Bielema: Repeated offensive struggles 'inexcusable'

Oct. 7—CHAMPAIGN — "That's just absolutely insane."

Those were Bret Bielema's words to describe not one, but two fourth-and-inches plays Illinois couldn't convert on the opening drive of Friday night's Big Ten game against Nebraska.

They weren't just run-of-the-mill fourth-and-inches plays, either. Six inches from the end zone — from turning a successful opening drive into rare points in those situations — could have changed the entire dynamic of Friday's game.

One failed Luke Altmyer tush push and one failed Reggie Love III carry later, Illinois had zero points to show for a 14-play, 74-yard drive that ate up 6 minutes, 14 seconds of the first quarter.

Stalling out less than half of a yard from the end zone? Inexcusable. Frustrating. Just absolutely insane.

"In 15 years of coaching, I've never been in this position where we can't gain a half a yard," Bielema said in the aftermath of his team's 20-7 loss to the Cornhuskers. "We can't get any movement at the line of scrimmage, the point of attack. ... They have to be able to move guys at the line of scrimmage."

Isaiah Adams took those short-yardage struggles personally. Not just as an Illinois captain, but as one of the offensive linemen not getting that movement.

"It's disrespect to the whole team," Adams said. "That's five guys letting the whole team down. ... That first drive we put seven points on the board it's a different game, a different energy. But when you get stopped on the 1-yard line, it's going to set the tone for the whole game for sure."

Not that Illinois was unfamiliar with that specific set of circumstances. That Friday's failures were not unique is what frustrated Bielema the most. Seemingly successful drives stalling out within sight of the end zone haven't exactly been rare this season. The Illini added another late in the fourth quarter in a two-score game with a turnover on downs at the Nebraska 18-yard line that allowed the Cornhuskers to run one play and then kneel out the final seconds of their road win.

Two trips to the red zone. Zero points.

"It's just infuriating to have the same issues pop up over and over and over and again," Bielema said. "That's what is frustrating. ... We've got to convert points. Bottom line, that's what it is. We can't win any games doing this without scoring points."

Bielema promised change as Illinois hit the midway point of the season with a 2-4 record. No specific changes in the heat of the moment Friday night, but changes to what the Illini coaches ask the players to do.

"I wish I could tell you right now," Bielema said. "I just know that when you have failure, you've got to change. Change the results. To change the results, sometimes it's change the scheme, it's change a call. Whatever it has to be, we've got to have better results.

"To be a 2-4 football team right now is just absolutely a very painful thing. I wish I could give better answers other than we'll make the adjustments, make some corrections, make changes and hopefully move forward against Maryland."

Bielema voiced more frustration Friday night than he has at any other point this season, although it might have been at a slow burn ever since last week's 25-point loss at Purdue. He walked back losing to the Cornhuskers as the most frustrated he's been in his coaching career — that he'd been frustrated before — but accentuating his point by slamming his fist on the podium was new.

"I literally want to know if we didn't get it, what's the next one?" Bielema said with some fist pounding. "That's what I've got to get our coaches to do is move forward. OK, the answer wasn't there. What are we going to do to change it? That's what we have to do. Obviously, as a head coach, that falls directly on me. We can't have the same repeated answers."

The frustration from the players' perspective is Friday night's game was there for the taking. Even with the offensive struggles. Nebraska had four second-half drives that started at midfield or inside Illinois territory, and the Illini defense held the Cornhuskers to just three points while getting an interception from Xavier Scott and a fumble recovery by James Kreutz.

But the offense couldn't capitalize.

Three fourth-quarter drives ended in a punt, an Altmyer interception and a final turnover on downs.

"I sound like a broken record; I keep going back to momentum, but that's what it is," Illinois wide receiver Casey Washington said. "When you get an opportunity to score and are down there in the red zone and you have a chance to score, we've got to find a way to make that happen.

"We all work too hard to lose, and losing sucks. Your body hurts. All of you is poured out into this game of football. When you come up short, it's extremely disappointing. There's no give up in me or the team. We're going to keep going."