2022 Illinois Fighting Illini football

ReliaQuest Bowl, L 10–19 vs. Mississippi State
Conference	Big Ten Conference
Record	8–5 (5–4 Big Ten)
Head coach	Bret Bielema (2nd season)
Offensive coordinator	Barry Lunney Jr. (1st season)
Offensive scheme	Spread
Defensive coordinator	Ryan Walters (2nd season)
Base defense	4–3
Home stadium	Memorial Stadium (capacity: 60,670)
Seasons ← 2021 2023 →

2022 Big Ten Conference football standings
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
East Division
No. 3 Michigan xy$^	9	–	0	13	–	1
No. 4 Ohio State ^	8	–	1	11	–	2
No. 7 Penn State	7	–	2	11	–	2
Maryland	4	–	5	8	–	5
Michigan State	3	–	6	5	–	7
Indiana	2	–	7	4	–	8
Rutgers	1	–	8	4	–	8
West Division
Purdue xy	6	–	3	8	–	6
Illinois	5	–	4	8	–	5
Iowa	5	–	4	8	–	5
Minnesota	5	–	4	9	–	4
Wisconsin	4	–	5	7	–	6
Nebraska	3	–	6	4	–	8
Northwestern	1	–	8	1	–	11
Championship: Michigan 43, Purdue 22
^ – College Football Playoff participant $ – Conference champion x – Division champion/co-champions y – Championship game participant Rankings from AP Poll

The 2022 Illinois Fighting Illini football team was an American football team that represents the University of Illinois in the West Division of the Big Ten Conference during the 2022 NCAA Division I FBS football season. Bret Bielema was in his second season as the team's head coach. The Fighting Illini played home games at Memorial Stadium in Champaign, Illinois.

Key players included senior quarterback Tommy DeVito and junior running back Chase Brown.

Schedule

Illinois announced its 2022 football schedule on January 12, 2022.^[1] The 2022 schedule consists of seven home games and five away games in the regular season. The Fighting Illini will host Big Ten foes Iowa, Minnesota, Michigan State, and Purdue and will travel to Indiana, Wisconsin, Nebraska, Michigan and Northwestern.^[2] The Fighting Illini will host all three of their non-conference opponents, Wyoming from the Mountain West, Virginia from ACC, and Chattanooga from Division I FCS.

Date	Time	Opponent	Rank	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
August 27	3:00 p.m.	Wyoming*		Memorial Stadium Champaign, IL	BTN	W 38–6	37,832
September 2	7:00 p.m.	at Indiana		Memorial Stadium Bloomington, IN	FS1	L 20–23	44,357
September 10	3:00 p.m.	Virginia*		Memorial Stadium Champaign, IL	ESPNU	W 24–3	33,669
September 22	7:30 p.m.	No. 10 (FCS) Chattanooga*		Memorial Stadium Champaign, IL	BTN	W 31–0	37,579
October 1	11:00 a.m.	at Wisconsin		Camp Randall Stadium Madison, WI	BTN	W 34–10	73,502
October 8	6:30 p.m.	Iowa		Memorial Stadium Champaign, IL	BTN	W 9–6	44,910
October 15	11:00 a.m.	Minnesota	No. 24	Memorial Stadium Champaign, IL	BTN	W 26–14	45,683
October 29	2:30 p.m.	at Nebraska	No. 17	Memorial Stadium Lincoln, NE	ABC	W 26–9	86,691
November 5	3:30 p.m.	Michigan State	No. 16	Memorial Stadium Champaign, IL	BTN	L 15–23	56,092
November 12	11:00 a.m.	Purdue	No. 21	Memorial Stadium Champaign, IL (rivalry)	ESPN2	L 24–31	45,574
November 19	11:00 a.m.	at No. 3 Michigan		Michigan Stadium Ann Arbor, MI (series)	ABC	L 17–19	110,433
November 26	2:30 p.m.	at Northwestern		Ryan Field Evanston, IL (rivalry)	BTN	W 41–3	25,744
January 2, 2023	11:00 a.m.	vs. No. 22 Mississippi State*		Raymond James Stadium Tampa, FL (ReliaQuest Bowl)	ESPN2	L 10–19	35,797
*Non-conference game Homecoming Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game All times are in Central time

^[2]

