CHAMPAIGN – A steady rain fell on the 100 or so running around Sunday at Memorial Stadium. They didn't seem to care.

Not after a 38-10 win. Not after starting their season 2-0.

The Illinois football players went back to work Sunday evening, practicing for about 45 minutes under the lights. The scout teams stuck around for a short scrimmage while the first two units did sprints on the sidelines.

They all looked like they were enjoying themselves.

At 8 a.m. Sunday, Illinois coach Ron Turner popped in the defense tape from Saturday's victory against San Diego State.

"When you put a football game on or watch TV of somebody that is a good football team, that's playing with confidence, that's having a lot of fun, it's obvious," Turner said. "You watch them, and all you see is whatever color jerseys they have flying around, a blur almost coming on the screen.

"I told our guys today, 'That's what I saw this morning when I put that tape on. I saw blue jerseys and orange pants and orange helmets flying everywhere and guys jumping on piles.' It looks like our football team the last two weeks has been having fun. That hasn't always been the case. I said, 'We've just got to keep that coming.' "

One group Turner isn't worried about is his punt team. Before Saturday's game, Turner challenged the players to keep San Diego State's Damon Gourdine, one of the nation's top punt returners, from having a big day.

On two tries, Gourdine gained 13 yards. Illini Eugene Wilson had 96 more yards.

"There were guys on that team hoping we wouldn't make first downs so we had to punt," Turner said. "That's the attitude they have. They wanted to go down and get after them. When you get people thinking that way, you've got something good going."

It's even better, Turner said, when there's still room to improve. And Saturday's third quarter gave Turner plenty to gripe about.

The team had 12 men on the field during a punt, giving San Diego State a chance to keep the ball. The Illini fumbled a punt. Kurt Kittner got sacked. There were two penalties against the offense.

"I don't care if the score is 100-0 or 3-3, you can't have those kind of mistakes," Turner said. "That's just concentration and focus.

"I wasn't complaining about anything. I said, 'That's a helluva win. A decisive win against a very good football team. Just think what would have happened if we played four quarters. We played three quarters and had a helluva win.' "

Close calls

Illinois might have gotten a break late in the first half when quarterback Kittner tried to spike the ball. Some, including San Diego State coach Ted Tollner, thought Kittner fumbled.

"He spiked it," Turner said. "That's how the ref called it. Refs are never wrong. He tried to do it. I asked him if he did. He smiled and said yes he did."

Kittner never should have been in that position in the first place, Turner said. On second down, Kittner had a chance to throw an incompletion to stop the clock. Instead, he tried to run and got stopped after 2 yards.

"He's got to throw the ball away," Turner said. "We lost an opportunity to get six points. It's those kinds of things, I don't care what happens, we're not going to be happy about."

Earlier in the quarter, Kittner fumbled while apparently trying to throw the ball. Turner thought at the time that the play should have been ruled an incomplete pass.

"After looking at the film, I think it could have gone either way," Turner said. "He should have held onto the ball, and we wouldn't have had to worry about it."

Do stats matter?

Except for categories like turnover margin, Turner doesn't think so.

"There's so many variables, especially in college football," Turner said. "In the NFL, it means a little more. You look at the NFC stats, you're playing the same teams. College football is so different."

For the record, the Illini are fourth nationally in team punting, eighth in scoring defense, 12th in total defense, 16th in rushing defense and 19th in scoring.

Individually, Steve Fitts is seventh in net punting, Kittner is 11th in passing efficiency and passing yardage and Neil Rackers is 16th in field goals.

Busy beavers

If the Illini defensive backs looked a bit tired after Saturday's game, they had an excuse. Each of the four starters went at least 90 plays. That's a lot of work for a college player.

Cornerback Tony Francis was the busiest, working 75 plays on defense and 29 on special teams. Safety Asim Pleas was next with 96 plays, cornerback Johnny Rogers went 95 and safety Muhammad Abdullah went 90.

"At this level, you've got to put your best guys out there," Turner said.

Oh, brother

Turner watched part of the Washington-Dallas game Sunday. Brother Norv's Redskins built a huge lead but lost in overtime.

"It's bad, bad," Turner said. "That's tough. The little bit I saw, they were playing really well."

Turner talked to his brother Sunday morning before the game and expected to talk again sometime today.

The Day After

Review

Every game has a defining moment when the outcome is established. Here's the play from Saturday's Illinois-San Diego State game:

The Situation

The game is scoreless late in the first quarter, but San Diego State is driving. The Aztecs move to Illinois 36, where they face a fourth and 1.

The Play

With tailback Larry Ned already gaining big chunks of yardage against the Illinois defense, the Aztecs decide to try him again. A week earlier against South Florida, Ned averaged 10 yards per carry.

The Result

Illinois defensive end Fred Wakefield and safety Muhammad Abdullah foil the strategy, stacking up Ned before he can reach the line of scrimmage. Illinois takes over at its 37.

The Outcome

Two drive later, Illinois quarterback Kurt Kittner finds receiver Greg Lewis behind the San Diego State secondary for a 54-yard touchdown. The rout is on. The Illini score 10 more points in the second quarter and roll to a 38-10 win. That makes Illinois 2-0 for the first time since 1992.

The Record

UI 41 Arkansas State 3

UI 38 San Diego State 10

Saturday at Louisville

Sept. 25 vs. Michigan State

Oct. 2 at Indiana

Oct. 16 vs. Minnesota

Oct. 23 at Michigan

Oct. 30 vs. Penn State

Nov. 6 at Iowa

Nov. 13 at Ohio State

Nov. 20 vs. Northwestern

Preview

On Saturday, Illinois travels to Louisville. A quick read on the Cardinals:

Last Game

Normally, Louisville rips through defenses with the pass. On Saturday against Chattanooga, they tried the run. With success. Frank Moreau gained 188 yards on 19 carries in Louisville's 58-30 victory. He scored four touchdowns, on runs of 3, 1, 50 and 7. The Chattanooga rushing attack went backwards, losing 17 yards on 27 attempts.

Who to Watch

Do we even need to tell you? Quarterback Chris Redman. The one-time Illinois signee didn't have a huge game against Chattanooga, throwing for 238 yards and two touchdowns. He torched Kentucky the previous week and tends to play well against the Illini. In two games against Illinois, he has 599 passing yards.

Where to Watch

Drive to Papa John's Stadium. The game is being shown in Kentucky but won't be available here.

Reason to Watch

The Illini are trying to go 3-0 for the first time since '82. It won't be easy against charged-up Redman.

By the Numbers

n Louisville is 29th in this week's national polls and probably a win away from moving into the Top 25. No Conference USA team is ranked.

n Although Redman gets all the Heisman hype, Moreau is piling up huge numbers. After two weeks, he has 369 yards on 39 carries. He has scored six touchdowns. Illinois held San Diego State's talented duo of Ned and Jonas Lewis to 71 yards on 24 tries.

The Record

UL 56 Kentucky 28

UL 58 Chattanooga 30

Saturday vs. Illinois

Sept. 25 vs. Oklahoma

Oct. 2 vs. E. Michigan

Oct. 7 at Army

Oct. 16 at Memphis

Oct. 23 vs. Houston

Oct. 30 vs. Alabama-Birm.

Nov. 6 at Cincinnati

Nov. 20 vs. Southern Miss.