Tatelines | Glass half full or half empty with Illini football? You decide.

Your personality will be revealed when presented with an eight-ounce glass and only four ounces of water. Will you view it as half full or half empty? Take Illini football as today’s example. If you view Illinois’ glass as half full ... The Illini are on their way. After decades marked by mediocrity, the culture is upbeat as Bret Bielema breathes fire into the program. Last year, the Illini won eight games, a number attained only once (9-4 in 2007) in the previous 20 years. Bielema’s second-year defense led the nation in permitting 12.8 points per game. Chase Brown led national rushing during the regular season. This could be a 10-win season without Michigan or Ohio State on the slate. If you view Illinois’ glass as half empty ... The 2022 Illini suffered an early loss to Indiana, and dropped four of the last five games. Four of five! The late-season falloff allowed Purdue to win the Western Division title at 6-3, while the Illini finished in a three-way tie with Iowa and Minnesota at 5-4. Gone are Brown, quarterback Tommy DeVito and four members of the nation’s top secondary. Look for another dip. Squad makeup If you view Illinois’ glass as half full ... The defensive front seven projects as one of the UI’s best ever, with all-star tackles Johnny Newton and Keith Randolph Jr. declining NFL overtures. Few freshmen could be compared with edge rusher Gabe Jacas in his rookie season. And the returning trio of Isaiah Williams, Casey Washington and Pat Bryant combined for 147 receptions last year. Watch Bielema’s third team take another leap forward with a Western Division title. If you view Illinois’ glass as half empty ... Likely starter at quarterback, Luke Altmyer, was backup for Jaxson Dart at Mississippi and, in two years, threw for just 317 yards. A committee scheme is planned for the absence of Brown. The UI secondary is in start-over mode, with an inexperienced crew replacing Devon Witherspoon, Sydney Brown, Quan Martin and Kendall Smith. It always seems that, just as the Illini get good at one position, they’re shy in another. Football recruiting If you view Illinois’ glass as half full ... The Bielema staff has made inroads in the home state, and last weekend netted six commitments including Utah linebacker Easton Baker, LaGrange lineman Eddie Tuerk and Chicago athlete Tysean Griffin. That brings the 2024 list to nine with another large group of prospects set to arrive on campus next weekend. In addition to high school prospects, Bielema has demonstrated a knack for filling holes with transfers. If you view Illinois’ glass as half empty ... This is grim. According to Rivals.com, Michigan has 19 committed, including five five-stars and a dozen four-stars. Ohio State has three five-stars and 10 four-stars among 14 committed. Illinois stands ninth in the Big Ten and 34th overall with nine three-stars. According to Rivals, the only five-star in the state is St. Ignatius defensive lineman Justin Scott, who will reportedly choose between Miami (Ohio) and Notre Dame. Rivals’ six four-star players in the state have selected Notre Dame, Clemson, Ohio State, Georgia, Wisconsin and Purdue. Three who chose the Illini were listed at Nos. 16, 17 and 31 in the state, although 247sports differed and gave Griffin and Tuerk four-star rankings. The state’s top two tight ends chose Clemson and Wisconsin, and Mt. Carmel running back Darrion Dupree reportedly favors Wisconsin over Illinois. Regular-season schedule If you view Illinois’ glass as half full ... The good news is that the Illini don’t play Michigan or Ohio State this year, and catch the toughest on their slate, Penn State, at home Sept. 16 after a Friday date at Kansas. The other two Eastern Division foes are Maryland and Indiana. Meanwhile, both Purdue and Minnesota are faced with both Michigan and Ohio State. Just as a year ago, Illinois projects as a strong Western Division contender. If you view Illinois’ glass as half empty ... Future scheduling without divisions will put Illinois at a major disadvantage. The Illini face Ohio State in 2024 and 2025, as well as Michigan and Southern California in 2024. Whereas Illini chances in the Western Division seem attainable, the addition of USC and UCLA in a 16-team league sharply reduces UI future hopes for a Big Ten playoff berth. Spectator attendance If you view Illinois’ glass as half full ... The announced sale of 56,092 tickets for last November’s game against Michigan State was the most since 60,670, were distributed for North Carolina Sept. 10, 2016. That’s a clear indication that the fan base will return under the right circumstances, and early-season ticket sales are already 8,000 ahead of last season. Look for Illinois to make a fast start and top 60,000 again for the Sept. 16 date with Penn State, which lost a nine-overtime game to Illinois in 2021. The days of sub-40,000 attendance are over. If you view Illinois’ glass as half empty ... Whatever attendance numbers are announced by the university, past turnstile counts indicate that thousands buy tickets but don’t attend. The UI-Northwestern game is deemed a “rivalry game,” but consider the Wildcats’ last three late-November visits: 2017: 30,456 sold, 11,083 attended; 2019: 35,895 sold, 11,800 attended; 2021: 27,624 sold; 10,510 attended. Discounting the COVID-19 season of 2020, 31 of the last 32 home games since 2017 were announced at fewer than 46,000, with 19 of those under 40,000. Michigan makes more than $8 million in ticket sales for a single game, which is more than recent UI teams have derived from an entire season.