Data Driven: Illini Snap Counts & PFF Grades

Offensive Snap Counts (TOTAL: 74)

NOTE: Players who are bolded are starters in that position group

QB: Brandon Peters - 49

Isaiah Williams - 25

ANALYSIS: Two weeks after having easily his highest graded performance and one of the nation's highest grades at the quarterback position in a win at Nebraska, Brandon Peters followed up with a poorly graded performance despite not being responsible for a turnover. The Michigan transfer was 0 for 3 on passes that went 20 yards or more in the air (was a perfect 3 for 3 on these throws at Nebraska) and in the seven snaps where he was under pressure he went 0 for 4 with two sacks and a quarterback scramble.

In the final two drives of this game, Williams completed a 29-yard touchdown pass to Carlos Sandy on easily his best throw of the 2020 season when Iowa's defense brought pressure. Williams forced Iowa's coaching staff to call a timeout as the redshirt freshman averaged 6.3 yards per rushing attempt. It is noteworthy that PFF noted that on two snaps, Williams was lined up at wide receiver but that had to be on the first drive of the game because they listed him as a starter.

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RB: Chase Brown - 51 (22 pass plays, 29 run plays)

Reggie Love III - 29 (19 pass plays, 10 run plays)

ANALYSIS: With Mike Epstein listed as inactive with an undisclosed injury, Brown got his start, which isn't a surprise considering the Canadian native was already considered the most dynamic tailback on this roster. However, the surprising thing involved in the playing time rotation was Reggie Love III's involvement. It's not that he got 29 snaps of action or that the freshman from St. Louis graded out by PFF as being above average on the six carries he received. It's that Illinois offensive coordinator Rod Smith trusted the freshman enough on 19 pass plays as a blocker and that may not continue this week vs. Northwestern. As expected with most freshman tailbacks, blitz pickup was a problem for Love and he graded poorly in his pass blocking assignments despite Iowa only bringing a blitz on eight of the Illini's 74 offensive snaps.

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WR: Josh Imatorbhebhe - 73 (38 pass plays, 35 run plays)

Donny Navarro - 54 (28 run plays, 26 pass plays)

Casey Washington - 38 (20 run plays, 18 run plays)

Brian Hightower - 26 (14 run plays, 12 pass plays)

Carlos Sandy - 10 (10 pass plays)

Dalevon Campbell - 10 (10 pass plays)

Isaiah Williams - 2 (2 run plays)

NOTE: Imatorbhebhe played every snap of this game but one and as you can expect, graded out very well. When lined up opposite of Iowa cornerback Riley Moss, the Southern California transfer won that matchup a majority of time as he caught three balls (four targets) for 44 yards and all three of those catches resulted in a first down. Casey Washington continues to get more snaps over the course of a game than Miami (Fla.) transfer Brian Hightower and Hightower only found himself one target throughout his 12 pass play snaps in the game.

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TE: Daniel Barker - 58 (31 run plays, 27 pass plays)

Luke Ford - 18 (13 pass plays, 6 run plays)

ANALYSIS: Illinois has essentially ditched the idea of using three tight ends since Daniel Imatorbhebhe suffered an early-season injury. Daniel Barker continues to be a safety blanket for Peters in the pass game by getting four receptions on five targets and his first touchdown of the 2020 season. Barker, who met with media Monday afternoon, admitted he still is a work-in-progress in terms of providing the offensive tackles help in pass blocking but Illini offensive coordinator Rod Smith stressed that may be more of a fundamentals issue needing to be worked out than a unwillingness to be physical at the line-of-scrimmage.

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OL: Vederian Lowe (LT Starter) - 74 (39 pass plays, 35 run plays)

Kendrick Green (LG Starter) - 74 (39 pass plays, 35 run plays)

Doug Kramer (C Starter) - 74 (39 pass plays, 35 run plays)

Verdis Brown (RG Starter) - 74 (39 pass plays, 35 run plays)

Julian Pearl (RT Starter) - 74 (39 pass plays, 35 run plays)

ANALYSIS: The encouraging aspect of the offensive line grades, which weren't very solid in terms of four of the five members, was how Vederian Lowe graded out at his left tackle spot. Lowe and center Doug Kramer were the only two offensive lineman to not allow a single pressure or quarterback hurry in the entire game. Lowe's perfect pass-blocking efficiency and overall grade of 91.2 was ranked the best performance by any Big Ten offensive tackle last weekend. Julian Pearl struggled Saturday in his pass blocking assignments on the opposite side of the Illinois offensive line but he also didn't get much help from when Illinois went to a formation with the tight end at the line-of-scrimmage and tried to chip the defensive end.

