Illinois Hosts No. 19 Kansas for Sold Out FamILLy Weekend - University of Illinois Athletics (2024)

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. –Illinois will play its second contest in its season-opening three-game homestandon Saturday, when #19 Kansas visits Memorial Stadium in Champaign. Kickoff is scheduled for 6 p.m. CT, and the game will air nationally on FS1. The game is sold out.

Illinois (1-0) iscoming off a dominant 45-0 victory over Eastern Illinois in the team's season opener. Quarterback Luke Altmyer recorded four first-half touchdowns, while wide receiver Pat Bryant hauled in two receiving scores for his second-career multi-touchdown performance. The Illinois defense registered four turnovers in the contest, with Miles Scott tallying both a forced fumble and an interception, while forcing five Panther three-and-outs.

Kansas (1-0) secured a 48-3 win over Lindenwood in its season opener behind a 27-point second quarter. Running back Devin Neal finished with 112 yards on the ground and two scores on just eight carries, while wide receiver Luke Grimm totaled six catches, 111 yards, and one touchdown. Jayhawk quarterback Jalon Daniels played only in the first half, going 9-for-15 with 148 yards, one touchdown, and one interception. The Kansas defense forced one turnover, an interception that was returned for a 33-yard pick six.

The Jayhawks are ledby head coach Lance Leipold, who has led Kansas to back-to-back bowl appearances in 2022 and 2023. KU finished its 2023 slate with a 9-4 record and earned a trip to the Guaranteed Rate Bowl, in which the Jayhawks defeated UNLV, 49-36.

Saturday's contest marks the seventh meeting between the sides, with both teams having won three games in the all-time series. The Jayhawks won last season's matchup in Lawrence, Kansas, though the Illini have won three of the four previous games played in Champaign.

Alex Faust(play-by-play) and Robert Smith (analyst) have the national television broadcaston FS1. ESPN has the national radio broadcast with Mike Couzens (play-by-play),Jordan Reid (analyst), andMike Peasley (reporter) on the call, while theBusey Bank Illini Sports Networkhas the statewide radio call with Brian Barnhart (play-by-play), Carey Davis (analyst), and Michael Martin (reporter).

Press Conference

Game Day at Memorial Stadium

FamILLy Weekend: In partnership with University of Illinois' New Students & Family Experiences and the IlliniMomsandDadsAssociations,Illinois will celebrate its first ever FamILLy Weekend at Memorial Stadium.

Hail to the Orange Out: Illinois' Week 2 contest vs. Kansas is the annual Hail to the Orange Out game. Fans are encouraged to wear orange to Memorial Stadium for Saturday's matchup vs. the nationally ranked Jayhawks.

Air Raid Siren:New for 2024, an Illini celebrity will sound the Illini air raid siren right before kickoff to get the crowd pumped up for the Fighting Illini football team. College Football Hall of Famer and Butkus Award winner Dana Howard will be the siren sounder against Kansason Saturday night.

Illini Hour:The popular Illini Hour is returning to Memorial Stadium in 2024. From90 minutes to 30 minutes before kickoff, all hot dogs, non-alcoholic beverages (excluding souvenir cups), and Carbliss and Nutrl seltzers are just $3, and 24 ounce domestic beers will be $7. This week's Illini Hour will run from 4:30-5:30 p.m. CT before the 6p.m. CT kickoff.

Freaky Fast 77 Yard Dash:"The Galloping Ghost" is returning to Memorial Stadium for Year 2 of The Freaky Fast 77 Yard Dash presented by Jimmy John's.Between the third and fourth quarters, an Illinois student will raceRed Grangeinside the hashes of Zuppke Field at Memorial Stadium. The student racing the modern-day version of Red will have a chance to win free Jimmy John's for a year. Fans can interact and take photos with Red Grange inside Grange Grove on game days beginning three hours prior to kickoff.

100th Anniversary Museum:Illinois hasinstalled a free pop-up museum celebrating the history of Memorial Stadium inside of the Great West Hall. The museum features imagery and artifacts from the greatest moments in Memorial Stadium history.

$4 Hot Dogs:Hot dogs at Memorial Stadium concession stands have been reduced to $4 after being priced at $6 last season.

I FUND, Season Ticket Holder, and ICON Concessions Discount:Fans who purchased or renewed their football season tickets by April 1 received 10% off concessions at all home games during the Memorial Stadium 100th Anniversary season, while I FUND members will receive an additional 5% savings for 15% off at Memorial Stadium concession stands.ICON members receive 15% off at Memorial Stadium concession stands.

