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ILLUSTRATED VOLUME 24, ISSUE 6 99 f T he 2014 season is a big one for Illinois. It is for Coach Tim Beckman, in particular, who needs to show that in Year 3 of his tenure he has the Fight- ing Illini headed in the right direction. That might be a challenge. Illinois has won only one of its 16 Big Ten contests in Beckman's first two seasons, and it was 4-8 overall in 2013. Yet, expectations are higher, from the fans to athletic director Mike Thomas. "He's a little bit on the hot seat, and a bowl is what ev- eryone is expecting," said Doug Buschon, publisher of OrangeandBlueNews.com, the Rivals.com site that covers Illinois, "including the staff and the AD." Much of the Illini's success this season will rely upon the quarterback, where the program must replace multi-year starter Nathan Scheelhaase. Although Beckman didn't history. Rudock returns for his junior year after passing for nearly 2,400 yards and 18 touchdowns (against 13 inter- ceptions) in his first year as a starter. Thought to be a solid game-manager, he might have more weapons at his disposal this season. That includes redshirt freshman Derrick Willies, a 6-foot- 4, 210-pounder who had a solid spring. He could give the Hawkeyes a deep-ball threat, something they lacked last year when the best options were possession receiver Kev- onte Martin-Manley, senior, and now departed tight end C.J. Fiedorowicz. "He's something they don't normally have, which is a dy- namic, tall, fast, athletic wide receiver," Kakert said of Wil- lies. "They've just got more weapons than they had even last year, and I thought they were pretty productive." The Hawkeyes will still be reliant on the run game, which ranked sixth in the Big Ten last season, behind returnees Mark Weisman (975 yards), Jordan Canzeri (481) and Da- mon Bullock (467). The offensive line is anchored by left tackle Brandon Scherff, a projected first-team All-Big Ten player who skipped the NFL Draft to return for his senior season. But Iowa's questions are on defense, mainly at lineback- er, where it will have to replace all three of its starters from 2013, and in the secondary, where it has little depth at safety. But the front four should be stout, particularly in the mid- dle with senior defensive tackle Carl Davis, who many proj- ect as a first-team All-Big Ten selection. "He's a big beast that eats a lot of space in the middle," Kakert said. Due to the nature of its play — frequently a run-oriented, conservative offense, with an opportunistic defense — Iowa plays close; five of its games last season were decided by a touchdown or less. It means special teams could be critical, and there, Iowa must replace its place-kicker and punter. "When you play close games," Kakert said, "you've got to have good special teams or you're not going to win those games." — Kyle Charters Illinois Junior running back Josh Ferguson is the Illini's most versa- tile player, after totaling 779 rushing and 535 receiving yards last season. Illinois Fighting Illini 2014 OPPONENT PREVIEW • OCT. 4 • MEMORIAL STADIUM, CHAMPAIGN, ILL. • TIME: TBA • TV: TBD OF NOTE: Iowa's four regular-season losses last year came to teams with a combined record of 46-9 (.836).