Seth, chicago, il: What happened to Dufrene? Did he get hurt? He wasn't on the field much Saturday...not that we need him anyway with Ford and Leshoure!!! Those two are fantastic

Moderator: Hi again, everybody. The Dufrene situation was, as far as we know, a coach's decision. Leshoure ran well, as did Ford, and the coaches stuck with those two. Loren and Jim

Grady , Saint Joseph, IL: Morning guys. I'm a big fan of the ole saying "It it ain't broke...don't try to fix it." That being said, why not keep the same starting lineups, and same type of play calling for the rest of the season and see what happens? I think in several areas against Michigan we looked like everything was "in harmony" for a change. Your thoughts? It just seemed like we finally had some MOJO coming from the team! We were finally firing on at least ALMOST ALL CYLINDERS! :)

Moderator: Grady, after scouting Minnesota, a game plan will be established, and it might require the same plays that were effective against Michigan. There is no doubt that Juice's handling of the ball in the running game is the most effective thing he does. Minnesota is likely to force him to pass more by bringing up more people to stop the run. We'll see. Jim and Loren

Jeremy, Benton, IL: Hey guys,

What a GREAT GAME Saturday! I know it had to be more enjoyable for someone who has continued to believe as opposed to those who have been negative and on a witch hunt. Do you guys think the future looks good with all of the young guys making such big plays. I sure hope this staff gets to coach them!

Moderator: Jeremy, as joyous as it was, this win came against a Michigan team that is unlike the Michigan teams of the past. It is much too early to be optimistic about the future. But you keep believing, Jeremy. Loren and Jim

Kent, Appleton, Wisconsin: do you guys still thikn zook should be fired?

Moderator: Kent, as we have said a thousand times, it is appropriate to wait until the end of the season and evaluate then. We have never said that we think he should be fired at midseason. But a lot of other people think feel differently. Jim and Loren

tom , bloomington, IL: Who was the last Illinois quarterback to beat Michigan twice and/or two times in a row?

Does this win save Zook's job regardless if we win any more games? I'd say the jury is still out especiallly if we fail to win another.

Loren, was your letter to Zook last week the reason we won? Also, now that we have beaten Michigan at home for the first time in 26 years are you going to retire?

Moderator: Tom, like Joe Pa, I'll retire when I retire. No plan at this point.

It would take research, which we don't have time for, to determine when the same quarterback beat Michigan twice. John Easterbrook was a freshman and therefore ineligible in 1957, and became one of the quarterbacks in 1958. It had to happen before that. Jim and Loren

John M., Washington, D.C.: Loren, What do you think is the source of this maddening inconsistency, surely the team is not "coming together" now?

Moderator: John, actually, they've been pretty consistent up until Saturday ... consistently bad. Will this change everything? I don't have the slightest idea. Loren

FloridaIllini, Mount Dora, Florida: Did you see the punch to Cory Liuget's groin on Saturday by Mark Ortmann

Moderator: Floridaillini, I saw the replay several times and it clearly showed that Liuget was punched in the groin. Surely the Big Ten will review and take appropriate action. Jim

Shief, Champaign, IL: Illinois came back from behind and outscored Michigan in the third quarter alone. Do you think that this performance will help revive the fallen team and lead them to win at Minnesota, in Champaign against Northwestern and Fresno State, and maybe upset Cincy? I think if we can now run the table we won't get a great bowl but we will beat up whoever we play (Motor City/Papa Johns Bowl or something else).

Moderator: Shief, in baseball, momentum is as good as your next starting pitcher. With the Illini, it might be as good as the way Juice Williams performs. The likelihood of running the table is not great, but one of Bob Blackman's teams started 0-6 and finished 5-0. Anything is possible. Jim and Loren

Travis, Dekalb, il: Looks like the Illini have new uniforms once again (basketball). I've searched all over the internet and can't find anything... any idea where I could purchase a new jersey?

Moderator: Travis, sorry, we have no idea. We'll learn about the same time you do. Jim and Loren

Laurie Jamieson, Bellevue, WA: Do you think the Illini can win out and get in a bowl game this year?

Moderator: Laurie, it hasn't occurred to either of us. Illinois is an underdog at Minnesota Saturday. And we'll be a heavy underdog at Cincinnati. So it is a long shot. Jim and Loren

Steve, Springfield, IL: How many more games, if any, does Illinois win this year? Do they continue to improve and win a couple more games, or was Saturday's win an anomaly?

Thanks.

Moderator: Steve, you should know us well enough by now that the reason we don't predict is because we don't know. We simply don't. We go to each game and watch how it turns out. We have no crystal ball. Jim and Loren

Glenda, Rock Island, Illinois: Do you think Illinois can win enough games to get to a bowl? What happens if there aren't enough bowl teams to fill all the spots?