ICON On-Field Experience:The ICON Pregame Party, which became popular in the State Farm Center Beer Cave, is now atMemorial Stadium. ICON members at The Quad level and above ($1,000+) will be invited to field level in the south end zone during pregame warmups.

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Notes

Illinois Starts 2024 Season With Shutout Win Over EIU

• Illinois is off to a 1-0 start for the fourth straight year under head coach Bret Bielema after a 45-0 victory over Eastern Illinois last Thursday night at Memorial Stadium.
• The Illini defense forced four turnovers - two interceptions and a pair of fumbles - to record the first shutout since a 31-0 win over Chattanooga on Sept. 22, 2022. It is Illinois' first season-opening shuout since Sept. 6, 1986 vs. Louisville (23-0)
• Offensively, the Illini outgained the Panthers 486-196 with a balanced attack that featured 244 yards and two touchdowns on the ground and 242 yards through the air with four passing touchdowns.
• Bret Bielema improved to 19-19 in his Illinois career. He is the first Illinois head coach to start .500 or better through his first 38 games since Lou Tepper started 19-18-1 in 1995.

2024 Fighting Illini Roster Notes

• Illinois was one of the best in the Big Ten at improving its roster in the transfer portal. According to CBS research of 247Sports ratings, the Illini's roster had a net rating gain of +2.78 between transfers in and transfers out, the sixth-best mark in the Big Ten, and that was before Illinois added WR Zakhari Franklin. Franklin is college football's active career leader in receptions (266), receiving yards (3,386), and receiving touchdowns (38).
• Illinois brought in three four-star transfers, tied for the sixth-most among the 18-team Big Ten (CB Terrance Brooks, OL J.C. Davis, WR Zakhari Franklin).
• Illinois' transfer class had an average star rating of 3.18 according to Rivals. The Illini's average rating ranked 14th in the nation and fifth in the Big Ten, behind only Ohio State, Oregon, Michigan, and Washington.
• Illinois' roster has 17 players who have started 10+ football games at four-year schools, including nine incoming transfers this season. Franklin leads the way with 44 career starts, followed by DL Gentle Hunt (25), Davis (25), and CB Torrie Cox Jr. (24).
• Illinois is one of only 32 teams in the nation to return its head coach, offensive coordinator, defensive coordinator, strength coach, and starting quarterback, according to FootballScoop. The Illini are one of only three Big Ten teams to bring back all five important positions, along with Nebraska and Purdue.
• Illinois has 14 players on its 2024 roster in their final season of eligibility, tied for the lowest total in the Power-4 with Iowa State. In all of FBS football, only Troy (12) has fewer players in their final season of eligibility.
• Illinois has one of the most experienced offensive line rooms in the Big Ten. Entering 2023, the Illini offensive linemen had totaled 96 career starts in Division I football. Transfers J.C. Davis (24, New Mexico), Melvin Priestly (19, Grambling), and Kevin Wigenton II (6, Michigan State) account for 49 career starts. The offensive line room has 168 career games played entering 2024. The line has three returning starters from 2023: Josh Kreutz, Zy Crisler, and Josh Gesky.
• Entering 2024, Illinois' 96 career starts on the offensive line rank fourth in the Big Ten, behind only Iowa (165), Nebraska (153), and Oregon (144). The 96 starts ranks 22nd-most in the nation.

Memorial Stadium's 100th Anniversary Season

• Illinois will host a year-long celebration of the 100th anniversary of Memorial Stadium's dedication. Memorial Stadium's Dedication Game famously occurred against Michigan on Oct. 18, 1924, when Illini legend Red Grange gained national headlines after scoring four touchdowns in the first 12 minutes to take down the previously undefeated Wolverines.
• Illinois will honor the history of Memorial Stadium with a number of elements during the 2024 season. Highlights include a free pop-up museum in the Great West Hall, the Memorial Stadium 100th Anniversary logo painted on the 25-yard lines, and seven commemorative cups sold at concessions matching the eras celebrated by the Illini helmets for each game.
• Illinois hosts Michigan on Saturday, Oct. 19, 100 years and one day from Grange's historic performance. The game will be marked as Memorial Stadium's "Rededication Game" with the 100th anniversary celebration lasting throughout the year. Illinois will host a rededication ceremony, free and open to the public, inside Grange Grove at 4 p.m. CT on Friday, Oct. 18. A 100th-anniversary gala will be hosted inside Memorial Stadium's Colonnades Club at 5:30 p.m. CT on Friday, Oct. 18.