Game summaries

Wyoming

	1	2	3	4	Total
Cowboys	3	0	3	0	6
Fighting Illini	7	10	7	14	38

At Indiana

	1	2	3	4	Total
Fighting Illini	7	3	7	3	20
Hoosiers	3	13	0	7	23

Virginia

	1	2	3	4	Total
Cavaliers	3	0	0	0	3
Fighting Illini	14	7	3	0	24

No. 10 (FCS) Chattanooga

	1	2	3	4	Total
No. 10 (FCS) Mocs	0	0	0	0	0
Fighting Illini	10	14	7	0	31

At Wisconsin

Illinois vs. Wisconsin – Game summary

Period	1	2	3	4	Total
Fighting Illini	7	7	17	3	34
Badgers	7	3	0	0	10

at Camp Randall Stadium, Madison, Wisconsin

Date: October 1, 2022
Game time: 11:00 a.m.
Game weather: 58 °F (14 °C) • Wind: NE at 5 miles per hour (8.0 km/h) • Weather: Sunny
Game attendance: 73,502
Referee: Jerry Servinski
TV announcers (BTN): Lisa Byington (play-by-play), Anthony Herron (analyst), Krystle Rich (sideline)
[1]

Game information

First quarter

WIS – Isaac Guerendo 21-yard pass from Graham Mertz (Nate Van Zelst Kick), 11:15 Wisconsin 7–0, Drive: 7 plays, 53 yards, 3:39
ILL – Tommy DeVito 1-yard run (Caleb Griffin Kick), 4:30 Tie 7–7, Drive: 7 plays, 16 yards, 3:39

Second quarter

WIS – Nate Van Zelst 39-yard field goal, 14:53. Wisconsin 10–7. Drive: 10 plays, 45 yards, 4:32.
ILL – Tommy DeVito 1-yard run (Caleb Griffin Kick), 7:31 Illinois 14–10, Drive: 6 plays, 47 yards, 2:48

Third quarter

ILL – Tommy DeVito 1-yard run (Caleb Griffin Kick), 10:24 Illinois 21–10, Drive: 10 plays, 75 yards, 4:36
ILL – Caleb Griffin 44-yard field goal, 9:03. Illinois 24–10. Drive: 4 plays, -10 yards, 1:18.
ILL – Chase Brown 49-yard run (Caleb Griffin Kick), 6:42 Illinois 31–10, Drive: 4 plays, 70 yards, 1:14

Fourth quarter

ILL – Caleb Griffin 31-yard field goal, 14:18. Illinois 34–10. Drive: 9 plays, 40 yards, 5:18.

Top passers

ILL – Tommy DeVito – 18/24, 167 yards
WIS – Graham Mertz – 17/32, 206 yards TD, 2 INT

Top rushers

ILL – Chase Brown – 25 carries, 129 yards, TD
WIS – Chez Mellusi – 7 carries, 16 yards

Top receivers

ILL – Brian Hightower – 5 receptions, 59 yards
WIS – Chimere Dike – 5 receptions, 76 yards

Top defenders

ILL – Jartavius Martin – 7 tackles, TFL, sack, pass breakup
WIS – Keeanu Benton – 3 tackles, 2 TFL, 2 sacks

Iowa

Iowa at Illinois

	1	2	3	4	Total
Hawkeyes	3	3	0	0	6
• Fighting Illini	3	3	0	3	9

Date: October 8
Location:
Memorial Stadium
Champaign, IL
Game start: 6:40 pm CDT
Game attendance: 44,910
Game weather: 56 °F (13 °C), Sunny, Wind SW 8 mph (13 km/h)
Referee: Greg Blum
TV announcers (BTN): Cory Provus (play-by-play), Jake Butt (analyst), and Elise Menaker (sideline)

Source: Box Score

Scoring summary

1	9:03	Illinois	F. Pinton 27-yard field goal	Illinois 3–0
1	3:51	Iowa	Drew Stevens 32-yard field goal	Tied 3–3

2	8:00	Illinois	F. Pinton 37-yard field goal	Illinois 6–3
2	2:48	Iowa	Drew Stevens 27-yard field goal	Tied 6–6

4	2:49	Illinois	F. Pinton 36-yard field goal	Illinois 9–6

Illinois won for the first time in nine tries in the series since the two teams became part of the Big Ten West. It was also former Iowa player and coach Bret Bielema's first game at Illinois against Iowa, as he missed the 2021 meeting due to issues relating to COVID-19.

