Three Instant Observations From Illinois' Rivalry Win Over Northwestern

Illinois finished its 2025 regular season at 8-4 (5-4 Big Ten) with a victory over Northwestern (6-6, 4-5) by a score of 20-13 on a snowy night in Champaign. It was an ugly, gritty contest – exactly what one would expect from a classic Big Ten showdown marred by freezing temps and seemingly endless precipitation – yet the Illini triumphed.

After last Saturday’s letdown (losing at Wisconsin by double digits), Illinois desperately needed a win to close out its scheduled campaign and build at least a little momentum heading into the postseason.

And considering the Illini entered the year with College Football Playoff aspirations, it would have been gut-wrenching – both for the program and its fanbase – for Bret Bielema’s club to fall to its in-state rival on its home turf and lose possession of the “The Hat."

It’s ours. pic.twitter.com/ethmfCMxMr
— Illinois Football (@IlliniFootball) November 30, 2025

Even with the triumph, the season has been, on balance, a letdown. But the Illini ended their regular season with a bang, finishing the year at 8-4 – a win total that ties for the second-highest number of victories for the program since 2007. And still in play is a back-to-back nine-win season, which would be an historical first for the Illini.

Here are three more instant observations from Illinois’ win over Northwestern:

Running back Ca’Lil Valentine’s future is bright

Sophomore running back Ca’Lil Valentine finished with a modest stat line against the Wildcats: 14 carries for 74 yards and a touchdown. Much of his work was done in the first two quarters, before the Illini (questionably) went away from him in the second half.

Illinois strikes first in an icy Champaign ❄️🙌@IlliniFootball pic.twitter.com/WTLxyiZ94s
— FOX College Football (@CFBONFOX) November 30, 2025

We get it: Aidan Laughery and Kaden Feagin are veterans, and each of those two backs is a proven product. But throughout the 2025 campaign, Valentine has clearly been the best runner among them. Feagin is valuable in short-yardage situations and Laughery has impressive straight-line speed and hits gaps well, but Valentine is the most dynamic of the three.

Although he’s no wrecking ball, Valentine has grown more physical since he arrived in Champaign as a freshman. And his twitchiness, patience, vision and burst allow him to consistently break off solid pickups and even get back to the line of scrimmage when a play is blown up in the backfield.

Heading into the 2026 season, there is absolutely no reason Valentine shouldn’t be Illinois’ premier back and clear No. 1 option.

The defense finally showed up

Oct 11, 2025; Champaign, Illinois, USA; Illinois Fighting Illini defensive back Torrie Cox Jr. (5) and defensive back Miles Scott (10) react during the second half against the Ohio State Buckeyes at Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Ron Johnson-Imagn Images | Ron Johnson-Imagn Images

Here’s a concerning anecdote: Illinois had forced one turnover in the past five games heading into Saturday – and that lone turnover was a meaningless end-of-half interception plucked off a heave from Maryland quarterback Malik Washington.

But in the regular-season finale, the Illini, who surely took advantage of the snow-induced chaos, forced Northwestern into four turnovers. And there was another forced fumble Illinois didn’t jump on, along with an interception that was overturned and declared a sack (Wildcats quarterback Preston Stone’s knee was ruled down before he got rid of the football).

PICKED OFF BY ILLINOIS@IlliniFootball now has a chance to make it a 2-score game with 5 minutes lef to play pic.twitter.com/RE0BoGXqeJ
— FOX College Football (@CFBONFOX) November 30, 2025

Even more impressively, the Illini didn’t just survive by forcing turnovers – they also held the visitors to just 4.5 yards per pass attempt, 3.1 yards per carry and 254 total yards.

Luke Altmyer’s game-managing ability was on full display

Despite throwing just 15 times and coughing up the rock in a nearly disastrous second-half turnover inside his own five-yard line, quarterback Luke Altmyer still made a huge difference against Northwestern.

He connected on a few big pickups through the air (three passes of 20-plus yards), but was otherwise largely ineffective as a thrower. Still, he found other ways to control the game. Altmyer was heavily pressured as Northwestern consistently turned up the heat, sending five or six bodies – yet the Illinois quarterback was sacked just once, despite little help from his offensive line.

Altmyer has grown immensely this season, in terms of understanding when and how to get rid of the ball under pressure. He has finally struck a balance between extending plays and not taking unnecessary losses.

His wheels came into play elsewhere: Altmyer squirted 17 yards up the middle to help set up Feagin's touchdown just before the half. And he was otherwise sure-footed and sure-handed on an icy, frigid evening that saw the Wildcats commit several blunders directly related to the elements.

Even on a down statistical night, Altmyer was impressive in his own way – but, more importantly, helped lift Illinois to another win.