Ask Tate about Saturday's loss — and about Southern Illinois — here.

CHAMPAIGN – After a long bus trip Saturday afternoon, Ron Zook wanted to talk.

So, the Illinois coach called a team meeting when the buses returned to Memorial Stadium. It's an unusual step, but one he said he thought he needed to take.

"I just thought it was important that we talk," Zook said.

What was said?

"We talked about the team and what we've got to do," Zook said.

His players responded to the loss the way Zook expected.

"They're hurt," Zook said.

Back to work. At about 9:30 p.m. Saturday, Zook got a text message from starting quarterback Nathan Scheelhaase, who was watching tape of Saturday's game.

"He was down there (Sunday) morning, watching it some more," Zook said. "The one good thing about him now, he'll do everything in his God-given power to get better and help this football team."

Zook said he isn't worried about Sc heelhaase bouncing back after Saturday's loss. Scheelhaase had three interceptions and lost a fumble.

"He'll be the first to tell you that you can't turn the ball over," Zook said. "A little bit of that comes from pressing too much. A couple of the high throws were pressing too much. I think that will all come with experience."

Safety first. Scheelhaase's former roommate, Steve Hull, had a solid debut in the secondary. The converted receiver had seven tackles against Missouri.

"I was very, very proud of the way he played," Zook said. "He showed great toughness. I saw him in the training room (Sunday) morning and he was kind of laughing because I said, 'It's been a long time since you've been this sore.' He had a big smile on his face. He's all in, I know that."

Salukis stuff. As of Sunday afternoon, Zook hadn't started to look ahead to Southern Illinois. But he knows the score from the opener: 70-7.

"I think it's hard to throw 70 points when you're out there on air," Zook said. "I don't think there's any question, we're going to have to continue to have the same preparation we've had."

Penalty points. The Illini were flagged seven times for 44 yards. False starts were the most frequent offense.

"The noise, that's a little bit of it," Zook said. "That's hard to practice. And some of them, I'm not sure they were false starts."

Tough day. Three of Zook's former Illinois assistants had a rough day Saturday.

Ex-offensive line coach Eric Wolford, now in charge at Youngstown State, watched his Penguins lose 44-14 at Penn State.

Reggie Mitchell, now an assistant at Kansas, was part of a 6-3 home loss to Division I-AA North Dakota State.

Ex-offensive coordinator Mike Locksley, coming off a 1-11 season as head coach at New Mexico, suffered through a 72-0 loss at Oregon.

"I haven't had a chance to text him or anything today," Zook said. "I'm sure he isn't feeling real good today either."

Special effort. Zook said often leading into the opener that he expected improvement in the Illinois special teams. Punter Anthony Santella averaged 47 yards on four punts and kicker Derek Dimke hit a 52-yard field goal.

"We played special teams probably about as well as we've played since I've been here," Zook said.

First-timers. The Illini used four first-year freshmen in the opener, including two starters. Jay Prosch opened at fullback and Evan Wilson was the starting tight end. Defensive end Brandon Denmark and receiver Darius Millines also got into the game.

The Illini had 12 freshmen on the trip to St. Louis. Some of those eight who didn't get on the field Saturday are expected to play in upcoming games.