Week 1 Notables vs. Eastern Illinois

• QB Luke Altmyer went 19-for-24 through the air for 213 yards and four touchdowns. Altmyer threw three or more touchdowns in consecutive games for the first time in his career, after throwing for three scores on Nov. 11, 2023, at Minnesota. Altmyer has thrown at least two touchdowns in four-straight games, becoming the first Illini quarterback to do so since Tommy DeVito from Aug. 27 – Sept. 22, 2022. He is also the first Illinois quarterback with consecutive games of three or more touchdown passes since Brandon Peters did so from Aug. 31 – Sept. 7, 2019
• RB Kaden Feagin rushed 16 times for a career-high 108 yards and a touchdown, the first 100-yard rushing game of his collegiate career. Feagin recorded a career-long 29-yard rush in the first quarter.
• RB Aidan Laughery earned the first start of his collegiate career and rushed 10 times for a career-high 79 yards, including a career-long 29-yard rush in the third quarter.
• WR Pat Bryant, who has now recorded a catch in 13 consecutive games, recorded a team-high five receptions for 63 yards and two touchdowns. It marked Bryant's second multi-TD game of his career after a two-touchdown performance in Illinois' 2023 season-opening win vs. Toledo. Bryant has 11 touchdown receptions as an Illini, tied for 12th on the Fighting Illini career chart. He needs just one touchdown to jump into a tie for seventh all-time and is four away from cracking the program's all-time top five.
• WR Malik Elzy caught two passes for 51 yards and a touchdown. Elzy's touchdown catch in the second quarter, a career-long 34-yard reception, marked the second score of his Illinois career.
• TE Tanner Arkin also hauled in his second-career touchdown catch in the second quarter. Since transferring to Illinois prior to the 2023 season, Arkin has recorded two catches, both going for scores, after notching a touchdown reception last season vs. Wisconsin.
• DB Miles Scott forced a fumble on Eastern Illinois' first drive of the game, and recorded his third-career interception in the second quarter. Scott has interceptions in consecutive games after posting a pick in the 2023 finale vs. Northwestern and also has interceptions in back-to-back season openers after posting the first of his career in the 2023 opener vs. Toledo. Scott is the first Illini since Xavier Scott, Sept. 8, 2023 at Kansas, to force a fumble and intercept a pass in the same game.
• DB Torrie Cox Jr. recorded the first interception of his Illinois career and the fifth overall of his collegiate career.

The Illinois-Kansas Series

• Saturday's game will be the seventh meeting between Illinois and Kansas and the second in as many seasons after the Illini visited Lawrence in 2023.
• Illinois last hosted Kansas in Champaign in 1968.
• Illinois is 3-1 vs. Kansas in Champaign, having posted three straight shutout victories in 1916, 1917, and 1929, before a home loss to the Jayhawks in 1968.
• Illinois is 1-1 in Memorial Stadium vs. Kansas, hosting games inside the century-old venue in 1929 and 1968. The Illini's home wins over Kansas in 1916 and 1917 were played at the team's original home, Illinois Field.
• Illinois' first game in the series vs. Kansas, on Oct. 27, 1892, was the 16th game in program history. Saturday's game will be the 1,310th game in Illini history.

Illinois-Kansas Connections

• Illinois Director of Football Performance Nutrition Jake Anthony, a native of Overland Park, Kansas, began his coaching journey at Kansas while pursuing his bachelor's degree in kinesiology and exercise science. Anthony spent two seasons as an intern strength & conditioning coach for the Jayhawks' football program during the 2017 and 2018 seasons, and graduated from KU in 2019.
• Illinois Director of College Personnel and NFL Liaison Jay Kaiser is a native of Liberal, Kansas.
• Illinois' Senior Analyst Myers Hendrickson spent five seasons coaching at Kansas Wesleyan University in Salina, Kansas, first as an assistant in 2014-15, then returning for a highly successful three-year stint as the program's head coach from 2019-21 that included two Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference (KCAC) championships in 2019 and 2021.
• Illinois' junior OLB Daniel Brown is from Kansas City, Kansas, where he played high school football at Bishop Ward then earned NJCAA All-America first team honors and Jayhawk Conference Defensive Player of the Year accolades at Hutchinson Community Colllege in Hutchinson, Kansas.
• The 2024 Kansas football roster features three players that hail from the state of Illinois: redshirt-senior OL Darrell Simmons Jr. (Belleville, Ill.), freshman CB Austin Alexander (Hazel Crest, Ill.), and senior OL Michael Ford Jr. (Homewood, Ill.)

COMPLETE GAME NOTES (PDF)