^[3] ^[4]

Statistics	IOWA	ILL
First downs	13	18
Total yards	221	316
Rushing yards	52	200
Passing yards	169	116
Turnovers	1	3
Time of possession	28:55	31:05

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Iowa	Passing	Spencer Petras	18/36, 169 yards, INT
	Rushing	Leshon Williams	7 carries, 32 yards
	Receiving	Sam LaPorta	9 receptions, 100 yards
Illinois	Passing	Artur Sitkowski	13/19, 74 yards, INT
	Rushing	Chase Brown	31 carries, 146 yards
	Receiving	Brian Hightower	5 receptions, 68 yards

Minnesota

	1	2	3	4	Total
Golden Gophers	0	7	7	0	14
No. 24 Fighting Illini	7	6	7	6	26

At Nebraska

	1	2	3	4	Total
No. 17 Fighting Illini	6	14	3	3	26
Cornhuskers	3	6	0	0	9

Michigan State

Week Nine: Michigan State at No. 16 Illinois– Game summary

Period	1	2	3	4	Total
Michigan State	3	6	14	0	23
No. 16 Illinois	7	0	0	8	15

at Memorial Stadium • Champaign, IL

Date: November 5, 2022
Game time: 3:40 p.m.
Game weather: 58 °F (14 °C), Cloudy, Wind: SW 30 mph (48 km/h)
Game attendance: 56,092
Referee: Larry Smith
TV announcers (BTN): Cory Provus (play-by-play), Matt Millen (analyst)
Sources:

Game information

First Quarter

(08:03) ILL TD: Isaiah Williams 60-yard pass from Tommy DeVito (Caleb Griffin kick)
ILL 7–0; 2 plays, 59 yards, 0:42
(01:36) MSU FG: Ben Patton 21-yard field goal
ILL 7–3; 15 plays, 72 yards, 6:27

Second Quarter

(10:21) MSU TD: Tre Mosley 1-yard pass from Payton Thorned (kick failed)
MSU 9–7; 7 plays 61 yards, 3:48

Third Quarter

(05:45) MSU TD: Jarek Broussard 11-yard run (Ben Patton kick)
MSU 16–7; 6 plays, 29 yards, 3:48
(05:27) MSU TD: Jayden Reed 16-yard pass from Payton Thorne (Ben Patton kick)
MSU 23–7; 3 plays 41 yards, 1:22

Fourth Quarter

(14:27) ILL TD: Isaiah Williams 7-yard pass from Tommy DeVito (Tip Redmon pass from Tommy DeVito)
MSU 23–15; 8 plays, 56 yards, 3:25

Passing

MSU – Payton Thorne: 19/29, 182 yards, 2 TD, 1 INT
ILL – Tommy DeVito: 25/37, 288 yards, 2 TD

Rushing

MSU – Jalen Berger: 15 carries, 84 yards
ILL – Chase Brown: 33 carries, 140 yards

Receiving

MSU – Jayden Reed: 5 receptions, 68 yards, 1 TD
ILL – Isaiah Williams: 5 receptions, 98 yards, 2 TD

Purdue

	1	2	3	4	Total
Boilermakers	0	14	7	10	31
No. 21 Fighting Illini	7	7	7	3	24

At No. 3 Michigan

	1	2	3	4	Total
Fighting Illini	0	3	14	0	17
No. 3 Wolverines	7	0	3	9	19

At Northwestern

	1	2	3	4	Total
Fighting Illini	7	10	17	7	41
Wildcats	0	0	0	3	3

Vs. No. 22 Mississippi State (ReliaQuest Bowl)

No. 22 Mississippi State Bulldogs vs. Illinois Fighting Illini (ReliaQuest Bowl)

Period	1	2	3	4	Total
No. 22 Mississippi State	0	3	0	16	19
Illinois	0	7	3	0	10

at Raymond James Stadium • Tampa, Florida

Date: Monday, January 2, 2023
Game time: 12:00 p.m. EST
Game weather: Sunny • Temperature: 76 °F (24 °C) • Wind: 6 mph (9.7 km/h) west
Game attendance: 35,797
TV announcers (ESPN2): Dave Flemming (play-by-play), Rod Gilmore (analyst), and Tiffany Blackmon (sideline)
Box score

Scoring summary

Quarter	Time	Drive			Team	Scoring information	Score
Quarter	Time	Plays	Yards	TOP	Team	Scoring information	Mississippi State	Illinois
2	2:49	10	77	4:45	Illinois	Tommy DeVito 2-yard touchdown run, Caleb Griffin kick good	0	7
2	0:09	8	55	2:40	Miss. State	38-yard field goal by Massimo Biscardi	3	7
3	6:57	11	45	5:13	Illinois	52-yard field goal by Caleb Griffin	3	10
4	14:54	13	75	7:03	Miss. State	Justin Robinson 8-yard touchdown reception from Will Rogers, Massimo Biscardi kick good	10	10
4	0:04	9	68	1:46	Miss. State	27-yard field goal by Massimo Biscardi	13	10
4	0:00				Miss. State	Fumble recovery returned 60 yards for touchdown by Marcus Banks, kick not attempted	19	10
"TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football.							19	10

