Ryan and Clinton continue their deep dive on the Big Ten with team fall previews, today touching on one of the trendiest "sleeper (?)" playoff selections of the 2025 offseason/preseason: the Illinois Illini. To help the guys break down Illinois, Sunny Verma from the Locked On Illinois podcast joins the show.

Part of the hype surrounding Illinois is the plethora of offensive talent returning. The whole OL is back, as is QB Luke Altmyer -- fresh off a season in which he accounted for nearly 3,000 total yards and 26 TDs. Despite the loss of RB Josh McCray to the portal, they also return 4 of their 5 leading rushers from 2024. However, leading receivers Pat Bryant and Zakhari Franklin have moved on to the NFL. WVU transfer Hudson Clement had 51 catches last season, but who are other names to know out wide?

The Illini defense had some roug ...