Quarterback issues are among the stickiest a coach can deal with. And Illinois coach Ron Zook knows he has one on his hands.
Zook’s plans for dividing the work between starter Juice Williams and backup Eddie McGee didn’t work as planned in the Illini’s 27-17 loss to Michigan on Saturday night in Champaign.
As for the plan for Saturday’s homecoming game against Ball State, don’t bother asking. Zook isn’t offering any more than that Williams remains the starter.
“They both did some good things, they both did some things not so good,” Zook said. “As Eddie continues to improve, I think there’s a chance you’ll see him more and more.”
Other that that, Zook said Sunday, “I’m not going to tell you or anybody else.”
Zook kept to his plan to play McGee in a situation other than injury or a poor Williams showing Saturday. He said he planned to use McGee in the second quarter.
But Williams got Illinois off to a 14-3 lead, with a touchdown drive carrying five minutes in to the second quarter. So McGee’s appearance was postponed until the third quarter.
McGee was shaken up, so Zook wound up changing quarterbacks four times, which wasn’t the plan.
Williams completed 8 of 14 for 70 yards, his only interception coming when he replaced McGee for a final desperation drive at the end of the game. Williams tossed a 26-yard touchdown pass to Jacob Willis in the first quarter. McGee was 6 of 12 for 46 yards.
Zook indicated he’s going to continue to be patient with his young quarterbacks. “It’s a sophomore (Williams) and a redshirt freshman (McGee), that’s what it is,” Zook said.
As he discussed not sharing his plans, Zook noted that Michigan’s Mike Hart, the nation’s leading rusher at 154 yards per game, was held out with an ankle injury. Michigan did not clarify Hart’s status all week.
“Everyone thought Michael Hart was playing until he walked out in sweats,” Zook said.
Hart’s replacement, Carlos Brown, rushed for 113 yards and 4.5 yards per carry.
The loss all but ended Illinois’ Big Ten title hopes and leaves it one win short of bowl eligibility. The Illini are 5-3 overall, 3-2 in the Big Ten and tied for third place with Penn State, which they’ve beaten. They trail Ohio State and Michigan, both 4-0.
“You look at the schedule and we could conceivably finish 9-3, or 5-7, too,” Zook said. “We still have a lot of ball to be played.
“Nobody likes to lose. There are bunch of teams (five) with two losses in the Big Ten, so we’re not alone there.”
Zook said Illinois had a “great” week of practice before the Michigan game. “Maybe we’re trying a little too hard, I don’t know.”
Quarterback play wasn’t the biggest issue against Michigan. Illinois passed for only 116 yards, but had almost as many in penalties — 107 on 10 flags.
“We did some things we hadn’t done,” Zook said. “Why? It was a big game, we’re excited, we made some mistakes and had some dumb penalties you can’t make. It’s part of experience, part of growing up.”
Zook said he plans to stick with Kyle Hudson as his punt returner after Hudson’s fumble at the Illinois 13-yard line led to Michigan’s winning touchdown. Hudson also let a punt hit the ground, costing the Illini field position.
“It’s more how Kyle handles it than how I handle it,” Zook said.
Hudson also plays baseball for Illinois. “I told him, ‘It’s like striking out,'” Zook said. “It may be a little more than that, but you get back up and you want to swing again. You can’t let the ball drop [without being caught].”
Zook said defensive end Derek Walker (foot) should be ready for Ball State. Tight end Michael Hoomanawanui injured his back in warm-ups and his status is uncertain.
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tabannon@tribune.com
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*Ball State at Illinois, 11 a.m. Saturday, BTN