Rankings

Further information: 2022 NCAA Division I FBS football rankings

Ranking movements
**Legend:** ██ Increase in ranking. ██ Decrease in ranking.
— = Not ranked. RV = Received votes.
	Week
Poll	Pre	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	Final
AP	—	—	—	—	—	RV	24	18	17	14	21	RV	RV	RV	RV	RV
Coaches	—	—	—	—	—	RV	RV	20	18	13	20	RV	RV	RV	RV	—
CFP	Not released									16	21	—	—	—	—	Not released

Roster

2022 Illinois Fighting Illini football team roster

Players

Coaches

Offense

Pos.	#	Name	Class
RB	`0`	Josh McCray	So
WR	`1`	Isaiah Williams	So
RB	`2`	Chase Brown	Jr
QB	`3`	Tommy DeVito	Sr
WR	`4`	Khmari Thompson	Jr
WR	`6`	Ashton Hollins	Fr
WR	`7`	Brian Hightower	Jr
WR	`8`	Shawn Miller	Fr
QB	`9`	Art Sitkowski	Jr
QB	`10`	Donovan Leary	Fr
QB	`11`	Jake Huber	Fr
WR	`11`	Jonah Morris	Sr
QB	`12`	Kirkland Michaux	Fr
WR	`13`	Pat Bryant	So
WR	`14`	Casey Washington	Jr
QB	`15`	Jameson Sheehan	Fr
QB	`17`	Ryan Johnson	Sr
WR	`18`	Chase Miller	Fr
WR	`19`	Eian Pugh	Fr
TE	`20`	Naivyan Cargill	Fr
RB	`21`	Aidan Laughery	Fr
RB	`22`	Chase Hayden	Sr
RB	`23`	Reggie Love III	So
RB	`24`	Nick Fedanzo	So
RB	`25`	Jordan Anderson	Fr
TE	`40`	Lucas Althaus	Fr
TE	`42`	Michael Marchese	Sr
TE	`43`	Griffin Moore	So
TE	`44`	Ben Clawson	Fr
TE	`48`	Mike Cernigila Jr	So
OL	`53`	Devin Hale	Fr
OL	`54`	Julian Pearl	So
OL	`56`	Magnus MØller	Fr
OL	`57`	Evan Kirts	So
OL	`58`	Matt Fries	Fr
OL	`62`	Sam Tsagalis	Fr
OL	`63`	Alex Palczewski	Sr
OL	`64`	Josh Kruetz	Fr
OL	`65`	Joey Okla	Fr
OL	`66`	Jordyn Slaughter	Jr
OL	`68`	Zachary Barlev	Fr
OL	`70`	Tommy Cronin	So
OL	`71`	Hunter Whitenack	Fr
OL	`72`	Zy Crisler	So
OL	`73`	Josh Gesky	Fr
OL	`74`	Dylan Davis	So
OL	`75`	Alex Pihlstrom	Sr
OL	`76`	Clayton Leonard	Fr
OL	`78`	Isaiah Adams	Jr
OL	`79`	Luciano Elias	Fr
WR	`80`	Hank Beatty	Fr
WR	`81`	Daniel Edwards	Fr
TE	`82`	Luke Ford	Sr
WR	`83`	Keion Battle	Fr
TE	`84`	Owen Anderson	Fr
WR	`85`	Miles Scott	Sr
WR	`86`	Weston Adams	Fr
WR	`87`	Kody Case	Sr
TE	`88`	Henry Boyer	Fr
TE	`89`	Tip Reiman	So

