Scrimmage shows how far UI offense has to go

   CHAMPAIGN  The Illinois defenders weren''t quite sure how to act. Or what kind of expression to wear.

   They couldn''t help but be happy after Saturday''s 50-0 romp against the Illini offense in the annual spring game. It was a dream game for players who rarely score points.

   But in the fall, Saturday''s opponents become teammates.

   "We didn''t want to give up any points," defensive back Carlos McLaurin said. "But in the back of your mind, it''s like ''Wow, the offense didn''t score. Is that good or bad? Is the defense just that good or is the offense bad?'' You wonder."

   McLaurin, who did his part with a fumble recovery, thought about it a second and decided to give the defense credit.

   "I think our defense really knows what they''re doing," McLaurin said.

   And, linebacker Eric Guenther pointed out, the offense was short-handed.

   "I think it definitely hurt them that Robert Holcombe didn''t play," Guenther said of the star running back, who was out with a shoulder injury.

   Guenther has watched the offense progress during the 15 spring practices.

   During the game, Guenther admitted he wanted to see a little of that progress.

   "I felt like I wanted to go over and give them a pep talk," Guenther said.

   You couldn''t wipe the smile off cornerback Trevor Starghill''s face. The senior-to-be heard plenty of negatives about the defense during a 2-9 season in 1996.

   "We really had a good showing today," Starghill said. "We just stepped it up a little bit."

   Starghill said the defense is only starting to show its ability. During Saturday''s scrimmage, coaches intentionally kept the unit in its base defense. Once the real games roll around, Starghill promised, there will be more for the opponents to handle.

   The aggressive style favored by defensive coordinator Tim Kish thrills the players. Three sacks and four tackles for losses reminded Starghill of the old days, when Simeon Rice and Kevin Hardy bothered opposing quarterbacks.

   "Coach Kish, he likes to get in there and mix it up," Starghill said.

   Everybody was jumping on the defensive bandwagon, even head coach Ron Turner.

   "You can see I went to the defensive side today," Turner joked. "I turned the offense over to the offensive guys."

   Turner knows the offense has problems, especially the passing game. In 15 practices, the players have tried to learn the system. Their job between now and the Sept. 6 opener is to get it working.

   Over the next 10 days, Turner will evaluate the team''s spring session. Here''s a quick assessment of each position:

Quarterbacks

   Mark Hoekstra earned the No. 1 spot over Tim Lavery and Brian Sheard. The junior-to-be made quicker decisions, something Turner stresses to his quarterbacks.

   "He''s not holding the ball as long as some of the other guys," Turner said. "He''s getting back, making his reads and getting rid of the football."

   As a group, Turner said, the quarterbacks had a pretty good spring.

   "They''re picking up the offense," Turner said. "They are starting to understand what we''re trying to do with the football on every play. They''re still turning the ball over too much. We''ve had way too many turnovers this spring. We will not tolerate that."

   Hoekstra struggled on Saturday, hitting just 6 of 23 passes for 47 yards and an interception. He stayed positive after the game.

   "I''m not discouraged whatsoever," Hoekstra said. "We did some really good things on the offensive side of the ball that a lot of people don''t notice."

   What the offense needs most, Hoekstra said, is confidence. That will come with studying the playbooks and becoming familiar with the new system.

Running backs

   With Holcombe out, the running game wasn''t a strength. If it had been Southern Mississippi on the other side, Holcombe would have played.

   "We know what Robert can do," Turner said. "We know what kind of player he is. He''s gotten a lot of reps this spring running our offense. We feel very good about where he is with the knowledge of the offense."

   Hoekstra missed his favorite offensive weapon.

   "That''s always makes you a little more comfortable when he''s sitting behind you," Hoekstra said. "Robert Holcombe is one of the best running backs I''ve ever seen."

Receivers

   Dropped passes and the lack of big plays worries Turner. The unit is also dealing with the unexpected loss of Marquis Mosely, who quit the team earlier in the week.

   "I''m not very pleased with the production of the receivers," Turner said. "I haven''t been all spring. It''s a young group that really has to step it up and make some plays if we''re going to get where we want to be. I think they have the ability to be much better than they are."

Offensive line

   The parts are all in the place, now they''ve got to learn to work together.

   Former center-tackle Chris Brown is at guard. He''s still getting used to starting on offense. This is the third system during his four-plus year career.

   How long will it take for everyone to get comfortable?

   "That''s a good question," Brown said.

   Brown said the line is much better now than it was March 18. In the four months until training camp, Brown and his buddies will continue to work. They will practice blocking schemes and techniques.

   "We''re basically going to be coaching ourselves," Brown said.

Defensive line

   Turner hopes to find depth at all four positions before the opener. It looked like it was there Saturday.

   Garrett Johnson, Mike McGee, Mike Fordham, Jeff Weisse, Rameel Connor, Ryan Murphy, Fred Wakefield and Jeff Schwantz kept the pressure on the Illini quarterbacks. They also bottled up the Holcombe-less running attack.

   The line has two coaches now instead of one. The extra attention might be paying off.

Linebackers

   Michael Young could be a four-year starter at one linebacker spot. And middle linebacker appears solid with Guenther, David James and Robert Franklin.

   Young, Guenther, James, Danny Clark, Eric Garrett, Marcus Hood, Famous Hulbert and Chris Hoffman swarmed to the ball Saturday.

   "That''s the style we want to play," Guenther said.

Secondary

   The zone defense of the Lou Tepper era is out. The players are happy about it.

   Now, it''s up to the defensive backs to make plays.

   "I like it a lot," safety Asim Pleas said. "Now, we can just attack. No one really has to worry about making an assignment error."

   The defense only had one interception Saturday, and that was by linebacker Young. But the players were in position to pick off more, knocking away five passes. The team broke up just 28 passes in 11 games last season.

   "I love this defense," McLaurin said.

Special teams

   It took about two punts Saturday to figure out that''s a concern for Turner. In three kicks before Saturday''s scrimmage, Ryan Tabloff averaged 43.3 yards. The two other contenders, Jason Higgins and Bret Scheuplein, went for 33.7 and 26.3, respectively.

   "We''ve really got to improve," Turner said.

   No way to assess the kicking game Saturday. The offense didn''t get close enough to try a field goal.

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