There was a twinge of annoyance in Ron Zook's voice as he responded to a question that's nagged the fourth-year University of Illinois football coach this week.
After a last-minute win over Big Ten brethren Iowa last week, the Fighting Illini will take a break from their conference schedule Saturday to face Western Michigan at Ford Field. With no Big Ten implications tied in, Zook said there is still plenty on the line to get his team up for the road tilt.
"Obviously the conference is awfully important, but our guys are playing for the opportunity to be bowl eligible and the higher up we can get, the better we're going to be," Zook said. "There are an awful lot of things we're playing for. Understand the importance of this game and the respect our football team has for them."
Zook knows full well the fragile nature of winning. The Illini finished 9-4 last season, appearing in the Rose Bowl after several years of futility. However, Illinois has struggled to live up to raised expectations this season, at times stumbling through a year they began ranked 20th nationally. With three games left, the Illini are 5-4 overall and 3-3 in the Big Ten.
A Mid-American Conference opponent, they insist, doesn't spell an easy win for the program. Zook said he knows that by looking at last year's closely contested win against Ball State. Highlighting that 28-17 win to his players, he said, proves the validity of the MAC and its teams.
"I think all you have to do is go back and look at the last few minutes of the Ball State game last year," Zook said. "That game, you know, sends chills down you. We revisited as a staff. Our guys, they don't want to go through that. ... (Saturday's game) will probably be a four-quarter game; it could come right down to a field goal again."
For a team that regularly draws crowds of more than 60,000 fans to Memorial Stadium for home games, this weekend's contest doesn't promise the same ambiance. WMU is reporting roughly 11,000 of its tickets sold as of Wednesday -- though Illinois' less-than-stellar season is, perhaps, partly responsible.
"I really think that if you're playing college football and you can't get up to play a game, then you have a problem," said Illinois offensive lineman Ryan McDonald, who graduated from Holland West Ottawa. "I plan on being ready to play independent of the atmosphere."
The Broncos defeated Iowa 28-19 in mid-November last season to keep the Hawkeyes from becoming eligible for any of the Big Ten's tie-ins. According to senior defensive lineman David Lindquist, bowl-eligibility is not the only thing the Illini are playing for.
"We want to win this because we're competitors and we want to win, that's the bottom line," he said. "In the situation we're in, the fact that this game, if we do win it, would make us bowl-eligible, that's another thing we can put on top of our motivation already."
Lindquist and Zook both praised the Broncos passing game. Western Michigan quarterback Tim Hiller shares the same roots as Zook, having graduated from Orrville High School in Ohio, where Zook found his first coaching job.
"I know a couple people that are from there that called about tickets (wanting to see Hiller play) and I said 'No way,'" Zook said, then laughed. "This is a guy who is throwing the ball close to 70 percent. ... They really do a good job."
After a last-minute win over Big Ten brethren Iowa last week, the Fighting Illini will take a break from their conference schedule Saturday to face Western Michigan at Ford Field. With no Big Ten implications tied in, Zook said there is still plenty on the line to get his team up for the road tilt.
"Obviously the conference is awfully important, but our guys are playing for the opportunity to be bowl eligible and the higher up we can get, the better we're going to be," Zook said. "There are an awful lot of things we're playing for. Understand the importance of this game and the respect our football team has for them."
Zook knows full well the fragile nature of winning. The Illini finished 9-4 last season, appearing in the Rose Bowl after several years of futility. However, Illinois has struggled to live up to raised expectations this season, at times stumbling through a year they began ranked 20th nationally. With three games left, the Illini are 5-4 overall and 3-3 in the Big Ten.
A Mid-American Conference opponent, they insist, doesn't spell an easy win for the program. Zook said he knows that by looking at last year's closely contested win against Ball State. Highlighting that 28-17 win to his players, he said, proves the validity of the MAC and its teams.
"I think all you have to do is go back and look at the last few minutes of the Ball State game last year," Zook said. "That game, you know, sends chills down you. We revisited as a staff. Our guys, they don't want to go through that. ... (Saturday's game) will probably be a four-quarter game; it could come right down to a field goal again."
For a team that regularly draws crowds of more than 60,000 fans to Memorial Stadium for home games, this weekend's contest doesn't promise the same ambiance. WMU is reporting roughly 11,000 of its tickets sold as of Wednesday -- though Illinois' less-than-stellar season is, perhaps, partly responsible.
"I really think that if you're playing college football and you can't get up to play a game, then you have a problem," said Illinois offensive lineman Ryan McDonald, who graduated from Holland West Ottawa. "I plan on being ready to play independent of the atmosphere."
The Broncos defeated Iowa 28-19 in mid-November last season to keep the Hawkeyes from becoming eligible for any of the Big Ten's tie-ins. According to senior defensive lineman David Lindquist, bowl-eligibility is not the only thing the Illini are playing for.
"We want to win this because we're competitors and we want to win, that's the bottom line," he said. "In the situation we're in, the fact that this game, if we do win it, would make us bowl-eligible, that's another thing we can put on top of our motivation already."
Lindquist and Zook both praised the Broncos passing game. Western Michigan quarterback Tim Hiller shares the same roots as Zook, having graduated from Orrville High School in Ohio, where Zook found his first coaching job.
"I know a couple people that are from there that called about tickets (wanting to see Hiller play) and I said 'No way,'" Zook said, then laughed. "This is a guy who is throwing the ball close to 70 percent. ... They really do a good job."