Defense

Pos.	#	Name	Class
DB	`1`	Kionte Curry	Fr
DB	`2`	Matthew Bailey	Fr
DB	`3`	DD Snyder II	Fr
DL	`4`	Jer'Zhan Newton	So
LB	`5`	Calvin Hart Jr	Jr
DB	`6`	Terrell Jennings	Jr
DB	`7`	Kendall Smith	Sr
LB	`8`	Tarique Barnes	Jr
DB	`9`	Tyson Rooks	Fr
DB	`10`	Tahveon Nicholson	So
DB	`12`	Elijah Mc-Cantos	Fr
DB	`14`	Xavier Scott	Fr
DB	`15`	Prince Green	Fr
DB	`16`	Peyton Vining	Sr
LB	`17`	Gabe Jacas	Fr
DB	`20`	Tyler Strain	Fr
DB	`21`	Jartavius Martin	Sr
DL	`23`	Terah Edwards	Fr
LB	`25`	Jared Badie	Fr
DB	`26`	Mike Manning	So
DB	`27`	Matt Bobak	Fr
LB	`28`	Dylan Rosiek	Fr
DB	`29`	TJ Griffin	Fr
DB	`30`	Sydney Brown	Sr
DB	`31`	Devon Witherspoon	Jr
DB	`32`	Tailon Leitzsey	Sr
LB	`33`	Ezekiel Holmes	Jr
LB	`34`	Ryan Meed	So
DB	`35`	Grayson Griffin	Fr
LB	`36`	Ben Schultz	So
DB	`37`	Solo Turner	So
LB	`38`	Isaac Darkangelo	Sr
LB	`39`	Kenenna Odeluga	Fr
LB	`40`	Shammond Cooper	So
LB	`41`	James Kruetz	Fr
LB	`42`	Luke Zardzin	Fr
LB	`45`	Malachi Hood	Fr
LB	`48`	Bryce Barnes	Jr
LB	`49`	Seth Coleman	So
DL	`52`	Verdis Brown	Jr
DL	`55`	Sed McConnell	Fr
DL	`57`	Evan Kirts	So
DL	`88`	Keith Randolph Jr.	So
LB	`90`	Alec Bryant	Fr
DL	`91`	Jamal Woods	Sr
DL	`93`	Calvin Avery	Sr
DL	`94`	Raashaan Wilkins Jr	Jr
LB	`98`	Deon Pate	Sr
DL	`99`	Christian Lorenzo	Sr

Special teams

Pos.	#	Name	Class
K	`5`	Caleb Griffin	Jr
K	`16`	Will McManus	Fr
K, P	`98`	Fabrizio Pinton	Fr
P	`19`	Hugh Robertson	Fr
P	`96`	Josh Leff	Fr
LS	`36`	Lane Hansen	Fr
LS	`39`	Aidan Hall	So
LS	`47`	Preston Engel	Jr
LS	`95`	Nico Crawford	Fr

Head coach

Bret Bielema

Coordinators/assistant coaches

Barry Lunney Jr. – Offensive Coordinator / Quarterbacks
Ryan Walters – Defensive Coordinator
Ben Miller – Special Teams Coordinator/Tight Ends
Cory Patterson – Running Backs
Terrance Jamison – Defensive Line
George McDonald – Wide Receivers / Assistant HC
Aaron Henry – Defensive Backs
Bart Miller – Offensive Line
Andy Buh – Linebackers
Kevin Kane – Outside linebackers / Associate HC
Sean Snyder - Special Teams/Specialists

Legend

(C) Team captain
(S) Suspended
(I) Ineligible

Injured
Redshirt

Roster
Last update: September 21, 2021

Coaching staff

Name	Position	Consecutive season at Illinois in current position
Bret Bielema	Head coach	2nd
Ryan Walters	Defensive coordinator	2nd
Barry Lunney Jr.	Offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach	1st
George McDonald	Wide receivers Coach / assistant head coach	2nd
Kevin Kane	Outside linebackers Coach / associate head coach	2nd
Bart Miller	Offensive line coach	2nd
Andy Buh	Linebackers coach	2nd
Terrance Jamison	Defensive line coach	2nd
Aaron Henry	Defensive backs coach	2nd
Ben Miller	Tight ends coach/special teams coordinator	2nd
Cory Patterson	Running backs coach	5th

References

^ "Illinois & Northwestern get their football schedules shuffled for 2022". Retrieved February 4, 2022.
^ ^a ^b "2022 Illinois Football Schedule". Retrieved February 4, 2022.
^ "Iowa Visits Illinois In Battle Of Big Ten West Contenders". Associated Press. October 6, 2022. Retrieved October 8, 2022.
^ "Backup kicker's field goal lifts Illini to 9-6 win over Iowa". Associated Press. October 8, 2022. Retrieved October 9, 2022.

v t e Illinois Fighting Illini football
Venues	Illinois Field (1890–1922) Memorial Stadium (1923–present) Soldier Field (1994–present)
Bowls & rivalries	Bowl games Michigan Missouri Northwestern Ohio State: Illibuck Trophy Purdue
Culture & lore	Illinois Loyalty "Oskee Wow-Wow" Marching Illini Gene Honda Fighting Illini Sports Network Chief Illiniwek 1960s slush fund scandal 2019 Wisconsin game 2021 Penn State game
People	Head coaches NFL draftees Statistical leaders
Seasons	1890 1891 1892 1893 1894 1895 1896 1897 1898 1899 1900 1901 1902 1903 1904 1905 1906 1907 1908 1909 1910 1911 1912 1913 1914 1915 1916 1917 1918 1919 1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023
National championship seasons in bold