At halftime Illinois trailed Iowa by only four points. The Illinois offense was much improved with Jeff George Jr. at QB, and the offense was playing with a new sense of moxie and poise.
Than the second half started and Illinois was outscored 28-3 on their way to a 45-16 loss.
It would be easy to let the second half disaster overshadow the first half, but there are some positives to take away. It is a disappointing result of course, but the team showed improvement and the playcalling was better on offense. The team is frankly a couple of years away from competing against a decent Iowa team on the road.