Illini Mizzou preview: Can we please end this rivalry now?

That, and the Illini keep losing.

However, I think it’s a good thing. It gives the Illini a quality opponent every season to test their mettle. Most of these people wouldn’t be complaining if the Illini had fielded some quality teams and maybe won a couple of these games. Mizzou gives the Illini an early (and consistent) test of where they should be if they were a bowl team. I understand the argument that it’s been one-sided, but if Illinois didn’t schedule games like this, it most likely wouldn’t matter in terms of bowl selection. They would just get exposed by the tougher teams in the conference (i.e., the first 3 games in their conference schedule). Good teams win games and go to bowls, and the Illini haven’t been winning this game because they haven’t been a good team. Saying the Illini shouldn’t play good teams because it exposes them as a bad team doesn’t help their bowl selection case.

I also don’t buy the injury argument. Players get injured all the time, especially in football. That’s why depth is important. Half of our secondary got injured in practice last week. Should we eliminate practices because players might get injured? Of course not. Nor should the Illini stop playing games against tough opponents because their players might get injured.

So all in all, I think this “rivalry” is a good thing (not to mention the monetary benefits). Just my two cents.

and for my part it was included because it drives home the fact that the annual Missouri game is at its best quite depressing, granted it is an emotional argument, but one I will make nonetheless. Missouri has only brought us gloom and doom, but it wouldn’t be so bad if it were later in the schedule.
This is a team that has struggled to make bowls over the last decade, but when it did it needed to be overwhelmingly talented or lucky (or both) Yes if the Illini had been better they would have made more bowls, but scheduling matters, and what teams you play and when can have a huge impact on your team’s chances at making a bowl.

This team is not, in all likelihood, a contender for the conference championship, its goal is mostly to win 6 games and go to any bowl at all, The goals are by no means setting the bar too low given the circumstances. Having an already front loaded schedule makes it less easy to keep fan involvement past week 6, if the Illini are 2-4 like they already figure to be.
To start the season against SIU and NIU, before playing a team like Missouri makes a whole lot more sense, it allows the team to run it’s plays and get warmed up against lower tier competition before it has to play teams that are more talented. At the very least, it helps to move the game to later in the year.

With that perspective, let me tell you why I agree with Joe on this one.

Illinois will NEVER be ahead of Mizzou in this area. Even here in the Metro East, which is IN THE FUCKING STATE OF ILLINOIS, I sometimes wonder if there are more Mizzou fans than Illinois fans. At times, I wonder if it’s because that’s all the local media outlets – being of Missouri by actually being in St. Louis, not to mention that a host of them probably attended Mizzou’s world-class School of Journalism – really talk about around here. Mizzou this. Mizzou that. Mizzou here. Mizzou there. Illinois, Saint Louis U., SIU-Edwardsville, all the schools of the Missouri Valley Conference (which is BASED in St. Louis) . . . all take a back seat to Mizzou.

All this despite Mizzou having such a “tradition-filled” football program that the incomparable Mike Shannon – who was told after making the decision that he “could’ve won a Heisman” by several folks – decided to sign a baseball contract with the St. Louis Cardinals instead of attending Mizzou and being a quarterback on their squad.

This, despite from 1983 until 1997, not earning the glory of playing in a bowl game (quite often, not even coming close).

This, despite Mizzou always being a basketball and baseball school, and nothing more. But since Illinois, SLU and all the Valley schools are basketball schools by nature, this is pretty much a wash.

The lead-up to this game is no different. Sure, the Tigers have a few St. Louis-area products on their squad, the most prominent being Gabbert. So do the Illini (most prominently Terry Hawthorne and Jason Ford), but like hell if they’ll get so much as acknowledgment on any of the sports programs or from the printing press.

Watch the game on Saturday. Come back and tell me how much black-and-gold is in the stands. I will be stunned if it’s less than 70% of the crowd.

St. Louis is Mizzou territory, and this is another home game for them. Get the fuck out of here, while you still have the chance.

But all joking aside…

I’ve enjoyed this series (obviously) and I thought it was a good showcase for the St. Louis area. I think it might have been better for both teams as the 4th OOC instead of the first. And let’s face it, even though Illinois hasn’t won yet, there have been some pretty good games produced from this series.

Of course, now that you get rid of Mizzou, you have to start playing Nebraska every year. Be careful what you wish for, I guess.

Our only hope is long scoring drives that keep our D off the field and the ball out of Gabbert’s hands. Our secondary is just too banged up for us to win any kind of shoot out, especially with new starters at QB and WR.

Leshoure, Leshoure, Leshoure some mo’