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Defensive Snap Counts (TOTAL: 68)

DE: Owen Carney Jr. (LE Starter) - 60 (31 pass plays, 29 run plays)

Seth Coleman (RE Starter) - 36 (19 run plays, 17 pass plays)

Isaiah Gay - 22 (12 pass plays, 10 run plays)

Keith Randolph Jr. - 16 (9 pass plays, 7 run plays)

Marc Mondesir - 6 (5 run plays, 1 pass plays)

ANALYSIS: The rotation of five players rotation is the most depth that the Illini have attempted to show this season and it should be noted that Seth Coleman got the start over Isaiah Gay. Coleman graded out much better at setting the edge and not allowing Iowa's tailbacks get to the perimeter and forcing the action back inside but Gay provided the most quarterback pressures and that could be why Lovie Smith chose to use him more as a third-down rusher in this game.

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DT: Roderick Perry - 56 (31 run plays, 24 pass plays)

Jamal Woods - 4 (2 run plays, 2 pass plays)

Jer'Zhan Newton - 45 (25 pass plays, 20 run plays)

Calvin Avery - 13 (9 run plays, 4 pass plays)

Bryce Barnes - 12 (6 run plays, 6 pass plays)

Deon Pate - 3 (2 run plays, 1 pass play)

ANALYSIS: Woods suffered an undisclosed injury during the first drive of this game and so Newton, a true freshman, was back in for significant playing time. Unfortunately Newton struggled in both the run and pass against a physical interior Iowa offensive line. You might want to expect Bryce Barnes to get more playing time this weekend at Northwestern as the 270-pound sophomore graded out the highest of any Illini defensive lineman against the run. Calvin Avery's snap counts continue to decrease as the 340-pound Dallas native, who was highly touted as a prospect four years ago, is seen now more as a short-yardage, zero-technique option for the Illini.

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LB: Jake Hansen (MLB) - 68 (35 run plays, 33 pass plays)

Milo Eifler (SLB) - 60 (33 pass plays, 27 run plays)

Khalan Tolson (WLB) - 13 (7 pass plays, 6 run plays)

Michael Marchese - 55 (29 run plays, 26 pass plays)

Shammond Cooper - 8 (8 run plays, 0 pass plays)

ANALYSIS: Illinois was eventually down to three scholarship linebackers in this game due to injuries to Khalan Tolson and Delano Ware (Jake Hansen, Milo Eifler and Shammond Cooper) and Marchese, who is listed at safety, was forced into action in the second level of the Illini's defense. The Iowa game was the first game where Eifler showed significant improvement in the pass game and because he was forced to move back inside, Hansen was unable to interject himself into any pass rushing or blitz scenarios in this game.

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CB: Nate Hobbs - 30 (17 pass plays, 13 run plays)

Devon Witherspoon - 66 (33 run plays, 33 pass plays)

Kendall Smith - 29 (16 run plays, 13 pass plays)

Jartavius Martin - 9 (6 run plays, 3 pass plays)

Marquez Beason - 2 (1 run play, 1 pass play)

NOTE: Kendall Smith was forced into more action than Lovie Smith probably wanted Saturday due to the concussion injury of Nate Hobbs. While it appeared Iowa immediately picked on the reserve cornerback for five targets in the 13 pass plays he was on the field for, he actually graded out average on both the pass and run. The obvious note here is the lack of playing time for Marquez Beason as Smith said after the loss that the issue was "between Marquez and I" before trying to backtrack and mention Beason's two seasons of injury history. Martin, who has seen significant time at safety, was moved to nickel for this game.

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S: Tony Adams - 47 (26 pass plays, 21 run plays)

Sydney Brown - 33 (19 run plays, 14 pass plays)

Derrick Smith - 56 (31 run plays, 25 pass plays)

NOTE: Smith received significant playing time in this game and while his two missed tackles suffered his grade in that department, he was probably the most effective he's been all season in the pass game. This was another game where the worst tacklers on the Illini defense were at the safety position.