Big Ten Football: 3 teams with the most to prove in 2020

3. Illinois Fighting Illini

Expectations in Champaign should be high but measured. Last season, the Fighting Illini found themselves in a bowl game for the first time since 2014. Should Fighting Illini nation expect a return to six wins and a bowl game?

After the first six weeks of Illinois‘ 2019 season, it was left for dead and head coach Lovie Smith was not expected to make it through the year. Then, the upset happened. The Illini found a way to upset the Wisconsin Badgers on a game-winning field goal.

They were out-gained that day but created three turnovers to win the game. That was the secret to their four-game win streak: turnovers. During that streak, Illinois created 12 turnovers and only had three themselves.

They can’t count on that again next season. The Illini proved that the last three games of their season in 2019. Illinois lost the turnover battle in all three of those games resulting in a three-game losing streak to end the season.

Brandon Peters has to play better and they have to figure out how they are going to run the football without last season’s leading rusher Reggie Corbin and Dre Brown.

The transfer portal has been good to the Illini. Next season, Georgia transfer Luke Ford will be eligible to play after his hardship request was denied last season.

The challenge for Illinois is the teams they are competing with in the middle of the Big Ten have also gotten better. Purdue will return several of their key players from injury. They get an improved Indiana squad this season on their crossover.

Two teams they lost to — Northwestern and Nebraska — expect to be better than they were last season. The question is simple: are the Illini as improved as their competition?  We’ll know by mid-October — if the season starts on time or close to on time — when the Illini take on Nebraska.

A bowl game is not out of the realm of possibility, but neither is 4-8.