Moderator: Glenda, has the whole world gone crazy?????Illinois has won one Div I-A football game in the last 10, and we're getting questions about bowl eligibility. We thought this was a serious chat. Jim and Loren

Jake, Shelbyville, Il: Gentlemen,

saturday sure was a pleasant surprise and one that was greatly needed. We can only hope that they will build on this. On the other hand I saw a Michigan team that mirrored some of the same problems the Illini have experienced this year. Some of the runs the Illini had should have been stopped dead in their tracks except the Michigan defenders missed or ran by the runners. Passing obviously didn't need to enter into the scheme of things as the Illini only passed 11 times and rushed over 50 times. A better team would have probably shut the running game down better than Michigan did but you know what I'll take the W and maybe just maybe we can keep the mojo going from here. Go Illini

Moderator: Jake, as stated before, Minnesota will probably pack its defense and prevent Illinois from running 50 times. Juice will have to connect on his passes in an outdoor stadium in Minneapolis if the offense is going to keep moving. Jim and Loren

Scott , minnetonka, mn: I guess I'm a pessimist, but 11 passes against Minnesota won't cut it! We were one Hawthorne split second away from the same old story...Agreed?

Moderator: Scott, maybe you're right. Maybe the Illini were inches away from falling apart, and maybe the Illini would have rallied and won anyway. Who knows? There is something dreadfully wrong with Michigan's defense. And Illinois took advantage. Jim and Loren

Ron Zook, gainesville, florida: loren,

what is your favorite part about being a writer? what is your least favorite part?

Moderator: Ron, my favorite part is dealing with wonderful fans like you. My unfavorite part is dealing with wonderful fans like you. Loren

Charley, Bellingham, WA: Can you put a poll on the HQ front page as to fans' prediction of W-L record for rest of the season?

* 0-4

* 1-3

* 2-2

* 3-1

* 4-0

Thanks!

Moderator: Charly, you need to contact Jim Rossow. He runs the sports page and Illini HQ. We just do what Jim asks us to do. Jim and Loren

Capitalism Czar, Fayetteville, Arkansas: Thanks for the chats. Did you notice Zook actually talking to coaches and players on the sidelines whereas during the losing streak, he kept to himself? I honestly think Zook got his confidence back during the game and this indicated to me he didn't know what was wrong with the team to begin with. Does this make sense?

Moderator: Capitalism Czar, you are making an interpretation that hadn't occurred to either of us. We tend to watch the game, not the coach. As for his confidence, you'd have to ask him. He said he didn't know what went wrong when it went wrong, and it's likely he doesn't know what went right when it went right. If he had known earlier, he would have changed it. As for whether any of this makes sense ... you be the judge. Jim and Loren

Ryan, Decatur, IL: One of the things ive noticed is that whenever another team shuts down the run we're reluctant to try any passes downfield (until late in the second half saturday). Do you think it would open things up more if just on the first drive we came out firing deep just to get the D on its heels rather than just trying to pound it for the first 3 drives right into the middle of the line or just use bubble screens like we seem to always do?

Moderator: Ryan, the first drive worked perfectly. Sacks killed the next three. As always, the offense tries to take whatever the defense gives, and the Michigan defense was giving the run. These were the same plays the Illini had run before but on Saturday they worked. Jim and Loren

steve, omaha, ne: Loren,

Do you think Gillespie can get another D-1 coaching job?

Moderator: Steve, we think he'll land something in the Southwest next year or maybe the year after. Except for his Kentucky experience, he has been a good basketball coach. Jim and Loren

DadofSeven, Champaigh, IL: My favorite NFL team is any team that has an ex-Illini player on it . . . with the exception of the Pittsburg Steelers (Rashard Mendenhall). I'm having a problem rooting for Rashard after the bitterness he expressed for Ron Zook after declaring for the NFL draft. That sounded to me like so much sour grapes.

There was a brief mention in Sunday's New-Gazette of the Mendenhall brothers having been in attendance for the Michigan game on Saturday, but little was said of the comments attributed to Rashard M, regarding Ron Zook. Does anyone know if this rift has been patched over or did R.M simply avoid the Illinois coaching staff when they were here.

Moderator: DadofSeven, Bob Asmussen mentioned Rashard's statement about Zook, in which Rashard said he wouldn't support Illinois as long as Zook is the coach. It was in the Gazette. Rashard said he would not be available for interview while he was here, and he wasn't. Jim and Loren

Jalen, Rosemont, IL: After the Friday exhibition game I came away impressed with Billy Cole's floor game-do you think he could take away minutes from Legion if the turnovers keep coming from Alex?

Moderator: Jalen, Cole isn't going to play the small forward, as far as we know. Legion's minutes will probably go to Brandon Paul and, on occasion, Dominique Keller. Cole is the No. 3 power forward at this juncture. Jim and Loren

Laurie Jamieson, Bellevue, WA: Shifting gears to bball, has Tisdale shown some improvement defensively inside?

Moderator: Laurie, not that we have noticed. Defense is still his weakness. He rebounded better against Missouri Southern Friday. Weber said he always has trouble playing against smaller, quicker players. Jim and Loren

Moderator: Thanks, everybody, we'll be here again next Monday. Jim and Loren

Moderator: Thanks, everybody, we'll be here again next Monday. Jim and Loren