators wondered if Lovie Smith would survive the season. Not only did he survive the year, he got them to a bowl game. They’ve made strides on their roster, and they have a lot of youth.

Next. Ranking college football's top 50 fanbases. dark

What will be most interesting is who starts as quarterback next season. Will Peters get the nod next season or highly touted quarterback Isaiah Williams win the job?

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